"All your lunch. You see," the old hunter went on, "we may find the
projectile, and, again, we may not. I'm inclined to think we're not so
very far from it, but we may be some time locating it in among all
these peaks and craters. So it will be the best plan to save some of
our lunch and drinking water until--well, until we're hungry again,"
and he carefully put back into his basket the remains of the food.
"You don't mean to say you think we'll be all day finding the
Annihilator, do you?"
Jack paused, with a sandwich half way to his mouth as he asked this
question.
"Well, it's best to be on the safe side," spoke Andy guardedly. "We may
find it, and, again, we may not. Save your powder against the time of
need, I say--by powder meaning victuals and drink. We can't drop in a
restaurant up here, and I don't see much game to shoot, and I should
hate to eat such fodder as this," and he poked with his foot some
sickly green vines, growing on the ground.
The boys' faces, which had become more cheerful, assumed a serious
look. Jack stopped eating at once and placed back in the basket his
remaining sandwiches. He also corked up the bottle of water, which was
kept from freezing by means of a fur pouch in which it was carried.
"If there's a possibility of being lost some time," spoke Mark, "we'd
better figure out just how long our food will last," and he examined
the contents of his basket.
Fortunately Washington White, with a knowledge of the appetites of the
chums, had filled the baskets with lavish hands. There was, they found,
food enough to last them three days, if they ate sparingly, and there
was enough water for half that time, providing they only took small
sips when thirsty. But they had noticed, in one or two places, little
pools of liquid, which they had not tasted, but which might prove to be
drinking water. Certainly they would need more if they were destined to
remain away from the projectile for very long.
"Well, then," observed Mark, when the food calculation was over, "it
appears that we can remain lost for about three days, at the most."
"Oh, but we'll be back home--I mean in the projectile--long before
that," declared Jack.
"I wish I was sure of that," murmured Andy with a dubious shake of his
head.
"Well, let's move on again," suggested Jack. "We feel better now, and
maybe we'll have better luck."
They started off, tramping over the rugged surface of the moon, while
the sun shone with tepid heat down on them. They had to go this way and
that to avoid the immense fissures in the ground or the yawning
craters, which loomed deep, and in awful silence, in their path.
Sometimes they climbed small mountains or crawled in and out of small
craters, slipping and stumbling.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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