After a slight pause to recover his nerve or breath, Orme rose, and preceded by Japhet, climbed up the bush-like rock till he reached the shaft of the sphinx's tail.

Here he turned and waved his hand to us, then following the Mountaineer, walked, apparently with the utmost confidence, along the curves of the tail to where it sprang from the body of the idol.

At this spot there was a little difficulty in climbing over the smooth slope of rock on to the broad terrace-like back.

Soon, however, they surmounted it, and vanishing for a few seconds into the hollow of the loins, which, of course, was a good many feet deep, re-appeared moving toward the shoulders.

Between these we could see Higgs standing with his back toward us, utterly unconscious of all that was passing behind him.
Passing Japhet, Oliver walked up to the Professor and touched him on the arm.