The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1885-05-16

| II or pHy I'"tt t'h - II t'iH'r ''' - 'p
samel Beneath him was dark cavity, with
| a slanting path descending into the bowels OF
| the earth.
Anxious to lose no time, he squeezed him
| self through the aperture, and began de
scending While he did 50 lie heard the hol.
low roaring no had heard tho night before.
AS no proceeded he drew out box OF
matches and candle, which he Lit. Pro
cceding cautiously on his back, and restrain
ing himself with his elbows from too rapid
descent, he found himself surrounded not by
sand, but by solid rock, and. pecring down
ward, saw that he was looking down into a
largo subtcrranean cave.
just beneath him was fight of steps cut
in tho solid rock. Descending these carefully,
for they We're slippery "a ice, he reached the
bottom, and found il made OF SC2-gravcl and
loose shells, forming, indeed, n decline like
the scashore itself, to the edge OF which, fill
ing about half the cavern, the waters of the
sea crcpt with long, monotonous moan.
Approaching the waters edge he saw facing
him tho solid back of the cliff, but just at the
base there was an opening, n sort of slit, al
most touching the waves at all times, quite
touching them when the swell rose, and
through this opening crept beams OF day
light, turning the waves to clear, malachite
green.
The mystery was now clear enough. The
cave communicated directly with the sea,
but in such way as to make an entrance
for any largo object impossible from that di-
rection.
Turning his back upon the water, and hold
ing up the candle, he examined the interior.
Tho damp black rocks rose on every side, and
from the roof hung spongy and hideous
weeds, like those fungi to be seen in sunless
vaults of wine, but piled against the inner
wall was a hoard Of treasures 10 make a
smuggler's mouth water or turn . wreckers
brain.
Puncheons Of rum and other spirits, bales
Of wool, planks Of mahogany and pine, oars,
broken masts coils Of rope, tangles Of run.
ming rigging, flags Of all nations and articles
Of such material as Is used on shipboard,
swinging tables, brass swinging lamps, mast
head lanterns and hammocks; enough and to
spare, in short, to fit out a small feet of YES
sells. Lost in amazement, Brinkley examined
this extraordinary hoard, the accumulation
doubtless of many years. All at once his eye
fell upon a large canvas bag, rotten with
age, and gaping open. 1t was as full Us it
NOuit hoiN WAN PANNNS Va kpiif VA Aic, wiz
superscripHon Of the mint Of Spain.
o William Jonesl William Jones. And all
this was yours, at least by right of plumber,
upon the Quech's seaway; all this which,
turned into cash, would have made man
rich beyond the dreams of avarice, was the
possession of one who lived like q miserly beg
gar, grlidged himself and his flesh and blood
the common neceSSarics OF life, and had never
been known, from boyhood upward, to give n
starving fs,,ow creature so much as n crust of
bread, or to drop a penny into the poor-box.
o William Joncsl William Jonesl
The above reflection and parenthesis belong,
not to the present writer, but to my adven-
turous discoveer, the captain Of tho car
nyan.
As Brinkley proceeded on his tour Of In.
spection he became more and more struck
with wonder. Nothing seemed too insignificant
or too prepoSterously useless for secretion in
that extraordinary ships cavern. There were
mops and bruoms, there were holystoncs,
there were ''squeegees, there were canisters
of timed provisions, there were bags oil
weeviled biscuits, there We're sacks of potatoes
(Which esculen;s, long since rejected, haG