Part 41 (2/2)

To his great satisfaction he found that he could follow the crack right down to the sea and obtain a good vieithout being seen, unless anyone had followed his example and clih he had been clis of rare birds, he had never been there before, or noted the existence of such a deeply-split cavity in the cliffs

”I ued, but gave hies and hollows had a completely different aspect when seen from below

”I should know it now directly if I were sailing by and looked up, of course I fancy I can recollect this steep wall-like bit down belohere I'ull had co up from behind and passed so closely over his head that he was startled by the faint whizz of its outspread wings, while the bird itself was so startled that it uttered a hoarse cry of alared down head foremost like a stone

”Why, that must have been the kind that made that cry like a hail,”

cried Aleck, as the bird disappeared into the depths of the gully, while he had hardly realised the thought before there rose froht so,” he said; ”those birds have different cries and they sound strange, according to where you are”

He did not finish his words, for all at once the peculiar cry arose again, and this tied hollow, and certainly froe!” said the lad, with a feeling akin to dread running through hi for soreat wilderness in which he crouched

Then ”Ahoy!” came up, so clearly that there was no rooht after thought flashed through his brain

”It ,” he felt and when after a few ht struck him that itin the wall of the crack and then strike against the opposite wall, from which it was reflected, so that it seemed to come from that side, and from some distance away

Aleck waited till the cry caain, and then shouted in answer:

”Hallo there! What is it?”

There was no response Then after a pause came ”Ahoy!” once more

”Where are you?” shouted Aleck, but there was no reply, and the result was the saain

”Whoever it is, he can't hearexcited now as he concluded that soe wanderer, had slipped, fallen, and perhaps broken a li help

Co to the belief more fully that the sound came from beneath him, Aleck lay down upon his chest with his head over the brink of the rocky gash, and, holding on tightly, strained out as far as he could to look down But he could see nothing, and rose up again to look to his left for the dying out in the solid cliff of the top end of the gorge

Thata difficult clie, and setting his teeth, he began to lower himself over; but a slip at the outset so upset his nerves that he scra a mile

”Nearly went down,” he muttered ”That's not the way to help anyone who has just fallen”

He paused for a few

”There are no shts turned homeward

”Uncle couldn't climb up here and handle ropes,” heold woht round so is,” said the lad, at last ”But when I have found it, what then? I ain; and then? Yes, I must have help and a rope Oh, what a lonely old place this is when you want anything done! Bah! What a gruot all about To hiht heartened the lad up, and he set off cautiously and quickly to get round by the head of the great rocky gash to the other side

The journey was very dangerous and bad, but he was a good clireat block which lay across his path with the portion to his right overhanging the gulf, forcing hio round by the other end