noon
What if some one should have visited them while absent ? Why might not the savages have found their abode ? These were questions ever uppermost in the minds of all . Before noon they reached the Cataract River to the west of the forest . This seemed like an old friend . And what was more : before they had gone many miles , the Professor pointed to a clearing , and remarked : `` Do you remember this place ? '' The boys looked about , as they moved forward .