Part 33 (1/2)

Tom made a plunge forward for his rifle.

”Hold on,” cried Jim, ”don't exert yourself, Tom. Jo didn't see any Indians. It was just his diverting method of breaking up our little discussion.”

Tom was so disgusted that he turned his back on us and became absorbed in the view down the river.

In a little while we heard Commodore Jim's voice.

”To the oars, my bonnie lads. We are coming to another dancing, prancing rapid.”

Tom regarded the commodore askance.

”What's the matter with Jim?” he soliloquized. ”He must consider himself a blooming poet. I guess it's because he hasn't had his hair cut for a year.”

But all further repartee was cut off by the necessity of attending to business. In a short time we ran out of the rapids.

After pa.s.sing a great wide canyon we came to a very remarkable place. At this point the wall was set back well from the river.

”Make a landing, Jim,” I cried, ”there's a tremendous cave ahead there in the wall.”

”All right,” replied Jim.

So we swung our boat over into a quiet cave that was sheltered by gently bending branches of some flowering bushes.

Making our craft perfectly secure we took the trail to this new wonder that was carved in the great cliff.

”Well, this is immense,” exclaimed Jim.

That expressed it. It was.

”It looks just like the entrance to some great and ancient temple.”

”Whatever made it?” asked Tom, in amazement.

”Water,” said Jim, ”by a process popularly known as erosion.”

”You got that out of the physical geography,” said Tom.

”I didn't say that I invented it,” remarked Jim, blandly.

”How long did this job take?” I inquired.

”A few hundred thousands of years, I suppose,” said Jim.

”How do you know?” grunted Tom, ”you are just giving Jo a filler.”

”Well, putting it another way,”, said Jim, ”it took about as long as it would for you to acquire a knowledge of spelling.”

This was Tom's weak point, but all further controversy was cut off by our nearer approach to this temple. There was a broad arch of one hundred feet in the smooth, red sandstone through which we entered.

Before this arch and almost in the entrance was a screen of cottonwood trees.

We stood within, silent, wondering at the majesty of the interior. It was like being under the dome of some great cathedral, though this had the added grace of being natural.