CHAPTER XXIV
THE GIANTS
"Let's go down and investigate," suggested Jack.
"Better wait," counseled the professor. "It will soon be dark, and,though we will have moonlight, we can not see to advantage. I think itwill be best to keep the ship in the air to-night, and descend in themorning. Then we can look about and decide on what to do."
They all agreed this was the best plan, and, after making a circle abovethe deserted village, and noting no signs of life, the _Mermaid_ wasbrought to a halt over the centre of the town, and about three hundredfeet above it. There the travelers would be comparatively safe.
It was deemed best to keep watch that night, and so, Mark, Jack, Billand Tom took turns, though there was nothing for them to do, as not athing happened. With the first appearance of dawn Mr. Henderson gaveorders to have the ship lowered, and it came to rest in the middle ofwhat corresponded to a street in the queer mound village.
"Now to see what kind of people have lived here!" cried Jack. "They musthave been a queer lot. Something like the Esquimaux, only they probablyhad more trouble keeping cool than the chaps up at the north pole do."
Now that they were down among the mound houses, they saw that thedwellings were much larger than they had supposed. They towered highabove the boys' heads, and some of them were large enough in area tohave accommodated a company of soldiers.
"Say, the chaps who lived in these must have been some pumpkins," saidJack. "Why the ceilings are about fifteen feet high, and the doorsalmost the same! Talk about giants! I guess we've struck where they usedto hang out, at any rate."
The houses were a curious mixture of clay and soft stone. There weredoors, with big skins from animals as curtains, and the windows weredevoid of glass. Instead of stairs there were rude ladders, and thefurniture in the mound houses was of the roughest kind.
There were fire-places in some of the houses, and the blackened andsmoked walls showed that they must have been used. In one or two of thehouses clay dishes, most of them broken, were scattered about, and thesize of them, in keeping with everything else, indicated that those whoused them were of no small stature.
"Some of the bowls would do for bath tubs," said Jack, as he came acrossone or two large ones.
By this time the professor, Bill and Tom had joined the boys, and thefive went on with the exploring tour, while Washington and Andy remainedin the ship to get breakfast.
"The inhabitants are evidently of a half-civilized race," the professorsaid. "Their houses, and the manner in which they live, show them to beallied to the Aztecs, though of course they are much larger than thatrace."
"What's bothering me," Bill said, "is not so much what race they belongto, as what chance we'd stand in a race with them if they took it intotheir heads to chase after us. I've read that them there Azhandledraces----"
"You mean the Aztecs," interrupted the professor.
"Well the Aztecs, then. But I've read they used to place their enemieson a stone altar and cut their hearts out. Now I'm not hankerin' afteranything like that."
"Don't be foolish," spoke Mr. Henderson. "Wait until you meet some ofthe giants, if that is what they are, and then you can decide what todo."
"It may be too late then," remarked Bill in a low tone, and the boyswere somewhat inclined to agree with him.
However, there seemed to be no immediate danger, as there was no sign ofany of the big people about the village. The adventurers walked aboutfor some time, but made no discoveries that would throw any light on thereason for the place being left uninhabited. It seemed as if there hadbeen a sudden departure from the place, for in a number of the housesthe remains of half-cooked meals were seen.
"Well, I think we have noted enough for the time being," the professorremarked, after they had traversed almost half the length of what seemedto be the principal street. "Let's go back to the ship and havesomething to eat. Washington may have become alarmed at our absence."
They made a circle in order to take in another part of the town on theirway back. While passing through a sort of alley, though it was onlynarrow by comparison with the other thoroughfares that were very wide,Mark came to a place where there was a circular slab of stone, restingon the ground. In the centre was a big iron ring.
"Hello! Here's something new!" he exclaimed. "Maybe it leads to a secretpassage, or covers some hidden treasure."
"I guess it will have to continue to cover it then," Jack spoke. "Thatprobably weighs several tons. None of us could move it."
They made their way back to the ship, where they found Washington andAndy discussing the advisability of going off in search of them.
"Breakfast is mighty near spoiled," said the colored man with an injuredair.
But the travelers did full justice to the meal, notwithstanding this.Deciding there was nothing to be gained by staying in that vicinity, theprofessor started the ship off again.
They traveled several hundred miles in the air, and, as the afternoonwas coming to a close, Jack, who was in charge of the conning tower,spied, just ahead of them, another village.
"We will descend there for the night," the professor said. "Does thereseem to be any sign of life about?"
"None," replied Mark, who was observing through a telescope the townthey were approaching. "It's as dead as the other one."
The airship settled down in a field back of some of the mound houses.
"Now for supper!" cried Jack. "I'm as hungry as----"
He stopped short, for, seeming to rise from the very ground, all aboutthe ship, there appeared a throng of men. And such men as they were! Fornot one was less than ten feet tall, and some were nearly fifteen!
"The giants have us!" cried Bill, as he saw the horde of creaturessurrounding the ship.