Part 7 (1/2)

”Before going we must visit the place where the Walter note was found,”

called out John.

The boys had forgotten this. ”Most a.s.suredly,” answered George, ”I had almost forgotten that.”

Blakely led the way up alongside the rugged cliff. ”See that bluish green outcropping,” he said as they were pulling themselves up.

John stopped and chipped off some specimens. ”Wonderful!” he exclaimed.

”Better than anything I have ever found in Mexico. These hills remind me of the formation all along western Chihuahua, and through northeastern Sonora.”

The ledge on which they finally emerged was fully six hundred feet above sea level. When they turned around and viewed the sea below them, and saw the s.h.i.+ps at anchor, they were delirious with joy. How Sutoto enjoyed the scene. He had never seen anything like it before and he was amazed and stupefied. He turned and grasped George by the hand. He was too full to speak.

”But wait, Sutoto, until we get to the top,” said Harry, as he saw his countenance. As they looked up at the top they wondered what they might see from the elevation.

”Here is the spot,” cried out Blakely. ”This is the pot in which the message was found. And here is something that I dug up afterwards.”

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 4. Inscription on the Skull._]

The boys crowded around. It was a skull on which was engraved the characters ABCC, followed by a star.

All looked at John, thinking he might offer some solution. He turned it over, and examined every portion. Not a word was spoken. ”Tell me the exact position in which this was found,” he asked, as he looked at Blakely.

”The first thing I found was the pot, which was simply turned upside down, in exactly this way. This is the place. It rested on this flat stone. The skull was behind it on this upper shelf.”

”And was there nothing else on the shelf?”

”Nothing whatever.”

John stooped down and carefully examined the shelf. All followed his motions. ”Do you see that mark?” he said, pointing to a heavy scratch, which was now plain. ”That mark is a.s.sociated with the skull, if not with the message. I am unable at this time fully to decipher the marks on the skull, but I have an idea of the meaning.”

”I wonder if the scratch across that is in the same direction as the arrow in the letter?” asked George.

”Unquestionably: let me see your gla.s.ses,” and George unslung them as John took them and gazed long in the direction of the line on the shelf.

He lowered the gla.s.ses and slowly shook his head. Something was forming itself in his mind, this was evident. He walked around the ledge and back again. Finally, he said: ”I wish it were night, it might help to solve the riddle.”

”And why?” asked Harry.

”Those letters have reference to the star which follows.”

”It seems to me to be a singular thing that anyone should leave this here in the hope or expectation that it could be a guide for any one,”

remarked George.

”There is certainly one explanation of that,” answered John. ”It is evident that the articles were placed there as a form of note to others, and it is a sort of cryptic sign, intelligible only to those who have the key. The fact that these signs are here denote several things, one of which is that something important, such, for instance, as treasures, or the location of hidden wealth, or the directions necessary to find mining lodes, or even to point out the direction and distances of other islands in the distance.”

”But,” said Harry, ”the fact that we have found these things here looks as though there were other parties besides Walter and that he was a.s.sociated with them in some sort of enterprise.”

”Quite true; but I am not at all satisfied that the Walter note has anything to do with the skull. In fact there is every evidence to me that they are entirely disconnected with each other.”