delicious!" he murmured. "It's almost like going into a cave. Benson, there must be lots of caves in these mountains," he went on reflectively.
"There are," answered the old scout. "I've been in a score or more."
"I should like to explore a big cave," came from Joe. "It would be a novelty to me."
"You may get the chance, lad," said Benson; "and get it soon."
"What do you mean? Are we going to ride by a cave?"
"There are a dozen or more ahead, and we may have to seek one of 'em for shelter. Do you hear that?"
Benson threw back his head to listen, and the two boys did likewise. From a great distance came the rumble of thunder, echoing and re-echoing throughout the mountains. To the westward the sun was hidden by a dense mass of black clouds which grew more ominous each instant.
"The storm is coming, sure enough," muttered Joe. "What do you propose?"
"We'll ride on a bit, lad. It won't hit us right away. Come!"
The horses were urged forward at an increased speed, and soon they passed the patch of timber and came out to where a thick fringe of brush skirted a long, high cliff. The sky was now dark on every side, and the wind was rising with a dull, humming sound.
"We'll catch it in a few minutes!" cried Benson; and hardly had he spoken when the big drops came splashing down, hitting the broad leaves in the underbrush with resounding smacks.
The old scout continued to lead, and presently he turned to the left, where the cliff parted. Here was an opening, lined on either side with rocks and dirt, and a short distance further was the entrance to a cave of unknown depths.
"We'll stop here," said the old scout, leaping to the ground, followed by the boys. "This aint the best place in the world, but it's better than the open, in such a blow as is coming."
He was right about the blow – already the wind was rising, and hardly had the three led their horses into the cave, the entrance to which was over a dozen feet high, when there came a crashing through the timber left behind, which sent many a frail limb and sapling to the ground and carried the leaves and twigs in all directions.
"I'm glad we didn't stay in the woods!" cried Darry. "We'd be in danger of falling trees."
"And lightning too," added Joe. "Oh, my! look at that!" he continued, as a blinding flash lit up the heavens. "That must have struck somewhere."
"We'll go back a little," said old Benson. "The lightning is just as bad here as it is in the woods. Wait till I get a torch."
Pine was plentiful in that locality, and soon he had a knot which was full of pitch and which burned well when a match was applied to it. With the torch in hand, he led the way further into the cave, and the boys followed with their animals.
CHAPTER II
CAVES IN THE MOUNTAIN
The two boys had expected to find the large cave damp and unwholesome, and they were surprised when they learned how dry the flooring and the sides were, and how pure the air was. There was no breeze in the place, but a gentle draught kept the air stirring. Of course the atmosphere was much cooler than it had been outside.
Hardly had the travelers gained the center of the first chamber of the cave, when the storm outside burst in all its fury. The lightning and thunder were almost incessant, and the rain came down in broad sheets which completely obliterated the landscape.
"It's little short of a flood," said Darry, after having gone to the mouth of the cave to investigate. "The water is already two or three inches deep on the trail."
"Well, such a downpour can't last long," returned Joe. "It's only a shower, or a cloud-burst."
"No, it's a regular rain, and it's good for all night," answered the old scout.
"All night!"
"Yes, lad, and we'll be lucky if it don't last through the morning, too. It don't rain very often out here, you see, but when it does it tries to make up for lost time."
"Then we'll have to camp right here, won't we?"
"To be sure. Even if it did let up, you wouldn't want to camp in the wet timber."
"Then we might as well start up a fire," came from Darry, in something of a disappointed tone. "I was hoping we'd be able to camp under the stars just once before we got to the fort."
"Perhaps you'll get a chance to go out after you're at the fort," said the old scout, by way of comfort. "Yes, we'll start a fire, if we can find any dry wood."
The horses were tied up between some rocks, and then the three searched around. At the entrance to the cave was a mass of brush and tree limbs which previous storms had sent in that direction, and from this they gathered enough for a good-sized fire. It did not take long for the brush to blaze up, sending the sparks to the roof of the cave and throwing fantastic shadows all about them.
"I declare, the fire makes the cave look quite home-like!" was Joe's comment, as he threw himself down on a flat rock with his blanket under him. "Staying here won't be so humdrum as I anticipated."
"I'm going to explore the cave, now I am here," returned Darry. "Who knows but what I might locate a gold mine!"
"You be careful of where you go," cautioned old Benson. "These caves are full of pitfalls, and now you two boys are with me I don't want anything to happen to you. If something did happen, neither Captain Moore nor Colonel Fairfield would forgive me."
"To be sure we'll be careful, Benson," answered Darry. "There'd be no fun in getting hurt – even if we did locate a gold mine."
"You won't find any gold mine here. This ground was prospected years ago – before even the fort was located. I came out here once myself, with a miner named Hooker Brown. Hooker was dead certain there was gold here, but although we stayed here about two weeks nosing around we never got even a smell of the yellow metal."
"Well, we'll have a look around, anyway," said Joe. "But we must get good torches first."
Pine knots were procured and lit; and, with another caution from the scout to be careful, they set off, leaving Benson to care for the horses and prepare such an evening meal as their stores afforded. Luckily the scout had brought down half a dozen good-sized birds, and these he now prepared to broil in true hunter style.
The front chamber of the cave was somewhat semi-circular, and behind this were several other irregular apartments, running down to a passageway which wound in and out between jagged rocks almost impossible to climb or explore in any manner. At a distance could be heard the trickling of water, but where this came from, or where it went to, nobody in the cave could imagine.
The boys advanced from one opening to another with care, one with his torch held high, that they might see ahead, and the other with the light close to the ground, to warn them of a possible pitfall.
"A regiment of soldiers could quarter in here," observed Darry, as they pushed on. "What a defense it would make!"
"An enemy could fire right into the entrance. And, besides, supposing the enemy started to smoke you out? I can smell the smoke from the camp-fire away back here."
At last the two boys reached the passageway back of the rear
