The Holly chieftain., 1901-08-16
CHAPTER n-(continued.)

CHAPTEH A-(COnt1nued.l
The sun went down. the daylight
waned. Exhaustion told the man be-
low to cease and 60 to his cabin. Hav-
ing loaded the bucket he labored slow
Iy up the vertical climb on the ladder.
The Indian glidcd nearer to the edge.
He could hear every step on the rungs
of the ladder. coald ever detect the
sound Of the roughened hands grasp
ing the wood. Leaning far over, he
saw the candle. fastened on the miners
hat Nearer, nearer 1t slowly came.
flickering. throwing goblin shadows
against the somber walls. contendinx
family against the encompassinx
gloom.
The shaft was now alive with hollow
echoes Of the labora OF the man., On
came the light. 1t was 10 fest 1way-
iHwas i've feet-two. The head and
~ light emerged above tho yawning
DchAsm.
With movement swift, strong.
snahe-hke. Mfn9o thrust out his pow
erful hand. It came across the min
Spr's eyes and nose: then the head was
Nrenched quickly, violently backward.
The hands, surprised, tried to cling,
but failed. They loosened. waved Wild
~. clutched at the air, and then, with
the body and head. were overtoppled.
Headlong, twisting. turning. the man
was hurled to the swallowing abyss.
The light on the hat gave forth the
sound Of flame In the wind and was
gone-plucked on by the rushing dark
ness! A shrek issued forth from the
mouth Of the tomb.
Susie! little Susie!" was the cry.
Sounds OF a striking-a bounding
back and forth. DULY, against the
Jagged sides-a crash at the bottom
and silence deeper than stiffness en-
sued.
The door swung open and Mingo, the
Washoe. glided forth and away in the
twilight. into the sage brush; and a
rabbit would have made a greater
rustic.
The stiffness Of midnight. a seeming
attribute of masses Of shadows that
crouched from the waning moon, be-
hind the rocks. the brush and every
salient thing, was timidly broken. The
creak In the hinges OF the mine cabin
dqQr sounded weirdly clear-a wall,
omen. thought the Indian girl. An
lkwssome darkness filled the silent
shed. Susie. on her knees. went creep
ing. feeling with her hands for the
edge Of the shaft There she clutchsd
the windlass post. and leaned her
! breast against It.
NFrank." she cooed. In a low, sweet
tone that wavered with the effort made
to keep it cheerful, Frank, my sun
shine-Frank.'' .f5
No sound save that piece Of rock,
somewhere down along the pick
SCARED walls Of the shaft, loosened and
fell. down and down, striking the sides
with diminishing sounds, till 4 ghostly
echo announced its bottom rest. Then
deeper silence.
Dear one. are you there?" she called
again; but the sound Of her voice. re-
bounding on herself. made her fright
ened and awed.
Pressing her heart against the post
again, to still its audible humping, she
sat = moment in dread. Suddenly,
then, strengthened by the thought that
he might be there, wounded, perhaps,
and needing her sadly. down In the
gloom Of the yawning mine. she
CROPPED her way to the ladder. Moan
Ing Of instinct, there In the darkness,
she slowly descended, down and down
in the mocking, echoing tomb.
In the utter blackness her hands
discovered his face, and she cried
AID. till tho shaft was full Of an
q 6lsh.
A boneless mass. inert and fitted to
tho Jagged surface Of the loaded buck
ct Of ore, into which he had fallen, she
found. His head hung Imply athwart
Athe buckets edge; the eyes. which her
MA9ers sought, were closed.
Beside him. kneeling, she sank, to
moan and Groom. combing the dark,
curling hair with her fingers, kissing
the face-and seeing nothing. She
fancied that beat, slight and feeble,
lived in his breast. Calling his name,
she coaxed and wooed. and then, de-
spairing. stood up and prayed for
help.
God, IL the Indians. too, nave souls ("
she said, give my aching soul to him
let him live! Give me something,
Great Eternal spirit-something Of
hope!" y