The packers were rough men and he rather thought he had taken a risk he ought not to have run.
Touching Drummond's arm, he slid down a slab of rock and crouched in the gloom on the ledge below.

His boots had scratched the stone, and he listened when Drummond came down, but there was no movement in the camp.
Dropping from the ledge, he reached the shingle, which rattled sharply, and for a moment or two he stopped and held his breath.

He heard nothing, and making Drummond a sign to be cautious, went on again.

They were now confronted by perhaps the most dangerous part of their task, for one cannot cross a stony beach in silence and men used to the wilds are easily wakened by a suspicious noise.

Besides, the water glimmered, and Thirlwell would have liked a darker background.
Still he meant to reach the canoes, and moved on, leaning forward to shorten his height and stepping as gently as he could.