Page:Dave Porter on Cave Island.djvu/217

Rh. The rocks were so smooth in spots that at times to get a foothold was next to impossible. Once Roger slid back several feet and would have gone to the bottom had not Dave caught and held him.

"Take it slowly, Roger," was our hero's advice. "If you go to the bottom, you may be killed!"

"I'll hang—on!" gasped the other. "But I wi-wish I was out—of—th-this!"

"Well, I wish the same."

It took fully a quarter of an hour longer to get out of the rocky cave, and when the boys reached the surface of the earth they were so exhausted they could do little but sit on the ground and pant for breath.

"It's Cave Island right enough," was the comment of the senator's son. "But excuse me from tumbling into any more such openings!"

"I guess the best thing we can do is to go back to the boat," said Dave. "We can't discover much in this darkness. We can start out again early in the morning."

"All right, back to the boat it is," and the pair set out on the return along the sandy shore.

"I see a light!" cried Dave, after about half the distance to where the rowboat had been left was covered. And he pointed to a spot inland, among the trees.