The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1914-06-08

road to death!
At length I gave up the useless
struggle, and without q word returned
to my seat. There was no need for
words-at least mono that could i'm.
aglne, unless Perry desired to pray.
What can we do?" I asked. hiding
my perturbation beneath the mask of
a low and level voice.
I'VE may stop here, and die of
asphyxiation when our atmosphere
tanks are empty" replied Perry. ''or
We may continue on with the slight
hope that we may later sufficiently
defect the prospector from the ver-
teal to carry us along the arc Of .
great circle which must eventually
return US to the surface.
III we succeed In 30 doing before
we reach the higher Internal tem-
perature we may yet survive. There
chance In several million that we
shall Observation-Disclosures we shall die
more quickly. but no more surely
than as though we sat supinely wait.
ing for the torture Of a slow and hor-
rible DEATH"
glanced ut the thermometer. It
registered one hundred and ten de-
grees. While we were talking the
mighty iron mole had bored Its way
over n mile into the rock Of the
earth's crust.
Let us continue on. them" I re.
piled. TT should soon be over at this
speed Of this thing would be 20 high.
Perry. Didn't you know TT"
mo-" he answered. II could not
figure the speed exactly. for I had
no instrument for measuring the
mighty power Of my generator.
reasoned. however. that we should
make about five hundred yards an
hour"
And we are making seven miles
an hour" I concluded for him, a.
sat with my eyes upon the distance
crust. Perry?" I asked.
"There are almost az many con-
lectures an to that az there are geol-
oSists," was his answer. "One esti-
mates II thirty miles. because the in
ternal heat. increasing at the rate Of
about one degree to each sixty to
seventy feet deep. would be sufficient
to fuse the most refractory cub
stances at that distance beneath the
surface.
Another fnds that the phenomena
OF procession and mutation require
that the earth, II not entirely solid.
must at least have a shell not less
than eight hundred to q thousand
miles in thickness. So there you are.
You may take your choice"
And II It should prove solid?" I
asked.
at will be all the same to us In
the end. David" replied Perry. AT
the best our oil fuel will suffice to
carry US but three or four days. while
our atmosphere cannot last to exceed
three. Neither. then. Ii sufficient to
bear us In safety through eight thou
sand miles OF rock to the Antipodes."
"If the crust Ii Of SUFFICIENT thick
ness we shall come to final stop be-
tween six and seven hundred miles
beneath the earth's surface: but dur
ing the last hundred and nifty miles
of our journey we shall be corpses.
Am correct ?" I asked.
"Quite correct, David. Arc You
frightened?"
II do not know. 1t has all come
30 suddenly that scarce believe that
either of us realize the real terrors
of our position. ! feel that I should
be reduced to panic: but yet l am
not. I imagine that the shock has
been 80 great as to stun our sens-
bilitiea."
Again turned to the Thermometer.
pidity. 1t was now but 140 degrees,
although we had penetrated to a
depth Of nearly four miles. told
Perry. and he smiled.
1--WE have shattered one theory at
least" was his only comment. and
then he returned to his self-assumed
occupation of fuently cursins the
steering wheel.
once heard a pirate swear. but
his best efforts would have seemed
like those Of tyro alongside or
Perry's mastorful and scientific i'm
precautions.
Once more I tried my hand at the
wheel. but I might as we'll have
essayed to swing the earth itself. At
nv suggestion Perry stopped the
generator, and as we came to rest l
again threw all my strength Into
supreme effort to move the thing
even a hairs breadth-but the re-
suits were as barren as when We had
been travelling at top speed.
l shook my head sadly. and mo-
toned to the starting lever. Perry
pulled II toward him, and once again
we were plunging downward toward
eternity at the rate OF seven miles
an hour. / sat with my eyes glued
to the thermometer and the distance
meter. The mercury was rising very
SLOWLY now, thougn even AT 40 Us
grees 1t was almost unbcarable with.
in the narrow confines OF our metal
prison.
About noon, or twelve hours after
our start upon this unfortunate jour
ney, we had bored to a depth OF
eighty-four miles. at which point the
mercury registered 1853 degrees.
Perry was becoming more hopeful
though upon what meagre food hi
sustained his optimism l could MOI
conjecture. From cursing he haC
J turned to singing. felt that the