And at times he would take us up the cliffs, to points of vantage from which we could look down into the sea-birds’ nests and watch them tending their young.

And—­greatest wonder of all, and only when we had solemnly promised, finger on lip, never to disclose the matter under any conditions to anyone whatsoever—­he led us right into the granite cliffs themselves, sometimes through dark mouths that gaped on the shore, sometimes by narrow clefts half-way up, sometimes down strange rough chimneys from the heights above.

Hand in hand we would creep, stumbling and slipping, clinging tightly to one another for protection against ghosts, spirits, and fairies, in all of which we half believed in spite of all wiser teaching, and never daring to speak above a whisper for fear of we knew not what, but always in mortal terror of losing Krok, and so being left to wander till we died, or fell into some, dark pool and were drowned, or, more horrible still, were caught by the tide and driven back step by step into far dark corners till the end came.

I can hear, now as I write, the uncouth croak from which Krok got his name, but which to us, in those awesome places, was sweeter than music.  And I can hear the beating of his stick on the rocks to guide us in the dark,—­one blow to tell us where he was; two, to look out for difficulties; three, water.  But at times he would bring with him a torch made of tar and grease and rope, and then we would go in greater comfort and wax almost bold at times, though never without scared glances over our shoulders at the black mouths which gaped hungrily for us at every turn and corner.

We were, I believe, the very first—­of our time at all events—­to penetrate into some of the caves which have since become a wonder to many, and if we did not understand how very wonderful they really were, they were to us treasure-houses of delight and a never-failing enjoyment.

Some of the higher caves were used as secret storehouses for goods which a far-away Government—­with which our people had little to do and which did not greatly concern them—­chose to embargo in various Ways.  And it was in the secret shipment of these to various ports in England and France that the special—­trade of the Islands largely consisted.  So absolutely free of all restrictions had our people always been, indeed so specially privileged in this way above all other lands, that it took many years to bring them under what they looked upon as the yoke.  And some of them never could, or would, understand why it should be considered unlawful for them to do what their fathers had always done without let or hindrance.  Whatever the outside world might say, they saw no wrong, except on the part of those who tried to stop them, and whom therefore they set themselves to circumvent by every means in their power, and were mightily successful therein.  Moreover, the Island spirit resented somewhat this interference