XIII
A STRANDED PLANE
Jack continued to stay at the controls, possibly because he wished Perkto do the observing as his keen eyesight was such a valuable asset.
It proved that the object Perk had seen, and on which the sun wasshining in such a dazzling way, was the hotel that catered to the manyvisitors and tourists who at certain seasons of the year flockedthither, enjoying the thrill of gazing on those natural wonders soprofuse in that locality.
Perk could readily make out a number of moving figures on the edge ofthe canyon, evidently intent on watching the coming of the airship anddoubtless speculating as to its mission.
Undoubtedly other boats had been seen flying overhead, since thatparticular section of country was being combed by a host of swift craftgathered from various quarters, all engaged in the humane task ofstriving to find the missing air mail pilot.
But Jack gave no evidence of a desire to drop down in the vicinity ofthe great hotel with its throng of guests--they could give him noinformation and the time could be more profitably used in commencing asystematic search. It would be time to descend when their stock ofsupplies in the line of food fell short or the gas tank gave promise ofbecoming empty. Nothing less must distract them from the task they hadbeen commissioned to carry out with all their ability.
"I c'n see people comin' up out o' the canyon now," Perk asserted withemphasis, "an' seems like they must be mounted on mules or donkeys,'cause no hosses c'n climb up an' down sech steep slopes. Say, ain'tthat worth comin' out here to see? I'll tell the world it sure is!Mebbe, 'fore we starts back to old Cheyenne, we'll get a chance to godown into the bowels o' the earth like them folks have been doin', an'seein' the hull panorama from the bottom."
"Who knows, Perk?" quoth the unmoved Jack, "but in the meantime we'vegot to stick on our job and do our level best to find Buddy--because ofhis mourning mother if for no other reason--and that goes!"
"I like to hear you say that, partner," cried sympathetic Perk, "an' meto back it up to the limit. My eyes! what a peach o' a pictur' that sureis! Somethin' never to be rubbed out while you live. Beats anything Iever set eyes on by big odds. Niagara was fine enough, but say, it ain'tin the same class as this paintin' o' Old Dame Nature's."
"I'd call it sublime, and let it go at that," Jack admitted, "for wordsnever were coined that could do justice to such a tremendous thing inthe way of natural scenery."
The hotel was now in their rear and rapidly growing fainter in thedistance, while below lay the wide reaches of the enormous canyon, dugthrough uncounted ages by the swift current of the famous river thatmiles further on would disappear from sight between walls that rearedtheir heads hundreds of feet aloft.
As if to give them both a comprehensive view of the entire opening, Jackhad reduced their speed to a minimum and was following the canyon gapwith Perk keeping his eyes glued to his glasses, unable to tear themaway for a single second lest he lose something of absorbing interest,possibly the most entrancing object in all that long category.
So it was that Jack felt a shock when he suddenly heard Perk givingtongue as though gripped with some fresh cause for excitement.
"Hey! what's this I'm seein' partner?" he yelled.
"Whereabouts?" demanded the other in a flash, for there was something hecould detect in Perk's squeal that would indicate a discovery of morethan usual importance.
"Right down in the ditch--look ahead, an' you'll see it! Boy, if thatain't a airship lyin' on the sandy shore o' the river, I'll eat my hat!An' yes, by gum! there's a man standin' alongside wavin' somethin' whitelike a flag o' distress! Oh my stars, c'n it be possible we've run on topoor Buddy Warner so clost to help an' him stuck there like a pig in apoke all this while? Jack, whatever c'n it mean, do you reckon?"
Jack was rather startled by what his comrade was saying, but as alwaysproved himself quick to act.
"Take over the stick Perk, and give me the glasses. I must see formyself what it means. A plane down in that big hole, close to the edgeof the rushing river and only a mile or so from help--it seemsincredible--why, as I understand from what I've heard and read, partieswith their guides often spend a night in the canyon looking throughthose queer Indian stone houses and even wander along the river for somedistance. Why, he never could be that close by all this time and hiscondition continue unknown."
He was riveting his gaze upon the spot Perk had pointed to, and just asthe other had declared, some one was making frantic gestures, waving apiece of white cloth and plainly asking them to drop down and rescue himor at least convey a knowledge of his desperate situation to those atthe hotel.
The more Jack stared the greater did the mystery become in his mind. Itsimply could not be--there must be some other explanation to account forso unreasonable a condition. What should they do about it? The man keptwaving his distress signal, and possibly was at the same time shoutingsomething, to judge from his actions although of course his voice failedutterly to reach their ears.
"What's goin' to be done about it, eh partner?" Perk was saying as heswung in a great curve and again started to pass over the object ofJack's scrutiny and bewilderment. "Do we leave him there, after comin'so far to help the poor lad? Ain't there a way for us to slant down an'drop on that sandy shore his boat's restin' on? Bet every red cent I gotit c'n be done, brother an' you're the boy to tackle the ticklish job."
"Make still another circuit, Perk," said Jack earnestly from which hiscompanion judged he must be even then considering in his mind whetherthe proposed scheme were feasible or not.
"He keeps right along signalin' to us not to desert him, Jack. Mebbe nowours ain't the first ship to come sailin' along an' the others gave upany idea o' landin' in the ditch, so he's getting a bit desperate--an'hungry as all get out in the bargain. Must a'been three days since hewas reported missin' you remember, partner."
Jack apparently was not wholly convinced. It might not be so difficult atask to drop down successfully, but being able to come up again would bea horse of another color, he figured. Then all at once he made hisdecision.
"We'll go, Perk--the stick if you please and stand by to lend a hand ifit's needed when we make contact. I can see what looks like an invitingplace in the water where we can use those dandy pontoons to advantage.Ready for it?"
They swung around once more and this time Jack turned the nose of hiscraft directly at a slant so as to head for the spot where the pilot ofthe wrecked ship was running up and down in great excitement, stillflinging his signal of distress back and forth.
But when he saw that they were actually starting to drop below themajestic walls of the wonderful canyon as though bent on endeavoring toassist him, he stopped short and stood there wringing his hands in whatto Jack was a rather peculiar way for a brave man to do. Still, if hehad been through a series of hard knocks, had perhaps even beenseriously wounded in the crash of his boat, he might be close todistraction. Anyway theirs must be the job of ascertaining the truth andafterwards doing all they could to afford him relief, though his planemight be beyond remedy and would have to be abandoned.
Now they were approaching the bottom of that rocky canyon--the wallstowered above like grim cliffs or battlements, forged by nature toprotect the stream that swept through the enormous gorge. It seemed toPerk, as he shot one thrilling look upward, as though they were a milehigh and that everything around them was mightily magnified--all savethe river itself, together with the stranded ship and the figurestanding there watching their coming so eagerly, so filled with freshlyrisen hope.
Then contact was made between their wonderful pontoons and the surfaceof the Colorado River and there they floated on the turbulent bosom ofthe stream.