Show 9 91 9 is lips 9 m 4 n 7 v 0 RODNEY i dick 3 V 0 0 I 1 or the adventures of A 1 0 4 in 10 an eton boy 3 I 1 q OY wt ORANT 1 4 CHAPTER X continued bahl eaid said the spaniard grinning grinn ng and showing a row of sharp whit bita teeth anler a dirty and sable mustache though I 1 said so 1 I knew better A eldom seldom bae has a gold watch like thie this he added displaying playing dk my gold repeater now we via iball keep you and it this woman amman after he has first sworn thai that he will not betray L LIOW do not return to ue us here with 00 within two tuo boure hours after sunset par el elbro asre he made a dreadful rowin row in spanish w evill e will lose ton ou like a dead dos dog into the ventana kentana of the mountain look down and sea what a journey Is 13 before you I 1 he added with a diabolical mile smile as he dragged me to the bertling edg edgo of the chaim chasm and forced me to look into it air eyes had now become I 1 PC accustomed to the light of the gallery or grotto that the ray rays of sunshine falling through the flure fissure above us were sufficient to disclose disc loee a portion of the vast profundity on the verge of which we stood from the earth earths womb far far fir down below there came upward a choking steam with a hollow buzzing bound sound which deepened dp od at to a rumble this steam or mist inlet rose and fell on oil the currents cur renta of air sometimes it bank sank so low that nothing but a black and dreary void met the eye which ached la in attempting to pierce it anon the steam would rise in spiral curls from that gloomy bod bed below where doubt leea less the fires of the now almost extinct volcano seethe their emberd in tho the waves of the ocean the words have mercy were on my lips but I 1 could not inter utter them nor would they have availed me ignorant of what the ruflin eald said and believing be was about to thrust me in poor tom lambourne in the fullness of his heart uttered a howl of disma end at that moment the sentinel whom the gang bad had left at the entrance to thair lurking place came hurriedly on with alarm expressed in his glittering eyes and a finger placed as aamina a warning on his hairy lip paral paz Sll enilo hold peace silence be he exclaimed and added that four officers from the garrison of santa cruz had bad dismounted itt u the ravine unbilled their horses and had seated themselves under a tree to smoke this information was received by the band with oaths and mutterings of impatience and by us with mingled emotions of hope and agony hope that they might be the means of our escape or rescue and agony that such means were so near and ya call could id avail us nothing for on the slightest sound being cluade do by either of us there were the albacete knives of our captors on one band and the ven kentana ventana tatia that awful vent centaria ventana aria sa un the other to insure forever the silence and oblivion of the grae grave not no the least of my mr was from t the e cord which secured my wrists already the skin wai was swollen cut and bleeding in consequence of the tightness with which these wretches bad had bound me CHAPTER XI sequel to our AJ for two hours they ibey seemed an eternity to me it would aivear the four spanish S officer officers lingered over their wine casar and clears cigars in the ravine their movements move niente being duly reported from time to time by one of the outlaws tuo 0 O aholo to the cavern mouth and peeped out at last they mounted and acda off when a fresh cause for wrath and delay was produced by the ment that a wagon drawn dran by mules and attended by several laborers and negroes had broken down on the road awat a a mile distant the irritation of our spaniards some of whom spoke of having a abia to 0 o loin join was now BO so great that I 1 feared they end the whole affair by disposing g of us in a summary manner wagon being heavily laden caused a delay for several hours the suns ray rays cefi ceased d lo 10 abdine through the fiss fissure ure above us the grotto drew draw dark by the in increase cease of imperceptible shad aws the deney faces of our oliva skinned retainers detainers deta detal iners ners grew darkin stilla still and their impatience wai wa A by ours tor for we 4 too bad I 1 A i ship to rejoin every minute of these these hours bours every of every minute passed slowly like A pang 0 or j agony in my heart aid and every feature of that natural baulf vaul through which the tha dying daylight atile with the faces and voices of the men whose we were and more than all the ceaseless and eternal chern butz buzz li ii the dark chaim ven ana or nostril of 0 the piton anre yet vividly impressed upon mcm rr t last the darkness dartin esa was so great that a lantern wa was lighted and its gleams as they fell on the crystals the spar quartz and blacks of black obsidian and antl r ruddy lava which forced the walls and anh amb an h of at the cay cavern em on tho the dark ferocious I 1 images the gaudy sashes the naked arau and feet the scrubby bs ble c beards oad britos mounted knives ind fad of the the taciturn spaniard aIds rho at sullen smoking group p t ac oza 1 d to tb gloomy A 2 1 1 tf f 1 but picturesque horror ot of the place and of the incident antonio quo liora es I 1 I 1 heard one ear say inquiring the time I 1 las neave neuve y tried media fil companero comp amero into halt past nine replied the po pos ol 01 ni ru gold watch which he be consulted with considerable complacency malilla Mald lla growled jio he other others knitting their brow brows fo to the dusk dunk was rapidly becoming booming darkness ani and they had bad no desire for killing us if we could be made pron profitable table I 1 halt hale often thought since that had bad tom actually procured and returned with the ed ransom of SOO they would lave pocketed it and then killed ui us bothme most certainly as they lemed to have other view vie a tor for poor tom in the southern state states I 1 we have had lied a lone long spell ot of ilia ufa eald said be in a low voice I 1 am colla to escape if it I 1 can faapal FA Bs apal ape but how 1 I dont know exactly how yat but we mutt first have our lashings cast ott off 1 would to heaven they were tom my hands are so to frollen anil ita my wrists so cut and benumbed that my arms are well nigh pow powerless erlese I 1 whispered in a low voice like a groin roan sit with ne me here in the shadow of this angle of rock and now 13 the darkness la Is fairly bet set in 1 I ball 1 make you free by a rapid and skillful aepli c aaion of his strong teeth to the cord which bound my wrists he untwisted the knot and freed my hands and then in the suddenly given luxury of being able to stretch my arms I 1 almost for got the necessity for concealing the fact that I 1 was now unbound I 1 soon found an opportunity for or untying tome fetters then w ve kept our hands clasped before us ut waited and hoped we scarcely knew know tor for what while in the further fur thear end of this inner cave our de sat sullenly lul lenly smoking ard by the dim lantern light making up from their toboco tob cco pouches and those little rice paper books bools which are now procurable nearly everywhere from the of our captors I 1 could coula gather that 0 our ur brig the eugenie was visible V I 1 5 itil a at anchor la in the roadstead of santa cruz a mil mile or so distant three of these spaniards had VI placed aced their muskets against the wall will nf of rock and seemed disposed to doze ob off to sleep close by us lay the plank which crossed that dread kentana ventana ven venta tana tim like the internal infernal bridge of Poul which the balleys belleva cross esthe the sea of alp that on the dri d i of doom hau shall separate good from uvil ton tom and I 1 looked at it aad and ex thi t klana 2 intelligence from time to lime but 1 the attempt to rush across might a 1 doubly fatal to one or both A slip ot of the foot would burl us into eternity ete raty and if it the passage were achieved achi tred we w would be exposed to the fire are of 0 those we fled lied from and met by that ot of the armed man at the mouth of the grotto thus our ana and lib itz penu perlia were somewhat complicated suddenly the distant report of a piece of ordnance coming from the caward seaward ea ward made us look up and aad listen el buldo quo que hace el canoa cation the crack of a gun exclaimed a spaniard scrambling up to the lower end of the fissure in the arch of the tb grotto and looking out I 1 we all know well eurih but what does it meant mean 7 asked the other the english brig at the atch anchorage orage has fired it I 1 see a light glittering on her deck and now away it goes op up to the foremast head it ie is the eugenie Eug enle master rodney whispered tom can the captain be about to gall sal tonight and without us aid said 1 I with growing dismay no but he la Is impatient for as to come off he ile known well whit what a 1 I ry set of imps traps these jack spaniards are and has a light oud fired a gun as a bint blut tor for uj na to look sharp companero eald said one of the spaniards pan to the other who was looking out are you sure that it ii fa the english alls brig and not ours oural yes but by st paul there Is 1 a light burning now on the atle 1 astle da do santa cruz to our craft had letter betta vt her ST ev beeps out and put to xa pea even with t us can the S bor a cobena dor have smelt a rat this announcement though vo we knew know not what it rel referred to had bad au av evident ident effect on our apers who were probably part of a slaver slavers crew for or they all scrambled scram bed up to the opening tit 14 the rock to look out now now Is the time to slip our cables and ren follow moll BI said tom lambourne in a hoarse bu dr 4 whisper as he be sprang forward snatched up two of the me maketa and rushed across the plank tripping as lightly as he would bata dote along i i boom or yard though it crossed a gulf so terrible less steadily but not less rapidly yoa you may he be assured yet with a brozen abart hearte I follow tl 4 via ilo and his bard liard i terry bind was tedy ready to imp alibe 1 1 A 1 and dragged me forward into isaf sty while with a violent kick he toned tir go plank away and surging down it wat into the black cult gulf we lad it vanished in a doment clo mint ant no to found sound ever ascended for it seemed j havo have fallen into a pit that was aa as dark ae As it wa was bottomless take thil this musket lind nd ice see you ran can uee use it mr 1 aid said tom ae as an emotion of bravado seized him and so 0 o you spanish greenb ornit si he I 1 shouted ih you thought to sell me m tor for a to the lank acs did you tou whoop I 1 A volley of spanish oatha oaths followed i this rah rash outburst which drew their attention at onre once upon us som rufed to the dark brink and paused I 1 suppose po for neither tom nor I 1 could see ee distinctly ai an there was A double explosion which filled the cavern with echoes like those of rolling tolling thunder and a mc momentary glare of smoky light while two musket balls whined pat past u ux and I 1 felt one like j a hot cinder aa as it grated my left att ear then came an albacete knife which waa wait burled hurled by no erring band for it wounded tome toms right tight knee I 1 give live them a hot shot mr Rod rodal neyl I 1 aid said he be furiously ill reserve my file 4 for the entry sentry and here be he it I 1 at 1 ready 1 I 1 and juet just aa the eighth fellow amp as s on the watch alarmed by tho jl lr ing came in with bl piece 4 j at st full fall tom fired at him III saints and angelal yelled the spaniard at u he be bounded into the air par and then fell flat on bla his face where he lay jay beilig the earth with hl his feet and hande hands fire ifred I 1 firof master Rodney Hd then rin for it before they 1 c load cited ton tom who saw tha the it k irresolute give em A R stern C my blood was now dow fairly op up p ing round I 1 leveled full at thi t 9 1 lit one of whom was in the act 0 0 W t aim alm at me while I 1 aw saw the sti fit t 1 VA rod of the other who bad had aj 9 glitter litter in the lantern a al r loaded i I 1 fired 1 I 1 know not whether the ball hit lint one of the ruf flani sprang wildly forward and fell felt headlong into 4 the ven vent anat tanal that will dol dot cried 1 tom away now as fast as we can cant stretch out bear away tor for the harbor and the it brigl f gras Oras ing ring our acquired deap ons which we never thought of re I 1 we rushed out and dt de 4 ia 6 Bc ending the ravine favored by the 1 51 starlight tar light instinctively took the ath 3 which led directly to the horwig barb r 40 with a it heart that beat mildly A 4 head bead in a whirl of and ever t pulse quickened by the while affair alfair by the ferocious to wh which 1 we had been subjects tor for eo so many 1 I gjura by the perils which bad had sa I 1 aced us by the narrow escapes ae made from bullets by the wild sit disastrous tragedy which closta W adventures ot of a long and lug air 1 I 1 ran beside tom Lam bouie 0 ek or ov without a breath to spare or ia ft wort to utter 1 to be continued 1 |