Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1879-05-27

along as fast as their feet could tax
them. Everybody ran in one direction
and in the crowd he caught moment
glimpse of Selma and her father. Tn
girls face white with some strong eX
citement, and there was a look of tn
widest imaginable fear in her eyes, Boil
hands were pressed to her heart as sh'
ran. A Black Country collier's instinc
in case like this is pretty likely to b.
true William threw his window open
and cried to the hurrying crowd:
"Wheer is it,"
''At the Strip-an' -at-it." some familiar
voice called out as the struggling crowd
swept by.
"What is it." he cried again.
"Shaft on fire." cried another voice il
answer; and in second the street was
clear, William Bowker dashed down
stairs and hurled himself along the street
Anybody down he gasped, as he
turned the corner and passed the hind
most figure in the hurrying mass. The
woman knew him.
"For Gods sake, lend me thy hand,
Willyyum,' she gasped in answer. my
Joe's in
He caught the shriveled little figure in
his great arms as though the old woman
had been baby, and dashed on again.
Ay, the tale was truel There belched and
volleyed the rolling smoke! There were
hundreds upon hundreds Of people al
ready crowded on the pit mound and
about the shaft, and from every quarter
men and women came streaming in
breathless. William set his withered
burden down, and pushed through to the
edge of the shaft. There was water in
the up-cast, and the engines were at
work full power Up came the enormous
bucket and splashed its two or three hun
dred gallons down the burning shaft, and
dropped like a stone down the up-cast,
and after a long, long pause came trem-
bling and laboring up again, and vomited
its freight again, and dropped like stone
for more.
"Yo' might just as well stand in a
ring an spit at it. said Bowker, with
his face all pale and his eyes on fire
"Get the stinktors up and let a man or
tew go down"
"Will yo' max one, Bill Bowker;" said
a brawny, coal-smeared man beside him.
"Yis, wull," was the answer, given
like bulldogs growl.
"Ill max another said the man.
"An me-" AN me" AN me,
cried dozen more.
rig the bowk, somebody said the
loye-lorn verse maker, taking at once
and as by right, the place he was born
for. INTELLECTUALLY Darkey-come
vi me-
The crowd divided, and the five made
for the offices, and found there, in a row.
a number of barrel-shaped machines OF
metal, each having a small hose and a
pumping apparatus attached to it. These
were a new boon from the generous hand
of science-a French contrivance. as the
name affixed to each set forth-L' Extinc-
teur." Each of the men seized one of
these. and bore it to the edge of the
shaft, the crowd once more making way.
A bucket, technically called "bowk, -
some two feet deep and eighteen inches
wide, was affixed to the wire rope which
swung above the burning shaft. The
self-appointed leader asked for flannel
clothing A dozen garments were flung
to him at once. He wrapped himself
up like mummy, and bound cotton
handkerchief over his face. Then, with
the machine strapped securely across his
shoulder, he stepped one foot in the buck
ct and laid hand upon the rope. A
man ran forward with slender chain,
which he passed rapidly around the vol
unteer's waist, and fixed to the rope
which supported the bowk. Another
thrust an end of rope into his hand, and
stood by to reeve out the rest as he de-
scended Then came the word: "Short
steady" The engine painted, the rope
frightened, the clumsy figure. with the
machine bound about it, swung into the
smoke, and in ath-like stiffness, with
here and there smothered gasp, the
man went down. His comrade at the
edge dribbled the rope through his coal
blackened fingers as delicately ds though
it had been a silken thread. Then came
sudden tug at it, aud the word was
flashed to the engine and the
creak of the wheel ceased, and the Gid
ing wire rope was still Then, for
space of nigh minute, not sound was
heard, but every eye was on the rope,
and every cheek was pallid with suspense,
and every heart was with the hero in the
fiery depths below Then came another
warning tug at the rope, and again the
word flashed to the engine-room. The
wheel spun round, the rope glided, quiv-
cred stopped, the figure swung up through
the smoke again, was seized, lowered,
landed. When his comrades laid hands
upon him the flannel garments fell from
him, and they fell, half tinder, at his
feet. Then he drew off the handkerchief
which bound his face, and at the god
like, heroic pallor of his countenance,
and the set lips and cleaning eyes, women
whispered pantingly, God bless him y
and the breath of those bold fellows was
drawn hard. Then he reeled, and pair
of arms like a bears were round him in
second. In ten minutes more he was
outside the crowd, and bottle of whis-
ky, which came from nobody knew where,
L IL 1