The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1901-04-12

SoOu icaNc. l shall swim across under
cover o the darknrSs--scc. the water /.
quite smooth: those reefs to scay:ard
break the wavcs-an stow myself wa,
IN some Granny to wait for the faGot
carriers In the morning"
"But IL they catch yeu?"
III they catch me-" replied Willie
carclcssly. There will be dead men on
Cave island. shall take my sword"
-Four arms are better than two, vii.
lie, though one of those two does carry
hook. III come too"
BEST not. Master Topp. Your great
carcass wo...l take power o. hidin
an that hole in your leg will get angry
IL it's carried about too much Besides
II tho plot fails it Is better that one
should b" Gastados, as they dons call
it, than two"
"Ncvcrthelcss shall come. Two
may succeed where one would fail. md
as for my leg 1t can still deal a kicI;
that most men would he unwilling to
stand against And if I'm too big to be
hidden i'm the building I'll find n covert
In the nearest thicket and be ready to
make diversion from the rear if
you're attacked. So no more objec-
tlonS. | intend to CO."
We waited with some impatience till
nightfall. and then, bidding the other
lads tell Alec when he came all that
had befallen. slipped down into the wa
ter. We had few preparations to make
Tor our swim, rs the only clothing Of
which we could boast was pair OF
trunks apiece. and those gashcd with
realcr slashcs than n tailor makes.
The sea was warm, and, striking out
leisurcly so as not to tire my wounded
leg too much, we crossed over and
coastcd round the foot Of the cliff, seek
ing n landing place. We found none
till we were well beyond sight of Shell.
ter island, and then, coming to q shin
ely beach, we landed and lay quiet on
the sand for awhile.
The night was thick as q quickest
hedge, and 80, as there was small dan
ger Of the Spaniards spying us, we
wandered somewhat from the straight
track on the chance of finding food. of
which we were sOrcly in need, and in
this we were wonderfully successful,
for after little search we came across
discovery of thicket Of roust beef
and October ale no windfall could have
been more providcLtial, for the banan-
as not only served to I'll our empty
stomachs, but at the same time gave
us food which We could carry away for
future needs. SO, each bearing brace
Of the huge yellow clusters, we took n
straight path toward the hill.
The ascent stccpencd as it rose and
finished In we'll defined stair hewn
from the living rock. At the top n
doorway lay Immediately before us.
We passed it's threshold and found our
selves within walls as perfect as the
day they were built, though how the
courses ha1 been raised to their posi-.
tion unless by magic puzzled Inc even
to guess. There UuS no rUUr nor trace
of any. The floor was bare save for
wind borne rubbish and great stone
table in the middle which looked rs
though 1t might once have served as an
altar in whatever devil worship went
on here in bygonc days. But no spot
could we sec where man could hide.
Save for slanting footway that ran
round two walls and gave access to the
summit the whole interior was as aus
terely plain rs the coolest Imagination
could make it,
After n brief examination of the in
terror Of this puzzle in stone we went
aloft by the slanting footway to throw
the Spaniards' pile of fagots over the
cliff and then set about exploring the
exterior.
At first the dull light showed us moth
ing but smooth. almost polished pave
ment, but on close scrutiny we found
IN inequality in the surface near the
tail Of the great carveI serpent which
reared itself at that corner Of the build
Ing which most effectually commanded
the approach from below. A little bur-
rowing discovered n hollow. which
turned out to be n narrow alley just
wide enough to admit one at time.
We cleared away the rubbish With
which it was chokcd aud then entered.
1t led up n dark winding stair in the
body OF the reptile and brought us aft.
er hard climb tOa tiny chamber in
side the head. The gaping jaws form
ed n sentry box, from which we could
command the whole Of the path from
the lower ground, so, confident in the
strength Of our cyrie, lay down to
rest for a space while Willie watched.
We had not long to wait. Scarcely
had l relieved the boatswain and begun
my turn Of watching when Il couple OF
men broke out of the bush below and
began to climb the steps on the hillside.
I motioned to Willie, and together we
watched their advance. Now we should
ses what Willie's witchcraft could Go.
CuApTER XVIII