njoyed our ramble, for this was a part of the
shore that we had not explored for some time, and the number of pools
and hollows among the stones were almost countless, while at every turn
we had to lament the absence of our baskets and nets.

Sometimes we climbed on to some difficult-looking pile, at other times
we crept in under the cavernous-looking places, where, at high tide, the
sea rushed and roared. Wearying of this, we explored the edge where
high-water left its marks, to examine the curious shells washed up, and
the varieties of sea-weed driven right under the perpendicular wall of
rock, that towered up above us fully two hundred feet before it began to
slope upwards as a hill.

Then after laughingly saying that if the French came, they would have to
bring very long ladders and use them at low tide if they wanted to get
into England, we sauntered back towards where we had left my father, but
chose our path as nearly as we could close down by the edge of the
water.

The tide was coming up fast, but this was all the better, as it was
likely to bring in objects worthy of notice; but we found nothing, and
at last the time had so rapidly glided away that evening was coming in
as it were on the tide.

We looked about us, and found that we were well inside the little bay
where we had first landed, its two arms stretching well out as jagged
points on either side, among whose rocks the sea was foaming and
plashing, although it was quite calm a little way out.

"No getting back, boys, now," said Bigley, "if it wasn't for the boat."

"Yah! Nonsense!" cried Bob. "If the tide was to catch me in a bay like
this, I should make a run and a jump at the cliff, catch hold of the
first piece of ivy I could see, and then go up like a squirrel."

"Without a tail," I added laughing.

"Hark at clever old Sep Duncan," sneered Bob. "He'd walk up the cliff
without touching. It's a strange thing that we can't come out without
your saying something disagreeable, Sep."

"I'm very sorry," I said with mock humility, for I had just caught sight
of Bigley's face, and he was grinning.

"Well, don't do it again, then," said Bob pompously, and then we
listened, for a voice hailed us from somewhere among the wilderness of
piled-up rocks.

"Ahoy, there! Ahoy!"

"Here we are, father!" I shouted, and trudging on we met him coming
down from a place where he had evidently been sitting smoking his pipe.

"Didn't you hear me hail be