Part 67 (2/2)

Later on he and his party es, to find the's wife, with three pretty little dark-eyed children

The wonised the young officer, who began at her at once

”You're a nice woot to say for yourself for keeping me a prisoner below there?”

”I--I only did what I was told, sir,” faltered the woman

”Were you told to fasten us down there to starve?” cried the middy

”Fasten?--to starve? Were you left down there, sir, when my Eben was knocked down and carried away?”

”Of course ere”

”I didn't know, sir,” sobbed the woh I was in such trouble, I'd have coht you all I could, sarunted the middy ”Well, you did feed me as well as you could So you've lost your husband, then?”

The woman tried to answer, but only sobbed ently ”We shall make an honest man of him”

”And what's to become of my poor weans, Master Aleck? We shall all be turned out of the cottage”

”I don't think you will,” said Aleck ”I daresay uncle won't let anyone interfere with you”

There were busy days during the next week, with ht back by thelike soup the principal treasures of the cave, the sailors working with all theirover the amount of prize money they would have to draw

There was a fair a two days of the next spring tide, when Aleck and his co a narrow channel of deep water right up the cavern They were poled in, and found soand were nearly shut in once more, for the tide rose fast, and the men had to lie down in the boat and work her out with their hands, and then a wave caainst the sli a more terrible imprisonment still; but just as matters were very serious and the lives of the party in ier, the water sank a few inches and enabled the ht

That was the last ti a terrific stor winter the wavesstones of the archway, letting down hundreds of tons of rock in a land slide, so that where the cave had lain like a secret, the waves played regularly at high water, working looht of day

Aleck saw no hton, midshi+pman, for two years, and then he cathe cliffs to have a look at the rocky chaos which had once forht of a solitary figure doards where the archway sub, well-built man-o'-war's man

”Is that one of your fellows, sailor?” said Aleck, with the appellation he had used when they were prisoners together

”Yes, he came over with me from Rockabie Capital fellow he is too

Don't you know hi his eyes ”Yes, I do How he is changed!

Why, Eben Megg, I hardly knew you again without your beard”