Young Hunters in Porto Rico: or, The Search for a Lost Treasure

"Almost a paradise, isn't it?" remarked Don. "And how clear the air is – not half as hot as I imagined it would be."

"Jest you wait until noon afore ye speak o' the heat," returned old Jacob. "Old Sol don't git to work in earnest till about twelve or one o'clock."

They soon crossed a clear running brook, and leaving the bridge, Dick ran down to the water's edge to get a drink.

"Drink through your handkerchief!" called out Robert Menden.

"Through my handkerchief?"

"Yes."

"What for?"

"Because you don't want to swallow a lizard or worse. These waters are full of small animal life, so I've been told."

Dick did as the Englishman suggested. And he was glad of it, for while bending down he saw several tiny lizards or leeches swimming near at hand. "None in me, not if I know it," he murmured as he drew back. "I'll inspect everything that goes down my throat after this."

By noon they had covered several miles. The sun was out clear, and now the heat began to tell on them.

"I move we rest," suggested Leander; and this was readily agreed to, and they sat down under an immense plantain, covered with half ripe fruit – that fruit which we commonly know by the name of banana, although the real banana is red.

"Are there any wild animals in Porto Rico?" questioned Don.

"I'm sure I don't know," answered Robert Menden. "I shouldn't look for anything very large on an island of this size. All the large stock has probably been killed off by the natives."

"I reckon you'll find wild-cats here an' wild hogs," put in old Jacob. "An, let me tell ye thet a real wild hog is about as dangerous as a wolf or a leetle bear. But it ain't likely thet any wild animals would keep themselves around such a road as this. They would take to the mountains and stay there, so long as they could git enough to eat."

The rest was not half over when Dick grew restless, and arose to take a look at his surroundings.

"I'm bound to see all I can of the country," he said, with a smile. "Will you come, Leander?"

"Certainly," was the answer; and in a moment more the two chums were strolling off.

"Be back inside of fifteen minutes," shouted Robert Menden, and both called back that they understood.

There seemed to be a fine grove of orange trees to the left of the road, and toward this they made their way, wondering if they could pick up any fruit fit to eat.

"It must be fine to have such fruit ready to hand," observed Leander, as they entered the grove. "I reckon the natives don't know the value of what they've got."

"They might say the same of our apples, Leander. I'd rather have apples than oranges – that is, I mean for regular."

"Oh, so would I. Don't they grow apples?"

"I don't think so – anyway, not such apples as we have up North. It's too hot."

They soon found that the oranges were even more green than the plantains, or bananas, had been. They passed the grove and came out on a rocky stretch, overlooking a little valley where flowed a tiny stream, glistening like silver in the sunlight.

"Beautiful scenery," murmured Leander, and Dick agreed with him. Then a flock of gayly-colored birds flew out of some brush to the right of them.

"If I only had my gun," cried Dick – for their firearms had been left at the resting place.

"Let us see if we can't locate their nests," said Leander.

"I don't want to rob their nests," declared Dick.

"Neither do I; but we might have a look at the kind of eggs they lay."

So the pair set off through the brush and over the rocks.

They had gone less than fifty yards when they came to a spot covered with long rushes.

"The ground seems to be shaky here," began Leander, when suddenly, without warning, the rushes gave way, and down plunged both boys out of the bright sunlight into almost total darkness.

CHAPTER XII

PRISONERS OF NATURE

"Dick!"

"Leander!"

"Oh, my side!"

"Oh, my leg!"

"Are you seriously hurt?"

"I – I don't know."

"I've had all the wind knocked out of me."

"Ditto with me. What a tumble to take!"

"What kind of a place is this?"

"A hole – a big, deep, dark hole. One of the caves, perhaps."

"Do you think it's a – a bear's den, or something like that?"

"No, I don't. I reckon it's just a common, everyday hole, or cave. The question is, how are we going to get out?"

"To get out?"

"That's what I said."

"Climb out, of course."

"That's easy enough to say, but just look up and see how far we are from the top."