And now, forward to the heart of
the mystery!"
Having unlocked and flung open the second iron door, Platzoff took up
his lamp, and, closely followed by Ducie, entered a narrow winding
passage in the rock. After following this passage, which tended slightly
downwards for a considerable distance, they emerged into a large
cavernous opening in the heart of the hill.
Platzoff's first act was, by means of a long crook, to draw down within
reach of his hand a large iron lamp that was suspended from the roof by
a running chain. This lamp he lighted from the hand-lamp he had brought
with him. As soon as released, it ascended to its former position, about
ten feet from the ground. It burned with a clear white flame that
lighted up every nook and cranny of the place. The sides of the cave
were of irregular formation. Measuring by the eye, Ducie estimated the
cave to be about sixty yards in length, by a breadth, in the widest
part, of twenty. In height it appeared to be about forty feet. The floor
was covered with a carpet of thick brown sand, but whether this covering
was a natural or an artificial one Ducie had no means of judging.
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