"Well, can't we take out the map and keep it?" said Dick. "He won't know it was there if he hasn't looked in the box. And it's pretty certain he hasn't. The other things don't matter much- they are only that old diary, and a few letters."

"To be on the safe side, let's take a copy of the map," said Dick. "Then we can put the real map back and replace the box."

They all voted that a very good idea. They went back to Kirrin Cottage and traced out the map carefully. They did it in the tool-shed because they didn't want anyone to see them. It was a queer map. It was in three parts.

"This part shows the dungeons under the castle," said Julian. "And this shows a plan of the ground floor of the castle- and this shows the top part. My word, it was a fine place in those days! The dungeons run all under the castle. I bet they were pretty awful places. I wonder how people got down to them."

"We'll have to study the map a bit more and see," said George. "It all looks rather muddled to us at present- but once we take the map over to the castle and study it there, we may be able to make out how to get down to the hidden dungeons. Ooooh! I don't expect any children ever had such an adventure as this."

Julian put the traced map carefully into his jeans pocket. He didn't mean it to leave him. It was very precious. Then he put the real map back into the box and looked towards the house. "What about putting it back now?" he said. "Maybe your father is still asleep, George."

But he wasn't. He was awake. Luckily he hadn't missed the box! He came into the dining-room to have tea with the family, and Julian took his chance. He muttered an excuse, slipped away from the table, and replaced the box on the table behind his uncle's chair!

He winked at the others when he came back. They felt relieved. They were all scared of Uncle Quentin, and were not at all anxious to be in his bad books. Anne didn't say one word during the whole of the meal. She was so terribly afraid she might give something away, either about Tim or the box. The others spoke very little too. While they were at tea the telephone rang and Aunt Fanny went to answer it.

She soon came back. "It's for you, Quentin," she said. "Apparently the old wreck has caused quite a lot of excitement, and there are men from a London paper who want to ask you questions about it."

"Tell them I'll see them at six," said Uncle Quentin. The children looked at one another in alarm. They hoped that their uncle wouldn't show the box to the newspapermen. Then the secret of the hidden gold might come out!

"What a mercy we took a tracing of the map!" said Julian, after tea. "But I'm jolly sorry now we left the real map in the box. Someone else may guess our secret!"

Chapter Ten. AN ASTONISHING OFFER

THE next morning the papers were full of the extraordinary way in which the old wreck had been thrown up out of the sea. The newspaper men had got out of the children's uncle the tale of the wreck and the lost gold, and some of them even managed to land on Kirrin Island and take pictures of the old ruined castle.

George was furious. "It's my castle!" she stormed to her mother. "It's my island. You said it could be mine. You did, you did!"

"I know, George dear," said her mother. "But you really must be sensible. It can't hurt the island to be landed on, and it can't hurt the castle to be photographed."

"But I don't want it to be," said George, her face dark and sulky. "It's mine. And the wreck is mine. You said so."

"Well, I didn't know it was going to be thrown up like that," said her mother. "Do be sensible, George. What can it possibly matter if people go to look at the wreck? You can't stop them."

George couldn't stop them, but that didn't make her any the less angry about it. The children were astonished at the interest that the cast-up wreck caused, and because of that, Kirrin Island became an object of great interest too. Sightseers from the places all around came to see it, and the fishermen managed to find the little inlet and land the people there. George sobbed with rage, and Julian tried to comfort her.

"Listen, George! No one knows our secret yet. We'll wait till this excitement has died down, and then we'll go to Kirrin Castle and find the ingots."

"If someone doesn't find them first," said George, drying her eyes. She was furious with herself for crying, but she really couldn't help it.

"How could they?" said Julian. "No one has seen inside the box yet! I'm going to wait my chance and get that map out before anyone sees it!"

But he didn't have a chance, because something dreadful happened. Uncle Quentin sold the old box to a man who bought antique things! He came out from his study, beaming, a day or two after the excitement began, and told Aunt Fanny and the children.

"I've struck a very good bargain with that man," he said to his wife. "You know that old tin-lined box from the wreck? Well, this fellow collects curious things like that, and he gave me a very good price for it. Very good indeed. More even than I could expect for the writing of my book! As soon as he saw the old map there and the old diary he said at once that he would buy the whole collection."

The children stared at him in horror. The box was sold! Now someone would study that map and perhaps jump to what 'ingots' meant. The story of the lost gold had been put into all the newspapers now. Nobody could fail to know what the map showed if they studied it carefully.

The children did not dare to tell Uncle Quentin what they knew. It was true he was all smiles now, and was promising to buy them new shrimping-nets, and a raft for themselves- but he was such a changeable person. He might fly into a furious temper if he heard that Julian had taken the box and opened it himself, while his uncle was sleeping.

When they were alone the children discussed the whole matter. It seemed very serious indeed to them. They half-wondered if they should let Aunt Fanny into the secret-but it was such a precious secret, and so marvellous, that they felt they didn't want to give it away to anyone at all.

"Now listen!" said Julian, at last. "We'll ask Aunt Fanny if we can go to Kirrin Island and spend a day or two there- sleep there at night too, I mean. That will give us a little time to poke round and see what we can find. The sightseers won't come after a day or two, I'm sure. Maybe we'll get in before anyone tumbles to our secret. After all, the man who brought the box may not even guess that the map shows Kirrin Castle."

They felt more cheerful. It was so awful to do nothing. As soon as they had planned to act, they felt better. They decided to ask their aunt the next day if they might go and spend the week-end at the castle. The weather was gloriously fine, and it would be great fun. They could take plenty of food with them.

When they went to ask Aunt Fanny, Uncle Quentin was with her. He was all smiles again, and even clapped Julian on the back. "Well!" he said. "What's this deputation for?"

"We just wanted to ask Aunt Fanny something," said Julian, politely. "Aunt Fanny, as the weather is so fine, do you think you would let us go for the week-end to Kirrin Castle, please, and spend a day or two there on the island? You can't think how we would love to!"

"Well- what do you think, Quentin?" asked their aunt, turning to her husband.

"If they want to, they can," said Uncle Quentin. "They won't have a chance to, soon. My dears, we have had a marvellous offer for Kirrin Island! A man wants to buy it, rebuild the castle as a hotel, and make it into a proper holiday place! What do you think of that?"

All four children stared at the smiling man, shocked and horrified. Somebody was going to buy the island! Had their secret been discovered? Did the man want to buy the castle because he had read the map, and knew there was plenty of gold hidden there?