Byrne was silent for a few moments.  He, too, had recently come to the conclusion that possibly he was not entirely rotten either, and had in a vague and half-formed sort of way wished for the opportunity to demonstrate the fact, so he was willing to concede to another that which he craved for himself.

“Yeh listen all right, cul,” he said at last; “an’ I’m willin’ to take yeh at yer own say-so until I learn different.”

“Thanks,” said Theriere tersely.  “Now we can work together in the search for Miss Harding; but where, in the name of all that’s holy, are we to start?”

“Why, where we seen her last, of course,” replied the mucker.  “Right here on top of dese bluffs.”

“Then we can’t do anything until daylight,” said the Frenchman.

“Not a ting, and at daylight we’ll most likely have a scrap on our hands from below,” and the mucker jerked his thumb in the direction of the cove.

“I think,” said Theriere, “that we had better spend an hour arming ourselves with sticks and stones.  We’ve a mighty good position up here.  One that we can defend splendidly from an assault from below, and if we are prepared for them we can stave ’em off for a while if we need the time to search about up here for clews to Miss Harding’s whereabouts.”

And so the party set to work to cut stout bludgeons from the trees about them, and pile loose fragments of rock in handy places near the cliff top.  Theriere even went so far as to throw up a low breastwork across the top of the trail up which the enemy must climb to reach the summit of the cliff.  When they had completed their preparations three men could have held the place against ten times their own number.

Then they lay down to sleep, leaving Blanco and Divine on guard, for it had been decided that these two, with Bony Sawyer, should be left behind on the morrow to hold the cliff top while the others were searching for clews to the whereabouts of Barbara Harding.  They were to relieve each other at guard duty during the balance of the night.

Scarce had the first suggestion of dawn lightened the eastern sky than Divine, who was again on guard, awakened Theriere.  In a moment the others were aroused, and a hasty raid on the cached provisions made.  The lack of water was keenly felt by all, but it was too far to the spring to chance taking the time necessary to fetch the much-craved fluid and those who were to forge into the jungle in search of Barbara Harding hoped to find water farther inland, while it was decided to dispatch Bony Sawyer to the spring for water for those who were to remain on guard at the cliff top.