Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-01-14

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too much confused to give attention
to the sagging tree.
"All ready" called the professor,
and Shorty began to lift.
He had not raised the professor
more than a few feet from the ledge
when suddenly the ground around the
tree gave way. Down it went into the
hole with Shorty, the roots dragging
along a lot of earth.
The awfulness of it struck dumb us
boys around the mouth of the pit.
One had enough left to run off
to the farmers house for help. The
others could do nothing. They were
paralyzed. They hardly dared to call
down for fear they should get nc n
Swer.
When the tree gave way the profess
sor fell fiat on the ledge, and the next
moment found himself in a storm Of
loose stones and dirt. He shook him.
self free and stood up. "Pm all right,
Clough. What happened?" he called
up.
That's the professor! That's the
professor" screamed the boys. Shorty
fell in, sir! Where is he?"
"What?"
Shorty fell in with the tree and the
rope"
The professor could not quite under
stand. The boy was not there on the
ledge. The water! His heart nearly
stood still at the thought. The pro-
fessor scrambled off the ledge and tried
to climb down where they had all
gone down before; but that was i'm
possible in the smoke. He made his
way desperately back to the ledge.
Boys" he called, run to the farm
house for a ladder and rope! Run!
It's a matter Of life and death. Hurry"
The professors head throbbed with
fearful pain from the smoke and the
shock. His eyes were nearly blind.
But, "The boy! The boy! l must
save the boy! l can't go back without
him!" This was his thought.
He remembered that the water was
directly under the ledge. He could
drop into it. Drop into that smoking
pit, that foul, Shiny pool! How could
he be sure there were not rocks under
its scum? Even if he did not strike
anything harder than water, could he
survive the shock? The drop was 30
feet or more. Was it not sure death
from s%uffocation or drowning?
He thought of his young wife and
baby at home, and of his mother,
whose only child he was, and of his
hopes and ambitions, and of the good
he had hoped to do before he died;
but the duty nearest at hand was
that OF saving a young life. "That
boy was trying to save me. God COM
fort my dear ones if I am lost"
With that he crawled over the edge
of the ledge and let himself down by
his hands as far as he could, and
dropped down - down - down. He
struck the water feet first, and down
he went.
Then his extended arm struck some
thing-something soft!
THAT can't be bottom" he thought.
"Clough! 1t may be Clough!" He
clutched at the object. 1t was the body
OF Shorty. Working with feet and
loose arm, he found himself mounting
to the surface, but it seemed to be an
eternity before his head was again
above water.
His free hand touched the tree which
had gone down with Shorty, and he
pulled on it, and it helped him to drag
Shorty out of the water on to the rock.
Here the air was not so thick with
as higher up in the cave. On
the floor there was a deep layer of
almost pure air, and it was not alto
gether dark down there to eyes that
had grown accustomed to the dimness.
The professor examined Shorty anx-
He could not hear his heart
beat. No breathing! The lungs full
of water!
HE is dead! I was too late!"
mcaned the professor. 81 hesitated too
long. The boy is drowned. How can
L face his parents? Speak to me,
Clough! Speak to me, my boy!"
He began to rub Shorty's hands and
to work his arms frantically. He held
him up head down so that the water
could run out of his mouth. He knelt
him and worked with the motions
for resuscitating the drowned. The
professor never had any clear idea how
long he worked on Shorty before he
noticed a light coming down the pit.
Are you hurt?" said a strange
voice. 1t was the farmer. He had
brought a rope and fastened it to one
OF the large trees, and had come down
on it. "Boy drowned! Choked, more
Come, he must be got to the
air at once!"
He tied the rope round shorty's body
under the arms. Then he shouted to
us, and we raised the helpless body of
the pride of the school-our strong
Shorty. The professor was next lift
ed, and was no o n stood upon his
feet than he toppled over unconscious.
But Shorty's was a different case.
We worked a long time on him before
we felt any hope. At last, though.
there were signs of life, and finally,
to the great joy of all, he opened his
eyes.
ooh, my leg! my leg!" was the first
thing he said. The professor examined
MS legs and found, what had not been
before, that his right leg was
broken above the knee, a very bad
fracture.
HE must have struck there on the
edge Of the LEDGE" said the professor,
who had fully recovered his senses, al
feeling very sick and sore and
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