Absurd as it seemed, fresh hope sprang up in their hearts, and they tried to reason themselves into the belief that some unlooked-for chance of escape would offer itself yet.
Even the colonel’s mood had changed, and it was easy to see that he was struggling with some terrible emotion.
The desire for life that was strong within him suggested to Guy a new plan; nothing, indeed, that offered any hope of escape, but merely a solution to his curiosity.
He remembered that on each occasion when their canoe had been caught by the influx of the river it had been carried direct to this island, a fact which seemed to prove the existence of a sluggish current through the center of the lake.
Did this current continue on past the island, and if so, whither did it lead?
A solution to these two problems Guy was curious to obtain.
It served to occupy his mind, to keep his thoughts from dwelling on the horrible fate that was in store for him.
It was more than likely, he told himself, that whirlpools would be found in the center of the lake. Well, drowning would be an easy death compared to the lingering tortures of starvation.