The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1895-09-18


searched among tho high grass, hop.
ing to find the tired child asleep on
the ground she went close and peered
in among the thickly growing weeds
and bushes of the clump. It was a
forbidding place III there; Polly was
enterprising but she would hardly
choose such n placo. as that TO explore.
Moro likely she had followed on after
Sue. Maggie went in the direction
Sue had come from, calling as she
went.
She stopped running just in time to
save herself from falling into n great,
ragged hole in the ground. A second
look showed her that the hole was not
very deep, but it was quite deep
enough. At the bottom aud all about
the sides, were fragments of rough
and broken rock mingled with the
earth. 1t was evident that the ground
had caved in there, forming danger
Gus trap for an incautious rambler.
Maggie trembled to think what must
have happened if poor little Polly had
fallen into il.
Very carefully she examined the
edges and sides of the hole; there was
no signs that even baby footstep had
disturbed the ground there recently.
She made her way cautiously down
the side of the opening, and then she
saw that the hole was deeper than il
seemed. Rocks and earth had choked
it some distance above the bottom,
but narrow openings here and there
revealed greater depths below. 1t was
climbed back to the solid ground.
"Polly isn't in that place; that's II
comfort" sire said to herself. "The
company ought to be sued for having
such holes about for folks to tumble
into !"
That last thought brought another.
It's the company's old mine, that's
what it is |" she cried out. "And this
is cave in. Part of the mine is down
there under those stones, and I might
have tumbled to the bottom of it. Oh,
suppose Polly has fallen into iti"
The only way to find out was to get
in there and search, but she could not
do that alone. The minute Sue brought
those men they must find the entrance
to the mine and explore every nook
and Granny of it.
At that moment she heard the same
faint cry that she had heard back
here among the daisies. Itwas fainter
this time and seemed to como from
the depths of that hole in the ground.
1t was not the note of meadow lark (;
how could she ever have thought that?
1t was the faint cry of a child 1t was
little Polly calling, and Polly was
somewhere close at hand
Needless of all danger. Maggie
clambered down into the hole once
more and began to toss about the
stones that lay there. In few sec
onds she had moved enough of them
to make an opening into the passage
below. Peering down in.o this she
saw that the passage appeared to lead
lack in the direction of the patch OF
daisies.
"Pollyi Where arc you, Polly?"
she cried.
She heard a faint answer, aud it
seemed to come along the buried pas
sage from the direction of the daisies.
That clump of weeds and bushes beside
the daisies-that was the possible hid
ing place of the mystery. 1t must be
explored at ouce. Maggie got safely
out of the hole and ran at full speed
back along the way that she had late
~ come. As she ran she heard another
voice; Sue had come back and was
calling to her from the woods.
"Here l am Here! Como quick
all of you." Crying out these words
al the top of her voice, Maggie
plunged out of sight into the heart of
the clump of bushes. Sue had heard
her answer and came running out of
the woods, followed by two men. The
two men were old and decrepit, past
their working prime; but they were
the only ones that Sue had been able
to find. The others were all away at
their work in the mines.
The three new comers stopped and
looked about the field for Maggie
Her voice had sounded near, but now
she was nowhere to be seen. Sue
called, but there was no answer.
"Where in the world can she have
gone to?" Sue cried in amazement.
al thought she was right here!"
At that instant they were all startled
by hearing Maggio's voice again. 1t
sounded farther away this time, and
was different from the clear, ringing
cry that they that they had first heard.
'That's Maggie" said Sue, "but
she sounds underground ?"
can good reason she have" Reuben
Jessup remarked solemnly. "For she
is underground. David, it's my belief
as the two childers has somehow fell
into the old mine hereabouts.
"But she was right here only min
ute ago." Sue urged, iu great alarm.
GLOW could she fall into mine Just
in minute, that way?"
"Reuben's right" said David.
"Ther's pits an theirs cave-ins an
ther's the chimney. The chimney's
the llkeliest place ell, Reuben?"
"She couldn't fall into chimney
without climbing up to the top of it
first, and she hasn't had time for that.
And besides, there isn't any chimney
anywhere about here.
'Just the shaft o. the old mine,
child" Reuben explained. "Men fell
to calling it the chimney after tramps
set fire to timbers in the idle workin's
an the smoke rose from the shaft days
and niobtg Vhara Nyoul1 tho cbin,-