s didn't do that, I hope," said Harry, turning to me.

"Hardly," I answered; and in my absorbing interest in the phenomenon
before me I half forgot my pain.

I moved to the edge of one of the walls extending at right angles to
the passage, but there was little to be made of it. It was of soft
limestone, and most probably the portion that had disappeared was
granite, carried away by the force of its own weight.

"We are like to be buried," I observed, returning to Harry and Desiree.
"Though for that matter, even that can hardly frighten us now."

"For my part," said Harry, with a curious gravity beneath the apparent
lightness of his words, "I have always admired the death of Porthos.
Let it come, and welcome."

"Are we to go further?" put in Desiree.

Just as Harry opened his mouth to reply a more decisive answer came
from another source. The rock that had fallen, obstructing the path of
the Incas, must have left an opening that Harry had missed; or they had
removed it--what matter?

In some way they had forced a passage, for as Desiree spoke a dozen
spears whistled through the air past our heads and we looked up to see
a swarm of Incas climbing and tumbling down the face of a boulder over
which we had passed to reach our resting-place.

I have said that we had halted in a level, unbroken stretch that still
led some distance ahead of us. At its farther end could be seen a
group of rocks and boulders completely choking the lane, Beyond, other
rocks arose to a still greater height--the way appeared to be
impassable.

But there was no time for deliberation or the weighing of chances, and
we turned and made for the pile of rocks, with the Incas rushing after
us.

There Desiree and I halted in despair, but with a great oath Harry
brushed us aside and leaped upon a rock higher than his head with
incredible agility. Then, lying flat on his face and extending his
arms downward over the edge, he pulled first Desiree, then myself, up
after him. The whole performance had occupied a scant two seconds,
and, waiting only to pick up the three spears he had thrown up the
sloping surface of the rock to another yet higher and steeper.

"Why don't we hold them here?" I demanded. "They could never come up
that rock with us on top."

Harry looked at me.

"Spears," he said briefly; and, of course, he was right. They would
have picked us off like birds on a limb.

We scaled the second rock with extreme difficulty, Harr