The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-10-17
Th9 Gamblers Of
Gravel Mountain.
Bv MORLEY ROBERTS.
BY MORLEY ROBERTS.
copyri zht, 1897, 5. 5. Nc lure Co

And day by day as they cut thelf
easy tunnel the blue clay outside sort
ened. deliquesced and melted; hlgh pie
flattpnded into it soaked the moisture OIL
the mountain air.
In their tent at night the brothers
talked obstinately.
"We'H pull it through. ten be only a
matter of timbering," they said But as
they lay in their beds they knew 1t
might be more than that
Then they struck concrete and &C.
ment, rising bed of it, under the clay.
A pick would not touch it; they had to
send for drills. Now a quarter of the
time was lost by the use of dynamite.
1t was difficult to keep up the ventila-
ton. :,
Its an i'll wind that brings no luck,
timbers on now"
"We never reckoned on rock work
answered Kelley, land it Soaks the
time and the dollars up"
There was a quarter of the tunnel at
the west end done before the concrete
came in sight. At the east end they
struck it at its highest, six feet above
the level, and there the work was slow.
Now the brothers were somber. They
stood half the day at one end of the
work or the other, but though they
walked together they rarely spoke.
1.-The Mormon boys look glum," said
the foreman to himself. And he felt it,
too.
IF we come out as we went in We're
lucky" said Kelley.
But Bill hoped yet
1.-THE timbering holds so far" he cried.
Yet that night at / o'clock, when the
world was quiet save for the song of the
mountain river, he left his tent and his
sleeping brother and went out to the
tunnel.
Tomorrow we should see daylight
through it." he said.
The moon was full. At distance the
lower valley was haze, but in the loftier
attitudes the peaks pierced the sky with
silver spears. The heavens were deep
and splendid. Here and there brilliant
star or softer planet showed like the
lighted summit or some more tremendous
mountain The air was calm; no wind
moved in the forest. The pulse of the
river was the one sound in sleeping
world.
Fifty yards from the brothers tent
was the cut in the hill that led TO the
mud tunnels black mouth. Every OBJ
stacle in the path bar or pick or shovel
or overturned barrow, was as visible as
in daylight But suddenly the southern
shoulder of the hill lifted itself against
the round moon, and for minute Bull
Holdredge walked blinded. He went
down a plank laid on the fine clay that
was now a puddle and came - the
heavy timber of the tunnels entrance.
He walked in, and again night fell upon
him, thick night, Egyptian and Gimme
rian darkness He turned round, and
outside the air was like the thin ghost
of day. Sitting down upon barrow. he
rested his head upon his hand. And as
he sat the hill talked to him in faint
whispers, at first hardly audible. But
presently he heard very plainly and
lifted his head to listen.
The hill spoke in language intelligl-
BILE to an engineer, who, standing there,
might have interpreted what it said as
the pathologist interprets obscure phe-
nomena to the bedside physician.
"Have you cubed my contents! asked
the hill. "Have you weighed me i'll your
scales and balances? For | am not rock.
but gravel. LISTEN
And the atlantean timbers groaned