Gilpin observer., 1911-06-15
CHAPTER XVI.
Footprints.

Footprints.
Nature had nothing to do with the
formation Of 1t, SO much was clear
enough. 1t had been cut out by hand,
and evidently with infinite labor
Flashing his bull's-eye over it did
not enable him to see the end OF 1t,
but 1t did reveal a series Of notches
running straight up the two opposite
surfaces. The only purpose they could
ascent Of the chimney.
Jeanne followed his gaze, and then
the two looked at each other, COM
pletely puzzled.
Some one must have made it." she
said; "and 1t must have been fright
fully hard to make tunnel right up
through the ice like that But what
In the world can they have made 1t
for?"
I've no idea." he confessed. but it
goes somewhere, and / mean to find
out where"
Don't follow 1t too far" she eau
TONED. 1T would only need one foot
slip OF one Of those icy notches to
bring about dreadfully ugly fall"
zone couldn't fall far down tube
Of that diameter, unless he had COM
pletely lost his nerve. for there's al
ways a chance to catch ones self. And
you're to remember that I'm used to
falling. No, I'll be as safe up there as
would on a turnpike. Yes, really"
With that and a nod Of reinsurance.
he scrambled up into the mouth Of the
long chimney. He had taken his
bull's-eye with him, so the girl was
left in the dark. She dropped down
on the heap of bear skins to wait for
him
She had no means OF measuring the
time. and 1t seemed perfectly in
terminable while before she heard
Cayley returning down the ice Chin
ney. Had she known how long 1t real
ly was, she would have been justified
in feeling seriously worried about Aim.
but not knowing, she attributed the
seeming duration Of his delay to the
tedium OF sitting in the dark, with
nothing to do. Even at that, she was
conscious Of feeling Of relief when
she heard him call out to her once
more. cheerfully. albeit somewhat
hollowly. from the chimney's mouth:
Jeanne. where are you?"
Here. just where you left me-"
Here! All the while, You must
be half frozen. I've been gone the
better part of an hour
Il didn't know how long it was, and
l kept thinking you'd be back any
minute. But where in the
world have you been?"
BY the time she asked that question
they had groped their way back into
the storeroom and thence into the liv-
ing room of the hut, and by now she
was looking at him in the full light of
day.
He dropped down. with a rather ex.
plosive sigh. upon one Of the hunks.
and poked tentatively at his thighs
and shoulders as II they were numb
with fatigue.
Il think by reasonable estimate"
he said. that chimney is Ave miles
high. l kept going and going and go
ing. till l began to believe that there
wasn't any end to It; or that, by some
magic or other. / slipped down a
yard as often as ] went up one. But
did get to the end at last; and I'll
give you thousand guesses as to
what I found there"
The observatory" she hazarded.
oh! but not really? l did not mean
that for an honest guess at all. It was
just the first thing that came into my
head. But how could they pull the
pilot house OF the Phoenix UP through
that little hole in the ice?H
Well. to tell the truth don't be-
lieve they did" he answered with
mocking seriousness. IT'S more like
ly that they took 1t to pieces, and then
rlgged boom and tackle up at the
clif-head and hauled 1t up outside.
But when they got 1t up there they
put It together again right across the
assure, and then tunnelled down, or
up. the whole depth OF the cliff. II
must have taken them weeks to do It,
and when It was done they had IN in.
side connection between It and the
hut, SO that they were quite indepen.
dent Of the weather. And It must
have been a great place to make OBJ
servations from"
Have been!" she echoed question:
ingly. isn't It nowf
No. because it's all showed and
frozen in. It's buried. l don't know
how many feet deep by this time. and
dark. Of course. ~ = pocket But