_ CHAPTER LXVII. THE HUNT FOR THE BURIED TREASURE
"How do you feel?" I asked of my companion, who was sitting where he had fallen the second time.
"Feel," he replied, placing his hand upon that portion of his body supposed to be the sorest, "why I could readily imagine that I had ridden a hard trotting horse all day."
"Why didn't you spring aside?" I asked; "you saw the animal measuring the distance, and could have got out of the way."
"Can a man dodge a streak of lightning or a thunder bolt? If he could, there would he some use attempting to get beyond the reach of that crooked horn devil when he starts on a butting expedition. I believe no bones are broken, for which, I suppose, I must feel thankful."
My friend arose, shook himself, and then declared that he felt no serious inconvenience from his bruises; and while I started a fire he undertook to skin the sheep, and get a portion of his meat ready for dinner.
It was near four o'clock before we got ready to commence our explorations of the island where we supposed the treasure to be concealed. I suggested carrying the shovel, but Mr. Brown, with a degree of superstition that I was not prepared to give him credit for, would not listen to the idea for a moment, on the pretence that if we made any movement for the treasure, except during the night time, we should be defeated in our purpose.
I laughed at such a whim; but it was in vain that I attempted to change his ideas, and then to humor him, so that in case we were not successful in our search, no blame could be attached to me, I consented to be governed as he wished, and we walked towards the spot which corresponded with the directions of Bill Swinton.
We found the island, a rather small spot of earth, as he had stated, surrounded by bogs, with the exception of a narrow peninsula, not over a foot in width, and more than forty in length. It was a singular formation, surrounded as it was on all sides by soft mud, black and bottomless, for I attempted with the branch of a tree, some thirty feet long, to sound, but the limb sunk slowly out of sight, and the slime quickly gathered in the opening, and hid the place where the pole went down. I thought if one of us should lose his balance and fall while crossing the natural bridge, what little probability there would be of a rescue. The same sentiments disturbed the mind of my friend, for he uttered words of caution, and even removed a good sized stone that was lying on the path, for fear of stumbling over it in the night time.
We walked carefully to the island--as I shall call it--and then examined the unequal surface of the ground for indications of what we sought. The grass was dried up, and seemed to be of equal length in every gulley and every hole that we passed over; neither could we discover any indications that the earth had been moved for many years, but that was not surprising, for the winter rains would have washed away all superfluous soil, even if a man like Swinton, who was cunning and up to all kinds of dodges, had not taken the precaution to remove all traces of his concealed treasure.
"It is no use," Mr. Brown said, wiping the perspiration from his face, and seating himself on a small rock, "for us to dig at random. We should get nothing for our labor. We must wait until to-morrow night, when the moon fulls, and precisely at twelve o'clock a shadow will be cast upon the spot."
"If the sky is filled with clouds what are we to do?" I asked.
That was something that Mr. Brown had not thought of. He mopped his face with renewed energy, and looked puzzled.
"Can't we make a calculation if such a thing should happen?" my companion inquired.
I didn't know but that we might, and relieved the heart of Mr. Brown of a great weight by the admission.
It was useless for us to sit there and speculate; so after another hasty glance over the island, with no bettor luck than before, we returned to our camp, and got ready for passing the night, which was fast approaching.
As soon as it was dark, however, and while Mr. Brown was getting ready his blankets, I suggested, much to his astonishment, a change in our camp, and recommended retreating to the banks of the Lodden, where we could find water for our animals, and good quarters for ourselves.
"In the name of humanity, haven't we travelled enough for one day?" my friend demanded. "The horses will not suffer for water, because a heavy dew is falling. We have a keg full for our own use, and what more do you desire?"
"I have a great reluctance to waking up and finding a knife held at my throat," I replied, "by some gentleman who has more courage than money. We have a pretty establishment here, and many a bushranger would be glad to relieve us of our property without asking permission."
"Pooh! there's no danger of their finding us under these trees. Go to sleep, and get a good night's rest, and to-morrow we will have another search for the treasure."
"Listen a moment, and then judge whether my advice is needless. We have been seen, and our footsteps dogged to-day, by some person not desirous of our acquaintance. Do you suppose that he lost sight of us for a moment, from the time we passed the gum trees until we went into ambush to watch his movements? Don't you think that if the stranger is disposed to bring a flock of devils on our track, he could find us here while sleeping? whereas, if we quietly move our animals to the river, we shall throw him off the scent and rest secure. What do you think of the idea?"
"I like the plan, and wonder that I never thought of it," replied Mr. Brown, starting up and hastily securing his blanket. "Let us lose no time in getting back to the river."
We carried our pack a short distance from the trees and concealed it in a clump of bushes, and then mounting our horses we quietly walked them the whole distance to the Lodden, where we found a secure place for camping, and with confidence in our scheme we went to sleep, and rested undisturbed until morning.
At daybreak we were on our way back to the island, and found our pack where we had left it, but Mr. Brown's quick eye detected a change in its appearance.
"Some one has overhauled our stores during the night," he said, "and hang me if the scamp has not drank all my liquor."
He held up his flask to confirm his words. It was empty, but I pretended that he must have drank it himself by mistake.
"Don't tell me that I don't know when good liquor is running down my throat, and that I used all I brought in one day. Haven't I been unusually careful, and drank from your flask two or three times, so that mine would hold out for the trip? Whoever the thief is, and I hope to see him some day, he deserves a halter."
An examination showed that every article that was in the pack had been taken out and then replaced carefully, but we missed the largest portion of our coffee and sugar, and over two thirds of our tobacco. If the robber had been a malicious one he could easily have carried off all that we possessed, but as he did not I was disposed to pardon him. Not so with Mr. Brown, however. He vowed vengeance, and was only appeased when I gave him a drink from my flask, which I luckily had carried with me the night before, to be used in case of snake bite.
I had but little doubt that the mysterious robber was the same person whom we had seen the day before, and I could readily believe that he was laughing at our dismay, at no great distance, and watching our movements with some curiosity. I regretted that I had not brought Rover with me, for he would have been worth a dozen sentinels in the night time, but owing to Fred's strong solicitations I had left him at the store in Ballarat. There was no help for us now, and we determined to put as good a face on the matter as possible, to husband our resources, and go on a short allowance of the two great staples in a campaign--rum and tobacco.
We passed the day by visiting the island and sleeping by turns. Towards night we carried our tools to the place where we expected to dig for the gold, and starting before sundown rode our animals to the river and watered them, so that they would not break away from their stakes during the night for the purpose of slaking their thirst. Then we waited impatiently for darkness for the purpose of once more changing our camping ground, and this time we left nothing behind. Our quarters were fixed at a short distance from the island, so that when the moon was up we could keep our eyes on the horses, yet not be seen on the main land.
At eleven o'clock the first rays of the full moon became visible from behind Mount Tarrengower. The night was awful quiet, and not a living thing had approached us, and not a sound had we heard, except an occasional bleat of a lamb, off towards the stock-house on our left.
"Let us be moving for the island," Mr. Brown said, almost in a whisper, for the solemnity of the scene was bringing back all his superstitions and fears.
I readily consented, and, lighting our pipes, we walked slowly towards the peninsula, crossed it, and then waited calmly for the shadow which the mountain was to throw upon the spot of earth where the robber's treasure was buried. Our pickaxe and shovel remained where we had left them, although I could not help fancying that they had been handled since I had thrown them down. I said nothing to my friend on the subject, however, for he was too full of imaginative fancies to be consulted and listened to.
Time passed slowly while we sat and watched the shadow which was creeping over the bogs, as the moon rose behind the mountain. I consulted my watch and found that it was nearly twelve, but just at that moment a white cloud passed over the moon, and our hopes seemed dashed. The shadow was no longer to be seen; we watched that white cloud as though our lives depended upon its disappearing, but still it lingered, like a veil covering the face of a coquette--anxious, to reveal the beauty which was concealed, yet taking pleasure in exciting expectation.
"What time is it?" whispered Mr. Brown.
I held my watch before him, while I again scanned the heavens.
"It is just twelve o'clock," my companion whispered.
Hardly had the words escaped his lips, before the cloud disappeared, and the moon looked down with a roguish twinkle. We started to our feet, when, lo! precisely where we stood was the edge of the shadow, cast in the form of a cross, with the upper part resting towards us.
Mr. Brown seized the pickaxe and struck it into the ground, and as he did so I thought that I heard a low groan. I could not tell in what direction it came from, yet I would have sworn that it originated on the island. I glanced at the face of my companion, but he was too intent upon the business before him to notice my look, or to pay any attention to the sound that had disturbed my composure.
"There is one thing I wish to caution you about," my companion said, pausing in his work; "don't speak while we are digging, or the gold will vanish from our sight like magic. You understand."
I nodded in the affirmative, although I had no faith in his advice, or in the necessity of maintaining silence. I considered that the devil and his imps would not care about interesting themselves in a matter which could do them no good, and might hurt their friends.
Mr. Brown glanced around the island, saw that every thing was quiet, and then recommenced his labor with energy and determination.
About the second blow that he struck was answered by a groan so unearthly that I began to entertain serious ideas regarding the propriety of joining a church, or attempting a prayer of some sort. My companion did not seem to notice the interruption, and I remembered his instruction not to speak, so I did not intrude my thoughts in relation to the matter upon him.
A dozen blows with the pickaxe removed the dead grass, and exposed a soil such as two thirds of Australia is composed of, a light sand, soft, and not suitable for agricultural purposes.
Mr. Brown made a motion for me to use the shovel, and I was about to do so, but a groan, louder and more unearthly than the original ones, prevented me.
"What, in the devil's name, is that?" demanded my friend, looking around the island with some symptoms of alarm and curiosity, forgetting, in his eagerness for information, that speaking aloud was strictly prohibited while digging for the gold.
"Perhaps one of your ghosts that you have talked so much about, or it may be the spirit of Bill Swinton, desirous of claiming a share in the booty."
"I don't think that," my friend said, after a short pause; "after all the trouble I had with him--furnishing the candles to die by, and allowing him luxuries of the most costly description, I don't think that he would be so mean."
"Then let us solve our doubts by making search over the island," I replied, drawing my revolver, determined to shoot at whatever I saw, let it be man or beast, devil or ghost.
"No, no--don't do that; we should he decoyed into a bog by an _ignis fatuus_, and smothered without mercy. Let us stay where we are, and dig until we see sights that make us abandon the project."
I agreed to be guided by Mr. Brown's advice, and once more we began to toil amid the rocks and dead grass.
About this time the moon, which had shone with wonderful brightness while we were digging, became obscured by white clouds from the westward, so that objects on the island were more indistinct, and even the trees on the main land, under which we had left our horses, were no longer discernable.
I thought, as I threw out the earth from the hole which we had already made, that the ground had been dug up before, and I felt encouraged to continue my labors, in hopes that we should soon reach the treasure which we considered belonged to us by bequest.
All thoughts of ghosts and spirits were fast passing away in the excitement of my occupation, when suddenly Mr. Brown dropped his pickaxe and uttered an exclamation.
"Did you hear that?" he cried, pointing in the direction from whence he supposed the sound proceeded.
"No," I answered, beginning to feel a little of his own alarm.
"If this d----d island isn't haunted, I wouldn't say so," my companion continued.
"Remember the compact which you proposed, that we were not to exchange a word during our occupation."
"The devil take the compact, and me, too, if I can help speaking when I hear such unearthly noises."
Hardly were the words out of his mouth when from the earth arose a form that seemed at least ten feet high. It was clothed in white, and from its head projected two monstrous horns, which were pointed towards us in a threatening manner. I could discern no features, but a huge mass of white bones were visible where the face should have been, and I thought that I could hear them rattle as the beast, devil, or ghost shook its head in an ominous manner, and advanced towards us.
"I can't stand this?" cried Mr. Brown, in a trembling whisper, and away he went, with the speed of a greyhound, towards the bridge that connected the island with the main land.
I did not think that words were desirable or becoming on my part, as I did not have charge of the expedition, so no sooner had Mr. Brown turned to run than I followed him.
Fear lent me wings, and I bounded over the rocks like a deer pursued by hunters, but in despite of my utmost endeavors I found that I was unable to compete with my friend, who ran as though trained for ten mile stretches upon a race course.
Once I looked back to see if we were followed, but the white visitant appeared content with driving us off, for no pursuit was made.
I had half an idea of stopping, but another groan, more unnatural and ghostly than any that I had heard, determined me, and I recommenced my flight with but faint hope of overtaking Mr. Brown, who, I perceived, was already on the peninsula, bounding along with a recklessness that would have made him shudder at any other time. I attempted to utter a warning cry, but the effort was a failure, and just as I reached the bridge I saw that my worst fears were realized, for my friend caught his feet in the long, dried grass, lost his balance, and fell heavily.
I quickly gained the spot, and saw, to my horror, that my companion had fallen upon the soft, black mud which extended for many acres on each side of the island, and that he was slowly sinking, in spite of his frantic efforts to reach the bridge, which was about six feet from his outstretched arms.
"Save me!" he cried, in despairing accents, and just then the moon, as though in mockery of his request, shone out brighter than ever.
He made an almost superhuman effort to sustain himself, and keep from sinking, but I saw, with horror, that he was settling slowly and surely, and that all his struggles only hastened his end.
"Can you do nothing for me?" he shrieked. "For God's sake, don't let me die such a horrid death as this. Try and save me."
I thought of a dozen different ways to assist him, but none of them were practicable, and I was obliged to conjure up others.
"Can you reach my hand?" I asked, stretching it towards him, first taking the precaution of twisting my left hand in a clump of dried grass, so that I, too, should not be dragged into the bog.
The poor fellow made a frantic effort to do so, but he could not reach within six inches.
"Lean a little more towards me," he shrieked, but I did not dare to, for I should have shared his fate, and both of us would have smothered, and our friends would never have learned our fate.
My companion uttered a groan, and for a moment was silent. During the brief period, I heard, with awful distinctness, the sound of the pickaxe, as it was struck against the rocks upon the island, worked, I had no doubt, by supernatural hands. _