culiarity
of eyesight which made them shun the sunlight, and seek the darkness
of caves and of dense, overshadowing foliage.

At length we came to a place where the terrace ran back till it formed
a semicircle against the mountain slope, when several vast portals
appeared. Here there was a large space, where the tree-ferns grew in
long lines crossing each other, and making a denser shade than usual.
On the lower side were several stone edifices of immense size; and
in the middle of the place there arose a singular structure, shaped
like a half pyramid, with three sides sloping, and the fourth
perpendicular, flat on the top, which was approached by a flight of
steps. We now went on until we reached the central portal of the range
of caverns, and here we stopped. The chief got out and beckoned to me.
I followed. He then led the way into the cavern, while I, full of
wonder, walked behind him.

CHAPTER VII

SCIENTIFIC THEORIES AND SCEPTICISM

Thus far Melick had been reading the manuscript, but at this point he
was interrupted by the announcement that dinner was ready. Upon this
he stopped abruptly; for on board the Falcon dinner was the great
event of the day, and in its presence even the manuscript had to be
laid aside. Before long they were all seated around the dining-table
in the sumptuous cabin, prepared to discuss the repast which had been
served up by the genius of the French chef whom Lord Featherstone
had brought with him.

Let us pause here for a moment to take a minuter survey of these four
friends. In the first place, there was Lord Featherstone himself,
young, handsome, languid, good-natured to a fault, with plenty of
muscle if he chose to exert it, and plenty of brain if he chose to
make use of it--a man who had become weary of the monotony of high
life, and, like many of his order, was fond of seeking relief from the
ennui of prosperity amid the excitements of the sea. Next to him was
Dr. Congreve, a middle-aged man, with iron-gray hair, short beard and
mustache, short nose, gray eyes, with spectacles, and stoutish body.
Next came Noel Oxenden, late of Trinity College, Cambridge, a college
friend of Featherstone's--a tall man, with a refined and intellectual
face and reserved manner. Finally, there was Otto Melick, a
litterateur from London, about thirty years of age, with a wiry and
muscular frame, and the restless manner of one who lives in a
perpetual fidget.

For some time nothing was said