Part 35 (1/2)
A moment was sufficient for his decision, and he turned and hurried back,on the bench, with the sandwiches carefully balanced across Then, carefully keeping out of the gardener's sight till the last minute, he turned down a path which led hi his hands to his lips, he shouted:
”Ness!”
”Yes, Master Aleck,” ca believe to have been busy for hours
”I've put so to eat in the tool-shed,” bellowed Aleck ”Let him think what he likes,” he lass, and was off again to s of the s seemed to be nil, for both vessels were hove to, and after watching thelass, Aleck closed it, and hung about, undecided what to do
A minute later he had lers' boats lay drawn up attracted hi to descend when it occurred to hio, for if Eben had been suspicious of his visit and ready to think hi people and Revenue ht be the same, while doubtless the woht would be in no pleasant te, Aleck went on in the direction of the great gap in the cliff where he had had so exciting an encounter with the sain so as to sit down and watch the sloop and cutter, but only to find when he reached the place, that the view in that direction was cut off by towering rocks
Consequently he climbed back, went round the head of the deep combe, and crept round to the other side,down into another of the great rifts in the coast-line, one which had perpendicular sides, the haunt of wild fowl, going sheer down to the water, which here caht into the land
There were plenty of capital places here where a strong-headed person could go and perch and excite no more notice than a sea-bird They hat ordinary inshore folk would have called ”terribly dangerous,” but such an idea never occurred to Aleck, who selected one of the ashed by a great crack, which allowed of a descent of sos of the sea-birds, which seeh none were present, to have htful spot for anyone who could cli farther, for the angle of the ledge was quite straight, and when the lad peered over he was looking straight into the gurgling, foa water a hundred feet below
”What a boat cove that would have ht, ”if there were not sofrom the botto as it is”
The gloomy place, with its black shadowy niches and caves at the surface of the water, had a strange fascination for hi, arch and hollow, it looked quite an ideal entrance to some mermaid city such as is described by the poets who deal in fable
But there were the two little men-o'-war to watch, and Aleck drew back a step or two froe to select a comfortable seat, where the colour of the rock which rose up behind was likely to assiarments and not throw him up as a plainly-seen watcher if a telescope were directed shoreward frolers ever coht Aleck, as he looked at the face of the rock in a spot that just suited his purpose; and then he laughed to himself and felt no doubt at all, for there, just level with his face, and about eighteen inches within a crack in the rock, a shabby old horn lanthorn edged, and just beloas a tinder-box and a square wide-mouthed bottle, well corked, evidently to protect its contents fro up fro so many thin slips of wood, whose sharply-pointed ends had been dipped in molten brimstone
”One of their look-outs,” he said to hiain to sit down, but only to start and crouch upon his knees in surprise; for close up to the rock wall, half hidden by a tuft of sea-pink and grey sea holly, was a very old ragged black silk neckerchief, folded and creased as if lately torn off, and bearing strange rusty dark stains, dry and unpleasant-looking, and with very little consideration Aleck settled in his own mind that, if it were not the kerchief Toler's wound, it was as like it as could be
It did not look a nice thing to take up and handle, but the lad bent lower, before rising up to say, decisively:
”It must be, I'm sure, for I almost seem to know the holes Then Ebenpeople”
Another thought flashed across the lad's brain directly:
”Perhaps he's close by soht produced a very unco, and Aleck was divided between two forces which pulled different ways One was to--as Toer called it--look out for squalls, the other to sit down quite calm and unconcerned to watch the vessels
”I can't help it if Eben does fancy I'ing to knohat is going on No, after last night I'nals to the shi+ps
Why should I? There's nothing to signal about”
He focussed and re-focussed the glass, and held its larger end towards the sloop and placed one eye at the little orifice; but the left would not close and the right would not look at the sloop, but persisted in rolling about in every direction in search of Eben, who, the boy felt certain now,every movement he made
Aleck did the best he could to look calm and unconcerned, but anyone who had seen hi a dismal failure
Then all at once he started Doent the glass, and he craned forward towards the edge of the shelf to look down, for all at once there was a hoarse ru sound and a tremendous plash and crash as if a ht into the rock-strewn gully below
He could not resist the desire to lie down upon his breast and edge hie and he could look right down into the water, which was all in ed blocks of weed-hung stone, and behaving generally according to its custom as the tide went and ca very deep and never leaving any part of the botto fresh to see, and after a tilass to his eye