As soon as the match expired, Harry lit another, and continued this until he had burned a dozen and blistered his thumb and fingers. During this interesting period also, seeing that the ground was unobstructed in front, they advanced fully a hundred yards--only to see, however, no termination to the cavern, whose immensity Harry declared as his belief, exceeded that of the pride and boast of Kentucky. The floor over which they walked, in places was dry as dust, again gravelly, and then again hard, dry rock. In no direction in which they looked, and they included every point of the compass--could they see any limit to the wonderful freak of nature. It looked, indeed, as if they were on the outer boundary of one of those subterranean wonders which are found in different parts of our country, and that are unequaled in any portion of the world. The sound of the waterfall came to their ears, with a faint murmur that was scarcely audible, and that caused them to forget all about it for the time. The excitement of exploring the cavern gradually wore away under the monotony of traversing the gloom continually without meeting any obstruction or variety of any character. “If we had a wheelbarrow load of provisions,” said Harry, “we might keep this up for a week or two; but the fact is I am getting tired. How is it with you, Little Rifle?” “I have had enough of it; how long is it since we left the falls?” “I should think a couple of hours; we have come a good ways too.” “We shall need about all our time to get back, so we had better start at once.” “It would be a joke now if we couldn’t find our way,” laughed Harry, as they wheeled about and started back with a little more assurance than had marked their steps so far. “Not much of a joke,” replied Little Rifle, who was sensible of a thrill of fear, excited by the words of the boy. “I have been lost once or twice in the woods, and if you have ever been in that fix, you know how bad you feel.” “I’ll bet I do, for I’ve been there.” “Think then how much worse it must be to get astray in a place like this, where it is always dark. Did you ever hear of any one being lost in the Mammoth Cave?” “Yes; they have found their bones there, and nobody dare go very far into it, without a guide and plenty of torches.” “If they get lost, when they have torches to guide them, how much less is our chance of finding our way back again, when we haven’t any thing of the kind!” The words and the tone in which this was uttered produced its effect upon Harry, but it could not dissipate entirely that flow of spirits which seemed natural to him. “But they lose their way _there_ only when they have penetrated to a much greater distance than we; and then we have a few matches left, and can direct our steps by the sound of the waterfall. See how much the advantage we have!” “Hark!” Both paused in their groping, and listened, but could hear nothing. “What do you mean?” asked Harry in a whisper. “What was it?”