Oh, yes," Mercedes hastened to inform him; "only 'tisn't the main one.
That's all boarded up, and no one can go down it any more. This was
dug later. Someone thought there was more silver here, and they made
this shaft. It's not very deep----"

"Let's go down it!" proposed Billiard, boyishly eager for such an
adventure.

"Oh, horrors!" shrieked Mercedes. "With all those lizards down there?"

"Shucks! Lizards won't hurt a fellow."

"Maybe there are snakes, too," said Rosslyn, hastily backing away from
the place.

"We'd have heard them," Billiard answered promptly. "Susie has fired
enough rocks at 'em to stir 'em up if there was any there."

"But Tabitha mightn't like it," suggested Irene in troubled tones.

"Did she ever say you _couldn't_ go?"

"N-o."

"Or did your mother?"

"N-o."

"Then what's to hinder?"

"S'posing the rope should bu'st," mused Irene aloud.

"_That_ rope? Why, it's half as big as my arm! Yes, bigger."

"But it has been here a long, long time. Ever since I can remember.
Doesn't rope rot?"

"I'll bet that's as strong as iron," boasted Billiard. "There's
nothing rotten about it. I'll stump any of you to go down with me."

"Will you go first and see if there are any snakes?" demanded Susie,
whose love of adventure was constantly leading her into mischief.

"If you'll promise honor bright to come next."

"I will," Susie rashly promised, her eyes dancing with excitement and
eagerness. "Will you go, too, Toady?"

"Sure, but who's going to let us down? I'll bet it takes some work to
keep the rope unwinding just right."

"I'll lower you all," proposed Mercedes magnanimously, for the idea of
descending into that black, musty hole did not appeal to her in the
least, but she could not bear to appear less brave than fly-away Susie.

"You! Pooh! You are just a girl! The bucket would get away from you
the first thing, and then where'd the rest of us be? No, I've got a
better plan than that. You and Toady and Irene let Susie and Inez and
me down first; and after we have had a look at the thing, we'll come up
and let you down. How does that suit you?"

"It's a go," Toady readily responded.

"All right," quavered Mercedes.

But Irene held her peace. Nothing could tempt her to crouch in that
great, swaying bucket and be dropped into the blackness of that yawning
pit, but she did not mean to voice her opinions until the proper
moment. So she took her place beside Merce