THE TRANSPORTATION OF THE ARMS
The three lanterns were lighted, and Levi Bedford lost not a moment in making the preparations for loading the boxes into the flatboat. The sink-hole was a tunnel in the ground, at the bottom of which could be heard the gurgling of waters. The overseer said the brook which flowed into the creek where they had found the gundalow had its source in this place, though it made a considerable circuit before it reached its outlet.
On the side of the inverted cone nearest to the creek there was an opening which led into the cavern, the bottom of which was at least twenty feet above the water, whose ripple they could hear. The descent was gradual, both in the tunnel and in the cavern; and with lanterns in their hands Deck and Artie led the way down, for they had made themselves familiar with the subterranean chamber in the afternoon, and it was years since Levi had been there.
Mr. Lyon followed his son, while the overseer, with a coil of small line on his arm, which he had taken from the boathouse, brought up the rear. The party were taking a survey of the entrance in order to determine the best way to move the cases. It looked as though the water had flowed through the cavern at some remote period of time, probably rising from the sink-hole below, for the limestone at the floor was worn tolerably smooth. Doubtless the extinct stream had found a new outlet, lowering the level of the water so that it had ceased to flow through the cave.
The boxes were piled up just as they had been found in the afternoon. The roof of the cavern was very irregular, and in some places it was not more than five feet above the floor, while in others it was from eight to ten. The arms were deposited in a recess about twenty feet from the entrance. When the boys visited the sink-hole they had found the opening of the cave partly filled up with branches of trees and other rubbish; but they had removed these obstructions, which formed only a very weak attempt to conceal the depository of the arms.
Levi studied the interior of the cavern and the situation of the cases, attended by the planter. The lanterns were sufficient to light it so that they had no difficulty in seeing to work. The apartment began to wind about just below them, and all was gloom and darkness in that direction.
"It is about twenty feet to the opening," said Levi, as he measured the distance with his eye. "The roof is not more than five feet high half the way; and, if their skulls are not harder than the limestone, General and Dummy will be likely to stave a hole in them."
"The rest of the hands are not so tall," suggested Mr. Lyon.
"I brought this rope with me without knowing that it would be of any use to us; but I find that it is just the thing we want," continued the overseer as he uncoiled the line. "Now, boys, all we will ask you to do is to hold the lanterns; but you must not go to sleep and let them fall on the stone floor."
"No danger of that," laughed Deck. "But we can work in the low place without smashing our heads."
"I am glad there is no hard work for you, boys, for you must be tired after pulling a boat twenty miles this afternoon," added Mr. Lyon.
"I am not very tired, and I can do my share of the work," replied Artie.
"So can I," added Deck.
"But you can do the most good by holding the lights," replied Levi. "One of you stand down here; and the other, with two of the lanterns, near the opening."
The boys followed this direction, Deck placing himself at the entrance, where he could light a part of the cavern and the tunnel. The overseer uncoiled his rope, and with the help of the planter lifted one of the boxes down to the floor. He then made fast the rope to it with a slip-noose, the knot on the under side, so as to carry the case over any obstructions.
Walking up to the entrance, uncoiling the line as he proceeded, he passed out of the cavern into the tunnel. Calling General and Dummy from the place where they had been told to wait, he stationed them near the door, and then carried the line, which was not less than seventy-five feet in length, to the shore of the creek.
"Now, Rosebud, and the rest of you, take hold of this rope, and when the word comes up to you from General, haul up the box which is made fast to the other end of it," continued Levi. "As soon as you get it up here, unhitch the line, and throw the end down to General. As soon as you have done that, load the case into the boat, then haul up another, and do the same thing over again."
"Gunnymunks!" exclaimed the laughing negro. "Whar all de boxes come from?"
"None of your business, Rosebud; mind your work, and don't ask questions," returned the manager, as he descended to the entrance to the cavern.
"W'at we gwine to do, Mars'r Bedford?" asked General.
"You are going to pull and haul; and you can begin now," replied Levi. "Take hold of that line, and draw that box up here. Pull steady, so as not to break it."
The two powerful negroes manned the rope, and dragged the case up to the opening without any difficulty, and without doing it any great injury. It was placed so that it could be readily hauled out of the sink.
"Above there!" called the overseer. "Now haul steady on the rope! Ease it out of the opening, General."
The two big men crowded it around the corner, and then it went up to the ground above without any obstruction or delay. The line was detached from the box, and thrown down to the entrance, General passing it down to the pile of boxes. Another had been prepared for the rope, and the planter made fast to it. Levi had gone up to superintend the loading of the box, and arranged a couple of planks he found in the boat, so that this part of the work could be conveniently done. He made Rosebud the "boss" for the time being, and then went down into the cavern to assist his employer.
"It won't take long to do the job at this rate," said Mr. Lyon when the overseer joined him. "Your plan of doing the work makes an easy thing of it."
"I could not tell how it was to be done till I saw the situation of things here; but we shall be back to Riverlawn before daylight," replied Levi, as they lifted down the third of the boxes.
When the method of moving the cases to the boat had been adopted, and had been found to work so well, the task was practically accomplished. The ease and celerity with which they mounted to the upper regions astonished and delighted the planter and the boys, and they were filled with admiration at the skill displayed by Levi Bedford in the management of the business. He was accustomed to working the hands, and knew what each of them was good for; and no other person could have done so well.
The work proceeded with increased rapidity as the men became used to the operations. In less than an hour all but the two cases containing the cannon, which Levi said were twelve-pounders, had been removed. The "Seceshers" had evidently had a great deal of difficulty in handling them; for they had stove one of the cases in pieces, and the other was hardly in condition to hold the heavy piece. Levi made his rope fast to the cascabel, or but-end of the gun, and the word was passed for the men above to come down to the entrance.
The six negroes made easy work of hauling it up to the opening, while the overseer and the planter directed it with levers, split from the broken case, so as to prevent it from receiving any injury. The six men were then sent above the tunnel, and the gun was drawn up. Loading it into the boat was a more difficult matter; and the planter and the overseer were considering how it was to be done, when General interrupted them.
"Go 'way dar, niggers!" exclaimed General, waving his hand for the others to get out of the way. "Cotch hold ob de end ob de shooter, Dummy, and we uns will tote it in de boat!"
The big preacher seized the end of the piece at the vent end, and General did the same with the muzzle. They lifted the gun from the ground, though with a strain which brought out some grunts from them, and slowly marched to the boat with their burden. Levi ordered two more of the men to take hold with them, at the trunnions, and sent the other two into the boat, who assisted as they could obtain a hold on the load. It was safely deposited in the bottom of the craft.
The overseer opened the other case with the hatchet Artie had brought, and broke up the boards of which it was constructed. It was put into the boat in the same manner as the other. The water was deep enough in the creek for the boat, and Levi gave his attention next to the trimming of the craft, while he sent some of the hands to bring up the pieces of board left in the cavern; but the cargo needed but little adjusting, and the party were ready to return to Riverlawn.
"When your precious brother visits that cavern next time, he will be likely to wonder what has become of his arms and ammunition," said Levi, wiping the perspiration from his brow. "Now, boys, go down into that hole again, and see that we have left nothing there, for I don't want Captain Titus to find anything to let him know who has done this job for him."
While they were gone upon this mission, the overseer placed the Magnolia ahead of the flatboat, in readiness to tow it down the creek. The boys returned, and the hatchet was the only thing which had been left. To their astonishment they found that Levi had shaken out the sail of the Magnolia, and they had their doubts about his ability to manage it.
"I hope you won't tip the sailboat over, Levi," said Deck, as he stepped on board of her, followed by Artie.
"If I do I shall not spill you out, either of you; for I want you to take charge of the flatboat, with two of the hands," replied the overseer. "I shall keep four men in the Magnolia to row, and I think the sail will help us along a good deal."
"I should like to change that plan a little, Levi," interposed Mr. Lyon. "The boys and myself can take care of the flatboat, and you can have all the men at the oars."
"Just as you say, Major Lyon, and perhaps that will be the best scheme. I was thinking that you and the boys might sleep part of the way down," answered the overseer. "The wind is blowing pretty hard from the south-west, and I reckon we shall get some rain before a great many hours. The sail ought to help us a big piece."
The planter and the boys armed themselves with the long oars of the flatboat, which had been driven into the muddy bottom of the creek to hold her in place at the landing, and they were ready to keep her off the shore in going around a sharp bend. Mr. Lyon placed his between the pins in the stem to steer with.
With their oars in hand the six rowers were in their places, and Levi gave the word to shove off. When the men had pulled a short distance, the skipper, a position which the overseer had assumed, hauled in the sheet, and made it fast at the cleat for the purpose. The sail filled with a vengeance as a sharp flaw struck it, and the Magnolia forged ahead with a dart, dragging her tow after her. As the creek widened the sail strained, and the Magnolia seemed to be struggling to get away from the gundalow astern of her.
As she proceeded on her course down the stream, she increased her speed, and appeared to make nothing of hauling the tow after her. The motion produced by the sail bothered the rowers, who were not used to this situation. Some of them "caught crabs," and the oars of all of them were lifted and thrown back by the water that rushed past them. They made such bad work of it that Levi ordered them to unship their oars.
The Magnolia was making something like six miles an hour, and would have made ten without the tow. He steered her so that she carried the gundalow safely around the bends of the stream; and the planter had little to do, the boys nothing. Deck and Artie stretched themselves on the boxes, and were soon fast asleep; for they were worn out with the exertion and excitement of the day and night.
The bends in the stream near the spring road perplexed the skipper at first; but his excellent common-sense helped him out, and he hauled in his sheet so as to bring the boat up closer to the wind. Above the most troublesome bend at this point, the general course of the creek was west north-west. He let off the sheet, and the Magnolia flew faster than ever.
When he came to the bridge by the mansion, he waked the negroes, who had all fallen asleep, to take down the mast, so that he could pass under it, for he had already lowered the sail. He ran the boat close to the bank off the ice-house, and the negroes secured it and the gundalow.
"Dexter, Artemas!" shouted the planter. "Wake up! The cruise is ended."