Adventure, November 1915 — page 61: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

: The Gold Lust her moorings in the lagoon as the first stars broke through overhead among the-cloud masses, now dark as the land which only showed as an indeterminate smudge of black. “Well, we’re here first,” announced Ad- 3 dams. ‘They won’t be able to make that passage tonight, if they dared, even in a small boat. They’ll not be here for two hours. The moon’s not up till midnight and the sky’s thick with clouds. They won’t be able to sight the island and they’ll hate to venture too close to it. If they did they couldn’t pick out the passage, and, on top of that, we got in on the middle of the flood. The ebb will be running well after daylight and that’s as good as a solid reef tous. Selim, get dinner right away. We'll tackle those caves tonight, while we’re safe from interruption.” “Going around by boat or climb over the ridge?” asked Winton. “The caves are on the other side, aren’t they?” “Tt’s six of one and half a dozen of an- other, as far as time goes,”’ answered Ad- dams. “But it’s too risky to tackle the row in the dark. We might get an upset or badly hung up. Help me get out those torches, Jim, with the spare batteries for them.” Peggy emerged from the galley. “Dinner is served,” she announced. “Am I to be allowed to gor” Winton started to demur, but Addams checked him. ‘“‘We’re safe as a church till morning,” he said. ‘‘No reason why she shouldn’t help us work out the secret, that I can see.” “Thank you,” said Peggy. ‘“‘After all it’s my cave. Come on and eat, if youcan. I’m far too excited for food.” CHAPTER XXII THE HIDDEN HIEROGLYPHICS HEY left Selim aboard the Wavecrest, with orders to climb to the ridge of the promontory as soon as it began to get light. From there he was to warn them of the approach of the Lei Lehua. It was diffi- cult work making their way down to the little beach where the gold-schooner had been cast up sixty-five years before with Fellowes and the older Henley as the only survivors. The moon was not due until long after o9 midnight; the scanty stars, cloud-shrouded, gave little aid, and they picked their way with the light of electric torches. The three Chinamen carried iron rods for sound- ing the sand, also picks and shovels and crowbars. They seemed impassive as ever, but the rest of the little party was high- strung with excitement at the closing-in of their adventure. Addams felt Peggy’s small hand trembling with eagerness as he helped her down the trails. Once they paused for rest before they essayed the final clamber to the beach and sat together on the edge of the lava cliff. The sky overhead was purple velvet, span- gled with golden stars; the sea beyond the reef seemed ebony. Ghostly waves rose against the barrier, and, robbed of their crests, hissed across the lagoon to break at last in phosphorescent, lacey foam. They were in the saddle of the promontory with the desolate crater peak splitting the sky like a great miter to their left, and the lower headland to their right. “T feel as if I were part of an illustration to the ‘Arabian Nights,’” declared Peggy, “the sister of Ali Baba, if he had one, about to enter the robbers’ cave.” “T hope the sesame will work,” said Ad- dams. “You haven’t forgotten it, have you?” she asked. “A big fish, a canoe, five men and a ring. What are you so quiet about, Archer?” | “Thinking of magic words that open treasure-houses,’’ he said. ‘“There’s one treasure-house I’ve wanted to enter for a long time, Peggy, and it begins to look as if I might have the right to try, at last.” He felt the girl’s hand slip caressingly into his. : “T think you could always have found a way in, if you had tried,” she said. “Even treasures don’t want to be shut up all the time, you know.” “Tf we don’t find the gold I think [ll stay behind on the island and turn hermit,” he said jestingly. “That would be very disagreeable, I should. think,” she answered. ‘‘What would we do when we quarreled with no one to be sympathetic but the shellfish?” “Did you say ‘we’ Peggy?” he asked. “‘Light-ho!” sung out Jim. “Where away?” asked Addams, as he and Peggy rose and faced seaward. “Right there, just below the Big Dipper,” CONMICLIOC S com