d Tom, Sailor?" I asked, as though he could
answer me. And indeed he did answer as plainly as dog could do, wagging
his tail and whining, and turning to go back with me in the direction
whence he had come.

But I stopped to shoot off my revolver again. Still no answer.

"Off we go then, old chap," and as he ran ahead, I followed him as fast
as I could over those damnable rocks.

It took me the best part of an hour to get to where Tom had been
working. It was an extent of those more porous limestone rocks of which
I have spoken, almost cliff-like in height, and covering a considerable
area. Sailor brushed his way ahead, pushing through the scrub with
canine importance. Presently, at the top of a slight elevation, I came
among the bushes to a softer spot where the soil had given way, and saw
that it was the mouth of a shaft like a wide chimney flue, the earth of
which had evidently recently fallen in. Here Sailor stopped and whined,
pawing the earth, and, at the same time, I heard a moaning underneath.

"Is that you, Tom?" I called. Thank God, the old chap was not dead at
all events.

"Thank the Lord, it's you, sar," he cried. "I'm all right, but I've had
a bad fall--and I can't seem able to move."

"Hold on and keep up your heart--I'll be with you in a minute," I called
down to him.

"Mind yourself, sar," he called cheerily, and, indeed, it was a problem
to get down to him without precipitating the loose earth and rock that
were ready to make a landslide down the hole, and perhaps bury him for
ever.

But, looking about, I found another natural tunnel in the side of the
hill. Into this I was able to worm myself, and in the dim light found
the old man, and put my flask to his lips.

"Anything broken, do you think?"

Tom didn't think so. He had evidently been stunned by his fall, and
another pull at my flask set him on his feet. But, as I helped him up,
and, striking a light, we began to look around the hole he had tumbled
into, he gave a piercing shriek, and fell on his knees, jabbering with
fear.

"The ghosts! the ghosts!" he screamed.

And the sight that met our eyes was certainly one to try the nerves. We
had evidently stumbled upon a series of fairly lofty chambers hollowed
out long ago first by the sea, and probably further shaped by
man--caverns supported here and there by rude columns of the same rock,
and dimly lit from above in one or two places by holes like mine shafts,
down one of which fell mas