“It may not be the one Corning mapped,” Ken commented. “It looks like an old Spanish tunnel though.”
“This mine same one Senor Corning find,” Phillipe asserted. “Senor Rhodes later on cover vein with earth and rock to hide it and keep gems safe.”
“That debris certainly looked as if it might have been piled on deliberately,” Jack informed the group above. “Lower a pick and I’ll find out.”
Persuaded against his better judgment, Mr. Livingston lowered the requested tool. Phillipe also went down by means of the rope.
He and Jack removed some of the loose debris, exposing a streak of rock, narrow but with a well-defined green color.
“We strike vein,” Phillipe said, resting for a moment from his labors. “If emeralds form, they big ones I think.”
On they labored, taking turns with pick and crowbar. Above, Mr. Livingston and Ken warned them that the day fast was waning.
“We’ve found the mine and that’s the important thing.” the Scout leader called down impatiently. “We’ll mark it well, and hope we can return. Now we must leave or we’ll never reach camp tonight.”
Deep in the earth, Jack and Phillipe scarcely heard. In a fever of excitement, they sensed that they were on the verge of a great discovery.
Phillipe struck again with his bar, using infinite skill. The sharp point split the rock neatly, exposing a section of dark green beryl. Embedded in it were several large, well-formed emeralds.