CHAPTER XXI
FROM THE OCEAN BED
Three boxes they retrieved from the sunken vessel that day, and since itwas getting dark when the last of these was hauled to the surface, theydecided to postpone any further operations till the next day.
The boys were curiously silent as they tugged and hauled the chests tothe cave where they might examine their contents. Suppose the mysteriousboxes did not contain treasure after all? They were almost afraid toopen them.
Phil it was who began to pry off the lid of the first box. His bodyached with fatigue from his adventures under the sea but he never eventhought of it. His whole mind was concentrated on the business ofgetting that lid off.
The boys stood around him holding their breath, their eyes fairlyburning with excited expectation of what they hoped to see.
Then with a grinding noise the ancient lock gave way and the coverslipped off. The boys gave a wild cry and sank to their knees beside theopen chest. They couldn't speak. They could hardly think. They kneltthere, bathing their hands in a wealth of golden coins and sparklinggems, a treasure that had defied the years under the sea, the oldpirate's treasure come to life and glittering as brightly as it had onthat day so long ago when the ship had sunk with the loss of all hercrew.
If the boys had seemed crazy when Phil had emptied the little black bagof coins and gems before them, bringing them the first word of thetreasure, they were ten times worse now.
They laughed, they danced, they shouted to one another. Stevescandalized Bimbo by seizing the black boy about the waist and whirlinghim madly about the cave, ending up in a gyrating mass of arms and legsas they slipped and landed on the floor together.
Even Jack Benton acted for a little while as though he had "gone loco."It was a long time before they could pull themselves together enough toopen the other two chests.
When they finally came around to it, Dick grabbed the chisel--with whichthey had pried off the cover of the first chest--from Phil's hand, goingto work on the second chest himself.
"You're getting stingy," he said, in reply to Phil's look of surprise."You opened the first chest. Now it's my turn."
"Why care who opens it," retorted Phil, "as long as it gets opened.Only, hurry up, you old snail, or I may be tempted to give you somehelp, anyway."
As a matter of fact it did take some time to get the cover off for Dickwas so excited his hands trembled and he seemed to lack his usual amountof strength.
However, although the impatient boys offered insistently to help him, hekept them off, offering to "lay them out" with the chisel if they gottoo "fresh."
At last the cover gave and they found themselves staring fascinated intoa chest whose contents seemed at first glance to fully equal in valuethe contents of the first one.
Without stopping for a closer look, they opened the third box, Steveofficiating this time and Tom grumbling because there wasn't a fourthchest--to which Phil replied that if Tom would wait till the next day hewould try to oblige him--and this one also, was heaped to the brim withshining gold pieces, interspersed with jewels of rare beauty and value.
The boys, feeling as though they were living through an amazing dream,took out handful after handful of the gold pieces and here and there aprecious jewel, examining them closely beneath the light of theirelectric torches.
Like the samples which Phil had first brought to them, they found thatthe coins were of English and French and Spanish origin, all very oldand bearing dates that thrilled the boys with the romance of those olddays.
"Say, what would you give to have been able to live in those times,"said Tom softly, his eyes gleaming as he turned a gold piece over andover in his fingers.
"I'd just as soon be living now," retorted Steve with a grin. "I bet theold pirates never had a more adventurous day than we have just livedthrough."
"You bet," murmured Dick. "Just wait till we tell the folks. They didn'twant us to come on this trip but I reckon when we show them a few ofthese little goldpieces, they'll be sort of glad we came."
"We ought to be able to rescue the rest of the treasure to-morrow," saidPhil. "And then--"
"Home to God's country," finished Jack Benton.
Bimbo, over in his corner, shook his head and was heard to muttersomething like, "Ah says Amen to dat, boss, Ah sho' does."
"Bimbo, you old gloom hound," Phil called out with a laugh, "You don'tmean to say you still think this island is unlucky--after to-day's runof luck?"
"Well," returned Bimbo, placing his head on one side reflectively. "Ahdon' know as Ah'd go as far as dat, Marse Phil, but Ah sure will thinkhit's luckier when we don' got d'ocean between hit an' us. Yassir, MarsePhil, Ah could jes' love dis here islan'--at a distance."
They laughed and Steve poked the black boy in the ribs but just thesame, his persistent dislike of the island made them uneasy even in thismoment of triumph.
In the excitement of the day they had forgotten the ominous cloud ofsmoke hanging low above the mountain and Bimbo's words recalled it tothem.
Perhaps, after all, an eruption from that volcanic giant might defeatthem just when victory seemed most certain. If only they had not losttheir ship on their ill-fated approach to the island. In that, theymight escape at a moment's notice but now, even with the aid of radiotheir escape might be delayed just too long----.
With an effort they put aside the unwelcome thought, abandoningthemselves once more to joy in the finding of the treasure. There wassome talk of what they should do with the wealth now that they had it.
Phil wanted to bury it but the boys laughed at the idea.
Were they not the only inhabitants of the island? What need then forsuch extreme caution?
Phil, remembering the shot he thought he had heard, recalling the figurethat had slunk like a shadow from the cave, could not help feeling thatthere might be need of caution but he said nothing. Only half convincedhimself that what he had seen had not been a shadow and that what he hadheard had been a shot, how could he hope to convince his comrades thatdanger lurked upon the island? He was more than half inclined to laughat the idea himself.
At last they were able to tear themselves away from the treasure longenough to snatch a few hours of sleep. They must be up and doing brightand early if they hoped to recover the rest of the treasure that day.Then they would radio some passing ship, stow themselves and thetreasure aboard and sail for home. Was it any wonder their dreams werepleasant?
Phil woke suddenly from a dream in which he was displaying his part ofthe treasure to his excited and admiring parents, woke suddenly andcompletely, with every sense on the alert.
As on that other night, he had a distinct sensation that some one wasnear him, had passed stealthily close to him. Holding his breath he laymotionless, straining his eyes to pierce the gloom of the place.
No sound save the regular breathing of his companions, the pounding ofthe sea on the sand--hark! What was that? He was not dreaming now.Someone, at the other end of the cave was moving cautiously, feeling hisway. Once he stumbled and an involuntary oath escaped his lips to beimmediately stifled.
The blood tingling in his veins, as quiet as a panther who is waiting toleap upon his prey, Phil lay upon his bed, every muscle tensed for thespring.
The figure of a man, crouching outlined itself against the gap thatformed the door of the cave. Silently as a ghost Phil slipped from thebed, stood erect, his hands outstretched hungrily for the fellow'sthroat.
The Radio Boys Under the Sea; or, The Hunt for Sunken Treasure Page 21
