The herald., 1898-01-23


turned the sharp corner just this side
of the pit we came smack upon two
men, London and Joe Rusk, with two
more above at the mouth Of the tunnel
and one coming down the rope. The
two men on the ground clapped their
hands on their revolvers and we
dropped our pole and ran back, better
scared than ever before, as was right
enough, with those fellows shooting
and coming behind; and known, as they
were, to be good shots, too.
Our torch-lights were we'll soaked
with fish oil and burned so freely that
not one of them went out, though we
ran like race-horses. Before the men
could get around the corner and fire
again we were clear of the Gun Barrel,
and though not one word was spoken
we all made in the direction of the
Pocket-Gopher Hole. There were a
dozen ways of going and we soon be-
came separated, though it was my own
fault that ] did not keep with the Cap
tain. l was, in fact half scared to
death, not being used to being shot at ;
and Dauphin, Notwithstanding his
rough life. had such a terror of London
that / think he was no better off than
I. AS for Captain Archway, 1 believe
him to have been too brave a man to
have ever been truly frightened, but
he well saw that there was nothing else
to do except to run.
I think we all knew that part of the
cave better than London, nor did he,
of course, know for where we were
headed: so very shortly he lost us and
1 doubt not we were all soon running
faster than there was any need. When
I got to the Gopher Hole heard Dau-
phin going up it faster than any gopher
ever went up his hole. just then the
Captain came in sight.
go on, Harry" he cried "we're all
right now" so in 1 crawled, and he
followed.
When half way up the Captain
stopped and moved a square stone a
few inches. saying:
There, that closes up the hole and
makes it look as if no one could get up;
though If they know the place they will
see what has been done and can easily
move it. But if they don't know II
they may never find the entrance al
ALL"
At the top we found Dauphin waiting
for us, but behind pillar and ready
to run again if it should prove to be
the terrible London. think he was a
little ashamed of himself for running
50 fast and made haste to explain that
if he had had any weapon he should
have stood his ground against the
whole gang.
But, Cap'n, what will you do now?
1,A a,clyo
him stop cursing London.
We'll see," answered the Captain, as
calm as if at home eating his break
fast. II think first we had best &C
down into your part of the cave There
are a few torch-sticks ait the Star
Chamber and little wood and. if ]
am not mistaken, some bits of cold fish
Perhaps, too, we may there get some
glimpse of the outlaws down the pits
and find what they are doing, and SC
know what we had best do ourselves. -
This we accordingly did, going by a
passage Dauphin showed us, which we
named Dauphin's Door, and about
which we knew no more than did he
about the Trap Door; which very well
shows the mazes into which the cave
was cut up, since we had all searched
for days to find openings between the
two parts. I here bethnk me to say
too, that when we came upon the out
laws I had dropped the fish I was car
rying.
When we neared the pits we left oul
torches back and crept up very eau
tiouS, to both Rope Pit and Fire Pit
but saw nor heard nothing of the men
We hid what was left of the rope in q
hole. and carried the wood, torch sticks
and fish from the Star Chamber to a
small room hard to come at some dis
tance away, which named the Robin s
Nest since it was round and with hard
mud sides just like the nest of that
bird. After we had eaten a little of
the cold fish the Captain ordered Dau-
phin and me to take some sleep while
he stood watch. One torch we had to
keep burning since we had no matches
the few Dauphin had having become
at last spoiled by the dampness of the
cave, as we found on trying them.
Dauphin seemed to sleep we'll enough
but I woke hundred times, the awful
report of those pistols still ringing in
my ears. Surely, I thought. no sound
was ever so loud before. and they had
echoed ten thousand times and must, ]
still believe, have gone from one end
to the other of the whole cave. Though
to be sure, / heard louder reports be-
fore I got out of the wretched place.
After some time. being again awake
I made the Captain lie down while ]
stood watch. For what I thought to be
three or four hours I sat at the mouth
of the little tunnel leading back and
up to the Robins Nest. If you have
ever sat alone in a cave then you know
what silence is. nor will you ever know
till you do. But you may we'll pray
that you shall never know it long, fol-
1t, with the darkness, is so black and
awful and presses upon your brain sc
hard THAT after a little you feel as II
you should go mad; thus I felt that
time standing watch. Once in what ]
thought to be fifteen minutes a drop OF
water fell somewhere into pool,
judged, and it sounded like the report
of a pistol would out on the earth
where it is never dark, no, not on the
thickest night, nor where there is nc
such thing as silence anywhere. Fol
the stiffness is such that the least noise
sounds out tenfold. and goes clatterine
along the tunnels as if lit would never
stop. The very bats, black imps OF
darkness that I say they are, make a
faint flap with their wings when they
turn in the air, though these wings. tc
which they have no right at all, seem
made of the softest and thinnest india.
rubber.
Indeed, I thought had gone quite
mad after some hours when suddenlv