The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-07-12
LADIES' DAY IN CARBURY MINE
BY CASPAR DAY.

tney saw the rudy SlnuuSe OF Ills
lamp streaming before him tasselwise
teen yards away from the women when
the improbable happened
The roof was low at that point, irreg-
ular and somewhat pitted with bowl
shaped hollows. In one of these jet
of gas ignited from his lamp. In an
instant the rocky way was lit with the
pure flame. Malukas lodged. ducked
past. then recovered himself and
| laughed.
The jet flared. waned. flared. grew
and dropped again, a magical frond of
fire. feeding itself upon thin air.
Look cried Grandma Zuius. all at
once
Malukas and Maryte turned, but SIR
delis had seen before they did. A fringe
OF flame was dancing eastward. riding
up the wind, advancing. leaping, re-
! treating. 1t Tapped the roof rock: it
was not fed from the single jet. but
bounded free.
The danger of the few is as nothing
when weighed against the safety of 200.
That is the unwritten law of the mines,
well and Loyalty held by every soul
who is worth his salt, from bosses to
door boys. Mikol threw his whole force
against the expected concussion; the
heavy door banged shut and latched
That he had shut himself in upon the
fiery side was a mere detail: he knew
well enough what was coming. In the
fraction of a second which remained
he hurled himself toward the two wo-
men.
Down. Down. On the groundr'
The check of the wind operated to
spread the floating gas, diluting it with
the utmost maximum of air. The dane
1r,<~ Iar, t<.,d .k
a living world of fire. The explosion
stunned and deafened one. Great tim
bers flew from their places like au-
tumn leaves in gale. Jumps, slabs.
nuggets of coal and sandstone rained
from walls and ceiling.
AS the shock threw him from his feet
Szirdelis had caught at cotton gown.
Scarcely conscious of his own purpose,
he had thrown his body across as much
of the light inflammable stuff as he
could gather in. Els hands found the
coiled hair and soft. round neck. and
met to shield them as he could The
girl, like himself. lay face downward.
The coat upon his back was thick and
of wooden stuff; protection good enough,
had he but time enough to wrap his
head in it, YET. hands extended. mo-
tionless, Mikol lay and bore the fire
The gas burned high, as usual; but
twice the flame swept him. hands and
ears and head. Half of his hair was
burned away; his neck had an ugly
scorch upon one side. Jumps of rock
rained down, bruising him.
Then the falling stones ceased. The
girl groaned and stirred. Mikolas, lift
ing his face cautiously. looked about
Stories, the advice of the experienced
men at his boarding house, came back
to the OTfPnhOrn i'm
brain cleared. He knew what was to
come
MY arm, my armr' cried the girl.
The Lithuanian words fell into a soft
moan.
With infinite difficulty Szirdelis raised
himself on an elbow. Crawl over to
the right-into the ditchr' he ordered.
THE timbers are on fire down there
and the gas comes back. There will be
another one yeti"
The girl shifted herself into the run
mel beside the track. The water was
cold, but she cried out only once and
lay down without flinching. The man
shielded her as before. He drew his
coat up over his head and hers They
waited
An unnatural hush lay through the
chambers and passages. Once in the
silence they heard a man groan. A
moment later, an iron bar clattered up
on a staple. A wooden door banged
open.
"Malukas." Mikol explained. HE
must have got out. But he ought not
To open the door. He will draw the
fire into the rest of the mine. Hurry,
hurry, and shut it, God, God, the loop
is full of gas! Does he not know
that?"
He is a coward" spoke the girl in
the ditch. HE will not shut it,
The gas Will suck out from"
Again the roar, the shock, the unbear-
able furnace
The second shock was many times
more violent that the first Yet as they
We're prepared for it. Mikol and his
charge suffered less than before. Twice
her dress caught fire, only to be beaten
out in the wet rubbish of the roadbed.
The wooden felt of Mikors .bootlegs
smoked before the heat abated, but the
pair took no alarm.
At an interval after the flash a sec
ond conclusion followed, but this time
without light. A splintering crash and
roar beat back from walls to roof
THE rock. 1t fell there by the door.
Perhaps Jonas got away, though"
What do we dor
Lie still and wait; there NAV be
more rock to come down, and here is as
safe as anywhere"
You are not hurt? Did the fire
touch your
We'll. my hair can grow again." re-
piled Mikol briefly. II will not have
TO get 1t cut this pay day"
'Skalsa." Economy
No doubt. Listen, All, 1t sounds so
far away, That was the gas again:
he has let 1t get up almost to the shaft.
by the sound. The draught sucks II out
of the chambers all the way along.
wherever there is a little Lord, but /
hope they had warning. those othersr'
How dark ii is, All the sticks are
blown out now, those that were burn
ing"
The better for us. Gas can come
again in half a minute. Now il will
not kindle for want of a spark"
Let me sit up. This water is cold.
cold. so l shiver in 1t and swallow my
breath"
Mikolas crept up upon the track. The
light iron rails were slipped somewhat
out of place as he felt for them with
his stiffening fingers. The girls wet
skirts brushed the rubbish of the road.
lie saar ter1.r ls. .-rs