Army and Navy Weekly — page 33: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

. ARMY AND NAVY pitchy darkness of the subterranean channel, feeling more and more the chilling effect of the icy waters. There wus nota sound to be heard in the hollow vault—only the low murmur of the stream. Pres- ently, having swung around a slight and almost im- perceptible curve they saw in the far distance a patch of silvery white light glimmering athwart the black- ness. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE ESCAPE TO THE LAKE. ‘¢Tjook!’’ said Nigel; ‘‘that must be the outlet to the Lake of Dacca. We shall soon be there.’’ ‘‘ About half a mile yet, I should judge,’’ replied Hawksmoor. ‘‘Are you equal to it?’’ ‘“Yes, if that’s all the distance. I’m only beginning to feel a little tired. But suppose we can’t finda boat?’”’ ‘‘That’s a contingency I’m not prepared to grapple with, Davenant. From what Bhagwan Das told me, boats are kept at the mouth of the river, so I rather think we may pick one up. Ugh, how cold the water is!’? ‘*Tt’s like ice!’? Nigel muttered. ‘*Tt doesn’t look as though the priests were on our track,’’ said Hawksmoor. ‘‘Possibly, having discov- ered that we fell through the hole, they believe that we are both drowned. ‘‘They may be searching the gardens,’’ suggested Nigel, ‘‘or the: underground passages where we wan- dered all afternoon. By Jove, I wonder if Bhagwan Das should be somewhere about here hunting for us!”? ‘*Tt’s quite likely,’’ assented Hawksmoor. He twice called the Hindoo by name, but there wasno response—only the weird, shuddering echoes of his own voice, rolling far through the cavern. ‘‘[ don’t suppose Bhagwan Das could give his fel- low-priests the slip,’ he said. ‘‘It was a risky thing to sing.out as I did. Listen: the echo hasn’t quite stopped! If any guards are posted yonder at the outlet, they will be on the watch for us.’’ With anxious hearts they swam on fora moment or two, but the silence that followed the echoes re- mained unbroken. ; ‘‘T wonder if there are any crocodiles in the river,’? Nigel said, abruptly, ‘‘or any of those great serpents?’? ‘*Tt’s not likely,’? Hawksmoor replied, uneasily, ‘*for if any of either species were about, we should hardly be alive and swimmipg now.”? But the suggestion was alarming to both men, and they could not rid their minds of the horrible thought. They yielded to terror and panic, and spurted hard to reach the gates, momentarily expecting to be seized and jerked under by hungry crocodiles, or to hear the splashing of one of the monstrous serpents. as it rose beside them. The strain and the chilling water soon told on them; their limbs grew weak and numb, as they panted for breath. Fortunately they were close to the goal now. Had the distance been twenty yards further they must have succumbed and gone under. They swam on pluckily, struggling to keep their heads above water. A pale light shone all around them now, revealing on each side a sheer wall of rock rising without a break. Though the river’s channel had narrowed consider- ably, the current was almost imperceptible—a fact that indicated a vast increase in depth. With a few more strokes the exhausted men, on the point of sinking, reached the gates and caught hold of the bars. There they clung for a moment, numb with cold and weakness, and while they rested after their hard fight they looked eagerly about them. The outlet from the subterranean river to the lake was about sixty feet square, and from wall to wall stretched what at first seemed to be an insuperable barrier—a gate of massive ironwork, rising fully twen- ty feet. Overhead the artificial floor of the valley, jutted out a little further before it terminated, and be- yond the gate, stretching away between two receding mountains thousands of feet high, the purple Lake of . Dacca gleamed like burnished silver as far as the eye could reach. It was a glorious night, and the lustrous beams of the moon shone on objects near as well as distant. On 1087 the right, just outside of the gate, the mountain rose straight from the water; but at the base of the wall on the left was a narrow shelf two feet above the surface of the river, and on this shelf lay a long and narrow boat with, two paddles beside it. Hawksmoor was the first to make the welcome discovery. ‘Look !” he said. ‘‘That means life and safety to us, ‘‘But how are we going to get to it?’’ asked Nigel. **We can’t crawl through the bars; they are too close together.’’ ‘‘Quite true,’’ assented Hawksmoor, ‘‘There is only one chance, and I’m going to try it now. If I succeed you must follow me.’? With that he let goof the bars and swam back a dozen feet. Then he turned about, waved one hand, and dived suddenly. Nigel, divining his companion’s purpose, watched with breathless anxiety. A few sec- onds later Hawksmoor canie up, and on the outer side of the gate. He swam to the shelf and climbed upon it. ‘“Your turn, Davenant,’’ he called, in a whisper. ‘‘Go down about ten feet, and you’ll clear the bars.?’ It wasa difficult task for Nigel, weak and numbed as he still was, but he did not hesitate an instant. He paddied up stream, turned, and dived. He felt the bars grate his back as he swam under water, and just when he could hold his breath no longer, bis head shot to the surface. He struggled feebly to the shelf, where Hawksmoor caught him and pulled him out. They rested for a couple of minutes, and then noise- lessly lowered the boat to the water. It was in bad re- pair.and very dry, evidently having been out of use for a long time. With great care they climbed into the shaky craft, pushed off from the rocks, and drifted sluggishly away on the current, ‘*Now to find a safe hiding place,’’ said Hawksmoor. ‘‘We bare been more fortunate than I expected. I was afraid the gate would be guarded. As yet the priests are not searching for us on the river, so we are sure of a good start.’’ : ‘‘How far will we go?’’ asked Nigel. ‘‘Perhaps three or four miles,’? Hawksmoor replied, ‘fand then we will look for shelter on the mainland Come, Davenant, we’ll warm ourselves by hard work.”’ Fast and steadily they dipped the paddles, driving the light boat further and further from the yawning mouth of the subterranean river, on and on between the diverging mountain walls, until they were well out in the open moonlit lake, where even by night water and air wore a purple hue. When they had gone about a mile they stopped and looked back. The moon was shining into the gorge be- tween the lofty mountains, shedding a silvery glow on the iron gate and on the wall of red granite above it that marked the limit of the monastery. A lump rose in Nigel’s throat. He was leaving the girl he loved passionately behind him—leaving her to the mercies of the cruel priests aud of Matadeen Mir. The thought was agony to him—the keenest torture. ‘‘Come, Davenant, you are not paddling,’’ said Hawksmoor. ‘‘We must put a few more miles between us and the monastery.’’ ‘And what then?’’ Nigel asked, hoarsely. ‘‘You re- member your promise?’ ‘‘Yes; we will make another attempt to rescue Mur- iel Brabazon if a chance offers.”? ‘*And suppose one doesn’t offer???’ ‘*Then the only thing for us to do is to try to reach Katmandu, and report to the British Resident——’? Hawksmoor broke off suddenly, and glanced down at his feet. ‘*Good heavens, the boat isleaking!’’ he cried. ‘‘Our weight 1s forcing the cracks apart !”? He was right. The leakage had only just begun, but already the water was several inches deep in the bot- tom, and was oozing rapidly in from several places. The rickety old craft seemed to be coming apart.’ ‘‘Tt’s all up with us!’’ exclaimed Nigel. ‘‘We can’t take to swimming, for the big serpents or the croco- diles would soon finish us.?’ ‘‘Yonder is an island!’’ cried Hawksmoor, point- ing to a dark mass of rocks and bushesabout a quarter of a mile ahead. ‘‘We must try to reach it before the boat sinks! Paddle for your life, quick!?? (TO BE CONTINUED.) COmiclbooks.Gom @