The skipper predicted like a prophet. The ship was in the bay, and it was midnight or nearly so; for certain stars had climbed into certain quarters of the sky, and after their fashion were striking the hour.
The passenger was pleased.
"You have done well," he said to the mariner1. "Be silent now, and get close in shore. There are no breakers. Have the small boat ready, and do not let the anchors go."
The calm still prevailed, and the swells2 of the sea were scarce perceptible. Under the gentlest impulse of the oars3 the little vessel4 drifted broadside on until the keel touched the sands. At the same instant the small boat appeared. The skipper reported to the passenger. Going to each of the slaves, the latter signed them to descend5. The negro swung himself down like a monkey, and received the baggage, which, besides the bundles already mentioned, consisted of some tools, notably6 a pick, a shovel7, and a stout8 crowbar. An empty water-skin was also sent down, followed by a basket suggestive of food. Then the passenger, with a foot over the side of the vessel, gave his final directions.
"You will run now," he said to the skipper, who, to his credit, had thus far asked no questions, "down to the city, and lie there to-morrow, and to-morrow night. Attract little notice as possible. It is not necessary to pass the gate. Put out in time to be here at sunrise. I will be waiting for you. Day after to-morrow at sunrise--remember."
"But if you should not be here?" asked the sailor, thinking of extreme probabilities.
"Then wait for me," was the answer.
The passenger, in turn, descended9 to the boat, and was caught in the arms of the black, and seated carefully as he had been a child. In brief time the party was ashore11, and the boat returning to the ship; a little later, the ship withdrew to where the night effectually curtained the deep.
The stay on the shore was long enough to apportion12 the baggage amongst the slaves. The master then led the way. Crossing the road running from Sidon along the coast to the up-country, they came to the foothills of the mountain, all without habitation.
Later they came upon signs of ancient life in splendor--broken columns, and here and there Corinthian capitals in marble discolored and sunk deeply in sand and mould. The patches of white on them had a ghastly glimmer13 in the starlight. They were approaching the site of an old city, a suburb probably of Palae-Tyre when she was one of the spectacles of the world, sitting by the sea to rule it regally far and wide.
On further a small stream, one of those emptying into the bay, had ploughed a ravine for itself across the route the party was pursuing. Descending14 to the water, a halt was made to drink, and fill the water-skin, which the negro took on his shoulder.
On further there was another ancient site strewn with fragments indicative of a cemetery15. Hewn stones were frequent, and mixed with them were occasional entablatures and vases from which the ages had not yet entirely16 worn the fine chiselling17. At length an immense uncovered sarcophagus barred the way. The master stopped by it to study the heavens; when he found the north star, he gave the signal to his followers18, and moved under the trail of the steadfast19 beacon20.
They came to a rising ground more definitely marked by sarcophagi hewn from the solid rock, and covered by lids of such weight and solidity that a number of them had never been disturbed. Doubtless the dead within were lying as they had been left--but when, and by whom? What disclosures there will be when at last the end is trumpeted21 in!
On further, but still connected with the once magnificent funeral site, they encountered a wall many feet thick, and shortway beyond it, on the mountain's side, there were two arches of a bridge of which all else had been broken down; and these two had never spanned anything more substantial than the air. Strange structure for such a locality! Obviously the highway which once ran over it had begun in the city the better to communicate with the cemetery through which the party had just passed. So much was of easy understanding; but where was the other terminus? At sight of the arches the master drew a long breath of relief. They were the friends for whom he had been searching.
Nevertheless, without stopping, he led down into a hollow on all sides sheltered from view; and there the unloading took place. The tools and bundles were thrown down by a rock, and preparations made for the remainder of the night. The pallet was spread for the master. The basket gave up its contents, and the party refreshed themselves and slept the sleep of the weary.
The secluded22 bivouac was kept the next day. Only the master went forth23 in the afternoon. Climbing the mountain, he found the line in continuation of the bridge; a task the two arches serving as a base made comparatively easy. He stood then upon a bench or terrace cumbered with rocks, and so broad that few persons casually24 looking would have suspected it artificial. Facing fully10 about from the piers25, he walked forward following the terrace which at places was out of line, and piled with debris26 tumbled from the mountain on the right hand side; in a few minutes that silent guide turned with an easy curve and disappeared in what had yet the appearance hardly distinguishable of an area wrenched27 with enormous labor28 from a low cliff of solid brown limestone29.
The visitor scanned the place again and again; then he said aloud:
"No one has been here since"--
The sentence was left unfinished.
That he could thus identify the spot, and with such certainty pass upon it in relation to a former period, proved he had been there before.
Rocks, earth, and bushes filled the space. Picking footway through, he examined the face of the cliff then in front of him, lingering longest on the heap of breakage forming a bank over the meeting line of area and hill.
"Yes," he repeated, this time with undisguised satisfaction, "no one has been here since"--
Again the sentence was unfinished.
He ascended30 the bank next, and removed some of the stones at the top. A carved line in low relief on the face of the rock was directly exposed; seeing it he smiled, and replaced the stones, and descending, went back to the terrace, and thence to the slaves in bivouac.
From one of the packages he had two iron lamps of old Roman style brought out, and supplied with oil and wicks; then, as if everything necessary to his project was done, he took to the pallet. Some goats had come to the place in his absence, but no living creature else.
After nightfall the master woke the slaves, and made final preparation for the venture upon which he had come. The tools he gave to one man, the lamps to another, and the water-skin to the negro. Then he led out of the hollow, and up the mountain to the terrace visited in the afternoon; nor did he pause in the area mentioned as the abrupt31 terminus of the highway over the skeleton piers. He climbed the bank of stones covering the foot of the cliff up to the precise spot at which his reconnoissance had ended.
Directly the slaves were removing the bank at the top; not a difficult task since they had only to roll the loose stones down a convenient grade. They worked industriously32. At length--in half an hour probably--an opening into the cliff was discovered. The cavity, small at first, rapidly enlarged, until it gave assurance of a doorway33 of immense proportions. When the enlargement sufficed for his admission, the master stayed the work, and passed in. The slaves followed. The interior descent offered a grade corresponding with that of the bank outside--another bank, in fact, of like composition, but more difficult to pass on account of the darkness.
With his foot the leading adventurer felt the way down to a floor; and when his assistants came to him, he took from a pocket in his gown a small case filled with a chemical powder which he poured at his feet; then he produced a flint and steel, and struck them together. Some sparks dropped upon the powder. Instantly a flame arose and filled the place with a ruddy illumination. Lighting34 the lamps by the flame, the party looked around them, the slaves with simple wonder.
They were in a vault35--a burial vault of great antiquity36. Either it was an imitation of like chambers37 in Egypt, or they were imitations of it. The excavation39 had been done with chisels40. The walls were niched, giving them an appearance of panelling, and over each of the niches41 there had been an inscription42 in raised letters, now mostly defaced. The floor was a confusion of fragments knocked from sarcophagi, which, massive as they were, had been tilted43, overturned, uncovered, mutilated, and robbed. Useless to inquire whose the vandalism. It may have been of Chaldeans of the time of Almanezor, or of the Greeks who marched with Alexander, or of Egyptians who were seldom regardful of the dead of the peoples they overthrew44 as they were of their own, or of Saracens, thrice conquerors45 along the Syrian coast, or of Christians46. Few of the Crusaders were like St. Louis.
But of all this the master took no notice. With him it was right that the vault should look the wreck47 it was. Careless of inscriptions48, indifferent to carving49, his eyes ran rapidly along the foot of the northern wall until they came to a sarcophagus of green marble. Thither50 he proceeded. He laid his hand upon the half-turned lid, and observing that the back of the great box--if such it may be termed--was against the wall, he said again:
"No one has been here since"--
And again the sentence was left unfinished.
Forthwith he became all energy. The negro brought the crowbar, and, by direction, set it under the edge of the sarcophagus, which he held raised while the master blocked it at the bottom with a stone chip. Another bite, and a larger chip was inserted. Good hold being thus had, a vase was placed for fulcrum51; after which, at every downward pressure of the iron, the ponderous52 coffin53 swung round a little to the left. Slowly and with labor the movement was continued until the space behind was uncovered.
By this time the lamps had become the dependencies for light. With his in hand, the master stooped and inspected the exposed wall. Involuntarily the slaves bent54 forward and looked, but saw nothing different from the general surface in that quarter. The master beckoned55 the negro, and touching56 a stone not wider than his three fingers, but reddish in hue57, and looking like mere58 chinking lodged59 in an accidental crevice60, signed him to strike it with the end of the bar. Once--twice--the stone refused to stir; with the third blow it was driven in out of sight, and, being followed vigorously, was heard to drop on the other side. The wall thereupon, to the height of the sarcophagus and the width of a broad door, broke, and appeared about to tumble down.
When the dust cleared away, there was a crevice unseen before, and wide enough to admit a hand. The reader must remember there were masons in the old time who amused themselves applying their mathematics to such puzzles. Here obviously the intention had been to screen an entrance to an adjoining chamber38, and the key to the design had been the sliver61 of red granite62 first displaced.
A little patient use then of hand and bar enabled the workman to take out the first large block of the combination. That the master numbered with chalk, and had carefully set aside. A second block was taken out, numbered, and set aside; finally the screen was demolished63, and the way stood open.
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1
mariner
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| n.水手号不载人航天探测器，海员，航海者 | |
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swells
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| 增强( swell的第三人称单数 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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3
oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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notably
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| adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地 | |
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shovel
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| n.铁锨，铲子，一铲之量；v.铲，铲出 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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apportion
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| vt.（按比例或计划）分配 | |
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glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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17
chiselling
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| n.錾v.凿，雕，镌( chisel的现在分词 ) | |
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followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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steadfast
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| adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的 | |
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20
beacon
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| n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔 | |
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21
trumpeted
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| 大声说出或宣告（trumpet的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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22
secluded
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| adj.与世隔绝的；隐退的；偏僻的v.使隔开，使隐退( seclude的过去式和过去分词) | |
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23
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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casually
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| adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地 | |
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25
piers
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| n.水上平台( pier的名词复数 )；（常设有娱乐场所的）突堤；柱子；墙墩 | |
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26
debris
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| n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片 | |
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27
wrenched
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| v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛 | |
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28
labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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29
limestone
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| n.石灰石 | |
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30
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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32
industriously
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33
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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34
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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35
vault
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| n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室 | |
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36
antiquity
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| n.古老；高龄；古物，古迹 | |
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37
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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38
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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39
excavation
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| n.挖掘，发掘；被挖掘之地 | |
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40
chisels
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| n.凿子，錾子( chisel的名词复数 )；口凿 | |
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41
niches
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| 壁龛( niche的名词复数 )； 合适的位置[工作等]； （产品的）商机； 生态位（一个生物所占据的生境的最小单位） | |
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42
inscription
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| n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文 | |
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43
tilted
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| v. 倾斜的 | |
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44
overthrew
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| overthrow的过去式 | |
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45
conquerors
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| 征服者，占领者( conqueror的名词复数 ) | |
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46
Christians
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| n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 ) | |
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47
wreck
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| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
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48
inscriptions
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| （作者）题词( inscription的名词复数 )； 献词； 碑文； 证劵持有人的登记 | |
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49
carving
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| n.雕刻品，雕花 | |
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50
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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51
fulcrum
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| n.杠杆支点 | |
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52
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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53
coffin
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| n.棺材，灵柩 | |
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54
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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55
beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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56
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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57
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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58
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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59
lodged
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| v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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60
crevice
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| n.(岩石、墙等)裂缝；缺口 | |
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61
sliver
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| n.裂片，细片，梳毛；v.纵切，切成长片，剖开 | |
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62
granite
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| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
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63
demolished
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| v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光 | |
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