CHAPTER XXIV
FENN IS CAPTURED
For several seconds after he had observed the man's head disappear downthe hole in the ledge, Fenn waited. He wanted to see if the fellow hadgone for reinforcements, or had retreated. After a minute or two Fenndecided that the man was as much frightened as he himself was.
"I'll take a look down that hole," he decided. "I'm not in very goodshape for visiting company," he went on, with a look at his clay-coveredclothes, "but I don't believe those chaps are very particular. I wonderwhat I'm up against? This is a queer country, with holes in the groundalmost at every turn, leading to no one knows where."
He advanced toward the shaft, down which the man had vanished, and, ashe reached the edge, he saw that it contained a ladder.
The ladder was made of tree trunks, with the branches cut off about afoot from where they joined on, leaving projections sticking up at aslight angle, and making a good hold for the hands and feet.
"Well, I s'pose I'm foolish to do this all alone, and that I had bettergo back to camp and get the boys," murmured Fenn, as he prepared todescend. "But, if I do, the smugglers may escape, and I'll lose thereward. There must be an opening at the bottom of this shaft that leadsright out on the lake shore. When the boats land the smuggled-inChinamen, they are probably taken up this shaft, then through the one Islid down, and so into the woods, and from there they are spiritedwherever they want to go."
He looked into the shaft, and listened intently, but could hear nosound. He was surprised to see that the opening, leading down to hecould only guess where, was dimly lighted, seemingly in a naturalmanner. But his wonder at this ceased when, having gone down a littleway, he noticed that the walls of the shaft were pierced, in thedirection of the lake, with small openings, through which light came.
The shaft, he then saw, was either a natural one, or had been bored,straight down the cliff, and at no great distance from the perpendicularface of it. The sides seemed to be of soft rock, or hard clay, and thetree-trunk ladders were fastened up against the walls by long woodenstakes, driven in deeply. There were several tree trunks, one afteranother, and from the smoothness of the jutting prongs it was evidentthat they were often used.
Down Fenn climbed, stopping every now and then to peer through theventilating and light holes. He caught glimpses of the great lake, thatlay at the foot of the cliff, toward the bottom of which he wasdescending in this strange manner.
"Queer I don't hear or see anything more of those men I was chasing,"mused the boy as he paused a moment opposite one of the air holes to gethis breath. "I wonder what became of the two Chinese and the white chap?Then there's that man who stuck his head up out of this hole. He lookedlike a miner, for his hat was all covered with dirt. That reminds me,where's my hat?"
Instinctively he looked about him, as though he would find it hanging onone of the prongs of the tree-trunk ladder, which might answer as a hatrack. Then he laughed at himself.
"I remember now," he said. "It flew off when I fell through that clumpof fern into the hole I thought led to China. Guess I'll have to make mybow without my hat."
He glanced below him. It seemed as if he was at the last of theventilating openings for, further down, there were no glimmerings ofdaylight, which was fast waning. Then, as he looked, he caught theflickering of a torch, not far down. It waved to and fro, casting queershadows on the walls of the shaft, and then the person holding it seemedcoming up the ladder.
"Now there's going to be trouble," thought Fenn. "We can't pass on thisthing. Either he's got to wait until I get down, or I'll have to go allthe way back to the top. I wonder if I better yell to let him know I'mhere? No, that wouldn't be just the thing. I'll try to slip aroundbetween the wall and the ladder, and, maybe, he'll pass me."
Fenn proceeded to put this rather risky plan into operation. Holding onby both hands to one of the projecting branches he endeavored to swinghimself around. The man with the torch was coming nearer and nearer.
Suddenly Fenn's hold slipped. He tried to recover himself but withoutavail. The next moment his hands lost their grip and he went plungingdown into the darkness below, faintly illuminated by the smoking torch.Then he knew no more.
When Fenn came to his senses it was only with the utmost difficulty thathe could recall what had happened. He had a hazy recollection of havingbeen in some dark hole--then a light was seen--then he slipped--thencame blackness and then--
He tried to raise himself from where he lay, and a rustling told him hewas reclining on a bed of straw. By the light of a torch stuck in theearthen wall of what seemed to be a cavern, Fenn could make out theshadows of several men, grotesquely large and misshapen, moving about.From the distance came a peculiar noise, as of machinery.
Fenn's brain cleared slowly, though from the ache in his head, he knewhe must have had quite a fall. He raised himself on his elbow, andgradually came to a sitting position. He drew a long breath, and startedto get up.
As he did so, he felt some one place his hands on his chest, and pushhim back, not rudely, but with enough firmness to indicate that he wasto lie down. Instinctively he struggled against what seemed to him a dimshape in the half-darkness.
"Lie down," a man's voice commanded. "You'll be all right in a littlewhile. You had quite a fall."
"What's the matter? Where am I? Who are you?" asked Fenn.
"That's all right now, sonny," was the reply in such soothing tones, asone sometimes uses toward a fretful child. "You're in safe hands."
"Has the kid woke up?" called a voice from the blackness beyond thecircle of light cast by the torches.
"Yes," answered the man who had made Fenn lie down.
Following the words there was a sudden increase in the illumination ofthe cavern, and Fenn saw a big man approaching, carrying a torch. Withhim were several others. One of them had a rope.
"Are you--are you going to make me a prisoner?" asked Fenn, his heartsinking.
"That's what we are."
Just then another man flashed a torch in the boy's face. No sooner hadhe done so than he called out:
"Great Scott! If it isn't the very kid I chased!"
Fenn glanced quickly up and saw, standing before him, the man with thesinister face--the man who had pursued him at the elevator fire. Besidehim was a man with a peculiar cast in one eye, and Fenn knew he was thefellow who had listened to the conversation of the chums in the railroadcar.