The Go Ahead Boys and the Treasure Cave Part 23

"What shall we have him do?" exclaimed Fred eagerly. "It ought to be something pretty bad."

"Make him open that chest," Grant suggested.

"That's a good scheme," said George. "Here's a big rock for you, String.

Hit it a few cracks and see if you are better at this than at exploring caves."

John approached the chest, rock in hand. The lock had already been bent considerably by the other boys' efforts, but it still held fast. John attacked it fiercely and after breaking several stones succeeded in demolishing the lock.

"Yea, String!" cried George, excitedly. "You're a wonder. Open it up!

Quick!"

The padlock was removed and all four boys crowded around and eagerly grasped the top. It was not so easy to open, however, but finally it was done. Every boy's eyes glistened expectantly as the top was raised. The least they expected to see was a great pile of gold, but no such sight presented itself.

"It's empty," cried Grant. His voice sounded as if he had lost his last friend on earth.

"There's a piece of paper in there," corrected Fred. "Let's see if that says anything."

Keen disappointment showed on the face of every boy. Their hopes had been dashed. There was no special reason why they should have expected to find such a treasure-chest as they had pictured this one to be, but this idea had fixed itself in their minds and they really counted on all being made rich the moment they opened it up.

"What does the paper say, Fred?" inquired Grant listlessly. Most of his interest had faded.

"I don't know," said Fred carelessly. "It's nothing but a bunch of mixed up numbers. Say," he exclaimed suddenly. "Let me see that code in your pocket."

"What do you want that for?" inquired Grant curiously, at the same time producing the article in question and handing it over to Fred.

Fred grasped it and quickly spread it open. Holding the one he had found in the chest alongside the other he ran his eye hurriedly over the two.

Then he turned to his three companions, who were watching him curiously.

"Do you know that these two papers are exactly alike?" he demanded excitedly.

CHAPTER XV

SAM REMEMBERS SOMETHING

"Alike?" cried Grant in amazement. "What do you mean?"

"Just what I said," returned Fred. "The numbers on these two papers are exactly the same from start to finish."

"That's the strangest thing I ever heard of in my life," exclaimed Grant. "Let me look at them."

"Didn't I tell you fellows that that piece of parchment Petersen had was a code of some sort?" demanded Fred.

"Does the fact that we found one like it prove that?" said George skeptically.

"It certainly seems so to me," Fred exclaimed. "At any rate, it is a very odd coincidence."

"It's that all right," admitted George. "Are they exactly alike, Grant?"

"They seem to be," replied Grant, who had been carefully studying the two papers.

"We can soon find out, anyway," said John. "Let me have one of them and I'll read it aloud. One of you fellows can watch the other and check up the numbers."

"That's a good scheme," Grant agreed. "Here, String, you take this one and I'll keep my eye on the numbers on the other as you call them off."

"All ready?" said John.

"Go ahead," and this is what John read:

"20-1-11-5-1-3-15-21-18-19-5-4- 21-5-14-15-18-20-8-15-14-15-18-21- 14-4-18-5-4-6-5-5-20-6-18-15-13- 20-8-5-19-15-21-20-8-5-18-14-5- 24-20-18-5-13-9-20-25-15-6-19-8- 1-18-11-18-15-3-11-20-8-5-14-5-1- 19-20-6-9-6-20-25-6-20-25-6-5- 5-20-1-14-4-14-15-18-20-8-2-25- 5-1-19-20-20-8-9-18-20-25-20-8- 18-5-5-4-9-7."

"Exactly the same," announced Grant when John had finished. "Now what do you think about that?"

"I believe it's a code which tells where some pirates have buried treasure," announced Fred decidedly. "I also believe that this is the island where it was done. How else do you account for our finding that duplicate in the chest here?"

"It's strange all right," said George. "I can explain it all in a different way, though."

"What's that?" asked Grant curiously.

"Just this. Suppose all those numbers do make up a code and that they do give the key to some treasure or something. Isn't it possible that the treasure was once in this empty chest, and some one found it and took it away? Evidently there were at least two people in the secret, as the two codes show. One of them got here first and took it away and as long as he had no more use for the code he left it. Doesn't that sound reasonable?"

"Yes, it does," Fred admitted. "It's not very cheerful, though, and I hope you are wrong about it."

"I hope so, too," exclaimed George heartily. "It's just as well to look at both sides, though."

"I don't believe your idea is right, Pop," said Grant.

"Why not?"

"Petersen got this code from his father, didn't he? Well, if his father and the men he was with buried that treasure on this island it seems strange that this old powder-horn and flint-lock pistol should be here.

Such things as that were used a good many years before Petersen's father was alive."

"Who said his father was the one who buried the treasure?"

"I thought that was what some one said back there on the _Josephine_."

"No, indeed. They said Petersen's father had the code, but I never heard that he was one of those who were supposed to have buried the treasure."

"At any rate," put in George, "no matter who buried it, it doesn't say that my theory is wrong. The pistol and the powder-horn may have been in the chest along with the treasure. Whoever found it thought they weren't worth taking, so they were just thrown to one side."

"Why was the chest locked again?" asked John.

"I don't know, I'm sure," laughed Grant. "I give up."

"Not at all," exclaimed Fred. "Don't say that. We can at least try to make out this code. That will give us something to do and I guess we are going to have plenty of time on our hands before we get away from here."