gon, that he would, as on the previous day, hold fast to my
shoulder with his bill. He made Grilly get down below at the same time
and hold on to my feet; and when I began to crawl and wriggle along the
best way I could, I was assisted very materially by the parrot above
and the monkey below.

Notwithstanding the perilous situation, I could not but be amused at
the ludicrous singularity of the performance.

Above stood the sure-footed bird, all gravity, pulling away at my
shoulder; below was the monkey, holding me fast by the heels, jumping
and capering as the treacherous stones rolled from under him. Of
course, in less than a minute the whole thing was over, and I was
safely landed on a good broad walk.

We arrived at the opening of the dungeon. Descend into it? Again be
lost--perhaps perish? I hesitated. I shrank from entering; and yet,
down into it I must go!

"Pippity," said I, to my trusty parrot, "we will linger here another
day. You must bring us all the food you can between this and night; and
to-morrow morning, with the first peep of dawn, be ready to go down
again, and make as many trips before noon as you can, so that we shall
be able to undertake that dark and uncertain journey with at least a
small quantity of provisions."

Grilly ran in and out of the dark passage quite frequently, both that
evening and the next morning, evidently evincing a desire that the
descent should be made without delay, which convinced me that he had
come through all the darkness which yet lay between us and deliverance.

The sun had reached the zenith when I at last bade farewell to the
light and resolutely determined to proceed.

"Good-bye, Pippity! We shall meet you below. Fly down, get everything
ready for our reception, and have the table well supplied with the
choicest fruits that you can find."

But Pippity clung to me, and would not leave. "I will go with you! I
want to go!" implored the bird.

No expostulation could deter him from accompanying us.

Grilly led the way; and when we lost the light, he squealed and
chattered, and frequently ran back to make sure that Pippity and I were
following him. I kept close to the wall on my left. We passed over the
steep place. Still I kept close to the wall. The wall was on my
left--still on my left. We were going at a pretty pace, as the monkey
was continually urging us forward. We could not go fast enough for him.
All at once he squealed significantly. He ran back to me.