“But it isn’t likely,” said Mark, “that we should come by chance and dig down in the right place.”
“No, I don’t think this can be the right place, but I do think that we have come to the ruins where this precious metal is found.”
“But that means,” said Mark, now speaking excitedly, “that we have come to a place where there must be quantities of such things.”
“I think so too,” said the doctor. “We have certainly made a very curious discovery—one which may help us to find out who the people were who raised these walls. What do you say, Sir James? Should we be satisfied with what we have found, or leave it all for to-day?”
“I will go by what the boys say,” said Sir James. “What do you think, boys?”
“Oh, go on!” cried the lads together, and as they spoke Mark caught sight of the pigmy leaning forward as if to draw his big companion’s attention to what was going on.
“Go on, then, doctor,” cried Sir James.
“Well, then,” said the doctor, “what I should like to do now would be to bore right through this cement—tamp it, as the mining people call it—then ram in the contents of a couple or three cartridges and fire them with a fuse.”
“You mean and blow the floor to pieces?”
“Exactly,” said the doctor. “It will save a great deal of time and labour, and show us whether it is worth while continuing our researches here.”