ered a cry of joy. "Here it is!" he
exclaimed, holding up two or three rounded nodules of metal. "No; I am
wrong," he said. "This light deceives me; it is silver."

To his surprise, the Beaver took them from his hand with a gesture of
contempt, and threw the pieces away, though they would have purchased
him a new blanket or an ample supply of ammunition at Lerisco or any
other southern town.

"Wait," he said, airing his English once more. "Plenty! plenty!" and he
pointed down towards the lower part of the narrow crevice or crack in
the rock along which they were passing.

"Go on, then," said the Doctor; and once more they continued their
descent, which grew more difficult moment by moment, and more dark, and
wild, and strange.

For now the rock towered up on either side to a tremendous height, and
the daylight only appeared as a narrow streak of sky, dappled with dark
spots where the trees hung over the rift. Then the sky was shut out
altogether, and they went on with their descent in the midst of a
curious gloom that reminded Bart of the hour just when the first streaks
of dawn are beginning to appear in the morning sky.

This went on for what seemed to be some time, the descent growing
steeper and more difficult; but at last there came a pleasant rushing
sound, which Bart knew must be that of the river. Then there was the
loud song of a bird, which floated up from far below, and then all at
once a pale light appeared on the side of the rocks, which were now so
near together that the sides in places nearly touched above their heads.

Five minutes' more arduous descent, and there was glistening wet moss on
the rock, and the light was stronger, while the next minute the pure,
clear light of day flashed up from an opening that seemed almost at
their feet--an opening that was almost carpeted with verdant green, upon
which, after dropping from a rock some ten feet high, they stood,
pausing beneath an arch of interweaving boughs that almost hid the
entrance to the rift, and there they stood, almost enraptured by the
beauty of the scene.

For the bottom of the canyon had been reached, and its mighty
verdure-decked, rocky walls rose up sheer above their heads, appearing
to narrow towards the top, though this was an optical delusion. All was
bright and glorious in the sunshine. The trees and shrubs were of a
vivid green, the grass was brilliant with flowers; and running in
serpentine waves through the middle of