“Which shall we take first?” asked Joan, comparing the two openings.
“‘My mother told me to take this one,’” counted Julie, her finger pointing to each tunnel alternating on each word she spoke. It was the right-hand opening that was on the last count.
Mrs. Vernon laughed. “Well, we will go this way and see why your ‘mother told you to take this one.’”
The scouts laughed, too, but the echoes failed to ring back as repeatedly as in the front tunnel.
“That means we are near the end of this tube,” said Joan.
“I’m glad of it! I don’t like to be away in here,” admitted Betty.
“The roof is coming down to bump our heads, Verny,” said Julie, who was now leading.
“Then we must soon retrace our steps and take the other tube, as this was the short one that leads nowhere. The other must be the tube that leads to the stalactite cave,” said Mrs. Vernon.
The scouts proceeded a few feet further but the aperture was becoming too small to follow comfortably, and the Captain said:
“Well, we may as well turn around, girls.”