Chapter Twelve. EXCITING DISCOVERIES

 

SOON the stones of the little room were clear of earth, sand and weeds. The children saw that they were all the same size- big and square, fitted well together. They went over them carefully with their torches, trying to find one that might move or lift.

" We should probably find one with an iron ring handle sunk into it, " said Julian. But they didn't. All the stones looked exactly the same. It was most disappointing.

Julian tried inserting his spade into the cracks between the various stones, to see if by any chance he could move one. But they couldn't be moved. It seemed as if they were all set in the solid ground. After about three hours hard work the children sat down to eat a meal.

They were very hungry indeed, and felt glad to think there were so many things to eat. As they ate they discussed the problem they were trying to solve.

" It looks as if the entrance to the dungeons was not under this little room after all, " said Julian. " It's disappointing- but somehow I don't think now that the steps down to the dungeon started from here. Let's measure the map and see if we can make out exactly where the steps do start. It may be, of course, that the measurements aren't correct and won't be any help to us at all. But we can try."

So they measured as best they could, to try and find out in exactly what place the dungeon steps seemed to begin. It was impossible to tell, for the plans of the three floors seemed to be done to different scales. Julian stared at the map, puzzled. It seemed rather hopeless. Surely they wouldn't have to hunt all over the ground floor of the castle! It would take ages.

" Look, " said George, suddenly, putting her finger on the hole that they all thought must be meant to represent the well. " The entrance to the dungeons seems to be not very far off the well. If only we could find the well, we could hunt around a bit for the beginning of the dungeon steps. The well is shown in both maps. It seems to be somewhere about the middle of the castle."

" That's a good idea of yours, " said Julian, pleased. " Let's go out into the middle of the castle- we can more or less guess where the old well ought to be, because it definitely seems to be about the middle of the old yard out there."

Out they all went into the sunshine. They felt very important and serious. It was marvellous to be looking for lost ingots of gold. They all felt perfectly certain that they really were somewhere beneath their feet. It didn't occur to any of the children that the treasure might not be there.

They stood in the ruined courtyard that had once been the centre of the castle. They paced out the middle of the yard and then stood there, looking around in vain for anything that might perhaps have been the opening of an old well. It was all so overgrown. Sand had blown in from the shore, and weeds and bushes of all kinds grew there. The stones that had once formed the floor of the big courtyard were now cracked and were no longer lying flat. Most of them were covered with sand or weeds.

" Look! There's a rabbit! " cried Dick, as a big sandy rabbit lollopped slowly across the yard. It disappeared into a hole on the other side. Then another rabbit appeared, sat up and looked at the children, and then vanished too. The children were thrilled. They had never seen such tame rabbits before.

A third rabbit appeared. It was a small one with absurdly big ears, and the tiniest white bob of a tail. It didn't even look at the children. It bounded about in a playful way, and then, to the children's enormous delight, it sat up on its hind legs, and began to wash its big ears, pulling down first one and then another.

But this was too much for Timothy. He had watched the other two bound across the yard and then disappear without so much as barking at them. But to see this youngster actually sitting there washing its ears under his very nose was really too much for any dog. He gave an excited yelp and rushed full-tilt at the surprised rabbit.

For a moment the little thing didn't move. It had never been frightened or chased before, and it stared with big eyes at the rushing dog. Then it turned itself about and tore off at top speed, its white bobtail going up and down as it bounded away. It disappeared under a gorse bush near the children. Timothy went after it, vanishing under the big bush too.

Then a shower of sand and earth was thrown up as Tim tried to go down the hole after the rabbit and scraped and scrabbled with his strong front paws as fast as he could. He yelped and whined in excitement, not seeming to hear George's voice calling to him. He meant to get that rabbit! He went almost mad as he scraped at the hole, making it bigger and bigger.

" Tim! Do you hear me! Come out of there! " shouted George. " You're not to chase the rabbits here. You know you mustn't. You're very naughty. Come out! "

But Tim didn't come out. He just went on and on scraping away madly. George went to fetch him. Just as she got up to the gorse bush the scraping suddenly stopped. There came a scared yelp- and no more noise was heard. George peered under the prickly bush in astonishment.

Tim had disappeared! He just simply wasn't there any more. There was the big rabbit-hole, made enormous by Tim- but there was no Tim.

" I say, Julian- Tim's gone, " said George in a scared voice. " He surely can't have gone down that rabbit's hole can he? I mean- he's such a big dog! "

The children crowded round the big gorse bush. There came the sound of a muffled whine from somewhere below it. Julian looked astonished.

" He is down the hole! " he said. " How queer! I never heard of a dog really going down a rabbit-hole before. However are we going to get him out? "

" We'll have to dig up the gorse bush, to begin with, " said George, in a determined voice. She would have dug up the whole of Kirrin Castle to get Tim back, that was certain! " I can't have poor old Tim whining for help down there and not do what we can to help him."

The bush was far too big and prickly to creep underneath. Julian was glad they had brought tools of all kinds. He went to fetch an axe. They had brought a small one with them and it would do to chop away the prickly branches and trunk of the gorse bush. The children slashed at it and soon the poor bush began to look a sorry sight.

It took a long time to destroy it, for it was prickly, sturdy and stout. Every child's hands were scratched by the time the bush had been reduced to a mere stump. Then they could see the hole quite well. Julian shone his torch down it.

He gave a shout of surprise. " I know what's happened! The old well is here! The rabbits had a hole at the side of it- and Tim scraped away to make it bigger and uncovered a bit of the well-hole- and he's fallen down the well! "

" Oh no, oh no, " cried George, in panic. " Oh Tim, Tim, are you all right? "

A distant whine came to their ears. Evidently Tim was there somewhere. The children looked at one another.

" Well, there's only one thing to do, " said Julian, " We must get our spades now and dig out the hole of the well. Then maybe we can let a rope down or something and get Tim."

They set to work with their spades. It was not really difficult to uncover the hole, which had been blocked only by the spreading roots of the big gorse bush, some fallen masonry, earth, sand and small stones. Apparently a big slab had fallen from part of the tower across the well-hole, and partly closed it. The weather and the growing gorse bush had done the rest.

It took all the children together to move the slab. Underneath was a very rotten wooden cover, which had plainly been used in the old days to protect the well. It had rotted so much that when Tim's weight had been pressed on it, it had given just there and made a hole for Tim to fall through.

Julian removed the old wooden cover and then the children could see down the well-hole. It was very deep and very dark. They could not possibly see the bottom. Julian took a stone and dropped it down. They all listened for the splash. But there was no splash. Either there was no longer any water there, or the well was too deep even to hear the splash!

" I think it's too deep for us to hear anything, " said Julian. " Now- where's Tim? "

He shone his torch down- and there was Tim! Many years before a big slab had fallen down the well itself and had stuck a little way down, across the well-hole- and on this old cracked slab sat Tim, his big eyes staring up in fright. He simply could not imagine what had happened to him.

There was an old iron ladder fastened to the side of the well. George was on it before anyone else could get there! Down she went, not caring if the ladder held or not, and reached Tim. Somehow she got him on to her shoulder and, holding him there with one hand, she climbed slowly up again. The other three hauled her out and Tim jumped round her, barking and licking for all he was worth!

" Well, Tim! " said Dick, " you shouldn't chase rabbits-but you've certainly done us a good turn, because you've found the well for us! Now we've only got to look around a little to find the dungeon entrance! "

They set to work again to hunt for the dungeon entrance. They dug about with their spades under all the bushes. They pulled up crooked stones and dug their spades into the earth below, hoping that they might suddenly find them going through into space! It was really very thrilling.

And then Anne found the entrance! It was quite by accident. She was tired and sat down to rest. She lay on her front and scrabbled about in the sand. Suddenly her fingers touched something hard and cold in the sand. She uncovered it- and lo and behold, it was an iron ring! She gave a shout and the others looked up.

" There's a stone with an iron ring in it here! " yelled Anne, excitedly. They all rushed over to her. Julian dug about with his spade and uncovered the whole stone. Sure enough, it did have a ring in it- and rings are only let into stones that need to be moved! Surely this stone must be the one that covered the dungeon entrance!

All the children took turns at pulling on the iron ring, but the stone did not move. Then Julian tied two or three turns of rope through it and the four children put out their full strength and pulled for all they were worth.

The stone moved. The children distinctly felt it stir. " All together again! " cried Julian. And all together they pulled. The stone stirred again and then suddenly gave way. It moved upwards- and the children fell over on top of one another like a row of dominoes suddenly pushed down! Tim darted to the hole and barked madly down it as if all the rabbits of the world lived there!

 

Julian and George shot to their feet and rushed to the opening that the moved stone had disclosed. They stood there, looking downwards, their faces shining with delight. They had found the entrance to the dungeons! A steep flight of steps, cut out of the rock itself, led downwards into deep darkness.

" Come on! " cried Julian, snapping on his torch. " We've found what we wanted! Now for the dungeons! "

The steps down were slippery. Tim darted down first, lost his foot-hold and rolled down five or six steps, yelping with fright. Julian went after him, then George, then Dick and then Anne. They were all tremendously thrilled. Indeed, they quite expected to see piles of gold and all kinds of treasure everywhere around them!

It was dark down the steep flight of steps, and smelt very musty. Anne choked a little.

" I hope the air down here is all right, " said Julian. " Sometimes it isn't good in these underground places. If anyone feels a bit funny they'd better say so and we'll go up into the open air again."

But however funny they might feel nobody would have said so. It was all far too exciting to worry about feeling queer.

The steps went down a long way. Then they came to an end. Julian stepped down from the last rock-stair and flashed his torch around. It was a weird sight that met his eyes.

The dungeons of Kirrin Castle were made out of the rock itself. Whether there were natural caves there, or whether they had been hollowed out by man the children could not tell. But certainly they were very mysterious, dark and full of echoing sounds. When Julian gave a sigh of excitement it fled into the rocky hollows and swelled out and echoed around as if it were a live thing. It gave all the children a very queer feeling.

" Isn't it strange? " said George, in a low voice. At once the echoes took up her words, and multiplied them and made them louder- and all the dungeon caves gave back the girl's words over and over again. " Isn't it strange, ISN'T IT STRANGE, ISN'T IT STRANGE."

Anne slipped her hand into Dick's. She felt scared. She didn't like the echoes at all. She knew they were only echoes- but they did sound exactly like the voices of scores of people hidden in the caves!

" Where do you suppose the ingots are? " said Dick. And at once the caves threw him back his words. " INGOTS! Ingots are! INGOTS ARE! ARE! ARE! "

Julian laughed- and his laugh was split up into dozens of different laughs that came out of the dungeons and spun round the listening children. It really was the queerest thing.

" Come on, " said Julian. " Maybe the echoes won't be so bad a little farther in."

" FARTHER IN, " said the echoes at once. " FARTHER IN! "

They moved away from the end of the rocky steps and explored the nearby dungeons. They were really only rocky cellars stretching under the castle. Maybe wretched prisoners had been kept there many, many years before, but mostly they had been used for storing things.

" I wonder which dungeon was used for storing the ingots, " said Julian. He stopped and took the map out of his pocket. He flashed his torch on to it. But although it showed him quite plainly the dungeon where INGOTS were marked, he had no idea at all of the right direction.

" I say- look- there's a door here, shutting off the next dungeon! " suddenly cried Dick. " I bet this is the dungeon we're looking for! I bet there are ingots in here! "

 

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