He was quite right; it was solid reality, and he was looking at the
broad back of a man standing a few yards away, with his hands to his
mouth, and who now sent forth a tremendous shout, which was answered
from a distance before the man turned, and stepped quickly to his side,
displaying the rugged features of Billy Wriggs.
"Ain't dead, are yer, sir?" he cried, sinking on one knee. "Here, have
a drink."
He placed his water bottle in the young man's hand and watched him.
"No; dead man couldn't drink that how," he said softly. "Go it, sir;
I'll fill it up again. Take a reg'lar good deep swig. Fine stuff,
water, when you're thirsty, so long as it aren't hot water, and all
bitter and salt. Go it again, sir," he cried, as his rugged face
softened into a weak grin of satisfaction. "Ahoy-a! Ahoy! This way."
This last was a tremendous roar through his hands, sent in the direction
of the forest below, and as soon as it was answered, the man turned
again to Lane.
"Only to think on it being me as found yer, sir. I do call it luck. I
come out o' the wood, and I says to myself, `I shouldn't wonder, Billy,
old man, if Muster Lane's over yonder, among them rocks, for it's just
the sorter place to make a roost on,' and I come along, and see yer fast
asleep, and here yer are, sir, not a bit dead, are yer?"
"No, no, I'm all right, Wriggs, only so stiff, I can hardly move."
"Course yer are, sir. But never you mind about that. You wait till
Tommy Smith comes up, and us two'll give yer a real 'poo, sir--none of
yer sham 'uns--and make yer jyntes as lissom as injy rubber. Why, sir,
we begun to think you was a goner. How did yer get here?"
"Tell me first how you got here."
"That's me as will, sir," cried the man with alacrity, as he keenly
watched Lane's efforts to rise, and lent him a hand. "Yer see, we
couldn't get through that steam as runs all along across the low land."
"Was any one the worse for getting through?" cried Lane, eagerly, and
Billy Wriggs scratched his ear.
"Well, sir, yer see, none on us weren't none the wuss for getting
through, 'cause we didn't get through; but lots on us was all the wuss
for not getting through. My heye! Talk about too much grog when yer
ashore, it's nothing to it. It's the tipsyest stuff I ever swallowed.
How did you manage, sir?"
"I--I don't know; I struggled through it, somehow, and then fell down
insensible."
"Onsensible, course yer did, sir. It knocks all the gumption out on yer
'fore yer knows where yer are. Ahoy! mate! This way, Tommy. Here he
is!"
The trees below them had been parted, and, all scratched and bleeding,
Smith appeared, and as soon as he caught sight of Lane, he slapped his
legs heavily, turned round, and yelled aloud.
Then he ran up at a trot, grinning hugely.
"That's you, sir," he cried, "and I'm glad on it. They said as we
should only find yer cold corpus, and `No,' I says, `if we finds his
corpus at all, it won't be cold but hot roast. There's no getting cold
here. But I knows better. Too much stuff in him,' I says. `He'll
sarcumwent all the trouble somehow. Master Oliver Lane aren't the lad
to lie down and give up,' and I was right, warn't I, Billy?"
"Ay, mate, you was right this time."
"Course I was, Billy; but yer needn't ha' been in such a hurry to find
Mr Lane all to yerself. But yer allus was a graspin' sort o' chap,
Billy."
"You're another," growled Wriggs; "but don't stand hargeying there.
Here's Mr Lane that stiff he can't move hisself, and he wants us to
give him a real 'poo."
"Whatcher mean, mate?"
"Well, a shampoo, then."
"Hold on. Don't you try them games, mate, for you was never cut out for
the work. He thinks that's a joke, Mr Lane, sir. But do you want your
jyntes rubbed a bit?"
"No, no, I shall be better directly," cried Oliver. "Oh, yes, I can
walk. Only a bit stiff. Where are the others?"
"Coming through that bit o' wood, sir, where it's all thorns and
fish-hooks. Mr Rimmer's there and your two messmates."
"But how did you get through the mist?"
"We didn't, sir. We got a boat down to the shore, launched her and
rowed doo north for a bit, and then landed and come along hunting for
yer. Why, that there mist goes right down the shore and out to sea,
where you can smell it as it comes bubbling up through the water."
"But how did you get a boat down?" cried Oliver. "It must be a good two
miles."
"Nay, sir, seemed to us like a bad four mile," grumbled Wriggs.
"Yah! not it, Billy. Oh, we did it, sir. Took the littlest, and the
carpenter made a couple o' runners for it out of a spare yard, and so
long as we picked our way she come along beautiful. Yer see we meant to
do it, and o' course we did it, and here we are."
"Ahoy!" yelled Wriggs again, and an answer was heard from close at hand,
as Panton suddenly came into sight.
"Found him?" he shouted, but he caught sight of his companion at the
same moment, and rushed, out of breath and streaming with perspiration,
to catch Lane's hands; his lips moved as he tried to speak, but not a
word would come.
"Ahoy!" yelled Wriggs again, and Smith followed his example after
turning his back to the two young men.
A minute later Drew came into sight, and then Mr Rimmer, and somehow,
he, too, seemed to be affected like Drew and Panton, for he could only
shake hands and try to speak, but not a word came.
"Lost all my wind," he cried, at last, but in a husky, choky voice.
"All right now, and jolly glad to see you again, sir. Hang it, what's
the matter with my throat? I know: it's those nuts I picked as we came
along. Phew! how hot it is."
"Lane, old chap," whispered Panton, "we thought you'd left us in the
lurch."
"That we did," said Drew, blinking his eyes, and then blowing his nose
very loudly. "But, I say, are you all right!"
"Yes, only stiff and very hungry."
"Hungry?" cried the mate. "Hi! who's got the prog bag?"
"Them two's got it, sir," said Wriggs. "Here they come." As he spoke a
couple more men came into sight, and deferring all farther questioning
till Lane's hunger had been appeased, they descended to where the
nearest water trickled amongst the rocks, and were soon all seated
enjoying an _al fresco_ meal, the rugged lava forming table and chairs,
and the abundant growth of ferns giving a charm to the verdant nook, and
sheltering them from the sun.
"Well, all I can say is," cried the mate, "that you've had a very narrow
escape, sir, and, thank heaven, we're all here to tell you so, for there
were moments when I thought that it was all over with us. But, phew!
how hot it is."
"Yes," said Panton, "a steamy heat. We ought to be getting back to the
boat. It will be cooler towards the sea. What's the matter, Drew?"
"I was examining these ferns. How curious it is."
"What, their withering up so?" said Lane. "Yes, I was noticing it. Are
they sensitive plants?"
"Oh, no!" cried Drew, "those are the mimosa family. But look here, you
can see them fade and droop as you watch them; I suppose it is in some
way due to our presence here."
"Watcher fidgeting about, Billy?" said Smith, just then. "It's hot
enough without you playing the fool. Shuffling about like a cat on hot
bricks."
"That's just what is the matter with me, matey," grumbled Wriggs. "Just
you put yer hand down here. This here rock's as hot as a baker's oven."
"So's this here," said one of the men who had carried the provisions.
"Hadn't we better go 'fore there's roast man for brexfass?"
"Really, gentlemen, it's uncomfortably hot here," said Mr Rimmer, and
just then there was a peculiar tremor beneath them, and a shock as if
they were upon a thin crust which had received a sharp blow from
beneath.
They all started to their feet, and the first disposition was to run.
"Don't leave your guns!" roared Panton, and each man snatched up his
piece. The next moment they fell prostrate and clung to the nearest
rocks, for the earth began to sink beneath them, and the huge stones
upon which they had been seated a short time before glided away.
"Quick!" cried Lane, as the surface, which had been nearly level, now
hung down in a precipitous slope. "This way!"
He set the example of climbing upward, and they reached a level spot
again just as there was a sharp crack, a deafening roar, and from out of
the vast chasm, which had opened, there was a rush of fire, and smoke
rose suddenly towards where they clustered.