For half an hour they had not seen any evidence that other human beings were alive in the world.

But when they went rattling across a small mesa where the sand was deep, a car with one brilliant spotlight suddenly showed itself around a turn just ahead of them.
Casey slowed down automatically and gave a twist to the steering wheel.
But the sand just here was deep and loose, and the front wheels of the Ford gouged unavailingly at the sides of the ruts.

Casey honked the horn warningly and stopped full, swearing a good, Caseyish oath.

The other car, having made no apparent effort to turn out, also stopped within a few feet of Casey, the spotlight fairly blinding him.
The young man beside Casey slid up straight in the seat and stopped whistling.

He leaned out of the car and stared ahead without the dusty interference of the windshield.
"You can back up a few lengths and make the turn-out all right," he suggested.
"If I can back up, so can he.