The weekly examiner., 1901-07-06
the ladder for support, pulled himself ont of that watprv OraVo

the water was flowing in more rapidly
 now, and the large cavity at the bot tom being almost filled the torrent be-
 gan to rise in the shafts very fast. He had no time to ask any questions of his
 rescuer. All three were in great peril l The ladders were blazing above them
 and the water rising below them. With
 superhuman exertions they lifted Eric
 up. When they came to places where 1 the ladders were badly broken, they
 were obliged to use their utmost skill
 to move the body in safety. Once they
 were so long about starting up again
 that the water caught up with them,
 and Stuart, who was the last one, felt
 the torrent swirling around his feet.
 At last, after a struggle that left them completely exhausted, they reached the first drift from the bot tom. There was a wooden platform
 here, and the drift ran out into the sides of the hill several hundred feet.
 Stuart and his unknown rescuer lean ed a moment panting against the side of the wall, while Eric lay oE the plat form to all appearances lifeless. l "We can't stay here long," gasped i Stuart. See the water coming upr' ] h0 pOIutcu uOWA Cu0 D1dck we'll 1TOIn which they had climbed so painfully. The rushing water and the falling in of ore banks made a terrifying uproar about them.
 'We can get out on this level,' re- piled his companion.
 "What! How's that? We are 800 feet below ground here."
 '"The old Beury shaft opens into this drift. I walked in here this afternoon l myself. Here is where I heard you shout for help. There! Don't you feel that breeze blowing through the drift?'' Stuart turned his face and felt the 1 passing of a cool wave of air. And then it flashed across his memory that several years before, when a boy, he had himself climbed down into the old Beury shaft, which opened up on the side of the hill, and made his way to the level of the Davis mine where he now stood. The mines were some times connected in this way, though the abandoned passage would often be- come choked and blocked up by falling masses of ore.
 But there was no time to lose, even with this unexpected avenue of escape The two men caught up Erie and hur- ried as fast as their burden would al- low up the passage connecting the main with the deserted shaft After walking with their burden about POO feet the drift turned abruptly to the right and began to ascend sharply. It grew more difficult to carry Eric, but the danger from the water was now over. The old passage was really tunnel let into the side of the hill at d sharp incline instead of a shaft sunk down vertically from above. When they had reached point above the inn mediate reach of the water, they sank down exhausted again, and by the 1ickering light Stuart first noticed who his rescuer was.
 'I haven't any cards with me, but I'll introduce myself" he said in tone that made Stuart smile, and yet there was nothing fippant or lacking in seri- ousness about the man. T am the new minister at the church with the clock in the tower-St. Johns. I arrived in Champion two days ago. My name is Andrew Burke. You are MT. Duncan, the mine owner? I am glad to meet you"
 He reached out his hand, and Stuart took it, clasping it over the body of Erie. He felt strange thrill as he did so. Somehow the peculiar formaiity of the mans speech struck him as token of a special kind of strength. He seemed to feel that here was a man who, whatever his oddities, was pos sessed of qualities that were really very rare and valuable.
 sEI OIvEa vo11 my 1ifo or6 &I,o& oF friend here," he said. 'It all seems very strange to me, your appearance. l had given myself up for lost. should certainly have drowned if you had not appeared"
 ''Yes; think you would-that is, un- less you had left the body of your friend here, and you don't look like the kind of man to do that. But we ought to move on. We need to get him to the doctor as soon as possible. My appear ance here is very simple, and can tell that afterward. Shall we move on"
 Stuart eagerly assented. and they stumbled on up the tunnel. Their prog ress was very slow, for Eric was en- tirely a dead weight, aRd neither Stu art nor his companion was a powerful l man physically. They had gone but a short distance, however, when lights appeared farther up the shaft, and soon they were surrounded by a group of miners, accompanied by Dr. Saxon. 1
 There was no time for more than the l briefest explanations. The party took Eric from Stuart and the minister, and | soon they were standing out on the | side of the hill in the starlight. The l cool night air blew about Stuart, and | he thanked God for his life. Farther up on the hill heap of blazing ruins marked the place where the engine | house had stood, while at a distance the ladder hole smoked and famed like | a small volcano, showing that the tim- bers were blazing fiercely below.
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