and the light has come up under it. They sloped this
passage to make the water flow out below the surface of the sea, so
that the opening could not be seen from without. By the light I should
not say that the opening is more than six inches under the water. I
don't know how the tides are, but if it is high tide now, the top of
the opening would be eighteen inches out of water at low tide, for, as
you know, the tide only rises about two feet on this coast. In that
case a boat would be able to come in and out at low tide, but of course
a man wanting to come in or go out could easily dive under at any time.
Well, that settles that point for the present. It was a clever plan;
any amount of water could flow out in flood time, and yet no one who
took the trouble to come behind that ledge of rocks we saw would have
any idea that there was an opening. I think now that we had better go
back, Bertie; in the first place because we can do nothing until we
have manufactured a grapnel of some sort, and in the next place because
every moment we delay will add to the anxiety of our friends in camp.
We must have been away three hours, I should say."

They ascended the steps, fastened the short rope round a block at the
top of the wall across the ravine, and lowered themselves down. They
had to proceed with great care while making their way down the <DW72>
composed of rough and jagged rocks, Once at the bottom of the ravine,
however, they walked briskly on. They had scarcely issued from the
entrance when they saw a stir in the camp in the distance and heard a
shout of delight, and then Dias dashed off to meet them at the top of
his speed.

"Thanks to all the saints, senor, that you are safe! You do not know
how we have suffered. We have prayed ever since you started, all of us.
Once or twice I threw myself down in despair, but Maria chided me for
having so little faith in God to keep you from evil, and cheered me by
saying that had harm come to you we should assuredly have heard the
sound of your guns. Have you been in the castle?