"A friend," was the reply.
"The pass-word."
"Death to traitors!"
"Enter!"
And a massive door was thrown back, through which Duffel passed and found himself in a dimly-lighted and damp entrance-way, which pursuing for a short distance led him to a spacious cave, which was now brilliantly illuminated by many lights that were reflected from a thousand polished surfaces of crystalline rock. So soon as he entered, a sentinel-watchman, whose duty it was to proclaim the names of all new-comers, announced him thus:
"Lieutenant Duffel!"
"Welcome to the Secret Cave!
"Welcome is a brother brave!" was the greeting he received from a score of voices whose owners came forward and took him cordially by the hand.
Most of the band there assembled were rather good looking men; but there were a few dare-devil marked fellows, whose sinister countenances bore the imprint of crime and an expression of anything but honesty or goodness; hard-featured and hard-hearted, they had doubtless committed deeds entitling them to a familiar acquaintance with the halter.
Duffel had been in the cave but a short time, when the attention of all was arrested by the announcement: