17
　　Joe is angry
　　To the boys’ intense surprise, they found more of the deep narrow holes, allof them near the curious old ‘buildings’. ‘They can’t be wells,’ said Jack¹.
　　‘That’s impossible. No one would want so many. They must be shafts², sunkdown deep into the earth here, for some good reason.’
　　‘Do you think there were mines?’ asked Philip, remembering that coalmines always had shafts bored down through the earth, so that men mightgo down and get the coal. ‘Do you think there are old mines here? Coalmines, for instance?’
　　‘No, not coal,’ said Jack. ‘I can’t imagine what. We’ll have to find out. Iexpect your uncle knows. Wouldn’t it be exciting if it was a gold mine! Younever know.’
　　‘Well, it must have been worked out hundreds of years ago,’ said Philip.
　　‘There wouldn’t be any gold left now, or it would still be worked. I say –shall we go down and see what there is to be seen?’
　　‘I don’t know,’ said Jack doubtfully. ‘The old ladders aren’t much good,are they? We might fall hundreds of feet down – and that would be the endof us.’
　　‘What a pity, what a pity!’ remarked Kiki.
　　‘Yes, it would be a pity,’ said Philip, with a grin. ‘Well, perhaps we’dbetter not. Hallo! – here’s another shaft³, Jack – a bit bigger one.’
　　The boys peered down this big one. It had a much better ladder than theothers. They went down it a little way, feeling very daring. They soon cameup again, for they did not like the darkness and the shut-in feeling.
　　And then they made a discovery that surprised them even more than theshafts. Not far off, piled under an overhanging bit of rock, were some emptymeat and fruit tins.
　　This was such an extraordinary find that the boys could hardly believetheir eyes. They stood and stared at the tins, and Kiki flew down to inspectthem to see if there was anything left to eat.
　　‘Where do you suppose those came from?’ asked Jack at last. ‘What aqueer thing! Some are very rusty⁴ – but others seem quite new. Who couldcome to this island – and why – and where do they live?’

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