Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1882-08-15

She cast a strange, significant look at
me, which said almost as plainly as
words:
II know you, Wallace Grover, and I
mean to speak to you in spite of your
caution"
Then she entered the chamber.
But she had miscalculated my tact.
turned to her father and requested him
to enter with me in order to dissuade
her from her rash adventure, and we
followed her together. She gave me q
reproachful look as we entered, and 1
heard her sigh.
The moment I put my foot in the
chamber, my senses, trained by long ex-
perience to note the varying phenomena
of the under world, detected q hint OF
the coming danger.
There was faint rumbling in the
bowels of the earth. The air was close,
and had faint of electricity in it, SIM
liar to that which precedes thunder
storm. There was surely peril In the
mine, but how and whence it would
come could not guess.
AS I turned to urge my visitors to q
hasty retreat, caught sight of some
fragments of wet earth dropping from
the wall near at hand, followed by jet
of water. Then I knew what was COM
ing &C.,, .,o j, ox;aa
springing towards the wall. "The water
is bursting into the mine. Ring for the
cage and give the alarm !"
The old man needed no second warn
ing. With q cry of terror he sprang out
heard him give the alarm. Then follow
ed the shouts and trampling of the es-
Gaping men. Iknew if I could hold the
water in check for ten minutes I could
save the life of every one of them. AS
for my own-well, one life, and that a
useless one, seemed good exchange for
q hundred fathers of families.
| When I first saw 1t the jet was no longer
than mans finger; but in moment
it had enlarged to the size of my arm
and heavy stream of water began to
pour into the chamber.
There was no apparatus at hand, eth.
er clay nor sand. bags to check 1t. as l
we'll knew.
A happy inspiration came to me-
With q Titanic effort I managed to
thrust my arm into the fissure, and for
the time-being succeeded In checking
the leak.
Then, with my arm in the wall,
turned half around to the opening of the
chamber, and there, to my horror, still
stood Eve Guion. I saw that her face
was very pale, but firm and self posses
sed.
"What are you doing here? ?" cried.
'This place will be full of water in five
minutes"
"What are you doing here?" she ask
MY duty" I replied. IT am trying
to hold this stream in check until the
men escape"
"Then you will be drowned" she ex"
claimed
"What of that? Better one than q
hundred. But CO." entreated. II tell
you you have only q bare chance to get
out, as it is. The water is pressing
harder every moment. It will soon be
too much for my strength"
'Then I will stay and help you.
Wallace" she said, in strange, gentle
voice.
"Ah, you know me-" I cried.
II have known you from the moment
: entered the mine. l came here to see
you"
ITO taunt me with my poverty"
cried. when your father turned me
away from your door, when I became
outcast and wretched, thought had
the right to hide my misfortune from
your eyes,"
"It is because my father used you 90
cruelty that am here" she said. II
was not to blame, Wallace. l knew
nothing of it until you were gone
Since then I have tried to learn Of youl
whereabouts in order to let you under
stand my feelings. It was only yester'
dav that I heard of John Wallace in the
Maberly mine, and on the bare chance
J OF Identifying him as Wallace Grover,
influenced my father to bring me here. y
"Well," said sorrowfully, ut is too
late to think of the past now. Go, Eve.
60, and keep poor John Wa]lace's Sc
cret It will soon be- over with him. F."
} "You persist In remaining here ?" she
asked.
II must" said I. IT should be COW.
ard and wretch to disert my post now. :"
"Then," she replied, very quietly, II
will stay with you"
"Why," asked, amazedly. care you
Ijesting with meW
Can jest with death, Wallace, or
love ?"
Then, before I could comprehend the
words, she came to my side, as stood
with my wrist in the wall, and putin 6
her arm around MY neck drew my cheek
down upon hers.
ut is hard to die so young, Wallace"
she said, sweetly, "but it would be hard.
er to live without you. In the hour OF
death, my dear, we can dispense with
false delicacy. I know that you have
loved me for many years, ana l nave re-
only to die, death at last cannot separate
u.s."
With death staring me in the face
not five minutes off, have never
known happier moment in my life.
| AS I stood there with my arm in the
fissure, the blood surging into my head,
and all my muscles straining with he
effort to keep my position, knew moth
ing more than that felt the heart Of the
woman I loved beating against my own,
her warm, young cheek touching my
cold one in the embrace of love and
death.
The consciousness of her position
rushed upon me again.
mo, no." I cried, ''you must not die.
Go. live, my darling-live until it comes
your time to meet me in the other world,
where shall be before, you. Go, and
believe no man ever met death so glori-
ously as I shall"
| I'VE go COgeClor, OF we Olo COgeGner,
she said firmly. "Speak of it no more"
Then a solemn silence fell upon U.S.
The men must have nearly all escaped,
as could tell by their distant shouts.
The earth was breaking away around
my arm, and the water was already
nearly two feet deep upon the floor of
| the chamber. I could hear the subter-
ranean stream roaring more threaten
ingly in the bowels of the mine. An
other pound of pressure, and should
be flung down, and the chamber would
| fill.
Then came great desire for life.
How could bear to have my new. found
| joy so suddenly smothered in the
ground?
The sounds of the escaping men had
ceased. If we could get the cage down
once more in time, we might perhaps
escape after all. Explained my hopes
to Eve.
But" said I, "ring for the cage. I
will hold on here moment longer. If
we can reach it we are safe."
Eve looked at me sharply for an in
stant-she feared meant to deceive her
into escaping while remained behind