An opening in the paved court in the rear of the Temple, half filled with drifted sand, led into a "khiva" or secret religious council chamber1 beneath. Herein the young adventurers discovered their wonderland and the reward for all their labors2.
Hastily returning to the balloon, they procured3 candles and improvised4 scoops5 out of the sides of the tin emergency ration6 case obtained from the Arrow. Major Honeywell had warned the boys that the floors of all closed chambers7 of this sort were covered with the accumulated dust of ages.
The first examination of the "khiva" resulted in disappointment. The immediate8 impression that the boys received was one of cave-like barrenness. In the half-light only a gray monotony met the eye. Yet under this ghostlike pall9, forms soon began to appear. In the center of the chamber stood what was apparently10 an altar. In spite of its burden of dust an elevation11 could be seen about eight inches high and seven feet in diameter, on which was a boxlike structure about three feet square and four feet high. On top of this was a dust-covered figure. Beyond, in the deepest gloom, the mouths of four radiating tunnels leading still further into the ground could be seen. The roof was supported by irregular round columns, apparently of wood, arranged in two circles.
Before beginning an exploration of the chamber the boys decided12 to ascertain13 the depth of the dust covering the floor, into which they had already sunk over their shoe tops. This was stifling14 work, for the soft powder ran back as fast as it was dug away. A half hour at least was consumed in reaching the bard15 surface beneath. The coating of dust was nearly three feet deep.
As Ned climbed out of the little excavation16 Alan held the candle down. To the astonishment17 of the boys a beautiful blue sheen met their gaze.
It was true. The entire "khiva," so far as the boys subsequently uncovered its floor, was a crude mosaic19 of the most perfect turquoise, the pieces, varying in size, being laid in a lime-like cement.
A general survey of the room and its connecting tunnels showed that each radiating arm led, with about twenty feet of passageway, into a smaller room. In each of these rooms were nine column placed in a rectangle. The main chamber was circular in form, forty-eight feet in diameter, and the smaller apartments were twenty-four feet square.
Ned while at work examining the floor, suddenly ceased and rushed to one of the columns.
"You remember," he exclaimed, "the Spaniard said these columns were of gold and silver."
But in this the ancient record was wrong. The inner six supports were painted a faded yellow and the second row, twelve in number, was colored red, as the boys discovered later when they brushed and cleaned some of them. Around each of the inner columns, however, there were two metal bands about two inches wide and thirty inches apart. The lower ones were six feet from the floor. They were of heavy gold with loops or hooks extending from each side, as if festoons or connecting bands had once extended from pillar to pillar.
"Not a bad substitute!" exclaimed Ned.
The second line of twelve columns had similar rings of silver, as the boys discovered in good time. The movable contents of the room were not easily examined, as each object on the floor was buried under a mound20 of heavy, suffocating21 dust. Bats had made the place an undisturbed refuge, and the repulsive22 flutter of these creatures was disconcerting.
A preliminary examination of the four lateral23 passages and the rooms at their far end showed that these were probably store rooms, excepting the one on the east side. Here, on shelves, fixed24 on columns or posts similar to the colored supports in the principal chamber, were eight oblong forms. Even the dust and refuse could not disguise the nature of these—they were unmistakably mummies, the embalmed25 bodies of either chiefs or priests. At the head and foot of each were various dust covered receptacles and utensils26.
The afternoon was too short for the boys to accomplish the removal of anything.
"I feel like a grave robber," panted Alan, soberly, as the two boys clambered out into the fresh air, finding, to their surprise, that it was already night.
"Well, I don't," said Ned. "These things are so old that they seem to belong to Time itself. I feel more like a gold miner who has at last struck a rich vein27—and it's our vein."
But, as so often happens, ill luck came close on good fortune. The first glance of the young aeronauts at the camp and the Cibola was enough to chill their new happiness. The big gas bag had settled so low that it half concealed28 the car, which was resting flat on the ground. The buoyancy of the air ship was gone. Without more gas the Cibola could not make another flight. It was a severe blow to Ned and Alan; but they met the issue squarely.
"There is no use in worrying," said Ned, finally, when they realized the exact situation, "and we've got to make the best of it. Besides," he said, laughing, "we are not ready to go."
"That's right," replied Alan, thinking of the yet unexamined contents of the Treasure Temple, "and when we are ready I guess we'll be no worse off than Bob and Elmer. I suppose we can manage the one hundred foot descent some way."
"Right," exclaimed Alan, "that'll be easy—a rope ladder."
It was almost dark and the boys were covered with the penetrating30 grime of the long undisturbed "khiva." A meager31 wash up and supper and rest were in order. But Ned said:
"By morning the Cibola will be in collapse32. It is a valuable machine, and it ought not be left out here on this point unprotected from the seasons. We shall probably never see it again, but while we can move it let's tow it over in front of the temple and put the bag and engine and instruments in the protected room."
It was not a difficult task. With no great effort the car was half carried and half dragged down the slope and then to the clearing in the pine grove33 where the boys soon made a new camp. To complete their work the big bag of the balloon was untied34 from the car and drawn35, half inflated36, into the pathway leading to the temple door. Then, with no small regret, the boys opened the escape valve, and in a few minutes the collapsed37 Cibola was stretched like the cast off skin of a snake along the sandy pathway, ready to be rolled up and compactly stored away.
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1
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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2
labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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3
procured
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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4
improvised
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| a.即席而作的,即兴的 | |
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5
scoops
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| n.小铲( scoop的名词复数 )；小勺；一勺[铲]之量；（抢先刊载、播出的）独家新闻v.抢先报道( scoop的第三人称单数 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等） | |
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6
ration
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| n.定量(pl.)给养，口粮；vt.定量供应 | |
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7
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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8
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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9
pall
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| v.覆盖，使平淡无味；n.柩衣，棺罩；棺材；帷幕 | |
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10
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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11
elevation
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| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
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12
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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13
ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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14
stifling
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| a.令人窒息的 | |
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15
bard
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| n.吟游诗人 | |
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16
excavation
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| n.挖掘，发掘；被挖掘之地 | |
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17
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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18
turquoise
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| n.绿宝石；adj.蓝绿色的 | |
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19
mosaic
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| n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的 | |
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20
mound
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| n.土墩，堤，小山；v.筑堤，用土堆防卫 | |
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21
suffocating
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| a.使人窒息的 | |
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22
repulsive
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| adj.排斥的，使人反感的 | |
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23
lateral
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| adj.侧面的，旁边的 | |
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24
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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25
embalmed
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| adj.用防腐药物保存（尸体）的v.保存（尸体）不腐( embalm的过去式和过去分词 )；使不被遗忘；使充满香气 | |
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26
utensils
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| 器具，用具，器皿( utensil的名词复数 )； 器物 | |
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27
vein
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| n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络 | |
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28
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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29
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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30
penetrating
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| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
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31
meager
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| adj.缺乏的，不足的，瘦的 | |
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32
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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33
grove
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| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
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34
untied
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| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
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35
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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36
inflated
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| adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨 | |
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37
collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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