Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1897-06-03

years. but Is 1t usual for wife to wear
two wedding ringsY
Dead silence. He had just lowered
his violin, after very soft solO-for il
was considerable past midnight when
ventured that curious question.
There had been an evening party
and, as | was to stay at the house till
morning. Carson's wife had said Good
night" and left us to finish our inevita.
BILE smoke and talk. His mouth witch
ed little, but 1t was some time before
he retorted in low tone:
is Is usual for man well under &c
to have hair as white as mineY'
well, perhaps not-but thought
you attributed that to some shock or
other. What has that to do with-with
the two rlngs?"
Everything" He listened at the
door for moment, turned down the
lights, and then came and sat down.
spreading his hands over the fire.
1.-Two rings? Exactly, one is the ring
l put on her finger when l married her;
the second was put there by another
mainland will stay there as long as the
first"
"Never mind now" said. His voice
had trailed off huskily. II had no Idea
there was any tragic element behind
the fact"
Tragic? Heavens! 1t was more
than that, Arthur" he whispered, turn.
ing up drawn face.
II never meant to touch upon 1t, but
when you spoke 1t came back with a
rush as vivid as if had been standing
at the mouth OF the old north shaft
again. And that was six years ago.
you've heard me speak, at least, of
the mine itself-the Langley mine, In
Derbyshre. had only been assistant
surveyor at the pits there for about
nine months when it happened.
AT 0 o'clock that morning, Arthur
three Of Us stepped into the cagc-old
Jim Halliday, the foreman, his son
Jim. and myself: the men had gone
down an hour before.
81 shall never forget that young
Jlm's sweetheart had walked over to
the pit with him, as she occasionally
did.
They were to be married in week
or two, and she-and she had on her
finger the ring he had bought In Derby
the day before-just for safety's sake,
or perhaps out Of womanly pride.
II recollect that Just as the chain
clanked and the winter sunshine was
disappearing overhead. he shouted out
a third 'Good-by! to her-little dream
Ing that 1t was to be good-by. Little
enough old Halliday and thought that
days would elapse before we emerged
into Gods sunlight again!
"A new vein had been bored the year
before, and then abandoned because it
ran In the direction Of the river. We
three had had Instructions to widen it
for a space Of 800 yards-a piece of
work that had occupied us nearly a
month.
"Old Jim picked and young jim
wheeled the coal away to the nearest
gallery, from where 1t was carried over
rails to the bottom of the main shaft
well, by o'clock that afternoon we
calculated roughly that We had reach
ed the limit laid down.
81 think it's as near as possible,
Mr.. Carson old Halliday said. Jim,
give another count, we don't want the
water coming In
Jim went back. We could hear him
singing out the PAGES in his light heart
ed fashion rs he returned, his voice
echoing through the long galleries.
Two-sixty-nlne-pooh! you're miles off
1t. dad" He was only score of years
off, though. 'Two-sixty- nine-two-sev-
enty-four. tn allow full twenty yet,
I reckon
He had just finished his count when
but there, no man could properly de-
scribe 1t. 1t was something one had to
realize for himself before he could I'M
derstand bare half of the sudden
terror that whltened our lips and seem
ed to bring our hearts to n standstill.
There was rumbling in one of the
distant galleries, and sickening trem.
BILE CT the ground underneath us; then
then the most paralyzing sound, l do
believe, that is to be heard in this
world.
How or why it happened is some
thing to be placed among the host of
unsolved mysteries; but there was one
grinding, splinterlng roar, as though
the earth had split In two pieces.
Before we could stir hand or foot to
save ourselves, before we could even
ia in that an explosion had occurred
while we were guarding against an
other sort Of danger, down Numbered a
mass Of coal, tons upon tons of it, that
blocked up the only passage leading to
the shaft.
at just reached young Jim; standing
where he did, he was struck down
we heard his screech stitled beneath
the debris. For about five more sec.
Onds the earth seemed to be heaving
and threatening universal chaos; then
all became still as tomb.
"a tomb! We had our lamps, old
Jim and looked, and saw that we
were cut off from the rest of the world
What happened next, l hardly
know; was stupefied with the shock
sick with a mortal fear of death. He
and ! stood staring mutely at each
other. The one thing recollect is that
his face was gray as marble. and that
q line of froth stood on his lips.
"He was the first to come back to
sense. He gave one choking cry of
Jim. and staggered back to that black
pile. The boys hand was sticking out
from the bottom Of it. clutching con.
vulsively at nothing. l sat down and
watched. in sort of dreary fascina-
ton. as old Jim. uttering strange cries
tore n the mass in n mad frenzy God