" he said, passing the string two or three times
through his fingers, "that's nearly dry now, and if it's shoved down the
hole, one end left out, and the hole stopped with a bit of clay--"

"Where are you going to get your clay, mate?" said Bob Bacon.

"Oh, I don't know," said the man. "Never mind the clay. You can make
baskets."

"What's that got to do with it?" growled Bob.

"Not much, but pull out your knife and find a good soft bit of wood that
you can turn into a peg."

This was soon done, and laying the string fuse a little way along the
cement floor, Dan declared the mine to be ready.

"Only wants everybody to stand clear, gentlemen," said the little
fellow, "and somebody to go down with a match, and then run. Then up
she goes; and that's my job."

"Oh, I'll do that," cried Mark, and he pulled out a little silver box of
matches that he had in his pocket.

"Steady, Mr Mark, sir--steady!" cried the little fellow.

"Clear out, everybody!" cried Mark.

The doctor opened his lips to speak angrily, but on second thoughts he
followed those who were in the hole and had begun making for a safe
distance from the explosion that was to come.

"Spring out the moment you have lit the fuse," he shouted.

"All right," cried Mark impetuously, as, bending down, he rapidly struck
a wax match and held it to the string fuse; and then--he could not have
explained why--stood over it as if affected by some nightmare-like
feeling, watching the tiny sparkling of the damp powder as it began to
run along the string towards the hole.

"Mr Mark!" shouted the little sailor. "Run--run!"

The boy started violently, turned to look at the speaker, then back at
the faint sparkling of the fuse, and then stared helplessly again after
those who were now standing some little distance away.

"Yah! Run!" yelled Buck Denham, and as he shouted he snatched off
Dean's hat and sent it skimming like a boomerang right away over the
bushes, though, unlike a boomerang, it did not come back.

It affected his purpose, though, for startled by the driver's fierce
yell, and his attention being taken by the flying hat, Mark made a dash,
climbed out of the hole, rose to his feet, and had begun to run for
safety, when the explosion came with a roar; and it was as if a giant
had suddenly given the boy a tremendous push which sent him flying into
the nearest bushes, out of which he was struggling when Dean and Buck
Denham came running through the sm