'Is this where the smugglers used to come?' asked Gerald in an awed tone.
'Yes,' replied Allan; 'the schooners used to sail under the rocks on moonlight nights when the tide was high, and the cargo was stored in the caves until the people came secretly to take it away. It was very dangerous work sometimes, for if a storm comes from the west the caves are often flooded.'
The light which glimmered under the archway did not penetrate far, and the young people were soon in total darkness. The air was damp and chilly. Strange draughts crossed each other from unexpected quarters, and the water dripping from overhead, awoke weird echoes which seemed to be repeated among far-reaching clefts and passages.
'Strike a light, Hamish,' said Allan, 'and let them see what kind of a place they're in.'
The match spluttered and blazed, revealing dark rocks gleaming with wet and the black openings to what appeared to be a series of underground passages branching off from the main one.
'The caves are all connected with one another,' explained Allan, 'and have separate openings to the sea. Light up again, Hamish; strike two this time, and they'll get a better idea.'
Again there was a splutter, and the flare revealed strange shifting shadows among the rocks, and a circle of faces that looked unnaturally white in the surrounding darkness.
Reggie's eyes were the sharpest.
'Hullo!' he exclaimed, 'there's something in that passage. What can it be?'
All crowded to examine the mysterious object, and the light flickered upon a pile of kegs and bales lying half-concealed behind a corner of rock.