; then,
exerting all his strength, he launched himself over the black gulf of
the second cave. Swiftly he flew and, although his heart stood still
with fear, only a few seconds elapsed before his feet touched the ledge
of the opposite passageway and he knew he had safely accomplished the
wonderful feat.

Only pausing to draw one long breath of relief, Inga quickly traversed
the crooked corridor that led to the last cavern of the three. But when
he came in sight of it he paused abruptly, his eyes nearly blinded by a
glare of strong light which burst upon them. Covering his face with his
hands, Inga retreated behind a projecting corner of rock and by
gradually getting his eyes used to the light he was finally able to
gaze without blinking upon the strange glare that had so quickly
changed the condition of the cavern. When he had passed through this
vault it had been entirely empty. Now the flat floor of rock was
covered everywhere with a bed of glowing coals, which shot up little
tongues of red and white flames. Indeed, the entire cave was one
monster furnace and the heat that came from it was fearful.

Inga's heart sank within him as he realized the terrible obstacle
placed by the cunning Nome King between him and the safety of the other
caverns. There was no turning back, for it would be impossible for him
again to leap over the gulf of the second cave, the corridor at this
side being so crooked that he could get no run before he jumped.
Neither could he leap over the glowing coals of the cavern that faced
him, for it was much larger than the middle cavern. In this dilemma he
feared his great strength would avail him nothing and he bitterly
reproached himself for parting with the Pink Pearl, which would have
preserved him from injury.

However, it was not in the nature of Prince Inga to despair for long,
his past adventures having taught him confidence and courage, sharpened
his wits and given him the genius of invention. He sat down and thought
earnestly on the means of escape from his danger and at last a clever
idea came to his mind. This is the way to get ideas: never to let
adverse circumstances discourage you, but to believe there is a way out
of every difficulty, which may be found by earnest thought.

There were many points and projections of rock in the walls of the
crooked corridor in which Inga stood and some of these rocks had become
cracked and loosened, although still clinging to their places. The boy