"Can't be all like this, because there's water rushing somewhere down below."

"Well, let's go on till we come to the water, and then turn back."

"But if it's very dangerous?"

"We won't go into danger. You keep the lanthorn well up, so that you can see where you go, and then you can stop."

"Suppose you lead now," said Mike: "my arm aches awfully with holding up the light."

"All right: I'll go first, then."

"But I'm not afraid to!" cried Mike hastily.

"Well, I am, Ladle," said Vince frankly; "and I shall go very slowly and carefully, I can tell you. Here, you carry the rope and hammer. Stop a minute, though: how's the light?"

He opened the lanthorn door now, and was surprised to see how little the candle was burned down, but there was a tremendously long snuff with a fungous top.

"I thought it was very dull," he said; and, moistening his fingers, he snuffed the candle.--"Now we shall have a better light."

But unfortunately he had moistened his fingers too much, and the result was that the shortened wick hissed, sputtered, burned blue, and then without further warning went out.

"Oh!" cried Mike, in tones of horror, as they stood there in profound darkness.

"Oh!" was echoed along the pa.s.sage, and prolonged as if in a groan.

CHAPTER ELEVEN.

THE SEA PALACE.

For a few moments neither of the boys spoke, but stood listening to the dull roaring sound. Then Vince started, for he felt himself touched; and he nearly uttered a cry of horror, but checked it by setting his teeth hard as he grasped the fact that the touch came from Mike's hand, which he seized and found to be cold and damp.

"Let's get back--quick, somehow," gasped the lad.

"Yes: come on. We can feel our way," replied Vince. "Keep hold of hands. No, that would make it harder. Here, give me a piece of the rope, and I'll put it round my waist, then you can hold on by that and follow me. I think I can recollect exactly how it goes."

"Be quick!" said Mike, in an awe-stricken whisper, as he pa.s.sed several yards of the rope to his companion in misfortune; and this Vince fastened round his waist, and then uttered an e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n.

"What is it?" cried Mike: "don't say something else is wrong."

"Wrong? No," cried Vince, whose hands had come in contact with the creel: "I forgot the tinder-box."

"Ah!" cried Mike joyfully; and he pressed close to Vince, as the latter sat down, took out the box, and began nicking away with the flint and steel, making the scintillating sparks flash and send their feeble light in all directions.

"Oh, do make haste!" panted Mike; "that dreadful roaring's coming nearer."

"I can hear it," muttered Vince, as he kept on nicking; but not a spark took hold of the tinder.

"Here, let me try," cried Mike.

"No, not yet: I'll do it. The tinder must have got damp."

"Turn it over, then," cried Mike piteously. "Oh, do make haste."

Vince thrust his fingers into the tinder-box to follow out his companion's instructions, and uttered an impatient sound.

"What is it now?"

"Such an idiot!" cried Vince. "I never took the tin off the top of the tinder."

And so it was that after the disk, which damped out the sparks after a light had been obtained, was removed, the first blow of the flint on the steel sent down a shower, a couple of which caught at once, and were blown into an incandescent state, the match was applied, began to melt, and after a little trouble the sputtering candle once more burned brightly behind the semi-transparent horn, while the roaring sound did not now seem to be so loud.

"I say," said Vince, with a forced laugh, "isn't it easy to feel scared when you're in the dark?"

"Scared? It was awful!"

"But we're not going to give up till we've seen where the water runs?"

Mike remained silent.

"We must do what we meant to do?"

"Very well," said Mike, drawing a deep breath, which was followed by a gasp.

"Come on, then, and let's get it over."

Setting his teeth firmly, Vince once more attacked the unknown, and came upon another sharp turn, where the water must have eddied round, and was reflected almost back upon itself, and then turned away, after another rounded hollow, almost at right angles.

Here the slope became a little more inclined, still not enough to make progress difficult; but as soon as the two windings had been pa.s.sed, they knew that the goal they had marked out for themselves was at hand, for the noise suddenly became louder, and was unmistakably caused by water rushing over stones.

"Take care!" cried Mike warningly. "You're close to it."

"Yes," cried Vince excitedly; "we are close to it;" and he stopped and held up the lanthorn, so that his hand struck against the roof. "Look there!"

Mike pressed close, and looked at the object which had taken his companion's attention; but for a few moments he realised nothing save that the pa.s.sage had grown more contracted, and that the roof seemed to be formed by two huge pieces of glistening granite leaning together.

Then he looked down and saw that the floor, which was smoother than ever, ran down suddenly, while a faint, damp, salt odour of sea-weed struck upon his nostrils as a puff of air was suddenly wafted up.

"Mind, mind!" he shouted. "Ah!"

For the lanthorn was once more darkened, but not by the candle being extinct. On the contrary, it was burning brightly still, but hidden by Vince drawing his jersey suddenly over the sides.

"It's all right," cried Vince, for there before him was the shape of the end of the pa.s.sage marked out by a pale, dawn-like light. "Can't you see? We've been fancying we've come down such a tremendous depth, and all the time we were right: the hole has led us to the sh.o.r.e."

But Vince was not quite right, for, upon his drawing the lanthorn out-- and none too soon, an odour of singed worsted becoming perceptible--they found that the sudden sharp slope of the granite flooring went down some twenty feet, and upon lowering the light by means of the rope the lanthorn came to rest in soft sand.

"It isn't very light down there," said Vince, whose feelings of nervousness were being rapidly displaced by an intense desire to see more; "but light does come in, and there's the waves running in and out round here. You don't want to go back now, do you?"

"No," said Mike quickly. "Who's to go down first?"