oment the strong arms of the two boys were tugging at the huge
slab of rock; and, at last, with a mighty effort, they pulled it away
from the wall and toppled it over backward, and it fell, with a crash,
on the rocks between them, revealing a black opening in the solid rock.

"Hurrah!" yelled Bud.

"Found!" shouted Thure; and both excited boys made a dive for the hole,
with the result that their bodies stuck tightly in the opening, the hole
not being large enough to accommodate the entrance of both of them at
the same time.

Ham and Mr. Conroyal pulled them out; and then Ham thrust his big body
into the opening--he could just squeeze in--and began cautiously working
his way forward. It was not a venture for an excited boy to make, the
entrance into that black hole without a light.

In about five minutes Ham came backing hurriedly out.

"Who's got th' candles?" he cried excitedly. "Thar sart'in is a cave in
thar; but it is as dark as the bottomless pit. We must have lights
before we can enter. Give me a candle."

"Here, here they are!" and Mr. Conroyal who in the excitement of the
moment had forgotten the package of a couple of dozen candles he had
tied up and slung over his back just before climbing the tree that
morning, quickly swung the package down on a rock in front of him and
cut the strings.

Ham caught up one of the candles, and, hurriedly lighting it, again
crawled into the hole, holding the candle out in front of him.

Thure and Bud both caught up candles and lighting them, looked
imploringly at their fathers.

Both men nodded, and the boys dove into the hole; but this time
separately.

"The rest of us had better wait outside until we hear from Ham and the
boys," Mr. Conroyal said, staring anxiously into the hole.

For perhaps ten minutes, although to the anxious and excited watchers
outside it seemed more like an hour, not a sound came from the hole into
whose black depths the three men had vanished. Even the lights of their
candles had disappeared. Then, suddenly, the excited voice of Thure was
heard, booming out through the hole.

"It's the cave, the Cave of Gold!" he cried exultantly, his voice
trembling with excitement. "Come in, all of you. There is room for all.
I will hold my candle so that you can see."

"Here, Dickson, you go first, and, Mollie, you follow right behind him,"
and Mr. Conroyal pushed Mr. and Mrs. Dickson excitedly toward the cave
opening, and motioned Rex and Dill and M