CHAPTER VIII. A DIVERS’ BATTLE.

Barney cut a caper in the sand, and Clifford fairly embraced Frank.

“Hurrah!” he cried. “Success is bound to be ours!”

“It looks like it!”

“If the galleon is under us we have only to dig down to her deck level, and then find our way into her cabin.”

“Just so!”

“How is the sand?”

“Judging from the size of the mast and the point at which she is broken off, I should say not more than four or five feet.”

“Why, it will take no time to dig down that far.”

“It ought not to.”

“Here goes!”

Having a spade also, Clifford began to dig with Barney. In a very few moments the blades struck something solid. The sand was scraped away, and boards were revealed.

“The ship’s deck!” cried Clifford, half insane with glee. “Hurrah! Now we have hit it!”

Quickly they cleared a space of several feet. To the surprise 32of all the timbers seemed as well preserved and sound as ever.

“That is remarkable!” cried Frank, “after a lapse of two centuries. There must be some preservative element in the water here!”

“Indeed I thought of that myself,” declared Clifford, “it seems to be more buoyant and of a different quality from ordinary sea water. And there is a peculiar substance in the sand which is uncommon!”

An effort would have been at once made to cut a section of the deck away had it not been for an incident quite unforeseen.

They were just at the angle of quite a high reef.

Around this suddenly five men appeared in diving suits with ropes and life lines.

They were the Aurelian divers. Each one carried a heavy ax and a spade. They paused at sight of the three divers from the Dolphin.

For a moment not a move was made by either party. Then Clifford leaned forward and shouted to Frank:

“They are Parker’s men!”

“Yes!”

“What do you think their game is? Will they trouble us?”

“I am sure of it, if they think we have discovered the galleon.”

“They must know that we have.”

“Yes.”

“Look! They are menacing us! What shall we do?”

“There is but one thing to do,” declared Frank, grittily. “We must defend ourselves at all hazards!”

The five divers from the Aurelian were handicapped somewhat more than their rivals on account of the life lines.

But this did not deter them from making a threatening move just the same.

They advanced with excited gestures. The foremost, Frank fancied, was Parker himself.

The young inventor was not a little disturbed as to what the outcome of the affair would be.

If blows were resorted to, then there must be loss of life. This was something which Frank always deprecated.

He could not endure the thought of destroying these men, though they meant to destroy him.

It was an easy matter to cut their life lines and terminate their existence in a brief moment.

And yet the horror of the thing held him enthralled.

The divers advanced threateningly, evidently confident that they could drive away the three men with their superior

33But this was not so easy.

Frank and his companions stood side by side.

“Do not strike unless we are really attacked,” he declared, “then do not take their lives if you can help it.”

The foremost of the Aurelian’s men made a dive at Frank.

The young inventor struck the fellow over the helmet with the flat end of his spade.

The shock laid him out senseless; but another followed him.

This one struck Clifford to his knees. But Barney went to the rescue and saved the explorer’s life.

A quick blow from the Celt’s spade dashed the diver over senseless. The other three drew back.

It was now even up. Barney was spoiling for a fight.

He shook his spade and rushed toward the three divers. But at that moment one of them apparently became terrified and pulled on the danger line.

In an instant they were twirled upward and out of sight. The insensible ones also went.

For a moment our divers stood spellbound. Then they placed their helmets together, and Clifford shouted:

“Hurrah! a victory for us!”

“They evidently got more than they bargained for,” said Frank.

“Begorra, it’s a moighty lucky thing fer them that they went!” cried Barney. “Shure I wud soon have laid thim all out, the spalpeens!”

“They certainly were not overwell gifted with pluck,” agreed Frank. “But I am sure that we are not done with them yet!”

“So am I,” agreed Clifford; “old Parker is a literal bloodhound. He will never leave a scent.”

“Bejabers, let thim cum again if they want to!” cried Barney. “Shure, I’m in fer thryin’ to get into the buried ship again.”

“That’s right!” cried Frank. “We must not abandon that scheme. Let us be at work!”

They picked up their spades and once more set heartily at work.

So swiftly did Barney and Clifford throw sand that it was not long before a large space on the galleon’s deck had been cleared.

Then a closed hatch was revealed.

Barney put his spade under it and quickly pried it open. Some stairs descended into the cabin below.

Frank placed his helmet against Clifford’s and shouted:

“I will descend first. It will be better for only one of us to explore the galleon at a time. The Aurelian’s men may return at any time.”

34Clifford saw the justice of this, and said:

“You are right. We will hold guard here.”

Frank put a foot on the cabin stairs. He descended quickly and entered the cabin.

As he did so, he came to a startled halt in the center of the cabin. What followed was ever after to him like a hideous nightmare.

The electric globe on his helmet lit up everything in the cabin.

And in its sickening glare the scene which was enacted was enough to freeze the blood in the veins of any ordinary man.

“My soul!” he gasped, and threw up his arms.

From every corner of the cabin there rushed toward him ghastly stiffened human bodies, corpses of men who had been dead for two centuries. Could he believe his senses?

The agitation he created in the water of the pent-up cabin caused the bodies to fly toward him like steel particles toward a magnet. He put up his hands to ward them off.

In every conceivable and distorted shape were the ghastly occupants of the cabin.

There they were, hideous in death, savage-looking men, cutthroats and scoundrels of the past two centuries. But how was it that they were not dust long ago?

How was it that they had been so well preserved? Was it the action of the water, or the fact that they had for so long been closed up in that cabin?

One old fellow in a gold-laced coat and with long, flowing hair and beard came rushing toward Frank.

But even as the young inventor pushed him aside the coat crumbled and one arm dropped away.

The influx of fresh water from above was beginning to tell.

It could be easily seen that the preservation of the bodies for such a wonderful period of time was due wholly to a certain element in the water, and the fact that they had been closely bottled up in the cabin.

These men had, two centuries before, sailed the waters of the Honduras Gulf and left their homes in sunny Spain to seek an El Dorado in the New World.

And this had been their end. It was a wonderful thing to ponder upon.

Frank stood spellbound.

While the ghastly forms, contorted and twisted into every possible shape, went sailing about the cabin.

Some of them had already begun to fall into dissolution. The ultimate end of all was assured.

But Frank soon regained his composure.

35His momentary dread of the corpses passed away, and he now bethought himself of looking for the galleon’s hidden gold.

That this was really the Donna Veneta he felt assured.

After some moments he steeled his nerves and essayed to cross the cabin.

Horrors!

The hideous corpses came rushing about him, striking him and brushing by in unwelcome contact.

For an instant, overcome with the horror of the moment, Frank struck out right and left fighting the corpses away.

Thus he had made his way half across the cabin floor when a strange thing happened.

There was a sudden terrific shock, he was hurled upon his face, and for a few seconds was stunned.

When he came to he regained his feet and started for the cabin stairs. His one thought was that something terrible had happened.

To find out what this was from Barney and Clifford was his first purpose.

He sprung up the stairs, but came to a sudden halt.

His progress was barred. His head struck the hatch above. It was closed.

For a moment Frank was astounded. Then he essayed to lift the hatch.

He pressed his weight against it time and again. But each time it refused to yield.