Part 21 (2/2)

'The face,' said George. 'The face of the G.o.ddess. The face of Ada Lovelace.'

30.

Professor Coffin viewed the gorgeous statue. He looked from it to George and back again. The resemblance to Ada was uncanny. He put a hand on George's shoulder, felt the young man's pain.

'There are certain similarities,' he said softly. 'Ada is a beautiful young woman.'

'And I I must find her,' said George. 'Find her and make some sense of all of this.' must find her,' said George. 'Find her and make some sense of all of this.'

Darwin the monkey butler took to a sudden bouncing and to certain squawking squealing sounds.

'Silence, you loquacious simian.' Professor Coffin mimed rifle-shootings at Darwin.

'He is trying to tell us something,' George observed. 'What is it, Darwin? Show us what it is.'

The ape danced forwards to the base of the statue. To the base where the fish-scaled feet of the G.o.ddess rested. Upon this base was carved the resemblance of a mighty book, its t.i.tle engraved upon it. The carven symbols were of an unknown language, but George instinctively knew what they meant.

'The Book of Sayito,' said he. said he.

Darwin bounced a little more and rapped a hairy knuckle on the big carved book.

A dull hollow echo was to be heard. Coming from within.

'Let me see,' said George, stepping forwards. 'Ah yes, Professor, see this.'

Professor Coffin hastened to join George and watched as the young man ran his fingers about the edges of the carved book cover. 'It is a door,' said George. 'The cover of the book must open, like a door.'

'Step aside, George,' said Professor Coffin, once more c.o.c.king his gun.

'You are not firing that thing anywhere near this statue,' George told the professor. 'Darwin seems rather good with doors. Can you open it, Darwin?'

The monkey butler thumbed at his waistcoat lapels and bowed, then turned to the statue's base. Did something Did something and then stood back. The book-cover door swung open. and then stood back. The book-cover door swung open.

George stepped forwards to peruse the ape's doings. 'Ah,' said he. 'You turned the key. I really should have noticed that. Well done.'

Professor Coffin came forwards and peered into the opening. Struck fire to a Lucifer, held it within. 'Stairs,' said he, 'going down, but you wanted to go up.'

'Let us follow where they lead and see what happens.' George took the professor by the elbow. 'You have the fire,' he said, 'so you should lead the way.'

'Darwin-' said Professor Coffin.

But Darwin now skulked to the rear.

'Then I shall lead,' said Professor Coffin. 'And remember our deal we split whatever we find fifty-fifty. '

'I want nothing but Ada,' said George. 'And I want one hundred per cent of her.'

The steps led down, as steps will do, when they are not leading up. Down and down and down some more, with a terrible tedious downness.

'It would be for the best,' said Professor Coffin, holding fire before him as he stepped forever down, 'if we do not inform the other survivors of the airs.h.i.+p of what we have discovered here. It would be better to keep it private, I think. They will all be anxious to leave the island and will probably harbour no longings to return.'

'We do not even know where we are,' said George. 'This island is not on the map.'

'No present-day map, no, my boy. But it is upon a map. A map that I once saw in the British Library.'

'And what were you doing in there there?' George asked.

'Seeking authentication for a book I had acquired. A handwritten ma.n.u.script. A play, it was. Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare.' by Shakespeare.'

'You had acquired an original Shakespeare ma.n.u.script? '

'So I believed. But it was not so. The Head of Literary Antiquities identified the handwriting it was not Mr Shakespeare's.'

'Tough luck,' said George, in a tone which implied that he meant it.

'It was the handwriting of a certain Francis Bacon,' said the professor. 'The Head of Literary Antiquities became most animated. He paid me almost twice the price I had intended to ask.'

'Now stop there just one moment,' said George. 'Whilst still continuing to walk down this staircase, of course. But are you now telling me that you possessed a ma.n.u.script that proves that Francis Bacon wrote Shakespeare?'

'I am not precisely precisely telling you that,' replied Professor Coffin. 'When I say that it was the handwriting of a certain Francis Bacon, that is not to say that it telling you that,' replied Professor Coffin. 'When I say that it was the handwriting of a certain Francis Bacon, that is not to say that it was actually was actually the handwriting of a certain Francis Bacon. More perhaps that it was so very close in resemblance to the handwriting of that fellow as to be easily accepted as the same.' the handwriting of a certain Francis Bacon. More perhaps that it was so very close in resemblance to the handwriting of that fellow as to be easily accepted as the same.'

'It was a forgery!' said George.

'I prefer the term ”imaginative reimaging”. People will believe what they want to believe, George.'

'There is a moral to that, then, is there?' said George.

'I use it as an example to ill.u.s.trate a point. You saw the face of Ada Lovelace upon the statue, I did not.'

'It was her face,' said George.

'Maybe so,' said the professor. 'And when we return with it to London, the Rubes can make up their own minds as to the resemblance. We could exhibit Ada along with the statue, dressed as the G.o.ddess perhaps.'

'Absolutely not, not,' said George.

'Well, it is open to discussion.'

'It is not, not,' said George. 'Believe me on this. And anyway we have yet to leave the island, which I recall mentioning only a moment ago is not on any map.'

'It is on the map I saw at the British Library.' Professor Coffin fanned at his face. 'The air is rank,' said he.

'Tell me about the map,' said George, with a sigh. 'Tell me what you know.'

'Myth has it,' said the professor, 'that at the dawning of time three great civilisations were born. One from the children of Adam and Eve. Centred about the Euphrates, this civilisation spread across the planet. We are all the many times great-grandchildren of Adam and Eve. But there were two other civilisations. Perhaps not wholly blessed by G.o.d, perhaps not G.o.d's creation. Or not the creation of our our G.o.d, but of another. These two existed upon other continents, cut off from each other by many sea miles. One in the Atlantic, Atlantis. The other in the Pacific, here, Lemuria.' G.o.d, but of another. These two existed upon other continents, cut off from each other by many sea miles. One in the Atlantic, Atlantis. The other in the Pacific, here, Lemuria.'

<script>