e feeling,
though, that my companions were laughing at me was too much, and with a
sudden burst of energy I thrust my hand right into the rift again, felt
down cautiously till my hand touched, not the slimy serpentine form of
an eel, but the hard back of a shell-fish, and as I touched it, there
was a curious scuffling down beneath my fingers that told me it was a
crab.

"Hooray, boys!" I shouted. "Crab!"

"Have him out, Sep! Mind he don't nip you!" they shouted; and after a
minute's hesitation I plunged my hand into the hole again, knowing that
I must feel for a safe place to get hold of the claw-armed creature, so
that I should not have to suffer a severe pinch or two, from its
nippers.

I was pretty quick, but the crab was quicker, and as I caught it the
left claw seized tight hold, but only of my sleeve.

My natural instinct was to start back, and this had the effect of
dragging the crab out of its lurking place, and I ran to the opening
holding out my arm, just as the crab dropped with quite a crash into the
little channel, and then began running sidewise back towards me and the
darkness.

I stopped my prisoner with my foot, and he scuffled back and into the
little empty pool, where he tried hard to hide himself under the
sea-weed fronds, but Bigley worked him out, and by clever management
avoided the pincers, which were held up threateningly, and popped him
into one of the baskets.

"It's my turn now," said Bigley. "Think there's anything else?"

"I don't know," I said. "Try."

"What's the good of saying that?" said Bob laughing. "He couldn't get
in."

"Oh, couldn't I?" cried Bigley. "You'll see. Mind that eel don't slip
out. Now you'll see."

He rolled up his sleeves nearly to the shoulder, and picking out the
widest spot began to crawl in, dragging himself slowly through, and at
last drawing his legs in after him, and standing in a bent position
right under the rock.

"There!" he cried triumphantly. "Who can't get in? Now then, where are
these cracks?"

"Right up at the other end," I cried; and he groped on into the narrower
part, Bob and I looking into the slippery grotto-like place enjoying his
slow cumbersome manner, and paying no heed to the fact that the tide had
turned, and that already a little water had run into the little pool
where we had baled.

"Found anything, Big!" we shouted, though he was only a couple of yards
away.

"N-no. Nothing here. I'm going to try this oth