“Manuel,” muttered Jim, with almost a shudder.
“It means trouble,” grumbled Berwick.
“Nonsense,” responded Jim. But there was lacking the usual tone of assurance in his voice. He looked at his brothers and Juarez. No one spoke. All seemed imbued with the same feeling of inexpressible nervous concern. Was it a foreboding of some impending danger?
Very silently now the party pushed on, and a little later they were able to get a good view of the stretch of land occupying the space between the water’s edge and the foot hills, which were a full mile away.
It was a level plain with a few large eucalyptus trees of considerable growth clustered a short distance from the shore.
One particularly large tree of the group attracted Jim’s attention, and indicating this one, he announced:
“That is where the meeting will be held.”
The others looked at him in astonishment. To them the trees all looked alike.
“How do you know?” they chorused.
“See the birds flying about?” There were flying through the air a number of birds. Occasionally some of them lit for an interval, but never upon the tree Jim had pointed out.