Kaipi and I clung to the fork of the limb and waited, and as I watched
Holman the wisdom of our actions was assailed by a cold doubt. We had
left the two girls entirely unprotected, and if Leith reached the camp
before we returned, and heard from the chattering Professor the story of
the finding of the scrap of paper, it would be reasonable to suppose
that he would consider the moment had arrived for the perpetration of
any deviltry he had planned.
But Holman's actions interrupted my mental criticism of the wisdom of
our plans. The youngster had reached the extreme end of the limb, and he
was clawing madly at the rock to obtain a footing. He succeeded after a
five minutes' struggle, and he sent a breathless whisper back to our
perch.
"There's a ledge here," he murmured. "I think we can climb up from it.
Hurry along, and I'll give you a hand."
I needed a hand when I reached the end of that leafy seesaw. I was much
heavier than the boy, and the limb could hardly support my weight when I
neared the end. Holman reached out his hand at a moment when I thought
that a drop through the air would be my reward for attempting aerial
exhibitions, and the next moment I was beside him on a little projection
that barely gave us a footing.
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