"Now, three hundred to the north," ordered the major.
"We"ll have to plunge right into the brush," said Rob.
"All right. Go ahead. In a few minutes now we shall know if we"re on a fool"s errand or not."
The former army officer"s voice was vibrant with emotion.
Followed by the others, Rob pushed into the brush, pacing off the required three hundred feet as accurately as he could. All at once he came to a halt.
"Three hundred," he announced.
As they looked about them a feeling of keen disappointment set in. Tall brush was hemming them in on all sides. No trace of a stone man, or anything else but the close-growing vegetation, could be seen.
"Fooled again!" was the exclamation that was forcing itself to Tubby"s irrepressible lips when he stopped short, struck by the look of keen disappointment on the major"s face.
"It looks as if we had had all our trouble for nothing, boys," he began, when Rob interrupted.
"What"s that off there, major, through the bushes yonder. You can see it best from here."
The major hastened to the young leader"s side.
"It"s a sort of cliff or precipice," he cried.
"Maybe the man of stone is located there," suggested Rob; "it"s worth trying, don"t you think so, sir?"
"By all means. This growth may have sprung up since the treasure was hidden away, and so have concealed the place."
Once more the party moved on. A few paces through the undergrowth brought them to the foot of a steepish cliff of rough, gray stone. It appeared to be about thirty feet or more in height. Above it towered the rugged peak of the first of the Three Brothers.
"Now, where"s the man of stone?" asked the professor in a puzzled tone, gazing about him.
"There"s certainly no indication of a man of that material or any other,"
opined the major, likewise peering in every direction.
"What"s that ma.s.s of rock on the cliff top?" asked Merritt suddenly; "it looks something like a human figure."
They all gazed up. A big ma.s.s of rock was poised at the summit of the cliff. There was a large rock with a smaller one perched on the top of it. To a vivid imagination it might have suggested a body and a head.
"It"s worth investigating, anyway," decided the major; "we"ll look at the face of the cliff directly beneath it. Maybe there is an opening there."
But this decision was more easily arrived at than carried out. Th.o.r.n.y brush and thick, tall weeds shrouded the base of the cliff for a height of eight or ten feet. But the Boy Scouts had their field axes with them, and before long the blows of the steel were resounding. In a few minutes they had cleared away a lot of the brush directly beneath the two poised stones.
The major and the professor, with Jumbo looking rather awe-stricken at the major"s side, stood watching.
"These balanced stones prove my theory that all this is of glacial origin," the professor was saying. "Some antediluvian water course must have left them there. Why, it wouldn"t take much of a push to shove them over."
"That is true," agreed the major; "in that case, supposing that an entrance does exist at this spot, they would block it effectually."
"Very much so," agreed the professor dryly; "in fact----"
"Hoo-r-a-y!"
The shout rang gladly through the silent woods. The boys had thrown down their axes and stood with flushed, triumphant faces turned toward the elder members of the party. The major was quick to guess the cause of their excitement.
"They"ve found it!" he cried, springing forward.
The professor and Jumbo followed. As they came up Rob was pointing to an opening at the base of the cliff which the cleared brush had revealed.
"The entrance to the cavern of Ruby Glow!" he exclaimed dramatically, while the rest of the Boy Scouts swung off into Tubby"s extemporized song of triumph.
CHAPTER XXIII.
TRAPPED IN A LIVING TOMB.
After the first excitement and confusion had quieted down a bit, the major and the professor began discussing ways and means for exploring the cavern.
"When shall we start?" asked Merritt.
"At once, I think," said the major.
"I agree with you," said the professor; "no time like the present."
"That being the case," declared the major with a smile, "Jumbo had better set out for the canoes at once, and bring some provisions and the lanterns."
The lanterns referred to were of the variety used by miners, which had been brought along for the special purpose in which they were now to be employed.
But Jumbo was not allowed to set off alone on his expedition. The eager Boy Scouts raced off with him. They soon returned with a supply of canned goods, plenty of matches and some firearms and the lanterns. The latter were quickly lighted and, each member of the party shouldering a burden, the dash into the cave was begun.
It was a creepy, mysterious sensation. The light seemed to go out with a sudden snap as they pa.s.sed the portals of the cave entrance. Only the yellow light of the lanterns, pale after the bright sunshine, illumined the damp walls. A queer, dead, musty smell was in the air.
"Better proceed carefully," said the professor; "we may encounter a pocket of poisonous air before long."
"I thought we were looking for a pocket full of money," whispered Tubby to Merritt, behind whom he was pacing.
The party had to advance in single file, for beyond the entrance of the cave was a narrow pa.s.sage.
"I wonder how your ancestor ever located this place?" said Rob, wonderingly, as they proceeded cautiously.
"The family legend has it that he came in here in pursuit of a wounded wild animal he had shot, and which sought refuge here," said the major.
It was a strange, rather uncanny feeling to be treading the long unused path leading into the bowels of the cliff. They talked in whispers and low tones. A loud voice would go rumbling off in a weird way, not altogether comfortable to listen to.
"Gee! I wouldn"t much care to be trapped in here," said Tubby, as they pressed on.
All at once the path they had been following took a sudden dip. Right under their feet was a narrow chasm. If they had not had lights they might have been precipitated into it, but luckily their lanterns showed them the peril just in time.