Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-22
CHAPTER VII.
"Within the Lofty Tomb."

10QlTGy optlleu eyes W Aai.N Afs.A'S--
lying on the grassy slope of Ormfell. star
ing up at the night sky. with 1drfs kneeling
beside HIM cool sensation was playing
around his neck, aid gradually waking up
to the reality of outward things the sur
geon discovered that his vest and collar lay
open to the breeze, and that Idris was
sprinkling his face with cold water drops
obtained from pool close by.
Coming to a little, 1 see.'' Idris observed
cheerfully. How do you feel?'
"Awfully queer and dizzy" replied God
frey.
He lifted himself to a sitting posture, ut
terly unable to account for his present
dazed condition.
You'll be all right in few minutes.
Take pull at this spirit flask; thatll re-
yive you. / owe my life to you, old fellow"
'In what way?" asked Godfrey, his mind
still too confused to recall the recent acci-
dent.
Gaseous vapor would have claimed its
victim Your grandfather was quite right
in asserting this to be a carboniferous soil.
Some of the coal gas has issued to the
surface. The atmosphere within the hill
lock was a mixture of carbon dioxfde and
floating fire damp. Foolishly creeping about
with mouth held to the ground, took In
such Whit of the one as to be quite over
powered Dy II before l. ndQ tlIfi0 10 fiSep
while the other exploded as soon as you
struck the match.
Godfrey, now quite alive to the past, gave
an ejaculation of annoyance.
I'm a pretty doctor not to have warned
you against noxious vapors! It's a marvel
we are both alive. But why was not over
Eowered?'
Probably because you were not holding
your face to the earth where the gas col
lects. though very likely you, too. would
have Succumbed In a few moments. How
ever, alls well that ends we'll Your strik-
ing a light was fortunate thing, for 1t APP
pears to have acted like an electric dis
charge in instantly clearing the air. True,
you were stunned, but l recovered; whether
instantly by the explosion, or more slowly
by the purifying atmosphere, cannot tell
All l know is / awoke, and realizing what
had happened, and feeling you beside me,
lost no time In dragging you out into the
open air. And here we are, none the worse
for our experience, 1 trust. No doubt 1t
was occurrences like this that caused the
old Norsemen to believe that Odin guarded
the tombs of the dead by darling forth
flames"
THE fires of the Asas are real enough.
after ALL, muttered Godfrey, still feeling
like one in a dream. Hasn't the sound of
the explosion brought any one here?'
1T seems not" said Idris. looking round.
so far we are safe. Old Orm offers a stub
dead. yet fighteth.' But he is doomed to be
defeated, for 1 will not 20 until 1 have ex-
amined the interior of the hiliock."
You are not thinking of venturing into
that deathtrap again?' said Godfrey,
aghast.
There is no danger now; at least. not
from gases. The explosion dissolved them,
and the outer air has had time to penetrate
within. Besides, forewarned is forearmed.
We know our peril If one OF US should be
overpowered, the other must drag him
out"
How can you make an investigation
xxyit n Hvnt
I'VE shall have light enough. Fortunate
~ You snapped the lid Of the box tight
before striking your match-an action that
effectualIy screened the remaining two
from the flame of the fire-damp."
1.-TWO matches will not help US much"
There you're wrong. We will take some
of this brushwood inside and light a bon
fire. and the sooner we make a beginning
the better. It's 2 o'clock now. In another
hour or SO day will be dawning"
Inwardly grooming at the perversity of
his friend, Godfrey lent a hand In collecting
the materials necessary for the fire, and
through the dark passage into the NOR
tuary chamber, the atmosphere of which,
as his nostrls assured him, had become
considerably clarified since his previous
visit.
Fearing that the two matches when kin
died might expire before he could fire the
twigs, which were damp with the after
moons rain, Idris drew forth small book,
to detach leaf after leaf, twisting them
into spirals. These he handed to Godfrey,
enjoining him to keep a flame alive by
kindling one from another till the twigs
should have fairly caught.
Now to strike the fateful match" he
said. pray heaven the Asas do not give
US another pyrotechnic display"
He cautiously struck the match. God
frey instantly kindled one of his paper
spirals from the flame.
mo fireworks this time, you see," re-
marked Idris. as all remained quiet. 'This
is what may be called making light Of
Shakespeare" he added, as. taking the kin
died papers one after another from God
frey's hand. he applied them to the leaves
and twigs. endeavoring to force them into
blaze.
The pale. blush glare that sprang up
made the chamber family visible. Idris
intent on his task Of ignition, saw nothing
but the, brushwood before him. but God
frey could not refrain from casting a timid
gushing the lighted paper In his hand
There was, however nothing very dread
full in the scenes before him. He found
himself standing in a chamber about
twenty feet square. the sides of which
were composed of rough-hewn blocks of
masonry, glistening with moisture and dot
ted with patches of fungous growth The
roof was formed by layer of tree-trunks,
necessarily of great size and strength I'm
order to support the vast weight above
The floor seemed to be Of earth, Its surface
glimmering here and there with tiny black
pools. formed by the constant dropping Of
moisture from the roof.
But the treasures deposited of old by
Hilda the Alruna for her son, Magnus of
Deira-where were they? Well for Idris
that he had not set his heart on finding
them, for the chamber was bare save for
one object in the center This was the sar-
cophagus-like structure against which God
frey had collided when looking for Idrfs'
body. BY the Pickering light he could see
that this receptacle was Of oblong shape.
the sides consisting of four upright stone
slabs let into the earth, with a fifth one
resting upon them like lid.
Idris had now succeeded I'm his task and
the twigs and branches blazing up cast
over Tire chamber rudy glow sufficiently
BRIGHT for the taking of observations
This Is better than a lantern: I warrant
che place hasn't looked SO cheerful for cen.
turies." remarked Idris, as he stood by
the blaze and took survey Of the cham
Der.
Cheerful at present. perhaps, but In ten
minutes we shall be smoked OUT
think not. This fire will burn bright
and clear presently, and viii give out little
smoke" o
Taking up lighted brand from the Gre
lQri5 moved forward and hnean HE fpvaofl