Part 55 (1/2)
”Then my notion is that we take it as coolly as we can till we think it's a suitable time Then we'll strip, o in as near to that arch as we can, and then try to dive under and out to the daylight”
Aleck raised the lanthorn to bring its di at him hard as if in doubt of his sanity For the words were spoken as cal so-place
But he only saw that the speaker's countenance was perfectly unruffled, and his next words convinced hi in all seriousness
”Well, don't look so horrified,” he said, half laughingly ”You haven't been bragging, have you? Don't say you can't swih,” said Aleck, ist those rugged rocks, with the sea-wrack hanging down in long strips ready to strangle us?”
”I' of the sort,” said the midshi+pht just as well say: suppose a great shark should rush in open-, throw you over on to his back, and carry you about till he felt hungry again?”
”But you don't see the danger?” cried Aleck
”And don't want to see it I daresay it is dangerous, but nearly everything is if you look at it in that way Well, what now? Why do you look at me like that?”
”Because I don't understand you,” said Aleck ”Yesterday you see i as if to make me feel that you are not so weak as you were then”
”Perhaps so,” said the irl yesterday, but I don't feel so now; and though you are partly right, and I don't want you to think me such a molly, I really am ready tothat I think is possible,” said Aleck, gravely, ”but I don't want to be rash”
”Then you think it would be rash to try and dive out under that archway?”
”Horribly,” said Aleck, with a shudder; and at that h the dull horn, had burned down and begun flickering in the socket, suddenly flashed up brightly, flickered for a moment or two, and went out
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
”Ugh!” ejaculated the midshi+pman ”I don't feel half so brave now, and I don't believe I dare go in here in the darkness, set aside oodness' sake, strike a light and let's have another candle Oh, you oughtn't to have let that out!”
”Co,” replied Aleck ”I think I can find the way to the place again Mind how you come; there are soin the dark and frightened of all sorts of things that we never dreaht?”
”I don't know, and don't want to talk about it now Let's have a light first I say, webefore the candles are all burnt out”
”Mind!” cried Aleck, for his coainst one of the pieces of projecting rock against which he had been warned, and but for the throwing out of a friendly hand he would have gone head first into the water
”Ugh!” he panted, as he clung, tre now violently ”I wonder how deep the water is just there! How horrible! I say, don't let go offor the lanthorn”
”What!” cried the hast ”Don't say you've lost that?”
”I wasn't going to,” said Aleck, rather gruffly, as he thought that his coest compound of bravery and cowardice he had ever o down crash?”
”No, I heard nothing Here, what's this against my foot?”
Aleck stooped down and found that it was thelanthorn