that was nearest to where the Pequinky in former times had emptied
into the bay; then I hitched the horse to a tree, and with Susan and the
tape-measure began my explorations, They lasted scarcely five minutes.
With no trouble at all I found the oak and the hickory--grown to be
great trees, as I had expected--and with the tape-measure we fixed the
point midway between them in no time. Then I went back to the wagon for
the spade and the other things, Susan going along and dancing around and
around me in sheer delight. It is a fortunate trait of Susan's character
that while her spirits sometimes do fall a very long distance in a
very short time, they rise to proportionate heights with proportionate
rapidity.

The point that we had fixed between the trees was covered thickly with
leaves, and when I had cleared these away and had begun to dig, I was
surprised to find that the soil came up freely, and was not matted
together with roots as wood soil ought to be. I should have paid more
attention to this curious fact, no doubt, had I not been so profoundly
stirred by the excitement incident to the strange work in which I was
engaged. As for Susan, the dear creature said that she had creeps all
over her, for she knew that the old pirate's ghost must be hovering
near, and she begged me to notify her when I came to the skeleton, so
that she might look away. I told her that I did not expect to find a
skeleton, but she replied that this only showed how ignorant _I_ was of
pirate ceremonial; that it was the rule with all pirates when burying
treasure to sacrifice a human life, and to bury the dead body over the
hidden gold. She admitted, however--upon my drawing her attention to the
fact that the treasure which we were in the act of digging up had been
placed here by my relative only for temporary security--that in this
particular instance the human sacrifice part of the pirate programme
might have been omitted.

Just as we had reached this conclusion--which disappointed Susan a
little, I think--my spade struck with a heavy thud against a piece of
wood. Clearing the earth away, I disclosed some fragments of rotten
plank, and beneath these I saw something that glittered! Susan, standing
beside me on the edge of the hole, saw the glitter too. She did not say
one word; she simply put both her arms around my neck and kissed me.

I rapidly removed the loose earth, and then with the pickaxe I heaved
the plank up bodily. But what we saw