"Oh, bother! I'd forgotten all about it. Don't make any more fuss about that. I say, what a bit of luck! We must keep it quiet, though, eh?"

"Quiet? I wouldn't have any one know for the world!"

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

A STARTLING DISCOVERY.

The two lads were such close companions, and so much accustomed to wander off together of an afternoon, fishing, cliff-climbing, and collecting eggs, insects, minerals, or sh.e.l.ls, that their long absences were not considered at all extraordinary, though they were noticed by both Mrs Burnet and Lady Ladelle, and one evening formed the subject of a few remarks at dinner.

The Doctor and his wife often dined at the old manor-house, and upon this occasion Mike's mother asked her visitors if they did not think they wandered too much.

"No," said Sir Francis, taking the answer out of his guests' mouths laughingly. "Mrs Burnet doesn't think anything of the kind, so don't you put such ideas in her head."

"But they are often so late, my dear."

"Well, it's summer-time, and cooler of an evening. Pleasantest part of the day. If they work well, let them play well. Eh, Burnet?"

"Certainly," said the Doctor, "so long as they don't get into mischief.

But do they work well?"

"What do you say, Mr Deane?" said the baronet.

"Admirably," replied the tutor; "but I must say that I should like them to have a couple of hours' more study a day--say a couple of hours in the afternoon."

"No," said the Doctor emphatically. "You work them well with their English and cla.s.sics and calculations every morning: let them have some of Nature's teaching of an afternoon, and strengthen their bodies after you've done strengthening their heads."

"I side with you, Burnet," said the baronet. "Let them go on as they are for a year or two, and then we'll see."

The tutor bowed. "I only thought I was not doing enough for them," he said apologetically.

"Plenty, my dear sir--plenty. I like to see them bringing home plenty of litter, as the servants call it."

"Yes," said the Doctor, "all's education. I see Lady Ladelle fidgets about her boy, just as my wife does. They'll be all right. They can't go very far from home."

"But I always dread some accident," said Mrs Burnet.

"Yes, my dear, you are always inventing something, and have been ever since Vince broke his leg."

"Through going into dangerous places," said Mrs Burnet.

"Well, yes, that was from a cliff fall; but he might have done it from tumbling off a wall or over a chair."

Just when this conversation was taking place the boys were slowly trudging home from their "retreat," as they called it--coming by a circuitous way, for the fact was very evident that old Daygo did spend a good deal of time in watching the boys' proceedings, and Vince was strongly of opinion that he suspected their discovery.

But Mike was as fully convinced to the contrary.

"He has no idea of it, I'm sure; but he is curious to know where we go.

The old chap always talks as if the island belonged to him. He'd better not interfere with it if he does find out; but, I say, fancy old Daygo scrambling down through that pa.s.sage. I should like to see him."

"I shouldn't," said Vince, "especially after all we've done."

For a month had glided away, and they had been pretty busy, during their many visits to the place, carrying all kinds of little things which they considered they wanted, with the result that the lanthorn and a supply of candles always stood in a niche a short distance down the pa.s.sage; short ropes were fastened wherever there was one of the sharp or sloping descents, so that they could run down quickly; and in several places a hammer and cold chisel had been utilised so as to chip out a foothold.

In the caverns themselves there was a fireplace, a keg which they kept supplied with water, a small saucepan, a little frying-pan, and a common gridiron, all of which had been bought and brought for them by the skipper of the little smack which touched at the island like a marine carrier's cart once a week.

Then they had an axe and saw, and stored up driftwood for their fire; fishing lines and a good supply of hooks; a gaff and many other objects, including towels--for the pools in the outer cavern's mouth were now their regular places for bathing.

As the time went on the novelty of possessing such a curious secret place did not wear off. On the contrary, the satisfaction it afforded them grew, the more especially that the journey to and fro had become much more simple, for they had picked out the easiest way through the oak wood, knew the smoothest path among the granite blocks, and were always finding better ways of threading the rugged chaos at the bottom of the ridge slope.

As far as they could see ahead it seemed to them that there was nothing more to discover, and they might go on keeping the place entirely to themselves till they were grown up.

But at sixteen or so we do not know everything. It was the day after the conversation at the old manor-house that, after a long morning with Mr Deane, the two boys met as usual, and started in the opposite direction to that which they intended to take, for they had not taken many steps before Vince kicked out sidewise and struck Mike on the boot.

"What did you do that for?" said the other angrily.

"'Cause I liked;" and a tussle ensued, half serious on one side, jocular on the other.

"Now," whispered Vince, "break away and run towards that bay, and I'll chase you."

"What for? What's come to you this afternoon?"

"Don't look round. Old Daygo's sitting under a stone yonder smoking his pipe."

Mike obeyed, running off as hard as he could go, chased by Vince, till they were well out of sight, and then, by making a _detour_ of a good half-mile, they reached the oak wood a long way north of their customary way of entrance, and began to plod onward towards their goal.

"That's what they call throwing dust in any one's eyes, isn't it?" said Mike, laughing.

"Yes," said Vince, "and we shall have to make it sand with old Joe.

He's getting more and more suspicious, though I don't see why it matters to him. You see, we never go near him now to ask him to take us out fishing, or into one of the west bays to sh.e.l.l, and he thinks we have something else on the way."

"Well, so we have, and--Hullo, Joe! you there?"

"Yes, young gentleman, I'm here," said Daygo gruffly, as he suddenly came upon them in a little opening in the wood. "I thought you'd gone down to the west bays."

"Well, we did think of going; but it's cooler and more shady here. The sun does come down so strongly there under the cliffs. Seen any rabbits?"

"Two on 'em," said the man; "but you won't ketch them. Dog couldn't do it, let alone you. Ounce o' shot's only thing I know that runs fast enough to ketch them."

It was an awkward predicament, and both lads had the same feeling that they would like to go off at once in another direction, only that they shrank from leaving the old fisherman, for fear he should find the way down into the caves.

They wandered on in his company for a few minutes, and then Vince took the initiative and cried,--

"I say, I'm sick of this; it's dreadful. Come out on the common somewhere, so that we can get down to the sea."

"I don't think you can get down anywhere near here. Can you, Joe?"

asked Mike.