The Lighthouse

by R. M. Ballantyne

  CHAPTER NINETEEN.

  AN ADVENTURE--SECRETS REVEALED, AND A PRIZE.

  The Giel or Gaylet Pot, down into which Ruby, with great care andcircumspection, led Minnie, is one of the most curious of Nature'sfreaks among the cliffs of Arbroath.

  In some places there is a small scrap of pebbly beach at the base ofthose perpendicular cliffs; in most places there is none--the cliffspresenting to the sea almost a dead wall, where neither ship nor boatcould find refuge from the storm.

  The country, inland, however, does not partake of the rugged nature ofthe cliffs. It slopes gradually towards them--so gradually that it maybe termed flat, and if a stranger were to walk towards the sea over thefields in a dark night, the first intimation he would receive of hisdangerous position would be when his foot descended into the terribleabyss that would receive his shattered frame a hundred feet below.

  In one of the fields there is a hole about a hundred yards across, andas deep as the cliffs in that part are high. It is about fifty oreighty yards from the edge of the cliffs, and resembles an old quarry;but it is cut so sharply out of the flat field that it shows no sign ofits existence until the traveller is close upon it. The rocky sides,too, are so steep, that at first sight it seems as if no man coulddescend into it. But the most peculiar point about this hole is, thatat the foot of it there is the opening of a cavern, through which thesea rolls into the hole, and breaks in wavelets on a miniature shore.The sea has forced its way inland and underground until it has burstinto the bottom of this hole, which is not inaptly compared to a potwith water boiling at the bottom of it. When a spectator looks into thecave, standing at the bottom of the "Pot", he sees the seaward openingat the other end--a bright spot of light in the dark interior.

  "You won't get nervous, Minnie?" said Ruby, pausing when about halfwaydown the steep declivity, where the track, or rather the place ofdescent, became still more steep and difficult; "a slip here would bedangerous."

  "I have no fear, Ruby, as long as you keep by me."

  In a few minutes they reached the bottom, and, looking up, the skyappeared above them like a blue circular ceiling, with the edges of theGaylet Pot sharply defined against it.

  Proceeding over a mass of fallen rock, they reached the pebbly strand atthe cave's inner mouth.

  "I can see the interior now, as my eyes become accustomed to the dimlight," said Minnie, gazing up wistfully into the vaulted roof, wherethe edges of projecting rocks seemed to peer out of darkness. "Surelythis must be a place for smugglers to come to!"

  "They don't often come here. The place is not so suitable as many ofthe other caves are."

  From the low, subdued tones in which they both spoke, it was evidentthat the place inspired them with feelings of awe.

  "Come, Minnie," said Ruby, at length, in a more cheerful tone, "let usgo into this cave and explore it."

  "But the water may be deep," objected Minnie; "besides, I do not like towade, even though it be shallow."

  "Nay, sweet one; do you think I would ask you to wet your pretty feet?There is very little wading required. See, I have only to raise you inmy arms and take two steps into the water, and a third step to the leftround that projecting rock, where I can set you down on another beachinside the cave. Your eyes will soon get used to the subdued light, andthen you will see things much more clearly than you would think itpossible viewed from this point."

  Minnie did not require much pressing. She had perfect confidence in herlover, and was naturally fearless in disposition, so she was soon placedon the subterranean beach of the Gaylet Cave, and for some time wanderedabout in the dimly-lighted place, leaning on Ruby's arm.

  Gradually their eyes became accustomed to the place, and then itsmysterious beauty and wildness began to have full effect on their minds,inducing them to remain for a long time, silent, as they sat side byside on a piece of fallen rock.

  They sat looking in the direction of the seaward entrance to the cavern,where the light glowed brightly on the rocks, gradually losing itsbrilliancy as it penetrated the cave, until it became quite dim in thecentre. No part of the main cave was quite dark, but the offshoot, inwhich the lovers sat, was almost dark. To anyone viewing it from theouter cave it would have appeared completely so.

  "Is that a sea-gull at the outlet?" enquired Minnie, after a long pause.

  Ruby looked intently for a moment in the direction indicated.

  "Minnie," he said quickly, and in a tone of surprise, "that is a largegull, if it be one at all, and uses oars instead of wings. Who can itbe? Smugglers never come here that I am aware of, and Lindsay is not alikely man to waste his time in pulling about when he has other work todo."

  "Perhaps it may be some fishermen from Auchmithie," suggested Minnie,"who are fond of exploring, like you and me."

  "Mayhap it is, but we shall soon see, for here they come. We must keepout of sight, my girl."

  Ruby rose and led Minnie into the recesses of the cavern, where theywere speedily shrouded in profound darkness, and could not be seen byanyone, although they themselves could observe all that occurred in thespace in front of them.

  The boat, which had entered the cavern by its seaward mouth, was a smallone, manned by two fishermen, who were silent as they rowed under thearched roof; but it was evident that their silence did not proceed fromcaution, for they made no effort to prevent or check the noise of theoars.

  In a few seconds the keel grated on the pebbles, and one of the menleaped out.

  "Noo, Davy," he said, in a voice that sounded deep and hollow under thatvaulted roof, "oot wi' the kegs. Haste ye, man."

  "'Tis Big Swankie," whispered Ruby.

  "There's nae hurry," objected the other fisherman, who, we need scarcelyinform the reader, was our friend, Davy Spink.

  "Nae hurry!" repeated his comrade angrily. "That's aye yer cry. Halfo' oor ventures hae failed because ye object to hurry."

  "Hoot, man! that's enough o't," said Spink, in the nettled tone of a manwho has been a good deal worried. Indeed, the tones of both showed thatthese few sentences were but the continuation of a quarrel which hadbegun elsewhere.

  "It's plain to me that we must pairt, freen'," said Swankie in a doggedmanner, as he lifted a keg out of the boat and placed it on the ground.

  "Ay," exclaimed Spink, with something of a sneer, "an' d'ye think I'llpairt without a diveesion o' the siller tea-pots and things that yedaurna sell for fear o' bein' fund out?"

  "I wonder ye dinna claim half o' the jewels and things as weel,"retorted Swankie; "ye hae mair right to _them_, seein' ye had a hand infindin' them."

  "_Me_ a hand in findin' them," exclaimed Spink, with sudden indignation."Was it _me_ that fand the deed body o' the auld man on the Bell Rock?Na, na, freend. I hae naething to do wi' deed men's jewels."

  "Have ye no?" retorted the other. "It's strange, then, that ye shouldentertain such sma' objections to deed men's siller."

  "Weel-a-weel, Swankie, the less we say on thae matters the better.Here, tak' haud o' the tither keg."

  The conversation ceased at this stage abruptly. Evidently each hadtouched on the other's weak point, so both tacitly agreed to drop thesubject.

  Presently Big Swankie took out a flint and steel, and proceeded tostrike a light. It was some some time before the tinder would catch.At each stroke of the steel a shower of brilliant sparks lit up hiscountenance for an instant, and this momentary glance showed that itsexpression was not prepossessing by any means.

  Ruby drew Minnie farther into the recess which concealed them, andawaited the result with some anxiety, for he felt that the amount ofknowledge with which he had become possessed thus unintentionally, smallthough it was, was sufficient to justify the smugglers in regarding himas a dangerous enemy.

  He had scarcely drawn himself quite within the shadow of the recess,when Swankie succeeded in kindling a torch, which filled the cavern witha lurid light, and revealed its various forms, rendering it, ifpossible, more mysterious and unearthly than ever.r />
  "Here, Spink," cried Swankie, who was gradually getting into betterhumour, "haud the light, and gie me the spade."

  "Ye better put them behind the rock, far in," suggested Spink.

  The other seemed to entertain this idea for a moment, for he raised thetorch above his head, and, advancing into the cave, carefully examinedthe rocks at the inner end.

  Step by step he drew near to the place where Ruby and Minnie wereconcealed, muttering to himself, as he looked at each spot that mightpossibly suit his purpose, "Na, na, the waves wad wash the kegs oot o'that if it cam' on to blaw."

  He made another step forward, and the light fell almost on the head ofRuby, who felt Minnie's arm tremble. He clenched his hands with thatfeeling of resolve that comes over a man when he has made up his mind tofight.

  Just then an exclamation of surprise escaped from his comrade.

  "Losh! man, what have we here?" he cried, picking up a small object thatglittered in the light.

  Minnie's heart sank, for she could see that the thing was a small broochwhich she was in the habit of wearing in her neckerchief, and which musthave been detached when Ruby carried her into the cave.

  She felt assured that this would lead to their discovery; but it hadquite the opposite effect, for it caused Swankie to turn round andexamine the trinket with much curiosity.

  A long discussion as to how it could have come there immediately ensuedbetween the smugglers, in the midst of which a wavelet washed againstSwankie's feet, reminding him that the tide was rising, and that he hadno time to lose.

  "There's nae place behint the rocks," said he quickly, putting thebrooch in his pocket, "so we'll just hide the kegs amang the stanes.Lucky for us that we got the rest o' the cargo run ashore at Auchmithie.This'll lie snugly here, and we'll pull past the leftenant, who thinkswe havena seen him, with oor heeds up and oor tongues in oor cheeks."

  They both chuckled heartily at the idea of disappointing the preventiveofficer, and while one held the torch the other dug a hole in the beachdeep enough to contain the two kegs.

  "In ye go, my beauties," said Swankie, covering them up. "Mony's thetime I've buried ye."

  "Ay, an' mony's the time ye've helped at their resurrection," addedSpink, with a laugh.

  "Noo, we'll away an' have a look at the kegs in the Forbidden Cave,"said Swankie, "see that they're a' richt, an' then have our game wi' theland-sharks."

  Next moment the torch was dashed against the stones and extinguished,and the two men, leaping into their boat, rowed away. As they passedthrough the outer cavern, Ruby heard them arrange to go back toAuchmithie. Their voices were too indistinct to enable him to ascertaintheir object in doing so, but he knew enough of the smugglers to enablehim to guess that it was for the purpose of warning some of theirfriends of the presence of the preventive boat, which their words provedthat they had seen.

  "Now, Minnie," said he, starting up as soon as the boat had disappeared,"this is what I call good luck, for not only shall we be able to returnwith something to the boat, but we shall be able to intercept bigSwankie and his comrade, and offer them a glass of their own gin!"

  "Yes, and I shall be able to boast of having had quite a littleadventure," said Minnie, who, now that her anxiety was ever, began tofeel elated.

  They did not waste time in conversation, however, for the digging up oftwo kegs from a gravelly beach with fingers instead of a spade was not aquick or easy thing to do; so Ruby found as he went down on his knees inthat dark place and began the work.

  "Can I help you?" asked his fair companion after a time.

  "Help me! What? Chafe and tear your little hands with work that allbut skins mine? Nay, truly. But here comes one, and the other willsoon follow. Yo, heave, _Ho_!"

  With the well-known nautical shout Ruby put forth an herculean effort,and tore the kegs out of the earth. After a short pause he carriedMinnie out of the cavern, and led her to the field above by the samepath by which they had descended.

  Then he returned for the kegs of gin. They were very heavy, but not tooheavy for the strength of the young giant, who was soon hastening withrapid strides towards the bay, where they had left their friends. Hebore a keg under each arm, and Minnie tripped lightly by his side,--andlaughingly, too, for she enjoyed the thought of the discomfiture thatwas in store for the smugglers.