But the boys knew that they had some important things to attend to. The pleasures of life have an important part, but they were now engaged in serious work. The fact that they had accomplished so much was a great incentive to go on and investigate other things which were still mysteries, and which might be of great value to them.

The coming of the Professor had been a great pleasure to them. The developments of the past two weeks were ever in their minds and they could not repress the curiosity to visit the other islands, if such could be found.

Now that Sutoto was married they knew he would not be with them for a time, and they had not talked over the future plans. When, the next day, they and the Professor and John were together to consider the next step, it was with joy that the Professor informed them of the purpose of John to continue the investigations throughout that part of the ocean.

"It seems that your interpretation of Walter's note was entirely wrong," said John. "In any event it is certain that we are more than thirty leagues from Wonder Island, and not in the direction he pointed out."

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"Then it is likely that if there is an island which will fit the place, it must be to the north," said Harry.

"That would be a natural conclusion," he answered. "It has occurred to me that the natural place for an island would be to the north."

The boys looked at him with surprise. "What makes you think so?" asked George.

"I judged so, merely from the conformation of this island."

"What is there in the island that makes you think so?"

"You have noticed that the island is very narrow east and west, and very much longer north and south."

"Yes; but that still does not make it plain to me."

"The island may be like the ridge of a mountain cropping out of the ocean. For instance, the Andes and the Sierras in the United States run north and south. Now suppose the ocean should cover the land, those mountains would form islands which would naturally be north and south of each other, and the islands themselves would be longer north and south than east and west."

"I see the idea. But we might find them to the south of this island, as well."

"Certainly; but as the northern section brings us nearer the supposed thirty leagues, we should, I think, make the investigation there first."

It was necessary that Sutoto should go back top. 209 Wonder Island. His position as Chief of the Berees made this essential. Furthermore, the age of the Professor made traveling and the hardships of investigating on foot a hard task, and besides it was necessary to take back the visitors.

"I have suggested to the Chief that we shall return, and have invited him to accompany us, and I am gratified to say that he has accepted. We shall, therefore, be ready to return within a few days," said the Professor.

"Have you said anything to him about the contemplated visit to Hutoton?" asked John.

"No; but I shall do so at once."

"Oh! that will give us an opportunity to take the paralytic back with us," suggested Harry.

"Yes; that will be the reason for our stopping there."

"Wouldn't it be a good idea to sail to the north, and investigate in that direction, on our way home?" remarked George.

"That has occurred to me."

The Chief gave careful instructions to his son, Calmo, in view of his proposed trip, and informed the Professor that he was anxious to accompany them at the earliest opportunity.

Two days thereafter, the entire party boarded the ship, and the course was set for the northern part of the island. There the Chief had the first opportunity to see the dreadful place where the criminals of his community had been sent.

There was no resentment on the part of the conp. 210victs. On the other hand, there was the most effusive welcome extended, and when the Chief saw the happiness and prosperity there, which he could not help but contrast with his own people, he was amazed.

The unfortunate patient was carefully taken to the ship, and during his removal did not in the least indicate by any sign that he knew what was going on about him.

John took many stores from the ship, and particularly garments, and articles of food for the people. All participated in the division, and the old man was delighted when he saw the gifts, the more so when John told him that they would soon be visited and other stores provided.

When the rolling motion of the boat was felt by the stricken man, he showed the first symptoms of consciousness. Sometimes he would look about him, and try to grasp something. On several occasions the Professor saw him open his eyes with a sort of questioning look.

But we cannot dwell too long on the result of the patient's progress, at this time. John felt, as did the Professor, that from that man they would be able to learn something, if he could ever regain his faculties. The boys gathered that much from the conversation, so that, for the present, he must be left to the tender care of the Professor, until later events are recorded.

From Hutoton the ship sailed directly north, it being understood that if no land was sighted beforep. 211 evening it would be useless to go farther in that direction. The Pioneer was a good sailer, and could easily, with a fair wind, make ten miles an hour, so they would have fully seven hours' run to test out their theory of land in that direction.

Before five o'clock John, who was constantly on the watch, came to the Professor and remarked that he believed the haze to the north indicated the presence of land. This was soon communicated to the boys, and there was no more idleness from that time on.

John's theory was correct. Slowly certain fixed objects appeared and some outlines that looked like mountains, and the boys could not repress their anxiety at the anticipated shore.

"Then we were right, after all," said Harry.

John smiled, as he replied: "I do not know; the calculations have not yet been made."

"I would like to know how our position can be found out from an examination of the sun," remarked George.

"That will require a long answer to explain fully but I shall try to answer it in a simple manner. The sailor takes an observation of the sun in two directions, namely, north and south, and east and west. You know, of course, that the sun moves north in the summer and south in the winter, and that the extreme southern point is in midwinter, Dec. 20: that in the spring, or March 20, it is directly above the equator, and in midsummer, or, on June 20, it is as far north as it can go."

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"You mean," said George, "that it would be north of the equator."

"As we have the same calendar over the entire world, it is true everywhere. The difference is, of course, that summer and winter, and spring and autumn are reversed, north and south of the equator. All estimates as to locations are made by measuring angles."

"Then it must be something like surveying?"

"Yes; the same principles are applied. Here is a sketch, which shows the earth A, and B is the equatorial line. C is the position of the sun on September 20, or on June 20."

"Why are they in the same position on both days?"

"Yes; the sun crosses the equator September 20,p. 213 on its way south, and then it again recrosses the equator coming north six months afterwards. On either of those days, if a person should stand at D, and look at the sun, there would be a line E, which projects out from the earth to the sun, and that is called the equatorial line."

"It is exactly at right angles to F, which passes through the poles. Now the drawing shows two other positions, namely G and H. These represent the extreme points of the travel of the sun north and south, or the positions that the sun occupy on Dec. 20, and June 20 of each year."

"I see," said Harry. "The points G and H are just 23 degrees north and south of the equator."

"That is correct, and there is another thing which can be learned from their positions."

"I know what it is."

"What?"

"It gives another line, or angle."

"So now we have two angles, this, and the equatorial line. Then, we know the exact distance of the sun from the earth, and this gives the first measurement, and with the angle formed by the line I, taken in connection with the line E, it is easy to determine just where, or how far the sun is to the north or to the south, and if you did not, for instance, know the time of the year, a man could by such a measurement, tell, by the angle thus formed, the exact date."

"I understand that now," remarked George. "The sailor, in getting the angle, simply measures that, and if he knows where the sun is on that dayp. 214 he will then have two angles, one that he knows beforehand, and the other that he finds out by looking at the sun."

"That is correct. The Nautical Chart gives all that information, so that it saves a large amount of work in making the calculations."

"That gives the way to determine positions north and south. But how about east and west?"

"In the same manner exactly so far as the angle measurements are concerned, but in this case, instead of taking the time, in days or in months, as in reckoning north and south, we must take time in minutes, and to do that the entire globe is laid off in minutes and degrees, which the nautical tables give, and the mariner knows when he obtains a certain angle just how far east or west he is located by the chart."

"But if he has no chart?"

"Then he must figure out the position for himself, which he can do if he has what is called Greenwich, or standard time, and has, also the correct time of the day where his ship is."

Land was beyond; there was no question of that. It rose out of the water higher than the island they had just left, which the boys had named Venture Island.

The Chief knew nothing of the land before them. He had told John that years before he learned that there was a land where there were many bad people, who killed and ate each other, but he did not know the exact direction.

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The vessel was sailed along the coast, and the field glasses were used to scan the land. It had the appearance of the other islands which they now knew. Vegetation was magnificent, and growing everywhere, but there was not the sign of a habitation anywhere.

After an hour's sail they rounded a point, and beyond was the first cove, or indentation along the coast. To that John directed the course of the vessel, and they ran in very close, since he knew from the abrupt sloping beach that it must be a deep bay.

The men could scarcely man the boat quickly enough. A dozen of them, together with John, Muro and Uraso, took the first boat, while a second boat was filled with the warriors who also were accompanied by some of the natives of Venture island.

The Professor and the others remained on board, while the party made the preliminary examinations of the immediate neighborhood. John formed two parties, one under command of Muro, and the other of Uraso. The boys were with Uraso, while he was with Muro. The object was to find out as quickly as possible what they would have to meet, and the result would enable them to determine the future plans.

"It is understood, now," remarked John, "that the two exploring parties shall take the two courses outlined, Muro and his men, to go directly east, while Uraso will take a course to the northeast, and proceed in that direction for three hours, and then the two parties are to turn toward each other, andp. 216 mutually report. This will give us an opportunity to find out something, unless the island is a very large one, and requires subsequent exploration to ascertain whether it is inhabited."

John had purposely selected the route to the east, as he saw the high elevation in that direction, and George laughed, as he said, slyly: "John is still after the caves," and Harry laughed, as he recalled the keenness with which John had arranged the trips.

John did make his way to the highest points, and soon learned, from the observations, that the island was inhabited, but the trip of the boys was more exciting, so we shall more particularly detail their adventures.

Before they had gone two hours evidences grew thick and fast that tribes inhabited the island. Muro, and the different men, were continually finding traces, none of them, however, which indicated that the people were near at hand, or that the telltale marks had been recently made.

But now signs began to be apparent to the boys also; the bones of animals, lying around the spot where a fire had been gave them the first real sensation. Muro glanced at the boys, and at some bones, and the action on his part was so peculiar, that George quietly remarked:

"Muro looked so peculiarly at me when I glanced at the bones, over there, that I wonder what he meant?"

"I saw it too," answered Harry. "Let us have another look at them;" and acting on the suggestionp. 217 they went over. Muro followed. They did not appear to pay any attention to him; but he was quick to join them, and as he did so he slowly nodded his head.

"Are they human remains?" said Harry, as he turned to Muro, questioningly.

"Yes; and this is not the first we have seen," he answered. "We may find them now at any time. I am now sure that there are several tribes here."

"What makes you believe so?"

"Because we have found different kinds of hair, which is usually the best evidence of the differences in the tribes, as each has its own peculiarity."

"Savages, and cannibals!" said George reflectively.

"But we must go on. We have still an hour in this direction before we turn to the south and east," said Harry.

There was more caution now exercised, and the speed was accordingly reduced, in view of the especial care which they took. In order to understand what happened the reader should know something of the nature of the country.

Some places in Wonder Island had the same sort of timber and undergrowth, and they went through some dense forests, in which vines and small brush made traveling difficult. They had to cut their way through some of this vegetation.

The land was not low or flat. If it had been there would have been a dense jungle. Sometimes they passed through half-grown forests, and these placesp. 218 were the most difficult to scour, because an enemy might be within fifty feet, and not be discovered.

It was in just such a place that they received their first surprise; a shower of arrows, so thick that they instantly knew it could not have been made by only a dozen or so. Some of the arrows found their marks, and two of the men sank down, while Muro coolly drew one of the crude missiles from his arm.

"Drop down!" cried Muro.

There was not a savage in sight; still a number of arrows fell around them. "Remain quiet, and I will find them?" said Muro, as he crept forward quietly through the dense grass.

George and Harry followed, although it was evident it was not Muro's wish. Before they had gone ten feet, Muro turned, and pointed ahead. "They are there; at least one party. Get ready for a shot."

The savages, noting the quiet in their front, now cautiously peered through the bush, and the boys saw the most hideous countenances. "We might give them a round," said Muro, and after carefully aiming, the guns spoke.

The simultaneous explosion of the three guns, raised pandemonium on all sides. They were now surrounded by at least a hundred of the savages, but for some reason the little party of twenty awed them, and instead of making a charge, they rushed toward the place where the three victims of the gunshots lay.

Muro's arm was bleeding profusely, and Georgep. 219 quickly bound it up, while the enemy were hesitating. "Do not shoot, unless they rush at us. I will talk: to them, and try to get an understanding."

Then, in a loud voice Muro called to them, saying they were friends, and not enemies. There was no response. Thinking that they knew nothing of the dialect, he tried another, and the only response was the evident determination of the savages to attack again.

The boys and Muro could plainly hear their chattering, but the latter said that what they were saying was not intelligible to him, and that they must now prepare for a fight.

"Get your guns ready, and be prepared for a charge. If they come so close that you cannot use the guns, then we must be prepared to meet them with our knives, and we must all stand together, and not become separated."

Instead of attacking, however, there was silence, after the first excitement. "They are trying to find, out what struck their comrades when we fired," remarked Muro.

"Yes; I think it was a big surprise."

"I recall," continued Muro, "when we had our first brush with you that we could not find the arrow which we supposed was made by your bullet. That frightened us more than anything else."

There was not the slightest movement on the part of an enemy for a full half hour. This is the most trying sort of tactics. If you can see the enemy, or note that he is doing something, there is some reliefp. 220 to the tension, but where he can neither be seen, nor heard, it tries the nerves of the strongest man.

Muro knew that this inactivity on the part of the savages had its purpose. Probably, they intended to remain there until night, and overwhelm them in the rush. Muro had other plans, however.

"We cannot remain here. We must make the attack. Remain here, and permit me to feel out their positions, and also to determine what they are doing." He glided away from them noiselessly, and how he kept the tall grass and weeds from swaying, the boys could not determine at that time.

It did not take Muro long to see the situation. They were surrounded by a cordon of savages, and while spying, saw a new lot of them coming up. The plan was plain enough, and it meant a fight now, or a night defense.

When he returned, he had his plans formed. "They are being reinforced, and we have, probably, a hundred and fifty, or more, around us. John is, no doubt, too far away to come to our assistance, and our only hope is to attack them now, so we might as well take the necessary steps."

While on his investigations Muro had discovered a fallen tree, which was not more than fifty feet to their left. "We must reach that tree, and by digging a shallow trench at one side, can easily defend ourselves, as well as pick them off at our leisure."

Slowly they moved, in crawling attitudes, toward the place indicated. The tree was not a large one, but it made an admirable breastworks, and with theirp. 221 knives each man dug out a shallow hole, piling up the earth beyond the hole, so as to shelter them from the arrows, which they knew would be rained on them.

This work required a full half hour, and when it was completed, and Muro had satisfied himself that each one was supplied with sufficient ammunition, he was ready for the second stage of the game.

"We must attract them, by some form of action. I will take three with me, and crawl forward, until we can catch glimpse of some of the watchers. Those we will attack, and then fall back, and do the same on the other sides."

Muro indicated those who were to follow, and after going only a short distance the boys heard the shots, then four more. This brought the sounds of voices from every direction. Muro and his men, during the excitement, crawled to another portion of the line, and repeated the manoeuver.

This, for the moment threw them into consternation, but they quickly rallied, and now it was plain that they were pressing forward to rush the position occupied by the boys. It was now obvious that the precaution of making the defensive position, as Muro had suggested, was their only salvation.

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