[Illustration: Fig. 226. Sliding Down into the Cave.]
Bill lighted a candle which projected from a chink in the wall. By its
light I saw that there was a pool in the center of the cave fed from a
spring at one point. From the pool the water trickled off into a tiny
stream to the mouth of the cave, where it was lost in a crack in the
rocks. The water was ice cold and clear as crystal. Around the pool were
several chairs and a table made by Bill and his two friends. That was
evidently where Bill had gotten his idea of a subterranean club.
The Barrel Stave Hammock.
Hanging between a couple of projecting rocks was a hammock made of barrel
staves. The hammock was a very simple affair, made by drilling a 1-inch
hole in each end of each barrel stave. The staves were then connected by
two ropes on each side, woven alternately in and out through these holes,
that is, one rope would be passed down through one stave, up through the
next, down through the third, etc., and through the same holes another
rope would be threaded in and out but in the opposite direction. The end
staves of the hammock were provided with double holes, as shown in Fig.
228, so as to make them lie flat, then the ropes were threaded through
them.
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