“Start at the very beginning,” Judy urged. “Don’t leave out anything.”
“That’s a large order, but I’ll try,” grinned Bart. “Well, I’d made up my mind to try the siphon. I didn’t tell anyone, because I knew if I did, the authorities would try to stop me.”
“I left my shoes and shirt on the ledge because I couldn’t be burdened with them in swimming. I reasoned too, that if I got through, wet clothes wouldn’t help keep me warm. So I stripped to my trunks.”
“How long was the siphon?” inquired Betty Bache, who had joined the group of intent listeners.
“Long enough,” Bart said grimly. “The first one wasn’t so bad.”
“Then there was more than one?” inquired Ardeth Packett.
“Two of them. I waded at first. The water finally came up to my neck and then over my nose. When I couldn’t walk, I dived.”
“Weren’t you scared to death?” Virginia Cunningham asked with a shiver.
“I sure was,” Bart admitted. “I knew I might find water to the ceiling for an indefinite distance ahead. Anyway, I decided to chance it. I took a great deep breath and plunged through.”
“What happened?” questioned Beverly Chester breathlessly.
“The first barrier was astonishingly easy. I was through it in less than a minute and was able to wade again. My only light was a container of matches carried in the top of my bathing cap. Ahead I could see another siphon.”
“You were reckless to go on,” Kathleen chided.
“Maybe,” Bart acknowledged, “but it would have been very nearly as hard to have gone back. I hoped I’d find where the cave came out.”
“Tell us about the second siphon,” Judy urged.
“It was a tricky one, I’m here to report. I don’t know how long I was underwater, but it seemed a minute and a half. My lungs were bursting when finally I emerged. But it was worth it!”
“A hall filled with the most beautiful formations I’ve ever seen.”
“Better than the White Witch and those chambers before one gets to the siphon?” Judy asked.
“Oh, a thousand times better! I stood there speechless and in awe, dazzled by the glitter of so much crystal. For a little while, I lost all count of time. It seemed unreal.”
“Go on,” Kathleen urged, as Bart became lost in his own memories.
“Those stalactites and stalagmites were fantastic beyond description,” Bart told the Scouts. “There were animal shapes, and statue-like figures--one a woman with a bridal veil. Why, if steps can be built down from Calico Cottage, everyone can see the chamber! Krumm will make more money opening up the cave than he ever could do renting the cottage.”