ent him out in the darkness to
procure it. He too was caught in the undersea channel.

"Of course Major Dell was never even menaced by the sink-hole. Likely he
had some knowledge of it. He vanished the third night, because first,
he realized that Noyes' testimony would sooner or later convict him of
his brother's murder, and second, because the disappearance of Florey
and Nealman had set a good example for him. Some secret business took
him into my uncle's room first, as you guessed. I have no doubt that he
was hiding in the dense thickets on the other side of the lagoon all the
time--waiting for his chance to procure the treasure and make his
escape.

"I don't know that you'll believe it, but by this time I had guessed the
secret of the lagoon. I didn't know just how it worked, but I felt there
was some kind of an underground outlet that would sweep away any one who
tried to wade in the proximity of the treasure. Of course I didn't
suspect Dell--I thought he had merely gone as Uncle Grover had gone,
through the sink-hole to his death. When I made my attempt, I went
prepared."

"But how dared you attempt it?" I demanded.

She laughed at my anger. "I wanted to know the truth!" she exclaimed. "I
owed it to Uncle Grover--to find out what became of him. I needed the
treasure chest, too--for his securities won't quite balance, he told me,
the demands that will be made upon the estate. And finally--maybe there
was another reason, too. Perhaps you know what it was."

The narration could not go on at once. It was one of those moments that
a man always remembers, and holds dear when most earthly treasures are
as dust. She hadn't forgotten my own dreams--the plans I had made but
which seemed so impossible of fulfillment.

"But how did you dare take the risk?" I demanded.

"There wasn't any risk--at least, I didn't think there was. I felt sure
that a sink-hole in the bed of the lagoon was the explanation. The plank
I dragged out there was plenty big enough to hold me up. You know a
floating cake of soap doesn't go down the sluice as long as the bathtub
is any way near full of water. The plank would have held me easily if
Dell hadn't interfered and torn it from my hands.

"Why did he interfere? Of course we can only guess at that. I think he
was waiting for a chance to take the treasure himself--and he saw my
intention. I suppose he had dreamed about his grandfather's gold until
it was a veritable passion with him--a mania