the sea, and joined his companions,
who appeared to be holding a hasty council.

"You see what we may expect," said Jack bitterly. "The man who will
wantonly kill a poor brute for sport will think little of murdering a
fellow-creature. Now, boys, we have but one chance left--the Diamond
Cave."

"The Diamond Cave!" cried Peterkin. "Then my chance is a poor one, for
I could not dive into it if all the pirates on the Pacific were at my
heels."

"Nay, but," said I, "we will take you down, Peterkin, if you will only
trust us."

As I spoke, we observed the pirates scatter over the beach, and radiate,
as if from a centre, towards the woods and along shore.

"Now, Peterkin," said Jack in a solemn tone, "you must make up your mind
to do it, or we must make up our minds to die in your company."

"Oh Jack, my dear friend!" cried Peterkin, turning pale, "leave me; I
don't believe they'll think it worth while to kill me. Go, you and
Ralph, and dive into the cave."

"That will not I," answered Jack quietly, while he picked up a stout
cudgel from the ground.--"So now, Ralph, we must prepare to meet these
fellows. Their motto is `No quarter.' If we can manage to floor those
coming in this direction, we may escape into the woods for a while."

"There are five of them," said I; "we have no chance."

"Come, then!" cried Peterkin, starting up and grasping Jack convulsively
by the arm; "let us dive. I will go."

Those who are not naturally expert in the water know well the feelings
of horror that overwhelm them, when in it, at the bare idea of being
held down even for a few seconds--that spasmodic, involuntary recoil
from compulsory immersion which has no connection whatever with
cowardice; and they will understand the amount of resolution that it
required in Peterkin to allow himself to be dragged down to a depth of
ten feet, and then, through a narrow tunnel, into an almost pitch-dark
cavern. But there was no alternative. The pirates had already caught
sight of us, and were now within a short distance of the rocks.

Jack and I seized Peterkin by the arms.

"Now, keep quite still--no struggling," said Jack, "or we are lost!"

Peterkin made no reply; but the stern gravity of his marble features,
and the tension of his muscles, satisfied us that he had fully made up
his mind to go through with it. Just as the pirates gained the foot of
the rocks, which hid us for a moment from their view, we bent over the
sea and p