They came to us in mid-air, and we had literally to reach up and pull them down. For a space the five of us were tangled in an indiscriminate heap, our united weight offering greater resistance to the wind and giving us an opportunity to rest and collect our scattered wits. "Join hands," cried the professor, "and we’ll get under the lee of that rock. Careful, now! We must not get separated again." By desperate work we succeeded in getting to our feet and clasping hands; then, hurled and buffeted, we gained the rock and fell breathless under the leeward side of it. "What a place, what a place!" groaned Popham. "I wish Venus hadn’t been out of our course," wailed Meigs. "Certainly we couldn’t have been any worse off there than here." "No wonder nothing can grow on this sun-scorched world," growled Markham. "Even if plants could stand the heat such a wind would pull them up by the roots." "What are we to do now?" demanded Popham. "You got us into this, Quinn, and you’ve got to get us out of it." "Now’s a good time for you three to go off to the other side of the planet," I remarked. "Whenever there’s danger, you suddenly realize that you can’t get along without the professor. Oh, you’re a fine lot of nabobs, you are." "Peace, Mr. Munn," called the professor. "We have enough to occupy our minds without wasting time in useless bickering. I was at fault, for I knew what terrible gales visit this planet, and that they come suddenly. It was a mistake to venture so far from the car." "A mistake," breathed Meigs, with some heat, "that came near having tragic consequences. Popham and I were knocked about like a couple of footballs." "What’s to be done, what’s to be done?" cried Popham impatiently. "The gale is increasing, and who knows but this rock may be plucked up bodily and rolled over us? We can’t stay here." "That is true," said the professor. "We must get back to the car." "There’s no telling what will become of us if we try that," called Markham. "And there’s no telling what will become of us if we remain here," answered the professor. "If we form a chain, it is quite possible that we may succeed in getting back to our refuge." "Even the car may not be able to stand up against this wind," clamored Meigs. "We shall have to take our chances with it, nevertheless," went on Quinn. "If we should get separated, each of us must make the best preparations he can to weather the gale, and then, when it has blown itself out, hunt for the car. That must be our rendezvous during the time we are here." The professor got up slowly, bracing himself against the fierce swirl that came around the side of the rock. "Come," he called; "it is now or never." I could see that the gale had increased alarmingly. Its force seemed irresistible, and yet I knew that we could not remain where we were.