rushing river that gushed from some underground
source.

"We immediately remembered the pit Polly had told us of, and the rushing
sound of waters she had heard when leaning over the edge of the pit, so
we decided that here we had found the outlet.

"We could not determine how far the river traveled underground from the
pit, until it came out in the open again, but we got Mike to come with
us, and, daring fellow that he is, he crept into the tunnel that hooded
the stream. We tried to dissuade him from taking such a risk, but he
grinned and said: 'Mike like fun.'

"When he returned, half an hour later, he made us understand that we
might follow quite safely. My! But that was some thrill, eh, Tom?"
laughed John, shivering delightfully at the reminiscence.

Tom laughingly admitted that it was a "hair-raiser" and John continued:
"We managed to cling to the narrow ledge of rock that was less than a
foot above the turbulent water, and even that must have been submerged
most of the time, as it was damp and slippery. Mike said the recent
land-slide had had some effect on lowering the water-line of the river
and that was what left the rock exposed.

"We crept slowly along this foot-hold and soon realized that we were
nearing some suction-hole. Mike explained that it was the very tube that
rose to the rocky floor where Polly knelt that day. I couldn't see where
this journey was going to benefit us, but Mike knew.

"Reaching the tube that slanted upwards, so that we could see roots and
stubborn vines growing out of its rocky walls, we also discovered that
we had a flat space of more than six feet square on which we were
standing. Now Mike demonstrated what he proposed doing. All our
threats, persuasions, and anger, left no impression. He smiled.

"He made us understand that he was about to scale the wall by means of
those roots and vines. Should he miss and fall, the rope he tied about
his body would keep him from being swept down into the current. He gave
us the end of the rope to fasten to our waists. When he arrived at the
top, he would draw us up, one after the other.

"He managed to land on top, but I'll have to tell you-all some other
time, all that happened before we reached the underground cave where the
gold was shining from walls and ceiling. It is exactly as Polly
described it, and we picked up a number of nuggets that were found in
the dust of ages on the stone floor, and then tried to take scientific
observat