chapter 17 the big, big hole

next morning everyone was awake early. they had slept well, and were full of beans - and excited tothink that an adventure lay ahead. to get into that old house, with its many secrets, would bemarvellous!

aily followed julian about the room like a little dog. she wanted to have her breakfast on his knee,just as she had had her supper the night before, and he let her. he was ready to do anything shewanted - if only she would show them the way into old towers!

'we'd better set off pretty soon,' said anne, looking out of the window. 'it's snowing pretty fast again- we don't want to get lost!'

'no. that's true. if aily is going to take us across country, we shan't have the faintest idea wherewe're going, in this heavy snow!' said julian, rather anxiously.

'i'll just clear up a bit, then we'll go, shall we?' said anne. 'do we take any food with us, ju?'

'we certainly do - all of us,' said julian, at once. 'goodness knows what time we'll get back to thishut. george, you make sandwiches with anne, will you? and put in some bars of chocolate too, andsome apples if there are any left.'

73

'and for pity's sake, remember your torches,' said dick.

aily watched while the sandwiches were made, and scraped up the bits that fell on the table to give todave, her small dog. the lamb frisked about, quite at home, getting into everyone's way.

but nobody minded it - it was such a charming little long-leggitty creature!

at last all the sandwiches were made and put into two kit-bags. the hut was cleared up and tidied,and the children got into their out-door clothes.

'i think it would be easiest to toboggan down the slope, and half-way up old towers' slope,' saidjulian, looking out into the snow. 'it would take us ages to walk - and it's no good skiing, becauseaily hasn't any skis - and couldn't use them if she had!'

'oh yes - let's take the toboggans!' said george, pleased. 'what do we do with the lamb? leave ithere? and must we take dave the dog, too?'

however, that was not for them to settle! aily absolutely refused to go without her lamb and dog. shegathered them up into her arms, looking mutinous, when julian suggested they should be left in thewarm hut. neither would she allow herself to be wrapped up warmly - and only consented to wear ascarf and a woollen hat because they happened to be exactly the same as julian was wearing!

they set off at last. the snow was still falling, and julian felt seriously doubtful whether they wouldbe able to find their way down the hill and up the other slope without losing their sense of direction.

the toboggans were rather crowded! julian and dick were on the first one, with aily and the lambbetween them, and anne and george were on the second one, with timmy and dave between them.

george was at the front, and anne had the awkward job of hanging on to both the dogs and keepingher balance too!

'i know we shall all roll off,' she said to george. 'good gracious - i half wish we had waited a bit!

the snow is falling very fast now!'

'good thing!' called julian. 'no one will spot us when we are near old towers - they won't be able tosee a thing through this snow!'

julian's toboggan shot off down the snowy slope. it gathered speed, and the boys gasped in delight atthe pace. aily clung to julian's back, half frightened, and the lamb stared with astonished eyes, notdaring to move from its place, squashed in between aily and julian!

74

whooooooosh! down the slope to the bottom, and up the opposite slope, gradually slowing down!

julian's toboggan came to a stop, and then, not far behind, came george's, slowing down too. georgegot out and dragged her toboggan over to julian.

'well,' she said, her face glowing, 'what do we do now? wasn't that a wonderful run?'

'wonderful!' said julian. 'i only wish we could have a few more! did you like that, aily?'

'no,' said aily, pulling her woollen cap to exactly the same angle that julian wore his. 'no. it makemy nose cold, so cold.'

she cupped her hand over her nose to make it warm. george laughed.

'fancy complaining about a cold nose when she's hardly wearing anything on her skinny little body -you'd think the whole of her would feel cold - not just her nose!'

'aily - do you know where the big hole is?' asked julian, looking about in the snow. the snowflakeswere quite big now, and nothing that was more than a few yards away could be seen.

aily stood there, her feet sinking into the snow. she looked all round, and julian felt certain that shewas going to say that she didn't know which way to go, in this thick snow. even he was ratherdoubtful which was the way back up the hill!

but aily was like a dog. she had a sure sense of direction, and could go from one place to another ona dark night or in the snow without any difficulty at all!

she nodded. 'aily know - dave know, too.'

she walked a few steps, but her feet sank into the snow above her ankles, and her thin shoes weresoon soaked through.

'she'll get her feet frost-bitten,' said dick. 'better put her on one of the toboggans and pull her, ju.

pity we didn't have any snow- boots small enough to lend her. i say - this is a bit of a crazyexpedition, isn't it! i hope to goodness aily knows where she's taking us. i haven't the foggiest idea atthe moment which is east or west, north or south!'

'wait - i've got a compass in one of my pockets,' said julian, and did a lot of digging in his clothes.

at last he pulled out a small compass. he looked at it.

'that's south,' he said, pointing, 'so that's where old towers hill is - south is directly opposite ourhut; we know that because the sun shone straight in at our front windows. i reckon we walk this way,then - due south.'

'let's see which way aily points,' said dick. he set her on his toboggan, and wrapped her scarf moreclosely round her. 'now - which way, aily?'

75

aily at once pointed due south. everyone was most impressed.

'that's right,' said julian. 'come on, dick - i'll pull aily's toboggan, you can pull the girls' for them.'

they all set off up the rest of the slope of old towers hill, aily on the toboggan with dave and fanythe lamb, and timmy sitting in state on george's toboggan, the girls walking behind.

timmy was enjoying himself. he didn't like the way his legs went down into the snow when he triedto run - it was much easier to sit on the toboggan and be pulled along!

'lazy thing!' said george, and timmy wagged his tail, not caring a bit what anyone said!

julian looked at his compass as he went, and walked due south for some time. then aily gave a call,and pointed to the right.

'that way, that way,' she said.

'she wants us to go westwards now,' said julian, stopping. 'i wonder if she's right. by my reckoningwe're going dead straight for old towers now - but we shall be going up the hill to the right of it, ifwe go her way.'

'that way, that way,' repeated aily, imperiously, and dave barked as if to say she was right!

'better follow her way,' said dick. 'she seems so jolly certain of it.'

so julian swerved to the right a little, and the others followed. they went a good way up the steephill, and julian began to pant.

'is it far now?' he asked aily, who was petting her lamb, and apparently taking no notice of the waythey were going. not that there was anything much to take notice of, except snow on the ground andsnowflakes in the air!

aily looked up. then she pointed again, a little more to the right, and said something in welsh,nodding her head.

'well - it looks as if we're getting near this place of hers - this 'big, big hole', whatever it is,' saidjulian, and on he went.

in about a minute aily suddenly leapt off the toboggan, and stood there, looking round with a frown.

'here,' she said. 'big hole here.'

'well - it may be - but i'd like to see it a bit more clearly, aily,' said julian. aily began to scrapedown through the snow, and timmy and dave obligingly went to help her, imagining that she wasafter rabbits or a hidden hare.

76

'i'm afraid the poor kid's led us on a wild-goose chase,' said dick. 'why should there be a big big holehere?'

timmy and aily had now got down through the snow to the buried clumps of heather that grew allover the slopes of the mountains in that district. julian could see the clumps sticking up, stiff andwiry, in the clearing that aily and the dogs had made.

'timmy - you take timmy!' said aily suddenly to george. 'he fall down, down - he fall like daveone day - down down!'

'i say! i believe she's looking for an old pot-hole!' said dick, suddenly. 'you know - those strangeholes that are sometimes found on moors - sudden holes that drop right down underground.

they're called dean-holes i think, in some places. we found one once on kirrin island - don't youremember?'

'oh yes - that was in the heather too!' said george, remembering. 'and it led to a cave below, by theseashore! that's what aily meant by a big big hole! a pot-hole on the moors! timmy - for goodnesssake come away - you may drop right down it!'

timmy very nearly did go down the hole! george just caught his collar in time! but dave was wary -he had fallen down once before!

'hole!' said aily, pleased. 'big big hole! aily find for you!'

'well - certainly you've found your hole - but how does it get us into old towers?' said dick.

aily didn't understand. she knelt there, looking down at the hole she had uncovered under the heatherand the snow.

'i must say that was a marvellous feat,' said julian. 'coming straight to this place and finding the holewhen she couldn't see a thing through the falling snow. she really is as good as a dog. good littleaily bach!'

aily gave one of her sudden smiles, and slipped her hand in julian's.

'go down, yes?' she said. 'aily show way?'

'well - we'd better go down if it's possible,' said julian, not much liking the idea, for he could seenothing but darkness inside the hole, and had no idea of what lay below.

fany the lamb was tired of waiting about. she gave a little leap to the edge of the big round hole, andthen put her small head in. she kicked up her heels - and was gone!

'she's jumped into the hole!' said george, amazed. 'here, wait, aily - you can't jump too - you'll hurtyourself!'

but aily slithered into the hole, then let herself go.

'aily here,' came a small voice from below. 'you come quick!'