The Peril Finders Part 78

The heaps of gruesome dust ended with the last chamber only, very little being seen to take attention; but on the terrace, and here in the last four or five chambers, the doctor stooped several times to rake away the soft, easily-swept ashes, to point out proofs of his former opinions, many of the relics he uncovered and touched being quite small.

"A horrible ma.s.sacre," he said softly. "Children, youths, and these are doubtless the skulls of women."

"Oughtn't we to preserve specimens of each to take back? They would be of intense interest to students of the past," said Bourne gravely.

"How?" replied the doctor. "Touch any of them.--There, you see. They crumble into dust almost at a breath. What we carry away from here must be in our memories. As far as mine is concerned, it is already charged with the knowledge that we have, here the remains of two races of people, the one fierce and barbarous, the other the civilised builders and carvers of this strange city of the past. Here it is, all written down, how, in spite of all their efforts for their protection, dwelling, as they must have been, in the midst of fierce and bloodthirsty tribes, they were attacked, conquered, and ma.s.sacred to the very last. For I expect when we examine the terraces on the other side of this place, we shall find a repet.i.tion of all we have found here. There, enough of horrors for one day."

"But you'll come and examine all this again, father?" said Chris excitedly.

"Yes, I should like to come too," cried Ned.

"What, haven't you both had enough of these horrors?" said the doctor, raising his eyebrows.

"N-no, father," said Chris slowly, and as if thinking the while. "It is very horrible, of course, and one almost shivers to think of how the brave people must have fought; but there's a something about it that seems to draw one on to try and know more, and it is almost like reading of a dreadful battle and a brave defence; only it seems to be so much more true."

"Yes, and it's so ancient, father," said Ned, meeting Bourne's eyes. "I want to know more, and to try and find some of the swords and spears and battle-axes."

"I know what I should like to find," said Chris, speaking as eagerly as his companion.

"What?" said the doctor, for Chris stopped suddenly, and seemed lost in thought.

"I suppose it couldn't be done," the boy added dreamily, "but I seem as if I was on the side of all those people who were beaten, and I should like to see how many of the enemy they killed before the last of them were ma.s.sacred."

"You'd like to count their enemies' skulls, eh, Chris?" said the doctor, smiling. "Yes, I feel something of the same kind; but nature has forbidden that, my boy. You see we are amidst heaps of dust."

"But we may find some of their weapons that they used," said Bourne.

"We must search for them."

"I should like to put a word in here, gentlemen," said Griggs suddenly, "for I've got a touch--a bad one--of our young friends' complaint.

We've a good two hours' broad sunshine yet, I should say."

"Oh, quite that," said the doctor.

"Well, there's all that lot of ammunition yonder at the top of the trap."

"Yes," said the doctor; "I begin to think you're right about that, Griggs."

"And seeing what a stand the poor people made here, fighting from room to room--or house to house, I suppose I ought to call it--I can't help thinking that there was something pretty desperate went on before they let the enemy get up those steps."

"No doubt," said the doctor, "and that accounts for so many of the stones of that breastwork being missing."

"That's right, sir. Well, I want to go down into that hole with a big light, and see what's at the bottom there. I'm reckoning that we could find out what kind of weapons the enemy had to fight against the stones."

"Yes," cried Ned; "their swords and--"

"Well, I don't know about swords, squire," said the American dryly, "but they must have had something to fight with. I vote that we go and see."

This was agreed to without hesitation on the doctor's part, and the party made their way back to the top of the steps.

There was a pause here while all walked along the four sides, where hundreds of stones averaging the size of a man's head lay just as they had been placed ages before; and then the descent was made to the opening at the side where the heap of dust had disappeared, and a short consultation took place.

"You'll have to give up for to-day, Griggs," said the doctor; "it's as black as ink down there at the bottom."

"That's what I've been thinking, sir," said Griggs. "One must have a lanthorn for this job, and by the time I've been to fetch it, got back here with another rope or two, and lit up ready for work, another hour will have slipped away; so if Chris and Ned here will promise not to tell me that I'm too much scared to go, I think I'll give it up for to-night."

"You may take it for granted that no one will even dream of such a thing," said the doctor quietly; "and I think it will be much wiser to give up. We've done quite enough for one day. Every one for camp, a good wash, and a hearty meal."

An hour later they were seated round their camp-fire, talking over the adventures of the day, and that night almost the same dream disturbed the slumbers of both boys, whose minds overleaped the long roll of ages which had elapsed, and conjured up for them the rock city occupied by a busy population. Then came the alarm of danger, the surprise made by the active enemy, and then the fierce defence of the first standing, the fight on the lower terrace, and the desperate defence of cell after cell. Then the fight for the next, and afterwards the escalading of the staircase in the great square hole, down into which Chris seemed to see scores of fierce-looking Indian warriors beaten by the stones cast from above.

Worst of all in the dream was the final slaughter along the last platform, a sight so horribly real that Chris woke up suddenly, bathed in perspiration, and suffering an agony of excitement before he could force himself to believe it was all a dream.

CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN.

IN THE OLD STRONGHOLD.

The morning broke fresh and cool, and after a good meal a start was made for the top stairway, Griggs being armed with two lanthorns, while Chris carried ropes, and an iron bar fell to Ned's lot, the intention being to drive the chisel-shaped end between two stones or into some crack, so that the rope might be safely held for the adventurer's descent.

That which had seemed long and wearisome the day before looked easy now, and they were not long in reaching the slope leading to the first ascent, where the party paused to look back along the depression to where the animals were browsing contentedly enough, and the remains of the camp-fire sent up a tiny column of thin blue smoke. The ranges of open cells were on their right, terrace above terrace, all looking so grey and peaceful, with tree, shrub, and tuft of green flourishing in the various cracks, that it was difficult to connect the place with the horrors their search had unveiled.

"It looks from here," said Bourne, "like the home of so many human bees who had built their peaceful city against the sides of the cliffs. Do you think we shall find that similar horrors were perpetrated over yonder?"

"If the opposite cells were occupied at the same time I'm afraid there is no doubt about it. We'll find out the ascent to those terraces, if we can, to-morrow or next day. I wish we could come upon one of the chambers just as it was occupied by its owner."

"I dessay we could find a lot of things here on this side," said Griggs quietly to the boys, who generally kept with him for companion, "but it would be an unked job with shovel and sieve to clear out one of those cells."

"A what job?" said Chris.

"Unked, my lad. That's what a Somersetshire chap I once knew used to call anything dismal and melancholy. This is going to be an unked job this morning, I can tell you, for if it wasn't for the feeling of curiosity to know all about these people I should be ready to pitch it over."

"Well, do," said Chris, "and leave it to Ned and me."

"'Tisn't a fit job for boys," said Griggs.

"It isn't a fit job for anybody," said Ned, "but we'd do it because it's learned and wonderful. Oh, I think it's very fine."

"P'r'aps it is," said Griggs coolly, "but you're not going to take the job out of my hands, and so I tell you. Just hark at him, Chris; he has got the idea in his head that he's going to discover swords with golden sheaths, and belts thick with precious stones; helmets with plumes of feathers, and rich and costly armour."

"Not such a noodle," said Ned, whose cheeks had turned very red, for though not so extravagant as the American painted, he was fain to own to himself that he had some such ideas in connection with the dusky warriors who had stormed the place.

"I got thinking a deal of it though last night after I lay down," said Griggs, who did not care to carry his taunts any further after seeing the colour of Ned's face, "and I was precious glad that I didn't go down with only a few matches for light. I got dreaming about it afterwards."

"What, about the old fighting men? The dead?"

"No. About what might be there all alive."

"What!" cried Chris. "Not about snakes?"