The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-08-13

CGSGFAl uAyS WClL DFs anu sui TIE
treasure was unfound- OF course, as
the unexplored space in the cave con-
tracted. so daily the probability grew
stronger that Fortune would shed her
golden smile upon us before night.
Nevertheless, ii seemed TO me that the
optimistic spirits Of most were begin
ming to flag a little Only Mr.. Shaw,
though banned as a confirmed doubter
and pessimist. now by the exercise of
viii kept the others to their task As
for Captain Magnus. his restlessness
was manifest. Several times he had
suggested blowing the lid of the island
with dynamite as the shortest method
OF getting MT the gold. He was always
vanishing ON solitary excursions In
land.
Mr.. Tubbs remarked, scornfully.
that m man with a nose for money
ought TO have smelled out the chest
before this, but IL his own nasal pow
ers were Of that character he did not
offer to employ them In the service OF
the expedition. Miss Higglesby-
Browne, however, had taken to retir-
ing TO the hut for long private sessions
with herself My aunt reverentially
explained their purpose. The hiding
place Of the chest being Of course
known to the Universal Wisdom. all
Violet had to do was to put herself
In harmony and the knowledge would
be hers. The difficulty was that you
had first to overcome your Mundane
Consciousness. To accomplish this
Violet was struggling in the hut.
After my meeting with Captain Mag
nus In the forest, Lookout ridge was
barred TO me. CrusOe and / must do
our rambling In other directions.
This being SO, / bethought me again
of the wrecked sloop lying under the
cliffs On the north shore OF the cove.
remembered that there had seemed
to be way down the cliffs. | re
solved to visit the sloop again. The
terrible practicability of the beautiful
youth made 1t difficult to indulge in ro-
mantle musings in his presence. And
to me derelict brings keener tang
of romance than any other relic of
mans multitudinous and futile striv-
ings.
The descent of the gully proved an
easy matter, and soon / was on the
sand beside the derelict Sand had
heaped up around her hull, and filed
her cockpit level with the rail, and
drifted down the companion, stuffing
the little cabin nearly to the roof
Only the bow rose free from the
wounds there were In her buried sides
were hidden. You felt that some wild
caprice of the storm had lifted her
and set her down here, not too rough
ly, then whirled away and left her
TO the sand
Crusoe slipped into the narrow space
under the roof of the cabin, and 1
leaned idly down to watch him through
a warped seam between the planks.
Then / found that / was looking, not
at Crusoe, but into a little dim in
closure like a locker, In which some
small object family caught the light.
With revived hope Of finding relics,
got out my knife-a present from
Cuthbert Vane-and set briskly to
work widening the seam.
| penetrated finally into a small
locker or cubby-hole. set In the angle
under the roof of the cabin, and, as
subsequent investigation showed, so
placed as to attract no notice from the
casual eye. ascertained thAs by
lying down and wriggling my head
and shoulders into the cabin. In 9TH
er words. had happened on a little
private depository, in which the own
er Of the sloop might stow away GER
tain small matters that concerned him
intimately. Yet the contents of the
locker at first seemed trifiing. They
were an old-fashioned chased silver
shoe-buckle, and brown-coyered man
uscript book
The book had suffered much from
dampness, whether OF rains or the
wash of the sea- / seated myself on
the cabin roof, extracted hairpin, and
began carefully separating the close
written pages. The first three or four