Part 5 (1/2)
We was all in a powerful excitelasses and hunted everywheres for London, but couldn't find hair nor hide of it, nor any other settlen of a lake or a river, either
Toland; he thought England looked like America, and always had that idea So he said we better have breakfast, and then drop down and inquire the quickest way to London We cut the breakfast pretty short, as so ian to moderate, and pretty soon we shed our furs But it kept ON , and in a precious little while it was '!
We settled down to within thirty foot of the land--that is, it was land if sand is land; for this wasn't anything but pure sand Tom and s, and it felt a did, but the sand scorched our feet like hot e, and started to meet him; but we heard Ji, andWe couldn't un to heel it back to the balloon When we got close enough, we understood the words, and they made me sick:
”Run! Run fo' yo' life! Hit's a lion; I kin see hilass!
Run, boys; do please heel it de bes' you kin He's bu'sted outen de erie, en dey ain't nobody to stop hi all out ofthe way you do in a dreaot to the ladder and shi+nned up it a piece and waited for ot a foothold on it he shouted to Jim to soar away But Jiot how So To up and told hastly roar with every lope, and s shook so I dasn't try to take one of theive way under me
But Tom was aboard by this tiain as soon as the end of the ladder was ten or twelve feet above ground And there was the lion, a-ripping around underup in the air at the ladder, and onlyit about a quarter of an inch, it seemed to me It was delicious to be out of his reach, perfectly delicious, and ing there helpless and couldn't climb, and that made me feel perfectly wretched and miserable all down the other It is most seldom that a person feels so mixed like that; and it is not to be recommended, either
Tom asked me what he'd better do, but I didn't know He asked me if I could hold on whilst he sailed away to a safe place and left the lion behind I said I could if he didn't go no higher than he was now; but if he went higher I would lose rip,” and he started
”Don't go so fast,” I shouted ”Itexpress He slowed down, and we glided over the sand slower, but still in a kind of sickening way; for it IS unco under you like that, and not a sound
But pretty soon there was plenty of sound, for the lion was catching up His noise fetched others You could see the on the lope from every direction, and pretty soon there was a couple of dozen of the at each other; and so ent ski what they could to help us to not forgit the occasion; and then some other beasts coular riot down there
We see this plan was a ait, and I couldn't hold on forever So Tom took a think, and struck another idea That was, to kill a lion with the pepper-box revolver, and then sail ahile the others stopped to fight over the carcass So he stopped the balloon still, and done it, and then we sailed off while the fuss was going on, and come down a quarter of a mile off, and they helped ang was on hand once et us, they sat down on their hams and looked up at us so kind of disappointed that it was as much as a person could do not to see THEIR side of the matter
CHAPTER VI IT'S A CARAVAN
I WAS so weak that the only thing I wanted was a chance to lay down, so I ht for my locker-bunk, and stretched th in no such oven as that, so Toive the coo up a mile before we struck comfortable weather where it was breezy and pleasant and just right, and pretty soon I was all straight again To; but now he jumps up and says:
”I bet you a thousand to one I knohere we are We're in the Great Sahara, as sure as guns!”
He was so excited he couldn't hold still; but I wasn't I says:
”Well, then, where's the Great Sahara? In England or in Scotland?”
”'Tain't in either; it's in Africa”
Jiun to stare doith no end of interest, because that here his originals come from; but I didn't more than half believe it I couldn't, you know; it seemed too awful far away for us to have traveled
But Tom was full of his discovery, as he called it, and said the lions and the sand meant the Great Desert, sure He said he could 'a' found out, before we sighted land, that as crowding the land so; and e asked him what, he said:
”These clocks They're chronoes One of the St Louis time, like my watch When we left St Louis it was four in the afternoon by ht by this Grinnage clock Well, at this time of the year the sun sets at about seven o'clock Now I noticed the ti when the sun went down, and it was half-past five o'clock by the Grinnage clock, and half past 11 AM by my watch and the other clock You see, the sun rose and set by e clock was six hours fast; but we've come so far east that it coe clock now, and I'm away out--more than four hours and a half out You see, that itude of Ireland, and would strike it before long if as p'inted right--which asn't No, sir, we've been a-wandering--wandering 'way down south of east, and it's my opinion we are in Africa Look at this map You see how the shoulder of Africa sticks out to the west Think how fast we've traveled; if we had gone straight east ould be long past England by this time You watch for noon, all of you, and we'll stand up, and e can't cast a shadoe'll find that this Grinnage clock is co twelve Yes, sir, I think we're in Africa; and it's just bully”