The Irish standard., 1915-05-29

Inese carriers was PLAIN, but was he
alive now? Perhaps these messengers
had been dispatched by him shortly
after his disappearance and before hun
ger had made an end of him. My little
brother Charley's vision then was true.
My parents bitterly reproached them
selves for not having given heed to that
strange vision, which they now regard
ed as a special and miraculous interpo-
sition Of Providence. I advised that
Charley should be sent for at once in
order that we might examine him more
carefully about what he had seen. The
coachman, saddling one of the horses.
galloped off straight, taking with him
to my uncle hastily scrubbed note,
and just caught the mail car which was
on. point of starting from the village of
Dun-Beacon. He returned the next day,
bringing Charley with him. Meantime
the police and coast guards were COM
municated with. and the whole country
side was in motion. I and my next
brother Sam, attended by some work
men, went off at once to the hill in which
was the "Devil's Parlor.' We had
with us candle and matches and a
very long rope. When we arrived there,
we shouted down the mouth of the
chasm. We did this repeatedly without
hearing any reply. This expected, for
I had shouted down there before. I then
knotted the end of the rope round my
chest and had them lower me into the
cleft. Soon was in dense darkness.
The flue, if I may call it so, was at first
crooked and ragged, then. descended
sheer, SO that I was in ,nidair and could
touch nothing with my hands. At an
other time might have been afraid,
but the hope of rescuing Jack drove out
fear. At length I felt my feet touch
ground, gravel as I knew by the feel
and the noise. shouted, but there was
no response. l struck match and lit
my candle. Almost the first thing l saw
was Charley's cakes lying about. did
not count them. Had done so the dis
covery and rescue of Jack might have
come sooner and by different way.
The fact was that the avenue by which
| had descended was blind alley, not
the true way into the Devils Parlor."
The place in which L now found myself
was not at all what had expected. 1t
was like small room walled with rock
and paved with gravel. There were
only bones Of animals here and the
cakes which poor Charley fancied had
been eaten by Jack. gave the pre-
arranged signal-a jerk at the rope
and was slowly drawn up out of this
dark den. Till now all believed that
the DEVILS Parlor" was a huge sub
terranean cavern. Five miles farther
on there was similar cleft leading into
another cavern toward the west of I'M
known depth. We went thither, and l
descended that too. Here I came near
to being drowned. It communicated
with the sea and was filled at the bot
tom with salt water, into which, with
out seeing it, was lowered, and in
fact fell with a souse. BY the slack
ness of the rope those above concluded
that had reached the bottom. Though
l tugged vigorously at the rope they
were not aware of it. could not tug
strongly while was swimming, and
then the great length of rope rendered
it, suppose, less sensitive. Here, too,
all the way down and up again shout
ed at intervals and heard no response
1t was night when we returned home.
No sign of Jack had been discovered by
any one that day. The coast guards
had been out since morning visiting the
rocks and islands, of which there were
several in the neighborhood, and had
been as unsuccessful as myself. When
awoke next day, it seemed to me that
had caught very bad cold. I got up
nevertheless, but the moment my moth.
er saw me she ordered me to my room.
l refused to go. and my father had to
exert his parental authority in a very
stern manner before I could be got to
obey. In the afternoon Charley arrived.
l was aware OF the fact, but of little
more, for by this time the fever had so
grown upon me that I was beginning to
be unconscious. After this remem Der
no more till began to be convalescent
after severe attack of brain fever.
The searching for Jack had gone on
without me during the remainder of
October and the beginning of November
while I lay at deaths door. But the
searchers had found no sign or trace of
my brother. The police were utterly
nonplused. heard that a very clever
detective had been sent down from Dub
lin, but after wasting fortnight had
returned, saying that we were all mad.
l heard, too, that during all these weeks
little Charley regularly every second
day, wet or fine, used to go to the ''Dev-
ills Parlor" and roll down his brown
cake. My mother made no objection.
He still continued to do it even after l
began to move about and after l had
declared to him that there was nothing
at the bottom of the cavern but gravel,
bones and the bread which he was
wasting. began to think of forcibly
restraining him from this practice, for
it was killing my mother, who used to
weep for long time after she had Civ
en- him his cake and seen him off. The
neighbors watched him with the utmost
compassion, and indeed l have never.
seen anything so pathetic.
"Was it said in your dream that Jack
was in the DEVILS Parlor, - asked
him.
"No," he said, "but believe that
he is there without being told. I told
myself"
When was sufficiently convalescent
to be able to move about again, organ
lied search party of my own. I be-
lieve we visited every cave and nook
along the coast for Is miles on either