Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1909-08-25


If he could only find and turn on
an electric light, he might discover
some way of getting out. Dropping
to the floor, he found that on tiptoe
ne could reach the low ceiling. His
hands ran across the beams, and soon
brushed a wire. Then, Joy! his fin
gers touched bulb.
Trembling with hope, he snapped
the button; there was no light. Corey
sickened with disappointment. A
switch in the engine-room, he recol-
lected, controlled the entire circuit.
Suddenly he remembered that in
the middle of each floor were large
double trap-doors Perhaps he might
be able to find the first pair, and
push them open.
To save time and strength, he must
make his search systematic. Begin
ring at the stairs, he walked four
zen steps to the right, till his hands
touched a pile of boxes against the
wall. This gave him starting,point.
Turning, he paced back, past the
stairs, thirty steps in all. till he
reached another barrier. He now
knew the width of the cellar. Again
turning, he walked back half that dis
tanse, fifteen steps. If his calculations
were correct, there should be mid
die passage at right angles toward the
trap-doors. He stretched out his
hands, and found such passage.
Twelve steps along this he stumbled
w a heap of frozen herring. The
doors must be right overhead.
Crawling up the cold, slippery pile
he felt the seam between the doors.
lie tried to lift them, but could not.
Ills fingers. pushed up through the
crack, touched the bottom of box.
The goods had been piled there, as
well as above the stairs.
Charley slid down off the herring,
almost hopeless. He was trapped. II
he stood motionless, he would soon
freeze; yet he could not keep unin-
terruptedly active the next twelve
hours. To set his blood moving, he
began boxing vigorously with an i'm
aginary foe. An incautious step
ahead, and he skinned his knuckles
against box.
Then he began traversing the mar
row passages, hands over his head,
exploring the ceiling. He touched all
sorts of frozen things-barrels and
sacks of fish, beeves and lambs, hang
ing fowls.
At last damper, icier current de-
scended on his head, and his fingers
scraped a wire screen. 1t was what
he had been hunting for. the channel
by which the cold, radiating from
the upper pipes. reached the cellar.
Building with fresh hope a pyra-
mid of boxes, he climbed up, and
tried to lift the screen. 1t was fast
ened down. But the wire was small.
and he had stout knife. The
strands, brittle with cold, snapped
one by one, and at last the opening
was large enough. A moment later
he stood on the first floor.
Exultation warmed Corey little.
1t was, If anything. slightly colder
than below; but he felt infinitely
freer than in that terrible cellar.
Yet what had he actually gained?
His strength and courage were ebb.
ing fast. He had done all he could.
What for him now but to yield to
the drowsiness stealing over him?
Was there any other exit but the
doors? No The windows were in.
sulated like the walls. 1t was the
same on the second floor. But the
third
He began an agonizing hunt for
the stairs. He found them at last
and started to crawl UP, Right over
him was faint patch of grayish
light, almost bright by contrast with
the absolute gloom below.
1t was not SO dark on the second
floor. Charley could not stand up
Cllnging to his one idea, he crept to
the foot of the next fight.
That was a terrible climb. He seem
ed to have on lead-weighed diving
suit. Each step he thought would be
the las. When finally he sprawled
along the floor boards, his body was
almost stiff. Rousing for last eff
fort, he began to creep toward the
front of the building.
1t was tremendous change from
50 nty darkness to pallid lighs. The
clerks very brain seemed frozen; his
thinking was slow and painful. He
felt himself an old, old man, feeble
tottering, his eyes dim, his blood thir
and icy. 1t seemed years ago thai
he was in the cellar.
snailllike, agonizingly. he crawlet
by those terrible pipes. He felt al
if he were using somebody else
hands and fee.. The cold seemed t.
hold him back, closing round hin
like thick, clogging garment. HI
moved as If stemming an invisible
current. The chill could have BEEF
no deeper in the sunless heart OF
glacier. Beams and posts were Ii
chened deep with frost flowers, whit
and ghostly.
The dim light grew brighter. HI
rounded a corner, and window az
peared the goal for which he ha
been striving. Had he strength lef
now to grasp his only hope Q
safety?
There were three windows, on
outside the other, with a screen c
coarse wire before them to keep tn
panes from being broken. Pushin
his fingers through the screen. Cha
ley pulled himself to his feet. b
yond the iced panes he caught dir
glimpse of the street. An electri
car flashed by. On the opposite CO..
ner stood policeman, swinging hi
night-sticls, his badge glittering. TIL
clerk must tear off the screen, smas
! the window, and attract the officer
attention. He shook the wire wit
all his might. 1t seemed immovabls
He shook it again with sudden az
cess of strength: but still it resis
ed. Hooking his fingers deepe
through the coarse meshes, he sagge