The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1915-12-09
THE LAUGH IN DEVILS CULCH"
A HALF-TOLD TALE
By Beau EsDrita.
Continued from last aoeek.)

/ skrted the face of the great rock. at each step
sinking ankle deep in the drifted sand that on the
outward side came clear up to it's base and entered
the fateful gulch. From the mouth. it ran in be-
tween the great bluff rising almost perpendicularly,
far into the clear blue OF the late afternoon sky and
the rongher and more gradual slope of the neghbor-
ing rock formations, for probably three thousand
feet without turn or even much an angle be-
hind which might have concealed himself
Taen it turned abruptly toward the isolated block
narrowing to few feet in width at the bottom the
wall still perpendicular the one side and sloped
on the other. AS turned this corner and stopped
to look up at the sides of the guch noticed that
the top OF the soped side was slightly higher in one
place than the top of the square rock l took par
tcular notice of this, for at all other points the rock
was higher than the opposite wall, or any of the
nearer peaks. This struck me as being decidedly
curious for the rock bad evidently at one time been
part OF and joined to the surrounding hills What
strange mood had prompted nature to wear down
the parent mountain while leaving this gigantic off
spring unscathed to tower over it? This unusual
formation led to train of thought. In all of
the reports the terrible laughter was associated with
the gulch IN which stood, yet this all appearances
was but simple assure in the rock, probably caused
by volcanic action-at about the glacial age l should
say from the different strata showing in the side
waIls-the most unusual features of which were the
absence of any outbranching ravines or even any
deep depresslons in the walls and the fact that the
isolated rock appeared to be greater than the noun
tain from which it had been severed. Was it not
possible then, nay probable, that the strange phe-
nomenon of the demoniac laughter was connected
rather, IN some way with this curious bluff? And
might not the solution of the mysterious source of
the laughter lie, not in the gulch, but on top of the
rock? As thought this out went carefully over
both sides of the gulch exploring for hidden caves
or possible trail to the top
1t was impossible to think of scaling the per-
pendcu1ar wall of the ravine, so my attention was
directed mostly toward the opposite side [ found
nothing of interest in the open stretch of the gulch
leading to the mouth, and had covered nearly all of
the Tuner bend, where it narrowed down to a mere
crack in the rock where l could almost touch both
sides, when came upon the ashes of a campfire and
beside them knapsack
Believe me. stranger, my heart gave queer
jump at the sight of them There was not SIGN of
place in the gulch where a man could be concealed
from me, nor had seen any evidence, so far, to in
dictate that the place had ever been visited by bu
man being. There had not BEEN so far as I had
seen, any signs of gold in the ravne either though
it was the reputation of Its containing rich lode
that had lured the men from Gold Hill into the
Gulch.
So when saw this dead fire, and the knapsack
beside it, | was bit more than surprised picked
up the sack and turned it Marked on the side
with black paint, the initials W. p Funny
how when man gets all keyed up in the hunt for
something mysterious his mind don't seem to take in
the obvious conclusions about anything For a
minute had been scared, downright frightened.
thinking someone else in the Gulch with me-
and all kinds of surmises about who lie ,oud he and
why he was there, racing through my mind. and
never thinking that the sack might have been left by
some OF those knew had been in the Guch before &
me. Aud when saw Professor Pierces initials on
the sack sure was relieved
i en.ptled it out the rock floor Some timed
food, blanket, camp dishes, and note book was
what the professor had brought with hm-except for
the note book just what had myself
The note book the professors diary. Begin
nng with his start on the investigation of the Gold
Hill insanity epidemic Most of it told inst what
I've been telling you from my own experience. only
lot better than I've told it. But the last entry
told about part of the night the professor spent in
the Guch About midnight he was Weakened NV ono :
OF those quick hunderstorms just like the first party
the one that camped outside the ravine, told about;
and then he heard the Laugh of Devils -Gulch.
tie described it horrible laughing scream. COM
ing from somew here over his head and rising in,
pitch and volume till it almost deafening. then
ending sharply in awful gurge. as though some-@