DIAMONDS VS. FREEDOM.
“If you could show us a picture of how to get out of here, I’d a heap
rather see it,” snorted the captain indignantly. “What good does that
critter with the merry-go-round name do us, when we’re penned up in
here? Can you tell me that?”
But the professor was deaf to the New Englander’s scornful remarks.
With a sheet of paper and a pencil he was busy taking a rubbing of the
scrawled picture on the wall.
“Idt gorresponds in efery impordandt detail midt der pictures in der
files of der society in Ber-r-r-lin,” he declared.
“Yes, and a fat chance your drawing has of ever sharing a bunk with it,
if we don’t sight a change in the weather pretty soon,” growled the old
sailor.
But the professor was deaf to these remarks. He worked painstakingly
till he had reduced to paper a complete rubbing of the wall picture.
Then he drew out a sketch book and made a carefully detailed drawing
of it. As he worked, he actually hummed an odd little tune to himself.
For the time being, in the glory of his discovery, he had completely
forgotten in what grave danger he, and all of them, stood.
It was about mid-afternoon that the lattice-work at the top of the
chamber was removed and some food, in stone jars, was lowered to them.
With it came a jar of water and some coarse kind of bread made out
of corn. The stuff in the jars proved to be some sort of stew, with
peppers and other vegetables in it. It was not at all bad and they made
a hearty meal, using a small cup in turns by way of a spoon.
They felt somewhat better after the meal, such as it was, and while the
professor continued his scrutiny of the walls, the others discussed
their situation in all its bearings. The captain gazed longingly up
toward the lattice which had been replaced after the food had been
lowered.
“If only we had some way of climbing up there,” he said, “we’d at least
have a fighting chance. That is, pervidin’ these varmints ain’t bust up
the flying ship by this time.”
This last was not a thought to ease their anxiety. If they were to
escape at all, they knew that it must be by means of the flying
auto-ship. If the Indians had demolished it, they would not be much
better off even if they did escape from their prison. In that trackless
jungle they could hardly go a league without getting into difficulties.
It would be a simple matter for the Indians to overtake them and effect
their re-capture, in which case they would be even worse off.
“I wonder if it wouldn’t be possible to bribe one of them to give us
our freedom,” said Mr. Chadwick, after a long silence, during which he
had been absorbed in deep thought.
“How do you mean?” asked the captain. “These chaps have no use for
money, and what else could you offer ‘em?”
“The diamonds,” rejoined Mr. Chadwick quietly.
“By the Flying Dutchman, I’d clean forgotten all about ‘em! Maybe we
could buy one of ‘em in that way. It’s worth trying, anyhow. Are you
sure you’ve got ‘em safe?”
“Here they are,” said Mr. Chadwick, diving into his garments and
producing from his belt the six glistening stones.
The captain selected the largest and balanced it in his hand, toying
with it as if he found a delight in its flashing, pellucid beauty. Mr.
Chadwick had slipped the others back into his belt.
“Cracky, what a stone!” muttered the captain, as he examined the
diamond. “It’s a king’s ransom, that’s what it is, and here we are
sitting around like bumps on a log and might as well be at the North
Pole for all the good it is. Hullo! What’s that?”
A shadow had suddenly cut off the flood of afternoon sunlight that was
pouring into their place of captivity through the lattice work grating.
They all looked up swiftly and beheld the face of the red-robed
interpreter. At once Captain Sprowl made a rapid movement to conceal
the stone, but he was too late. The Indian, as had been noticed by
them, had a remarkably expressive face. They could read on it as plain
as print, as they looked up at him, that he had seen the diamond.
At almost the same instant his countenance vanished.
“There! Consarn it all!” grumbled the captain. “Now the fat’s in the
fire for fair. He’s off to see the rest of the bunch and tell ‘em about
the diamond. It’s all off now.”
“Do you think he will do that?” asked Mr. Chadwick.
“I do. Don’t you?” asked the skipper with some surprise.
“No, I don’t.”
“Why not?”
“For one reason, it wouldn’t be human nature. That fellow, if he covets
the stone at all, will want it for himself. If he makes public what he
knows, the stone will go to the chief. He has every reason for saying
nothing.”
“Humph! I dunno but what that’s so. I reckon Injuns ain’t a heap
different from other folks when it comes down to diamonds.”
“Especially in this case. I imagine from the fact that these stones
were found in the canoe with the idol that they have some special
significance. The thieves who took the idol must have found the stones
not far from it, for it is not reasonable to suppose that having
attempted such a daring feat they would waste much time in hunting for
other booty.”
“Wa’al, that does sound reasonable,” admitted the captain. “I wish
that chap would come back. I’d like to ‘_parlez-vous_’ a bit with him,
or rather ‘_habla Espanol_,’ although it does puzzle a Christian to
make out whether he’s talking Spanish or Chinee.”
Darkness came on and there was no sign of the reappearance of the
interpreter. But nobody else had disturbed them, which appeared to
confirm Mr. Chadwick’s theory that the man would keep his discovery to
himself. It was probably some four hours after darkness had fallen that
a whisper was borne to them from above.
“Señor Capitan!” came the voice in low, cautious tones.
“That’s red-jacket for a million,” declared the skipper.
“Hullo,” he responded, “what do you want?”
From this point on, the conversation was in Spanish. But the captain’s
frequent asides enabled the listeners to keep track of what was said.
Not to detail the worthy skipper’s remarks, he informed his companions
that “red-jacket,” as he called the interpreter, was prepared to lower
a rope ladder and escort them to their machine, which he declared to be
uninjured, if they on their part would give him the diamond.
As Mr. Chadwick had guessed, the stone had a religious significance.
From what “red-jacket” said, it was one of six such stones, the
possession of which proclaimed their owners the high-priests of the
ugly idol. The state of Chekla’s kingdom was restless. There was a sort
of movement against the priests; but the interpreter thought that if
he could get possession of the diamond he would be able to gain great
ascendency in his country, and possibly become the next ruler in case
Chekla was overthrown. At any rate, they didn’t bother much over his
reasons for wanting the diamond. All they knew was that he was willing
to barter their liberty for it, and that he appeared to have no idea
that they still retained the other five stones.
“He says that if we’ll give him the stone, he’ll be here some time
during the night with a rope ladder,” said the captain.
“Do you think he’s to be trusted?” asked Mr. Chadwick.
“Well, it’s just this way,” was the response. “If we give him the
diamond and he doesn’t make good, we are no worse off than we were
before. On the other hand, I think we can trust him. For one thing,
he’s convinced that the diamond has something to do with that idol,
and probably figures that the idol would fix him if he tried any funny
business.”
“That sounds reasonable,” said Mr. Chadwick. “What do you think, boys?”
“I’d give him a peck of ‘em to get out of here,” declared Tom—a
sentiment which the others heartily endorsed. The diamonds were as so
much dross to them beside their liberty.
The captain spoke a few words rapidly to the unseen figure at the
lattice and soon a long string made of a grape vine came snaking down.
It had a lump of pitch or rubber at the end, and in this the captain
embedded what was, without doubt, one of the finest diamonds in the
world.
“Talk about castin’ pearls before swine,” he growled as the rope was
drawn upward. “But then it’s worth it. Yes, by Jim Hill, if he makes
good, it’s worth it.”
The next few hours were passed in what can only be described as an
agony of suspense. The chances that “red-jacket” would play them false
seemed to overwhelmingly outweigh the possibilities of his making good
on his word. As the time dragged slowly by, they declared again and
again that they had been fooled into giving up the stone, and despair
came near overmastering the younger members of the party.
But just when it appeared impossible that they could endure the
suspense a minute longer, they heard the lattice-work grating being
moved. Through the opening they could see the stars, and then came
a rustling, grating sound and the lower end of a ladder, formed from
twisted creepers, with iron-wood rungs dropped amongst them.