us brought a
silence, and we rushed across the boulder-strewn ground that we had
crossed earlier in the night. We felt certain that Leith knew of a surer
and safer path back to the camp, but it was useless for us to hunt for a
new trail at that moment. We would have to find our way down the nearly
perpendicular wall up which we had climbed after leaving the crevice
through which we had viewed the death dance, and, to me at least, the
recollections of that path brought feelings that were by no means
pleasant. But Leith was making toward the camp, and the horrible
thoughts aroused by the spectacle which we had witnessed in the early
night muzzled the thrills which the dangers of the climb sent through
our bodies. The dance had terrified the Fijian by arousing thoughts of
the deeds that would happen in its wake, and Kaipi's terror became a
gauge for us to measure its dread significance.

We reached the cliffs and ran up and down the ledge in a vain search for
the spot where we had clawed our way to the top. Not that we thought the
finding of the place would solve the problem of the descent. It was hard
to conceive of a more difficult way than the one by which we had come,
and as if he had suddenly come to the conclusion that any other path
would be preferable, Holman dropped upon his knees and lowered himself
upon a ledge that was immediately below.

"Come on, Verslun!" he cried, in a choked voice that was altogether
different from his cheery tones. "If there is no path we must roll down.
There's the first flush of the dawn!"

I looked toward the east and groaned. The faint grayish tint unnerved
me. Although it was possible that Leith had already reached the camp,
still we had promised the two girls that we would return by daylight,
and although we had a hazy notion as to what we would do when we did
reach their side, the longing to get there made us oblivious of danger.
I swung down on to the crumbling foothold that supported Holman, and
breathlessly we began to scramble toward the valley.

It was a mad climb. Holman exhibited a temerity that bordered on
insanity. With reckless daring he scrambled down upon dangerous niches
that jutted out upon the face of the cliff, and my repeated warnings
fell upon deaf ears. A task that would have appeared impossible when
viewed in daylight, lost half of its terrors because we only vaguely
apprehended the dangers that threatened us when a layer of shale
crumbled beneath our feet.