Then came a tremendous crash, and they felt one of the rocks moving.
"Maybe we'll be crushed to a jelly!" groaned the shipowner's son.
There was no time to say more, for an instant later the tree came down, directly over the top of the opening.

Several small branches thrust themselves down upon the lads, pinning them to the bottom of the crevice.

The rocks trembled, and for the moment the boys were afraid they would be crushed to death, as Phil had intimated.
"Safe, Phil ?" asked Dave, as the rocking of the stones and the big tree ceased and the wind seemed to die down once more.
"I--I guess so! A tree limb is on my back, though." "I've got one across my legs." With caution both boys crawled from beneath the branches and out of the split in the rocks.

They could see where the big tree had been uprooted, leaving a hole in the soil fifteen feet in diameter.

The top of the tree was all of a hundred feet away from this hole.
"We were lucky to be between the rocks, Phil," said Dave, with a grave shake of his head.