He knew every path down the cliff for
miles, and trusted that he should be able to make his way down, and
give the boats notice of their danger, before the revenue men reached
the shore.
At nine o'clock he dressed himself, in the rough sailor's suit he wore
when he went out with the fishermen, and started along the cliff. For
some distance he kept well inland, as the officer might have placed a
man on the lookout, to stop anyone going towards the scene of action.
The spot he thought the most likely was a mile and a half along the
shore. There was a good landing place, and an easy path up the cliff,
and he knew that cargoes had been more than once run here. Accordingly,
when he reached this spot, he sat down among some bushes on the edge of
the cliff, and waited for some sort of signal. Half an hour later, he
heard the tramp of a number of men, passing along behind him.
"There go the revenue men," he thought to himself. "I suppose they are
going to meet those coming the other way."
An hour passed without further sound, and James began to get uneasy. If
this was the spot fixed for the landing, some of the country people
ought to be arriving, by this time, to help to carry off the cargo.
They might, for aught he knew, be already near, waiting for the signal
before they descended the path.
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