, they leaped to their
feet with all a boy's energy and vital force.

"Let's do something," exclaimed Scar. "Shall we go to the lake?"

"That's just what I was going to say," cried Fred; but they did not go
far in an aimless way--they began to descend the hill slowly at first,
then at a trot, then at headlong speed, till they stopped a part of the
way up the next slope, after crossing the bottom of the little coombe
between the hills.

This second hill looked wearisome after their rapid descent, so they
contented themselves with walking along its side parallel with the
bottom of the little valley, talking of indifferent matters till they
came upon a little flock of grey and white gulls feeding amongst the
short herbage, where the rain had brought out various soft-bodied
creatures good in a gull's eyes for food.

The beautiful white-breasted creatures rose on their long narrow wings,
and flapped and floated away.

From force of habit, Fred took up a stone and threw it after the birds,
not with any prospect of hitting them, for they were a couple of hundred
yards away.

"Wish I could fly like that," said Scarlett. "Look at them; they're
going right over the Rill Head."

The two boys stopped and watched until the birds glided out of sight,
beyond the lion-like headland, an object, however, which grew less
lion-like the nearer they drew.

"What would be the good?" replied Fred. "It would soon be very stupid
to go gliding here and there."

"But see how easy it would be to float like that."

"How do you know?" said practical Fred. "I dare say a bird's wings ache
sometimes as much as our legs do with running. I say, Scar."

"Yes."

"Let's go and have a look at the caves."

"What caves?"

"Down below the Rill. Now, only think of it; we were born here, and
never went and had a look at them. Samson says that one of them is
quite big and runs in ever so far, with a place like a chimney at one
end, so that you can get down from the land side."

"And Nat said one day that it was all nonsense; that they were just like
so many rabbit-holes--and that's what he thought they were."

"But our Samson said he had been in them; and if they were no bigger
than rabbit-holes, he couldn't have done that. Let's go and see."

"Bother! I had enough of poking about in that damp old passage, and all
for nothing. I thought we were going to find the way in there."

"Well, so we did."

"But I mean the other end."

"B