I readily consented, and, lighting our pipes, we walked slowly towards the peninsula, crossed it, and then waited calmly for the shadow which the mountain was to throw upon the spot of earth where the robber’s treasure was buried.  Our pickaxe and shovel remained where we had left them, although I could not help fancying that they had been handled since I had thrown them down.  I said nothing to my friend on the subject, however, for he was too full of imaginative fancies to be consulted and listened to.

Time passed slowly while we sat and watched the shadow which was creeping over the bogs, as the moon rose behind the mountain.  I consulted my watch and found that it was nearly twelve, but just at that moment a white cloud passed over the moon, and our hopes seemed dashed.  The shadow was no longer to be seen; we watched that white cloud as though our lives depended upon its disappearing, but still it lingered, like a veil covering the face of a coquette—­anxious, to reveal the beauty which was concealed, yet taking pleasure in exciting expectation.

“What time is it?” whispered Mr. Brown.

I held my watch before him, while I again scanned the heavens.

“It is just twelve o’clock,” my companion whispered.

Hardly had the words escaped his lips, before the cloud disappeared, and the moon looked down with a roguish twinkle.  We started to our feet, when, lo! precisely where we stood was the edge of the shadow, cast in the form of a cross, with the upper part resting towards us.

Mr. Brown seized the pickaxe and struck it into the ground, and as he did so I thought that I heard a low groan.  I could not tell in what direction it came from, yet I would have sworn that it originated on the island.  I glanced at the face of my companion, but he was too intent upon the business before him to notice my look, or to pay any attention to the sound that had disturbed my composure.

“There is one thing I wish to caution you about,” my companion said, pausing in his work; “don’t speak while we are digging, or the gold will vanish from our sight like magic.  You understand.”

I nodded in the affirmative, although I had no faith in his advice, or in the necessity of maintaining silence.  I considered that the devil and his imps would not care about interesting themselves in a matter which could do them no good, and might hurt their friends.

Mr. Brown glanced around the island, saw that every thing was quiet, and then recommenced his labor with energy and determination.

About the second blow that he struck was answered by a groan so unearthly that I began to entertain serious ideas regarding the propriety of joining a church, or attempting a prayer of some sort.  My companion did not seem to notice the interruption, and I remembered his instruction not to speak, so I did not intrude my thoughts in relation to the matter upon him.

A dozen blows with the pickaxe removed the dead grass, and exposed a soil such as two thirds of Australia is composed of, a light sand, soft, and not suitable for agricultural purposes.