, 1888-09-15

volcanic streaml Selling her hands, l
chafed them in mine-I-
"Oh, sir. 1t is needless to go over those
long moments of agony during which |
worked over the half dead body of my
love, or those moments of mingled joy
and anguish when her dawning conscious
ness had to struggle with the fearful
reality.
al told her where l thought we were
how we had come there. TO her piteous
entreaties for comfort l could only respond
with gloomy silence, or an equally piteous
entreaty of her to be hopeful. How
strangely the aspect of things changes as
the wheel of life turns around
cat that moment, sir, we would both
have given ten years of our lives to escape
from our living entombment. Now, at
least, | would not for worlds we had es-
capped. For then | should have lost those
many bitter sweet hours when Nina and
l, buried from the world, with death
staring us in the face, were bound to-
gether by the strongest tie humanity Is
capable of-that of common adversely.
"When Nina tried to move. she gave @
loud cry of pain; her ankle was sprained,
and she could not move it without the
greatest anguish. She was forced to lie
quietly where she had fallen, while /
did my best to relieve her. God knows
INV AOAh w 4IhA1 III uhS auo
thirst came in time, but they were but
two new troubles to be added to the rest.
Though we could not sleep, still our
minds were filled, with waking dreams
horrible to hin of now. The strain was
so terrible that at times Nina, becoming
delirious, would toss and twist regardless
of the pain she ave herself, and fill the
cavern with her piercing shrieks and
heartrending means. Then she would
orroxu ca1po oroip o,l har ~ 30 o;-a H.,
my hand, that she might feel some one
was near.
after an eternity of this terrible tor
ture, q sudden shiver ran through the
walls and floor, followed by another and
another; at first a faint rumble died away
in the echoes of the cave, but soon the
rumble grew to a roar, and the roar to
thunder. The noise was deafening-the
rocky ground moved like the ocean. Now
it was my turn to become frantic. I did
not know what | did, but Nina tells me
that, in a frenzy, | siezed her in my arms
and covered her with kisses. If we must
die. | cried, let us die togetherl You are
mine now; not even death can part u.s.
Proportionately as l lost my reason Nina
became cool. She pesought me to be calm,
struggled with me when l sliced her, and
c%onjured me to prepare for the next
world, since death was so near.
DuI DeSUlny INTENDED OtnerW1Se. In
the midst of the tumultuous tossing of
the earth the roof of our chasm split open,
letting in a flood of such binding light
that we could not shut our eyes tight
enough to keep out the glare. This
seemed to be the signal for peace once
more to return, for the rumbIing passed
away and the quaking ceased. When, at
last, we dared to open our eyes, we found
ourselves in a rift In the earth about
twenty feet deep. The second earth
quake must have forced up the bed of the
crevice more than eighty feet"
"And how did you get QUIT" 1 asked.
"Oh," said Nine. LIE DUAL, coming up
from the bathing houses, 1.-The people Of
Caracas drew Is out with ropes. They
came, you know, very manyt to the ground
of the earthquake, monsieur, and with
drew us with ropes"
"Poor little girll' said the husband, as
he drew her fondly to him. at cost you
a father and a honei"
Yes; but it gave a husband mel"
"And a husbands confidence, dearest,
which a million earthquakes could never
shake"
"Mechant garconl' said Nina, roguishly,
dragging her husband up by both hands.
AS we were walking up to the hotel the
checked knickerbockers passed US, with
their friend the little Irishman.
Hang it'll She's devlish pretty--awl"
"Yis, me boy; an more's the pity she
G.mps!"-J. M. Beldon in Frank Leslie's.