gain."

"Who knows?" asked Tom, shrugging his shoulders, Spanish fashion. And
there came before him the vision of a certain "little lady," about whom
he had been thinking deeply of late.

CHAPTER IX

VAL JACINTO

"Rather tame, isn't it, Tom?"

"Well, Ned, it isn't exactly like going up in an airship," and Tom
Swift who was gazing over the rail down into the deep blue water of the
Caribbean Sea, over which their vessel was then steaming, looked at his
chum beside him.

"No, and your submarine voyage had it all over this one for
excitement," went on Ned. "When I think of that----"

"Bless my sea legs!" interrupted Mr. Damon, overhearing the
conversation. "Don't speak of THAT trip. My wife never forgave me for
going on it. But I had a fine time," he added with a twinkle of his
eyes.

"Yes, that was quite a trip," observed Tom, as his mind went back to
it. "But this one isn't over yet remember. And I shouldn't be
surprised if we had a little excitement very soon."

"What do you mean?" asked Ned.

Up to this time the voyage from New York down into the tropical seas
had been anything but exciting. There were not many passengers besides
themselves, and the weather had been fine.

At first, used as they were to the actions of unscrupulous rivals in
trying to thwart their efforts, Tom and Ned had been on the alert for
any signs of hidden enemies on board the steamer. But aside from a
little curiosity when it became known that they were going to explore
little-known portions of Honduras, the other passengers took hardly any
interest in our travelers.

It was thought best to keep secret the fact that they were going to
search for a wonderful idol of gold. Not even the mule and ox-cart
drivers, whom they would hire to take them into the wilds of the
interior would be told of the real object of the search. It would be
given out that they were looking for interesting ruins of ancient
cities, with a view to getting such antiquities as might be there.

"What do you mean?" asked Ned again, when Tom did not answer him
immediately. "What's the excitement?"

"I think we're in for a storm," was the reply. "The barometer is
falling and I see the crew going about making everything snug. So we
may have a little trouble toward this end of our trip."

"Let it come!" exclaimed Mr. Damon. "We're not afraid of trouble, Tom.
Swift, are we?"

"No, to be sure we're not. And yet it looks as though the storm