The interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1872-1881, 1875-08-20

/ tntt tNtlU rtttNtu wv 'tVN'' '''Ns's''r
echoes through the CHAMBER.
From the feeling Of his hands and feet
Gallagher knew that the rats bad been
gnawing at his flesh, but he did not stop
TO make any investigation until he had
escaped from the pit and was again on
his way back to the place from whence
he had started.
To get out Of the pit Gallagher found
no easy task; twice he climbed up its
Jagged sides until he almost gained the
top, and as many times fell back to the
bottom. The third time he was success
full, and he drew himself out exhausted
and fainting.
lie lay down on the floor of the CORR
dor for several minutes before he had
strength to proceed, and then gathered
himself up and hurried away from the
spot which was ~ full Of terrors for
him.
When he reached the first cross CORR
dor, he sat down ON a jutting piece OF
coal, and for the first time discovered
/ that the rats had gnawed two Of his fin
gers to the bone and had eaten away the
uppcrs of his shoes and the flesh of his
two great toes.
lie had often heard old miners relate,
over their lunch in the dismal chamber,
the experiences of men lost in the mines
and attacked by rats, aud now the real
ity of the thing nearly overcame him
with its horror, and he almost swooned
at the thought of what he had passed
through and what he might yet he
doomed to experience.
To add Ia the terrible situation of the
poor lad, hunger began to make itself
manifest, and the tortures of thirst were
beginning to aillict him; rs was the case
with the ancient mariner, there was
water. wstcr everywhere,
Hut not y drop to drink"
From the fact that he was growing ~
hungry aud thirsty Gallagher judged
that he had been long time in the
mine. Up to this time he had been CON
fdent that he would be able to find his
way out of the old mine in the course
of few hours, but now hope seemed to
be leaving him.
lie conjured up pictures of his mother
waiting for him TO come home at night,
of her anxiety at his tardiness, and then
her uncomfortable grief at the news of
/ his loss.
Then his mind dwelt on the horrors of
death by starvation or suffocation in the
mine, and the sickening thought that he
was followed by horde of ravenous
rats that were ready to make food OF
him even before he was dead. These
thoughts almost drove him crazy, and
he aroused himself determined to make
another effort to find his way out Of the
mine.
He followed one of the cross corridors
and wandered about in the maze OF
chambers for hours. Once he thought
he heard his name called, and he shouted
in reply, only to hear the shout repeated
for many minutes by the demon echoes.
While wandering about in this way, a
prey to the tortures Of hunger and thirst,
and to both mental and physical agony,
he saw light flash for an instant across
the corridors in which he was cropping
1t was long way of, but he knew il
was miners lamp, and felt that parties
were searching through the deserted
chambers for him.
Regardless of the hard, jagged floor,
the strong walls, the ever-accompanyine
throng of rats that kept in his rear, OF
dangerous pits that might lie ahead of
him, he ran rapidly toward where he
had seen the light, shouting until he was
hoarse:
"This way Here am! Here | am
This way, IL Gods sake"
The echoe, took up the cry and car
ried it through the noisome avenues,
lifted it to the roof of the cerulean vault,
and repeated it until it died away in a
wall of agony; but the bearer of the
light did not hear it in the course he had
taken, and the almost exhausted boy
footsore and bruised by frequent fall
on the hard, rough mine floor, hurried
ON in the subterranean labyrinth.
Suddenly, in turning the angle of one
of the corridors, light again flashed
upon his sight, and then another and
another.
A voice shouted prolonged call
"J-a-m-e-s Gallagher! Hel-loo-o-e,
Jimmyw
The inevitable echoes had scarcely
taken up the cry, when the boy returned
the call, with all his soul in his voice
Here am! Come this way"
| His answer was heard, and in few
moments sturdy miners had found the
boy but he did not know that he wa.
rescued he had fallen to the ground
unconscious, his strength having given
out with his last wild cry.
lie was soon carried out into the pure
air, where his frantic mother and most
of the villagers had assembled to await
the result of the search.
The people were wild when it was AN
nounced that the boy was found, and
his brave rescuers were borne aloft by
the crowd.
1t was long time before young Gala
CHER was restored Ia Consciousness, and
then il was only at intervals that he was
in his right mind. In these sane inter.
walls he related the story of his fearful
suferings, and learned that he had been
nearly two days and one long night
wandering among the horrors of the
mine.
His lucid spells lasted but short
time, when he would be seized with
frantic rawlings, in which he would beg
plaintively of Barrett not to hurt him,
and then shrek. "Ihe rats are eating