"Africa! no; why should I?" replied Benedict; "but, as I have already seen a tzetsy in America, I do not despair of having the satisfaction of discovering white ants there too. You do not know the sensation I shall make in Europe when I publish my folio volume and its ill.u.s.trations."

It was evident that no inkling of the truth had yet entered poor Benedict's brain, and it seemed likely that it would require demonstration far more striking than any natural phenomena to undeceive the minds of such of the party as were not already in possession of the fatal secret.

Although it was nine o'clock, Cousin Benedict went on talking incessantly, regardless of the fact that one by one his audience were falling to sleep in their separate cells. d.i.c.k Sands did not sleep, but neither did he interrupt the entomologist by farther questions; Hercules kept up his attention longer than the rest, but at length he too succ.u.mbed to weariness, and his eyes and ears were closed to all external sights and sounds.

But endurance has limits, and at last Cousin Benedict, having worn himself out, clambered up to the topmost cell of the cone, which he had chosen for his dormitory, and fell into a peaceful slumber.

The lantern had been already extinguished. All was darkness and silence within, whilst the storm without still raged with a violence that gave no sign of abatement.

d.i.c.k Sands himself was the only one of the party who was not partaking in the repose that was so indispensable to them all; but he could not sleep; his every thought was absorbed in the responsibility that rested on him to rescue those under his charge from the dangers that threatened them. Again and again he recalled every incident that had occurred since the loss of Captain Hull and his crew; he remembered the occasion when he had stood with his pistol pointed at Negoro's head; why, oh why, had his hand faltered then? why had he not at that moment hurled the miserable wretch overboard, and thus relieved himself and his partners in trouble from the catastrophe that had since befallen them? Peril was still staring them in the face, and his sole drop of consolation in the bitter cup of despondency was that Mrs. Weldon was still ignorant of their real situation.

At that moment, just in the fever of his agony, he felt a light breath upon his forehead; a hand was laid upon his shoulder, and a gentle voice murmured in his ear,-

"My poor boy, I know everything. G.o.d will help us! His will be done!"

[Ill.u.s.tration: "My poor boy, I know everything."]

CHAPTER VI.

A DIVING-BELL.

This sudden revelation that Mrs. Weldon was acquainted with the true state of things left d.i.c.k speechless. Even had he been capable of replying, she gave him no opportunity, but immediately retired to the side of her son. The various incidents of the march had all gradually enlightened her, and perhaps the exclamation of Cousin Benedict on the preceding evening had crowned them all; anyhow the brave lady now knew the worst. d.i.c.k felt, however, that she did not despair; neither would he.

He lay and longed for the dawn, when he hoped to explore the situation better, and perchance to find the watercourse which he was convinced could not be far distant. Moreover, he was extremely anxious to be out of the reach of the natives whom, it was only too likely, Negoro and Harris might be putting on their track.

But as yet no glimmer of daylight penetrated the aperture of the cone, whilst the heavy rumblings, deadened as they were by the thickness of the walls, made it certain that the storm was still raging with undiminished fury. Attentively d.i.c.k listened, and he could distinctly hear the rain beating around the base of the ant-hill; the heavy drops splashed again as they fell, in a way altogether different to what they would upon solid ground, so that he felt sure that the adjacent land was by this time completely flooded. He was getting very drowsy when it suddenly occurred to him that it was not unlikely the aperture was getting blocked up with damp clay; in that case he knew that the breath of the inmates would quickly vitiate the internal atmosphere. He crept along the ground and had the satisfaction of finding that the clay embankment was still perfectly dry; the orifice was quite un.o.bstructed, allowing not only a free pa.s.sage to the air, but admitting the glare of the occasional flashes of lightning, which the descending volumes of water did not seem to stay.

Having thus far satisfied himself that all was well, and that there was no immediate danger, d.i.c.k thought that he might now resign himself to sleep as well as the rest: he took the precaution, however, of stretching himself upon the embankment within easy reach of the opening, and with his head supported against the wall, after a while dozed off.

How long his light slumber had lasted he could not say, when he was aroused by a sensation of cold. He started up, and to his horror discovered that the water had entered the ant-hill and was rising rapidly; it could not be long, he saw, before it reached the cells which were occupied by Hercules and Tom. He woke them at once, and told them what he had observed. The lantern was soon lighted, and they set to work to ascertain what progress the water was making It rose for about five feet, when it was found to remain stationary.

"What is the matter, d.i.c.k?" inquired Mrs. Weldon, disturbed by the movements of the men.

"Nothing very alarming," answered d.i.c.k promptly; "only some water has found its way into the lower part of the place; it will not reach your upper cells; probably some river has overflowed its boundaries."

"The very river, perhaps," suggested Hercules a.s.suringly, "that is to carry us to the coast."

Mrs. Weldon made no reply.

Cousin Benedict was still sleeping as soundly as if he were himself a white ant; the negroes were peering down on to the sheet of water which reflected back the rays of the lantern, ready to carry out any orders given by d.i.c.k, who was quietly gauging the inundation, and removing the provisions and fire-arms out of its reach.

[Ill.u.s.tration: They set to work to ascertain what progress the water was making.]

"Did the water get in at the opening, Mr. d.i.c.k?" asked Tom.

"Yes, Tom, and consequently we are coming to the end of our stock of fresh air," was d.i.c.k's reply.

"But why should we not make another opening above the water level?" Tom inquired.

"A thing to be thought about," said d.i.c.k; "but we have to remember that if we have five feet of water here inside, there is probably a depth of six or seven outside. In rising here the flood has compressed the air, and made it an obstacle to further progress, but if we allow the air to escape, we may perhaps only be letting the water rise too high for our safety. We are just as if we were in a diving-bell."

"Then what is to be done?" asked the old negro.

"No doubt," replied d.i.c.k, "we must proceed very cautiously. An inconsiderate step will jeopardize our lives." d.i.c.k Sands was quite correct in comparing the cone to an immersed diving-bell. In that mechanical contrivance, however, the air can always be renewed by means of pumps, so that it can be occupied without inconvenience beyond what is entailed by a somewhat confined atmosphere; but here the interior s.p.a.ce had already been reduced by a third part through the encroachment of the water, and there was no method of communicating with the outer air except by opening a new aperture, an operation in which there was manifest danger.

d.i.c.k did not entertain the slightest apprehension that the ant-hill would be carried away bodily by the inundation; he knew that it would adhere to its base as firmly as a beaver-hut; what he really dreaded was that the storm would last so long that the flood would rise high above the plain, perhaps submerging the ant-hill entirely, so that ultimately all air would be expelled by the persistent pressure.

The more he pondered the more he felt himself driven to the conviction that the inundation would be wide and deep. It could not be, he felt sure, entirely owing to the downpour from the clouds that the rapid flood was rising; there must have been the sudden overflowing of some stream to cause such a deluge over the low-lying plain. It could not be proved that the ant hill was not already under water, so that escape might be no longer possible, even from its highest point.

With all d.i.c.k's courage, it was yet evident that he was very uneasy; he did not know what to do, and asked himself again and again whether patient waiting or decisive action would be his more prudent course.

It was now about three o'clock in the morning. All within the ant-hill were silent and motionless, listening to the incessant turmoil which told that the strife of the elements had not yet ceased.

Presently, old Tom pointed out that the height of the water was gradually increasing, but only by very slow ascent. d.i.c.k could only say that if the flood continued to rise, however slowly, it must inevitably drive out the air.

As if struck by a sudden thought, Bat called out,-

"Let me try and get outside. Perhaps I might dive and get through the opening."

"I think I had better make that experiment myself," answered d.i.c.k.

"That you never shall," interposed Tom peremptorily; "you must let Bat go. It may not be possible to get back, and your presence is indispensable here. Think, sir, think of Mrs. Weldon, and Master Jack," he added in a lower tone.

"Well, well," d.i.c.k a.s.sented, "if it must be so, Bat shall go."

And turning to Bat, he continued,

"Do not try to come back again; we will try, if we can, to follow you the same way; but if the top of the cone is still above water, knock hard on it with your hatchet, and we shall take it as a signal that we may break our way out. Do you understand?"

"All right!" he said, "all right, sir."

And after wringing his father's hand, he drew a long breath, and plunged into the water that filled the lower section of the ant-hill.

It was an exploit that required considerable agility; the diver would have to find the orifice, make his way through it, and, without loss of a moment, let himself rise to the surface outside. Full half a minute elapsed, and d.i.c.k was making sure that the negro had been successful in his effort, when his black head emerged from the water. There was a general exclamation of surprise.

"It is blocked up," gasped Bat, as soon as he had recovered breath enough to speak.

"Blocked up?" cried Tom.

"Yes," Bat affirmed; "I have felt all round the wall very carefully with my hand, and I am sure there is no hole left; I suppose the water has dissolved the clay."

"If you cannot find a hole," exclaimed Hercules, "I can very soon make one;" and he was just about to plunge his hatchet into the side of the ant-hill, when d.i.c.k prevented him.

"Stop, stop! you must not be in such a hurry!"

He reflected for a few moments, and went on,-

"We must be cautious; an impetuous step may be destruction; perhaps the water is over the top; if it is allowed to enter, then at once is an end of all."

"But whatever we do," urged Tom, "must be done at once; there is no time to lose."