The sides of the earth fell away sharply, down, down. Betty shouted, and the empty echo of her voice came back to her.
"The ground's so shaly and crumbly," she said thoughtfully, "that it would be impossible to let a man down with a rope—the earth would cave in and bury him."
"I think I see a diamond," reported Libbie. "Don't you see something glittering down there?"
"Can't even see the bottom," said Bobby curtly. "Much less a diamond. Oh, girls, to think of those valuables at the bottom of a chasm like this and none of us able to think up a way to get 'em out."
"Well, lots of people have tried," said Alice reasonably. "If grown-up men couldn't salvage 'em for grandma, I guess it's nothing to our discredit that we can't get them."
"We might push Libbie in," suggested Bobby wickedly. "Then she could tell us how deep it is."
This had the effect of sending Libbie scurrying away from the dangerous place, and the others followed her more slowly to resume the search for nuts.
"I wish we could think of a way, Norma, dear," said Betty.
"Oh, I don't care—not so very much," answered Norma bravely. But then she sighed deeply.