The whistling stopped. “Twelve o’clock. Noon.” said a growling voice. The glasses were swung up again, and the children wondered if the man was using them. What was he looking for? Something out to sea?
There was a low exclamation. Clearly the man had seen what he was looking for. The children strained their eyes into the distance, trying to see if any ship was on the horizonbut they could see nothing at all.
After a while the man got up. His horrid legs were drawn up one by one and disappeared. Thank goodness! The children imagined that a man with such enormous legs must be almost a giant!
There came a scrambling noise and a few bits and pieces fell from the ledge above the cave as the man walked off. The whistling sounded again, but stopped after a little. Then there was silence.
Andy crawled out of the shallow cave and listened cautiously. Nothing to be heard. He went out on to the wide ledge and peered up. He came back to the children.
“Not a thing to be seen.” he said. “I say, you know, it’s a bit of a puzzlehow did that man get here?”
“He must have come overland if he hasn’t got a boat,” said Tom. Andy shook his head.
“No. There’s no way overland at all. Never has been. Sometimes bird-men have come to this cliff to study the sea-birds, but they always had to come by boat. The cliff is unclimbable the other side, and very dangerous.”
“Well, but Andyhe must have come by boat then!” said Tom.
“Then where has he hidden his boat?” said Andy. “We couldn’t help seeing it down there in the water, if it had been there, could we? It’s impossible to hide a boat la this shallow bay.”
“Where’s he gone now?” asked Jill. “Up the cliff-path?”
“He must have,” said Andy. “But I always thought the path stopped not far above where we are. Perhaps there’s a cave where he’s living. I’ve a good mind to go and see!”
“No, don’t,” said Jill. “I didn’t like the look of his legs at all. I’m sure he is a huge, ugly, hairy kind of manlike a big gorilla, or something!”
“Silly!” said Tom. “He may be quite nice. Though I must say I don’t feel as if he is, somehow! Nasty growly sort of voice he had too.”
“WellI’m going to see if I can find out where he’s gone,” said Andy, getting up. “After all, even if he sees me, what does it matter? Anyone can come here and watch the birds.”
“I’ll come too,” said Tom. “I’ve had enough of resting. You two girls stay here. We won’t be long.
The girls wanted a little more rest after their long climb, and were quite content to be left. They lay back, and listened to the sound of the boys climbing up to the ledge above the cave entrance.
“The ledge makes a kind of narrow path here again,” they heard Tom say. “Come onthis is the way that man must have gone!”
The boys climbed up the rocky path. They were glad the girls hadn’t come, for in places it was very narrownothing but a goat-path, Andy said. There were no goats though, in that part of the country, for there was not enough for even a goat to eat! Very little grew on that rocky cliff, except for a hardy cushion of sea-pinks here and there.
As they rounded a corner of the cliff, they heard a rushing sound. “The waterfall,” said Andy. “It must come out of the cliff just near here. As far as I remember it quite bars the way.”
They saw the waterfall the next moment. It was a magnificent sight, though the waterfall was not a very big one. But the sight of the torrent of water suddenly flinging itself out of the cliff, making a slight arch in the air and then falling headlong down the steep rocky cliff, gleaming and glittering as it went, made the two boys stop in wonder.
“I wish the girls could see this,” said Tom. “Let’s go back and get them.”
“There’s not time,” said Andy. “Tom, it’s queer we haven’t spotted that man yet, isn’t it? There’s been no place he could hide in at all on our way here. Not even a place where a rabbit could hide. Where’s he gone?”
“Beyond the waterfall, of course!” said Tom.
“He couldn’t go beyond,” said Andy. “Can’t you see how the water completely bars the way? Who could get through that terrific gush? He’d be swept down the cliff with the torrent!”
The boys were now beside the waterfall. It fell down the cliff with a clamour as loud as the gulls made. It almost deafened them, and they had to raise their voices to speak to one another.
Tom gazed at the water gushing out from the hole in the cliff. He imagined it rushing through the dark, silent heart of that towering cliff, hidden away in narrow channels and tunnelsto come out suddenly into the sunshine, and leap downwards in joy, to join the sparkling sea below.
He felt puzzled. Certainly it was very strange to think that the man whose legs they had seen was nowhere about! Had he fallen off the cliff? Horrid thought!
“Do you think he’s fallen off?” said Tom. Andy shook his head.
“No. He must be used to these cliffs, or he wouldn’t be on them. He’s somewhere here.”
“Well, where!” demanded Tom, feeling quite exasperated. “We haven’t overtaken himand you say no one could get across this waterfall without being jerked down the cliff with itand you don’t think he’s fallen down the cliff! Then where is he!”
“I don’t know.” said Andy, frowning. He looked to see if there was a way above the waterfall, but the rocky cliff there was smooth and steep. No one could climb over the waterfall that way. He bent down and looked under the water, that formed an arch as it jerked itself from the cliff.
“No. It would be too dangerous to try and creep under that,” he said. “And anyway there doesn’t seem to be any ledge the other side. Golly, it’s a puzzle!”
They turned to go back, quite baffled. As they made their way along the ledge the noise of the waterfall suddenly seemed to lessen. The boys looked back.
“The torrent isn’t so strong,” said Tom. “There’s less water coming out, look.”
“I expect it varies,” said Andy. “Sometimes I suppose it’s a great gush of water, other times it slackens, and there wouldn’t be much waterfall to see.”
“Yes. I bet after a heavy rainfall the waterfall gets enormous,” said Andy. “And in a very dry spell in summer there would hardly be any water coming out at all. It just depends on how much rain we’ve had.”
“It’s funnythe waterfall has almost stopped now.” said Tom. “Just a trickle coming out! I wonder why.”
“Come on,” said Andy, getting impatient. “The girls will be wondering what’s become of us.”
They rounded a comer, and made their way back to the girls, who were now waiting impatiently for them.
“Not a sign of that man,” said Tom, to their great astonishment. “He’s simply vanished into thin air! Queer, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” said the twins in surprise, and demanded to know everything about the waterfall, and what it was like.
“We’ll tell you when we get back to the boat,” said Andy. “It’s getting a bit late, and we ought to be starting. Also I’m hungry for my dinner. We only had a snack, you know.”
They all started downand when they had gone just a little way, they heard a sound that once more gave them a surprise.
“That whistle again!” said Andy. “Well, the man is somewhere about then! Where in the world does he hide? How I’d like to know!”
CHAPTER 5.
A Good Trip Back.
IT was certainly astonishing to hear the man whistling again, when they felt certain that he wasn’t anywhere near!
Andy stopped and looked back, but he could see nothing. “We can’t go back and have another look,” he said. “We haven’t time. Golly, where could the man have been, Tom, when we went all the way to the waterfall?”
“It beats me,” said Tom. “But never mindwe’ll give it up! I want my dinner much more than I want to go and find out where that man hid!”
So down they went and down. It was much easier to go down than up. Jill was sensible and did not look at the sea at all this time, in case she felt giddy again. After a time they all stood safely on the rock at the bottom of the cliff. Not far off was the underground river, sliding turbulently out of the cavern at the foot of the cliff.
Soon they were in their boat again. It was bobbing gently on the pool where they had anchored it. They clambered aboard, and the girls went down into the cabin to bring up some food. Cold ham. Hard-boiled eggs again. Rolls. And a big tin of sliced peaches. What a lovely meal when you were terribly hungry!