"And now, my lads, here's the rifles," he cried, thrusting the collected weapons out through the aperture.
"Hang the rifles! Come oot yersel'!" howled Stewart, reaching down a massive bony fist, and grasping his comrade by the shoulder; and in this way Mackay, clutching fast to the armoury of the expedition, was hauled to the surface, even as the foremost of the vengeful warriors dashed their heads impotently into the aperture through which he had been yanked so rigorously forth.
"MACKAY, CLUTCHING FAST TO THE ARMOURY OF THE
EXPEDITION, WAS HAULED TO THE SURFACE"
"There was no need for you exertin' your muscular powers in that vera drastic fashion," reproved the latest arrival, turning, and thrusting the stock of his rifle down into the gap with calm forcefulness.
The response which greeted his action seemed to soothe him somewhat.
"All's well that ends well," he remarked philosophically; "but before we start congratulating oorsel's we'd better lock these twa doors an' leave the keys on the ootside."
In a short time a very effective boulder barricade was arranged before both entrances, the enormous rocks used for the purpose being rolled and carried to their positions by the united strength of the party; only when this work was completed, when the yells of the baulked warriors sounded dull and subdued behind the solid barriers, only then did the earnest toilers pause.
The night was beautifully clear, not a cloud was visible in the sky, and the stars shone down with steady radiance. The rising mists from the bubbling caldrons spread like a ghostly white veil in the near westward distance, and ever and anon a heavy rumbling would run along the line of the deep cavities, and fresh vapoury puffs from the craters ascended towards the heavens. For fully a minute no one spoke; the extreme tension on their nerves for the last half-hour had been most trying to all, and their silence was now more eloquent of their thankfulness than words.