The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-12-24
"A TALE OF a CARAVAN.
BY ROBERT BUCHANAN.
Continued from last Wednesday,
CHAPTER Y.
THE SECRET OF THE CAVE.

al earthquake swallowed inc myStcrl-
Gus one, or had he tumbled down in q
at? Brinlllcy waited and watched;
i've minutes had passed, ten minutes
and still the light did not re-cmcrge.
at last, overcome by curiosity. Brink
ley rose, and, STOPPING close to the
ground, crept from the rock behind
which he had lain concealed, and
crawled across the summit of the sand
hill. Suddenly he stopped short and
went down on hands and knees, for he
now clearly disccrned, coming out of
the solid earth or sand, the glmmer of
the light.
It glimmered, then disappeared
again. Just then the moon slipped out
of her cloud, Illuminating the hillocks
with vitreous rays, and he perceived,
close by him, dark hole, opening in
the very heart of the hilloclS.
He crept closer and looked down, but
could see nothing. He held his head
over the hole and listened; all he
heard was dull, hollow moaning, like
the sound of the sea. The light of the
moon, however, enabled him to per
ceive that the hole had been covered
with a loose piece of wood, or lid, about
four feet square, and with an iron ring
bolt in the center; which lid was now
lying by the side of the opening, ready
to be replaced. A number of large
pieces of stone, such as We're strewed
everywhere about the sand hills. Law
piled close by.
He lay for some time waiting and
listening. All at once. far beneath
him, the light glimmercd again Quick
as thought he rose and crept away,
only just in time; for he had no sooner
regained the shelter of the rock and
crouched there watching than he saw
the light re-emerge, accompanied bv a
human head; human body followed.
and then he clearly discerncd William
Jones standing in the moonlight with
out the burden he had previously
carried, and holding in his hand a Ian
tern.
Setting the lantern down. William
busted himself for several minutes. and
finally having concealed the work on
which he was engaged, eXtinguished
the light. Then, after glancing sus-
plciously round him on every side, he
walked rapidly down the sand hill and
disappeared in the direction of the sea.
Not until he distinctly heard the
plash OF oars, and saw the black
Silhouette of the boat pass ont from the
shadow of the rock on to the moonlit
sea, did Brinllley again begin to stir.
and even then he did SO very cautiously
lest his figure should be perceived
against the moonlight by the lynx-eved
rover. Creeping on hands and knees,
he again crawled to the mysterious
spot, and found, as he had indeed
anticipated, that the hole was covered
up, and the wooden lid or trap-door so
carefully covered with stones and loose
sand as to be completely hidden.
His first impulse was to displace the
debris and at once to explore the mys-
ferrous place: but rejecting that he
was unprovided with lights of any
KIND, ana that the cavity below would
most certainly be in total darkness. he
determined to postpone his visit of in
sPectlon until daylight. BY this time
there was no sight or sound of the
boat. Rising to mis- feet, he unused. II
was all very well to talk of returning
another time, but how was he to find
the spot? The sea of sandy hilloclls
stretched on every side, and he knew
by experience how difficult it was to
II,
AS to the cairns of loose stones. such
hilloclls themselves.
At last he thought of the rock where
ne mad first concealed himself Such
rocks were numerous too, but pulling
out his case of crayons, he marked the
base OF the rock with a small streak of
color. Finally, remembering that the
drift sand might cover this mark, he
made a large cross in the hard sand.
Having taken these precautions he
made the best of his way down the
cliffs, and following the open green
sward which fringed the crags wan
dered back to the caravan.
AZ daybrcal1 the next day he strollcd
back along the crags, first taking a
bird's-cye view of the village, and per
ceiving no sign of William Jones. who
had doubtless no suspicion that he
would rise SO carly. lie soon found the
spot where he had stood overnight
watching the approach of the boat,
and, first accommodating the ncighbor-
hood, struck off among the sand hills.
at first he was guided by footprints,
but as the sand grew harder these dis
appeared At length, after some
somewhat bewildcring search he
found the sand hill he sought, the rock
with his mark upon it, the cross marked
in the ground, and finally the wcll-con-
cealed mouth of the hole
lie looked kccnly to right and left.
NO one was visible STOPPING down he
disclosed the trap-door with it's iron
ring A long pull, strong pull, and
up came the trap. Open sesame! Be
meath him was dark cavity, with a