“And us never to have been along here at the right time of the tide to find this hole!” thought Archy, as, in obedience to a sign, he steered the boat across the beautiful transparent pool, and laid her alongside the smugglers boat.
Then oars were thrown down, the men sprang across the smugglers’ craft, and, headed by Archy and Gurr, began to climb rapidly after their enemies.
“It’s of no use to call upon them to surrender,” said Gurr rather breathlessly, as they toiled up the zigzag.
“We’ll make them do it later on,” cried Archy, whose youth and activity helped him to get on first.
“Steady, my lad, steady!”
“But I want to see which way they go.”
“Right, but keep out of danger, my lad. If they show fight, keep back.”
Archy heard, but made no reply, and toiled on up the rugged ascent, straining every nerve as he saw the last smuggler disappear over the top, and, at the next turn he made in the zigzag, he caught a glimpse of the ascent from top to bottom, with the sailors climbing up, and just then there was a fresh cheer, which made him turn swiftly again, to look round and see the second boat gliding through the rocky arch into the pool.
It was rather risky, for he was on a narrow slippery place at one of the turns of the zigzag, and nearly lost his footing, but, darting out a hand, he caught at the rock, recovered himself, and climbed on, to reach the top just in time to see Ram’s red cap disappearing some four hundred yards away over a rounded eminence due west of where he stood.
He glanced down again, and then, breathless as he was, ran on over the down-like hillside till he reached the spot where he had seen Ram’s red cap disappear, and here he stopped, to make sure of Mr Gurr seeing the direction he had taken, standing well up with his sword raised above his head in the bright sunshine.