Barbour County index., 1910-11-02

vertical iron ladder, fastened to the
wall outside of the ballroom, and per-
haps II feet high. The IL feet looked
short from below, but they were diff
ficult to climb. / gathered my silk
gown around me, and succeeded final
ly in making the top of the ladder.
Once there, however, 1 was complete
ly out of breath. sat down, my feet
on the top rung, and put my hair-pins
in more securely, while the wind bel
lowed my dressing-gown out like a
sail. I had torn a great strip of the
silk loose, and now 1 ruthlessly fin
ished the destruction of my gown by
jerking it free and tying it around my
head
Luckily, the roof was fiat, and 1
was able to go over every inch of it. But
the result was disappointing; no trap
door revealed itself, no glass window;
nothing but couple of pipes two
inches across, and standing perhaps
18 inches high and three feet apart,
with a cap to prevent rain from en-
tering and raised to permit the pas
sage of air. / picked up a pebble
from the roof and dropped it down,
listening with my ear at one of the
pipes; l could hear it strike on some
thing with a sharp, metallic sound,
but 1t was impossible for me to tell
how far it had gone.
L gave up finally and went down the
ladder again, getting in through the
ballroom window without being OBJ
served. I went back at once to the
trunkroom, and, sitting down on a
box, gave my mind, as consistently as
l could, to the problem before me. If
the pipes in the roof were ventilators
to the secret room, and there was no
trap-door above, the entrance was
probably in one of the two rooms be-
tween which it lay-unless, indeed
the room had been built, and the open.
ing closed with a brick and mortar
wall.
The mantel fascinated me. Made OF
wood and carved, the more l looked
the more I wondered that I had not
noticed before the absurdity of such
a mantel in such a place. 1t was Gov
cred with scrolls and panels, and fin.
ally, by the merest accident, I pushed
one of the panels at the side. II
moved easily, revealing a small brass
knob.
1t is not necessary to detail the
fluctuations of hope and despair, and
not a little fear of what lay beyond
with which I twisted and turned the
knob. 1t moved, but nothing seemed
to happen, and then 1 discovered the
trouble. 1 pushed the knob vigorous
ly to one side, and the whole mantel
swung loose from the wall almost a
| foot, revealing a cavernous space be
| yond.
1 took long breath, closed the
door from. the trunkroom into the hall
thank heaven, did not lock it-and
pulling the mantel-door wide open, ]
stepped into the chimney-room. 1 had
time to get hazy view of a small
| portable safe, common wooden table
and a chair-then the mantel door
swung to, and clicked behind me.
stood quite still for a moment, in the
darkness, unable to comprehend what
had happened. Then turned and beat
| furiously at the door with my fists
1t was closed and locked again, ant
my fingers in the darkness slid over 6
smooth wooden surface without a sigr
of knob.
was furiously angry-at myself, a
the manteldoor, at everything. 1 die
not fear suffocation; before the
thought had come to me had already
seen a CLEAN of light from the two
small ventilating pipes in the roof
They supplied air, but nothing else
The room itself was shrouded il
blackness.
l must have dozed off. I am sure
I did not faint. 1 was never more
composed in my life. 1 remember