The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1881-12-02
THE MINE BY THE SEA.

a strange SIGHT is coal mine Wonder
fully picturesque with ITS streets and lanes
and alleys. its unnnding corridors and count
less chambers of the 6pad. The men there.
with hIarkpnpd faces and scantv attire. seem
Of another race from thusp ahnva ground. and
the feeble lirhts cleaning in the midst Of the
darkness give = weird unreal aspect to the
Srarn
The only sounds heard are thnse Of the
coal vvaonns sIOvvIv nuShpd along Nv bOvs To-
wards the month Of the pit and in the mar
row naSsag whore the men are at work
the cIang of their nickaxeS as thev cleave
their wav through the great rocks Of coal.
Men are not the only beings here There
are horses that have not seen the daylight
for many a wear. TO draw the wagons m the
broader nassag gpS. and sometimes. # the Iight
Of tho Iamn is turned toward the ground.
the brirht LITTLE owes of rats chow they came
70 that underworld I don It know NAV be
soon paerino ont Of nooIJs along the walls
THnrp is an almost fearful somarpnpss
ahout the pIacn Thoughts that the dwight
wouIH at once dtspal seem to haunt rle air
and tbe voices of the men as they wander
about. each one. Gfdeon-like, with his amp
and pickaXe, have a deeper, follower ,one
than a hove ground
For two davs a storm, long grememhered0n
the coast. had heer raging but the men n
the mine. accustomed as they were to hpa.-
inc the roar Of the waves above their heads
Maid IfttIe heed 70 the increased noise. Geo
Heiuers alone had noticed IT, and each dav
had spent more time than usual in examin-
inc the supports If the roof
It was now night time. and he had been
sUnerintending some rather dangerous work
in the lower levels Of blasting with runpow-
der. which. much against his advice. the own
er had ordered This being done, leaving
further orders for work with the men, George
turned away and walked alone in the direc-
tion Of the pits mouth. carving in one hand
a large canister containing the runpowder
in the other his Iamp and the heavy stick
that, on account of his Iameness. was his
constant oompanion. Even in the imperfect
lioht IL MIGHT have been seen that a great
chance had passed over his face II was bag
card arf riuohed looking: there was strange
and r-~fleSs glitter in his eyes. and now and
thau DTS Tins partpd with quivering move
newt end were pressed together again with
IT'D. "fN ~ ~ iFHSibil biittb WIS HOW Id
bituaI 10 them
Instead ~ leaving the mine, a sudden
Thought seemed to strike him halfway, and
he tnrned aside and entered a part of the
mine long deserted on account of working
too near the bottom If the sea. but which re-
Gently had been opened again and though
George had many times warned the owner
of the danger Of weakening the support of
the roof, large quantities of coal had been
taken from it.
All was still as he advanced through the
narrow passages, but soon these widened in
to more omen space, and as he entered the
noise Of the tumultuous waters overhead was
fearfulIv loud. cold drauplt OF air smote
him and made lin Shver. The place was
known to the miners as the 'Boggarts HoIe''
or the ''Ghost Hole" 1t was an immense
low rooted hall. one Of those natural cavprns
that exist beneath the sea and land and in
the centre was an abvss into whose depths
no human being had never penetrated. The
workings had been carried on all along the
sides. and rude pathway led half way round
and abruptly stopped about the great chasm.
The poor light which George had fTIumiucd
only narrow circle round him. but he knew
the place well, and cautiously stepping along
reached the part where the last workings
bad been made. and which was so low that
he could touch with his hands the black. sIi
my roof, to which gigantic, loatIisome fungi
clung
As be stood there wild fancies stole over
him. Loud above sounded the thunderous
boom Of the surf, while beneath him Law.
wrapped in eternal daI kness, the great mine.
stretching for miles into the depths of the
earth. He seated himself on a projecting
rock. the canister of powder on the ground
beside him and the lamp held between his
knees
What were his thoughts lust then? l know
not at all but there was one fercer than
the clamOr of the waves above more terrible
than the abyss beneath him-he had lost all
al He looked back upon his life-all had
gone wrong from the beginning. and now,
when at last the cup of sweetness had SEEM
ed to be 50 near his lips he had seen it dashed
away He ground his teeth with rage and
then his passion took another form; his breast
heaved and a great sobbing cry rose to his
lips
''If she only knew how I love herl He
iove A moment of the love ! could give
her would he more than lifetime of his
But | know that never, never-let me make
an end of it.