Polly and Eleanor

by Lillian Elizabeth Roy

"But Tom and I had not been lazy during the time Mike was seeking for some sign to locate the cave. And after we learned how impossible it was to enter the mine at that side where the girls had gone in, Tom and I took scientific observations with our instruments, and finally, after tiresome days, found a rushing river that gushed from some underground source.

"We immediately remembered the pit Polly had told us of, and the rushing sound of waters she had heard when leaning over the edge of the pit, so we decided that here we had found the outlet.

"We could not determine how far the river traveled underground from the pit, until it came out in the open again, but we got Mike to come with us, and, daring fellow that he is, he crept into the tunnel that hooded the stream. We tried to dissuade him from taking such a risk, but he grinned and said: 'Mike like fun.'

"When he returned, half an hour later, he made us understand that we might follow quite safely. My! But that was some thrill, eh, Tom?" laughed John, shivering delightfully at the reminiscence.

Tom laughingly admitted that it was a "hair-raiser" and John continued: "We managed to cling to the narrow ledge of rock that was less than a foot above the turbulent water, and even that must have been submerged most of the time, as it was damp and slippery. Mike said the recent land-slide had had some effect on lowering the water-line of the river and that was what left the rock exposed.

"We crept slowly along this foot-hold and soon realized that we were nearing some suction-hole. Mike explained that it was the very tube that rose to the rocky floor where Polly knelt that day. I couldn't see where this journey was going to benefit us, but Mike knew.

"Reaching the tube that slanted upwards, so that we could see roots and stubborn vines growing out of its rocky walls, we also discovered that we had a flat space of more than six feet square on which we were standing. Now Mike demonstrated what he proposed doing. All our threats, persuasions, and anger, left no impression. He smiled.

"He made us understand that he was about to scale the wall by means of those roots and vines. Should he miss and fall, the rope he tied about his body would keep him from being swept down into the current. He gave us the end of the rope to fasten to our waists. When he arrived at the top, he would draw us up, one after the other.

"He managed to land on top, but I'll have to tell you-all some other time, all that happened before we reached the underground cave where the gold was shining from walls and ceiling. It is exactly as Polly described it, and we picked up a number of nuggets that were found in the dust of ages on the stone floor, and then tried to take scientific observations. Tom took a flash-light of the cave, and we had it developed, but it was not a howling success. Still, it shows something of the interior.

"When we got back to open air again, we noticed the vast mountain-top that sat down upon that gold-mine. This would have to be removed if we mined from the top. But I believe we can manage to work in through that tunnel and secure the gold by means of lifts in that tube. This is a matter of discussion. The gold is there and it can be gotten out, just so long as Old Grizzly will behave."