interested.

"We didn't call him that, but he was a colored boy. If he could learn
to read, I am sure you could."

"It's no use, chile. I'm too old now."

Much as he liked Frank, it was irksome to Ernest to remain all day in
the cave. It was imprisonment under pleasant circumstances, but still
imprisonment.

They got through the forenoon somehow, taking dinner at twelve
o'clock.

About two o'clock Frank complained of being sleepy.

"You won't mind if I go to sleep for an hour, Ernest?" he said.

"Oh, no," answered Ernest. "I can read, you know."

Since his exploration of the day before, Ernest had been longing to
visit once more the same portion of the cave. But he wanted to go
alone. He had a hope that through the aperture in the roof he might
effect his escape. It would not do to have Frank with him, as this
would interfere with his plan. Now the longed-for opportunity was
almost at hand.

He took a volume from the book-shelf, and sitting down beside the bed
began to read. But his mind was not on the book, though at another
time he would have enjoyed it. He watched Frank, and in less than
fifteen minutes had the satisfaction of seeing that he was fast
asleep.

Then he left the room, Juba being occupied in the kitchen. He secured
his hat, as he would need it in case he effected his escape.

As he passed through that apartment in the cave where there were
trunks and boxes, it occurred to him to open one of them. He was
rather surprised that it should be unlocked, but so it was.

It was filled with a miscellaneous assortment of articles, but on top,
to his surprise and joy, he recognized the envelope containing the
bonds that had been taken from him.

If he left the cave he would want these, and therefore he had no
hesitation in taking them. He put them in the inside pocket of his
vest, and kept on his way.

In a short time he reached the spot lighted by the aperture in the
roof.

The opening was quite large enough for him to get through, but the
difficulty was that it was fully fifteen feet above the floor of the
cave. Ernest was something of a gymnast, but it was out of his power
to reach the opening through which alone he could obtain deliverance.

He looked about him to see if there were any articles which he could
pile upon one an other so as to attain the aperture. But the cave was
quite empty of articles of any description, nor could he find any that
he could move in the portions which he ha