a very stupid thing. We
ought to have taken out our knives and chipped the bark off every tree
we passed."

"Yes, but it is too late to do that, so let's try and get out at once."

"But what about Mak?"

"Oh, he's a savage, and he could find his way anywhere. Now then, I am
standing still. You turn round at once."

"Done," said Mark, and he turned sharply and backed close up to his
cousin, so that they were looking now in opposite directions. "Now
then, this must be right. You turn round while I stand fast."

Dean turned and stood side by side with his cousin, who then gave the
order to step out.

"Yes," he continued, as they began to move back slowly, "I am beginning
to want to get out of this. It makes one feel confused. I wish,
though, we could hear Mak rustling through the bushes."

"How could he rustle through the bushes when there are none to rustle
through? It's just like being in an awful great temple, with the tall
smooth pillars supporting the roof."

"Pish! What nonsense!" cried Mark. "Let's get on. We are just inside
the edge of a great forest, and what's the good of imagining all sorts
of things? Come along, and let's walk fast."

Dean made no reply, and the two lads stepped out, giving up in despair
all efforts to keep on in a straight line, for they had to turn to right
or left every minute to pass round the huge trunk of some enormous tree.

This went on for nearly a quarter of an hour, a quarter which seemed
half, and then Mark stood still.

"Dean," he said sharply, "we are going wrong."

Dean was silent.

"I say we are going wrong," repeated Mark. "If we had been right we
should have been outside this horrible place minutes ago."

"Oh, don't talk like that," said Dean, in a whisper, as if afraid of
being heard, when all the time his heart would have leaped with joy if
he had heard some other voice. "Listen," said Mark.

"Ah! What can you hear?" cried his cousin. Mark was silent for quite a
minute. "Nothing," he whispered, at last. "It's so awfully silent."

And the lads stood listening each to his own hard breathing, both
yielding to the sensation of strange dread that was creeping over them,
in fact, fast losing their nerve. At last Mark spoke out with angry
decision. "Don't let's be fools," he said, "and give way to this nasty
sensation. But it's of no use to hide it from ourselves: Dean, old
chap, we are lost!"

"Yes," said Dean faintly. "Shout!" Mark star