"Right! Got "em at last," cried Gurr. "Clear off more stones, my lads.
No; stop!" he said.
"Yes, I know what you are thinking, Mr Gurr," said Archy. "The men couldn"t have shut themselves in there."
"Course not, my lad. But you are right, that"s the way down to their curiosity shop, and they"re hiding in this hole here."
Then, thrusting in his head, and holding on by the rugged stones, he shouted into the hollow pa.s.sage,--
"Now then, my lads, out you come!"
A pause.
"D"yer hear? The game"s up, and if you don"t come out quietly, we shall have to fetch you out on the rough."
Still no reply.
"Come, come, my lads, no nonsense! Surrender. I don"t want to use pistols and cutlashes to Englishmen. You know the game"s up.
Surrender."
Still no reply.
"I don"t think that hole goes in far, Mr Raystoke," whispered the master. "There"s no echo like, and it sounds smothered." Then aloud,--
"Now, then, is it surrender? Oh, very well; I"ve got some nice little round messengers to send in after you."
He drew a pistol from his belt and c.o.c.ked it, winking at Archy as he did so. "Now, then, once--twice--fire!"
He pointed the mouth of the pistol downward, and drew the trigger, and in the semi-darkness below the overhanging brambles and clematis there was a dull flash, the report sounded smothered, and the place was filled with the dank, heavy-scented smoke.
"There"s precious little room in there," whispered the master. "If there"d been much of it, we should have heard the sound go rolling along instead of coming back like a slap in the face. Here, one of you, reload that. You, d.i.c.k, follow me. If they show fight, you come on next, bo"s"n, with the whole of your boat"s crew."
"Ay, ay, sir."
"Hi! In there. Do you surrender?"
There was not a sound, and, after a momentary pause, the master spat in his fist, gripped his cutla.s.s, went down on all fours, after driving his hat on tightly, and crawled into the hole, followed by d.i.c.k.
"Keep a cheery heart on it, lad," said one of the men just before to d.i.c.k. "We"ll fetch you out and bury you at sea."
d.i.c.k drove his elbow into the man"s chest for an answer, grinned as he felt the point of his cutla.s.s, and dived into the hole, while the boatswain and his men stood waiting eagerly, ready to plunge forward at the first sound of a scuffle.
Archy peered in at the dark pa.s.sage, his heart beating as he listened to the noise made by the two men crawling in, and the last of the two had hardly disappeared when there was a shout, a scuffle, and the boatswain plunged in.
"All right!" they heard Gurr say. "I"ve got him. Hold still, you varmint, or I"ll cut your ears off. Here, d.i.c.k, get by me, and go forrard if you can."
There was more scuffling, and the rattle of a stone or two, as the listeners pictured in their own minds the man squeezing past the master and his prisoner, and then d.i.c.k"s voice came out in a half smothered way:
"Can"t get no farther. All choked-up."
"All right, then, but make sure."
"Oh, I"m sure enough," said d.i.c.k. "It"s all a stopper here."
"Then out you come, my lad," said the master; and the next minute his legs were seed as he backed out, dragging evidently some one after him who was resisting.
"Here, d.i.c.k," came in smothered tones.
"Ay, ay, sir."
"Says he won"t come. If he gives me any more of his nonsense, touch him up behind with the pynte of your cutlash."
"Ay, ay, sir."
"Yah! Cowards!" came in angry tones.
"Ram!" exclaimed Archy, as the boy, looking hot and fierce, was dragged out by the master, to stand looking round him as fiercely as a wild cat.
"Hullo!" cried Archy. "It"s my turn now, Ram;" but he repented his words directly, as he saw the reproachful look the boy darted at him.
Then he forgot all directly, as he exclaimed,--
"I see, Mr Gurr, I see! The smugglers are down here after all, and they left this boy behind to fasten the door, and cover it over with stones."
Unable to contain himself, Ram thoroughly endorsed the midshipman"s words by giving an angry stamp upon the bottom of the hole.
"That"s it!" cried Gurr. "Here, chuck these stones into the pa.s.sage, my lads;" and the rough trap-door was laid bare, the two bolts by which it was secured were seen to be unfastened, and the lock unshot.
"No way out, Mr Raystoke, is there?"
"No."
"Then we"ve got "em trapped safe this time," said Gurr, as the door was thrown open. "Bad job we"ve no lanthorns; but never mind, my lads. If they won"t surrender, you must feel your way with the pyntes of your toothpicks."
There was a murmur of excitement among the men, and then Gurr leaned down over the hole, put his hand to his mouth, and shouted,--
"Below there! In the King"s name--surrender!"
His words went rolling and echoing through the place, but there was no reply.
"Once more, my lads, to save bloodshed, will you surrender?"
No reply.
"Very well. It"s your fault, my lads, and very onsensible. Bo"s"n, it"s a big place, and I shall want all my men. You"re all right here; with one you ought to be able to hold this."
"And the prisoner?"
"No; we"ll take him with us. Here, lash his hands behind him, and tie his legs together. We"ll lay him down to have a nap somewhere yonder down below. That"s right," he continued, as a man produced a piece of line, and firmly secured the boy, who was lowered down to one of the men who had descended, laid on the stones in a corner at the bottom; and then, after giving the word to be ready, Gurr braced himself up.