CHAPTER IX. THE DEVIL’S KINGDOM.

Dick at once made his way to the side of Leo, who was just coming from the house, followed by Haypole and the professor.

“Great Scott!” exclaimed Dick. “Owens seems to be very savage against that ragged stranger. What shall we do--help him catch him?”

“No,” returned his cousin. “It is no affair of ours; let them settle their own difficulty.”

“That’s right,” nodded Prof. Easy. “We do not understand their case, and should, therefore, let them alone.”

“Ter tell ther truth, I don’t like either one of them fellers,” observed the Yankee. “They be too blamed mysterious for me.”

But if our friends did not attempt to assist Philander Owens in catching Reginald Lacy, the men of Hez were not going to allow him to roam about their haunts without first taking the oath of allegiance to the tribe.

Roderique de Amilo quickly called a score of men together and started in pursuit after Owens, who was doing his best to overtake his enemy.

All soon disappeared, and then our friends set about to fix up their home to suit their tastes.

They arose soon after daylight, and after they had eaten a light breakfast, prepared to look around a bit.

Then it struck Leo that it was about time he saw something of Azurma, the girl who had conducted them from the magic cave. From the strain in which she had conversed to him, he thought she would again seek his presence long before this.

Prof. Easy was bent on seeing what kind of place Hez was, and, at his request, a party was formed to make a tour of the place.

The party was formed of but seven--Leo, Dick, Prof. Easy, Martin Haypole, Lucky, the darky, and the American known as Andrew Jones, and Roderique de Amilo.

They set out in the direction taken by Reginald Lacy and his persistent pursuer.

“A wonderful land is this,” remarked De Amilo, as they walked along. “I have never fully explored it myself in all the years I have lived here. Nearly everything you will meet and see that interests you will be found to be mysterious. In fact, this whole country is a land of mystery.”

“It was a dod-rotted mystery how we ever come ter git in here, anyhow,” said the Yankee.

“That reminds me,” put in Andrew Jones, suddenly. “How did you get the door in the obelisk open, anyway?”

The professor quickly explained how they had found the stone cube, and the use they had put it to.

“By Jove!” exclaimed Jones. “The very identical way that I got in myself. How can it be that the cube was missing from the hole in which it fitted, and found so many yards from the obelisk?”

“That’s where the mystery comes in,” said Leo.

“Yes, that’s so. I forgot what kind of place I was in. Talking to my own countrymen made me think I was back in civilization again.”

They had by this time entered one of the many passages, and torches were put in use.

At the suggestion of Dick, Roderique de Amilo led them to the fountain and pool, and Leo and the professor were surprised beyond measure at what they saw.

The Spaniard pointed to what was inscribed upon the stone tablet, and said:

“I did that; and I am the living proof that what it means is true.”

Then he again went over the legend of Hez, and wound up by pointing to the identical spot in the pool where the beautiful woman, whom he afterward made his wife, arose so mysteriously.

De Amilo told his story in such a solemn way that his hearers were more or less impressed with it.

“I believe that in some manner that man has become satisfied that yarn is true himself,” said Leo, in a whisper to his cousin.

“Yes,” assented Dick; “either that or else the legend is true, after all.”

Leo smiled.

“Why, you don’t believe it, do you, old fellow? Has the beautiful queen told you the same thing?”

“She did tell me the same story, and I am not prepared to say whether I believe it or not.”

At this juncture their conductors signified that they were going to leave the pool in the strangely lighted cavern, and the conversation ended for the time.

“We will now show you the devil’s kingdom, which is one of the most wonderful sights to be seen in this land,” observed Jones, as they entered the passage again.

It was here that De Amilo came to a halt. Turning to those who were following him, he said:

“Is there anybody among you who desires to live forever? If so, bathe in the pool beneath the spray of the fountain.”

But all hands, even to Jones, shook their heads, and they went on their way, the Spaniard leading them in silence.

When they arrived at the point where the four passages met, they again came to a halt.

A moment later they started through the mouth of one of these, and presently found themselves going down a sort of winding stairs.

Down, down they went for many feet, and then they came to a vast, shell-like cavern of what appeared to be almost unlimited size.

It was illumined by a strange, flickering, red light, and a purple mist pervaded the atmosphere.

Full of curiosity, our friends followed their conductors until they came to a broad roadway, that certainly looked as though it had been built with human hands.

Along this, for perhaps a quarter of a mile, they went, and then they saw that it suddenly shot downward at an angle of forty-five degrees.

As they rounded a cleft of rock, Andrew Jones came to a halt, and, pointing downward, exclaimed:

“Look there! Did you ever see anything to beat that?”

The swamp explorers followed the direction his finger pointed, and beheld a truly marvelous sight.

Beneath them was a rift of many feet in length, and in the sides, at irregular intervals, were small apertures resembling the portholes of a war ship, through which, ever and anon, came puffs of flame and smoke.

To look at the scene in a certain way, one could almost imagine that a pair of immense ironclads were engaged in battle.

But no noise, beyond a fizzing sound, could be heard when the puffs came.

Through the center of the rift, or ravine, as it might properly be called, a stream of water flowed, and this glittered and flashed in all the colors of the rainbow as the lurid streaks of flame belched over it.

On either side the walls sloped down in the form of a very steep hill, passing directly over the portholes from which the puffs of flame came.

“So that’s what you call the Devil’s Kingdom, is it?” remarked the professor, addressing Jones.

“Yes; that is the name Señor de Amilo gave it,” was the reply.

“Well, I’ll be ding-wizzened, if it ain’t a good name for it!” exclaimed Haypole, shrugging his shoulders. “Now, if ther old boy was ter come out of one of them streams of fire, an’ walk up an’ down ther middle of that stream, with a pitchfork over his shoulder, ther scene would be complete.”

“Great Scott!” cried Dick and Leo in a breath; “there he is, now!”

Ejaculations of surprise went up from all hands, as with distended eyes they saw a log go shooting down the stream with a figure clinging to it.

“That’s Philander Owens, or I’m a sinner!” exclaimed the Yankee.

“That’s so,” said Leo, taking a step forward to get a better view of the startling scene.

As he did so he stepped upon a small stone, which, rolling under his foot, caused him to slip and lose his balance.

The next instant he went shooting down the smooth decline with the velocity of the wind!