The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1891-07-18

a she hOllerS out, "lt'S nun!
Don't you know your mother, Jim?"
lys: "YOu bet hain't forgot
our coffee's mighty hot"
married Black Jake SET his teeth and
breathed hard when he heard il. He
said nothing, but his old father watch
ing him knew that Carroll's life was in
danger. Considered from an abstract
point of view, the old man had no par
ticular objection to his son putting
Carroll out of the way, but some
strange and deep-hiddcn bond held
these two men together. Had such II
possibility ever arisen, old Murphy
would readily have laid down his own
life To save that of his son. He watch
ed him then lest he should do that
which might necessitate his departure
from this world ut the hands of the
sheriff. His watching brought him great
uneasiness. Black Jake was changed.
lie did not seek IN opportunity to re-
venge his defeat in open fight. Rather
he avoided Carroll, and when they
were together, and, working in the
same shaft, they could not keep apart,
he was quiet and fair-spoken. This
was not Black Jake's nature and the
old man feared for what was to come.
Sitting ut his post, looking down at
the three men below him, old Murphy,
in the ilickering light of the miners
lamps, caught II glimpse of his sons
face and terror fell on him. Some
thing told him in those set and sullen
features and eyes that seemed to burn
with inward fire that the time had
come.
With q rattle and rush the heavy
iron bucket plunged down through the
darkness and touched The water ere il
stopped, slowly turning with the twist
of the rope that, like Il thin line of
black, disappeared in the Dlackness
above.
Jake Murphy gripped it and sprang
inside. Only two men could go up in
it at once.
"Come, .Jim," he cried, ''gct in, =
and looked at Carroll.
Old Murphy's tongue was loosened
''lIold on, .Iim," he called out. 81
want yer To help me fix this valve aforc
yer go up
Jim turned irresolute. In that mo,
ment the other man jumped INTO tn,
buckett.
"All right!n he cried. &" Let 'cr GOT
Carroll saw that the bucket was
filled. He must wait, and graspima
the lever he gave the signal to the en-.
gineer on top. There was Il moment :
pause, and then, with strong ant
sudden rush, the bucket and its occu
pants vanished in the darkness.
On top it was calm, still summer
night. Above the heads of the two
men rs they stepped out of the swing
ing bucket rose the framework of mas
sive timbers that supported the huge
sheaye wheels. Twenty yards away
stood the engineh house, the steam still
curling from the eXhaust-pipes. Al
they left the bucket Black Jake bid hi
companion n surly goodnight" an,
started off rs though for home. Blu
once out of sight he turned and swift,
and silently crept back. He passed thu
mouth of the shaft, and disappeared il
the shadow of the enginc-house.
Within the engine house Tom Allis
the engineer, stood ut his post. Before
him was the huge conical drum sixteel
feet in diameter, round which the snake
| like cable was cOiled in grooves. On
each side of him were those might,
engines whose gigantic power could
when the time came, snatch the car
riage and loaded car up those ,20'
feet of depth in fifty seconds. Wit
one hand on the throttle ne waited fo
the signal to lower. Ii came. Th
bel clanked, the throttle shot open
the steam rushed into the great cylin
ders, and down dropped the bucket lik
n stone dropped down u well. Wit
steady eye Allis marked the cable rs
reeled swiftly off the drum. lie neve
noticed the slowly-revolvIng dial tha
told of the buckets descent. For hi
practiced eye bar of white pain
daubed on the cable was better guide
In another instant that white mark wa
off the drum, when the throttle wa
closed, the reversing bar shot bac
with crash, again the steam ruShe
into the cylinders, and the engine, wit
Il few short pants, stopped. The buck'
swung mt the same depth within ha
an inch that it had when Black Jak
climbed on board. 1t was Tom Allis
boast that if he knew II mans eXat
height he could drop that bucket u
his head without doing more tina
smooth out his hair.
He knew there was one more man
come up. The pump runners shi
would not expire for four hours yc
and all the sinkers but one were NJ
waited for the signal to hoist.
minute passed and two, but he stoc
, like Il craven statue.
, Clank! clank, clankl The bell struC
three times. II was the signal
/ hoist with care, us human weight fill,
| the bucket Slowly he drew the thro
: tie open, and the gigantic engine
= waking from their brief rest, once mo
' sent the drum flying round. Coil aft
+ coil of writhing cable was wound abo
l If. One hand on the throttle and Il
+ other on the reversing lever, Tom All
5 watched the spinning drum and Il
5 white marks on it that told him VIII,
1 to stop. As he stood there he felt Il
y reversing lever shake and tremblc,
2 if some one had touched it. lie h;
Y no time to think of this, for in anoth
D second the bucket was within 100 fe
of the surface lie closed the thrott
5 and pushed the reversing lever.
| A wild cry burst from his lips. !
: he pushed it, the bar shot back with
rattIing crash, but the reversing ge
4 never moved. The engines would II
Y reverse. In that awful moment !
I presence of mind never left him.
Y seized the brake bar and threw all J
= weight upon it. The band of sl'
k thai circled the drum gripped tigl
r But what could that do to stop t
$ massive engines running at high spec
4 He iammed il back and rushed fro
the engine-house.
n As he did so, the bucket shot
Y from the shaft Two men were in
It A cry burst from them rs the buck'
Il without pause or stop, lcapcd mp am
Il the heavy timbers and sped swiftly
Al. Ii