“It’s the treasure chest all right!” admitted Tinny. “Boys, I take it all back.”
“Who says we can’t find gold?” shouted Ned.
“Maybe there’s only one bag of gold,” suggested the cautious Jerry. “The other sacks may contain stones.”
“We’ll look!” decided Tinny.
Quickly the remaining bags were opened. Each one held gold in the form of coarse dust or little pellets and nuggets. There was a fair-sized fortune in the old box.
“It’s the treasure chest of Blue Rock, all right!” declared Cromley. “Luck’s with us, boys!”
It was impossible to compute, except roughly, the value of the find, but a glance showed enough gold to make a big amount for each one. That they would share alike was a foregone conclusion.
“We’d better get this to a safe place,” said Tinny, after the first wild enthusiasm had cooled. “And we’d better see if we can get back to where we left our horses. I hope they haven’t been swept away by the landslide.”
Carrying as many of the sacks as they could, they scrambled up the débris-covered side of the mountain to the spot in front of the cave in which they had spent the night. To their delight, they found their horses safe. The slide had not reached them, nor had it disturbed the cavern.