Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1900-02-08

OI uFy, loose Snale. darSreaVeS crept
to the brink and held his lamp out over
the void The movement started lit
tie slide in the shale, and the DULY
cleaning surface of the inclined plane
seemed to spring into hideous life. The
polished chips Of slate wriggled and
undulated like the scales Of huge
serpent similitude which was helped
out by the sibilant hiss Of the moving
particles.
"For Gods sake, come away, Har-
greaves! I've had enough of this for
one dayw
tried to say it calmly, but my blood
was as water. He looked up with
quizzical smile.
IF didn't know you so we'll, I'd say
you We're in blue funk. There is moth
ing to be afraid Of
He rose to his knees, and l took a
step toward him. The sliddering hiss
of the moving shale grew louder, and
stumbled and dropped my lamp AS
stopped to recover it coil of some
thing flexible and ropelike sprang up
and entangled us both like the moose Of
lasso With il cry of warning
threw myself backward. and in the Nj
certain flare of yellow lamplight l saw
Hargreaves struggling fiercely to free
himself. Then the horrible thing thai
enmeshed us frightened with a jerk,
and remember nothing more save an
endless plunge down the inclined plane
OF serpent scales to a kissing accom-
paniment that seemed to shrivel the
flesh on my bones while the thick dark
ness stifled me.
When ! opened my eyes, Hargreaves
was pouring undiluted whisky down
my throat from the neck of his pocket
flask. At my stranglings he desisted.
"There you are. Feel better?"
I'm all right" replied between
gasps. Where are WEI"
cat the bottom of the slide. How do
you suppose that rope came there?"
Some one must have been here be-
fore us and left it," said
Possibly, but l don't believe it,"
Hargreaves objected, and then asked
why he did not light his lamp.
His laugh was not mirthful. Cant
reach it. It's on the ledge ut the top Of
the slide-with yours"
Good Godn l gasped. "And the
packs and tools?"
Are right where we left them-in
the saltpeter mine"
There is point in peril beyond which
commonplace cowardice will not 60 At
the words which seemed to sound the
knall Of all hone | laughed
Il don't see the joke" said Har-
greaves, AID the darkness seemed to
muffie his voice
Don't you? Consider it for a mo-
ment. Six hours ago we were two un-
interesting units in world where
there is nothing unique, where every
thing is trite and hackneyed, and
now
"And now we are buried alive. It's
delightfully."- unhackneyed, but not al
together joyous. How many matches
have your
counted. IA dozen or more"
Good. have just three. You've
studied human nature a good bit. Why
Is it that man always neglects to
carry plenty Of matches on a trip like
this? Light one of your dozen and let's
see If this rope will burn"
l tried and failed. The matches
they were the explosive kind. war
ranted to stand in any climate-splut-
tered and gave forth an evil smell.
Hargreaves groaned
They're wet. Let me try one of
mine''
l acquiesced. glad enough to shift
the momentous responsibility. He had
better luck. and presently the frayed
ropes end was ablaZe. We examined
1T curiously by the light Of it's own
burning. 1t was of some coarse fiber
like jute, plated and saturated with
a bituminous substance which burned
like pitch
Ever see anything like it?" queried
Hargreaves.
NO"
took an eye sweep Of our new en-
compassments. We were in a lofty
gallery which intersected the black
creyice of the slide at right angles.
The crevice was rootless. so far as
we could see. held the torch while
Hargreaves tried n dash up the incline.
The vigor Of it carried him up few
feet. and then he mired and came
down in small avalanche of loose
Shale.
IF that's our only way out we're
done for" he declared. and hooking
echo flung back the words done for
IN a way TO make ones blood CONCEAL
What neNt?" | questioned.
There's nothing for it but to 60 on
While were measurably fresh and not
hungry. Wen take the rope along for
torches"
We coiled what we could secure of
the pitchy cord-the end Of it disap-
peared in pit near the foot of the
slide and was made fast out of reach
and set out along the great gallery
For an hour or more we kept the pace
through echoing vaults comparable to
the naves Of mighty cathedrals and
through others which answered to the
crypts thereof. Perils there were none
~ Il