“Maybe,” Bart acknowledged, “but it would have been very nearly as hard to have gone back. I hoped I’d find where the cave came out.”
“Tell us about the second siphon,” Judy urged.
“It was a tricky one, I’m here to report. I don’t know how long I was underwater, but it seemed a minute and a half. My lungs were bursting when finally I emerged. But it was worth it!”
“What did you find?” demanded Beverly.
“A hall filled with the most beautiful formations I’ve ever seen.”
“Better than the White Witch and those chambers before one gets to the siphon?” Judy asked.
“Oh, a thousand times better! I stood there speechless and in awe, dazzled by the glitter of so much crystal. For a little while, I lost all count of time. It seemed unreal.”
“Go on,” Kathleen urged, as Bart became lost in his own memories.
“Those stalactites and stalagmites were fantastic beyond description,” Bart told the Scouts. “There were animal shapes, and statue-like figures—one a woman with a bridal veil. Why, if steps can be built down from Calico Cottage, everyone can see the chamber! Krumm will make more money opening up the cave than he ever could do renting the cottage.”
“While you were down there, you didn’t solve the mystery of Calico Cave’s ghost, did you?” Judy asked. “You didn’t meet our little boy with the flute?”