The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1916-05-12
E5loDED MIST
N TILE OF CIVIL STRIFE Y.
|GRANDALL PARRISH "
|Eg5I2AAIIoNS 3rcDRHoDE5
| Cc00NauT -========sZ=
II ,SAecLDPC k(0

voice answered from the vestibuIe,
out he went outside. think he was
touched a little in one arm"
PITY is wasn't in the mouth; has
anyone seen a womau?"
No one answered.
No! That's strangei Here Green.
take a couple of men, and feel your
way along the walls; Jasper. make
llght OF some kind-whO wants me?
Colonel Moran? Tell him am the
only officer present, and | can't leave.
By God! The place is a shambles!"
The searching party was to the right
OF me, against the black shadow of
the wall. This was my chance. my one
and only chance to slip away unob-
served. In five minutes more the
searching party would find me there,
and bear me along with the others. /
Wrlggled out from under the weight of
the body lying across my legs. and
CROPPED about in the dark until my fin.
gers encountered the ring embedded
In the floor. The light of the sputter-
Ing torch still left the pulpit platform
in shadow; Fox was at the other end
OF the church, his sharp voice rasping
out orders. ! got to my knees. and
| lifted the trap barely far enough to
squeeze through. There was a CLEAN
OF light below; sufficient to reveal the
dark outline of the steps leading down.
Some eye might distinguish the glim.
mer yet | thrust my body through the
narrow opening noiselessly. and low
/ cred the cover to the floor level.
There was no cry, no sound indicat.
ing that the movement had been OBJ.
served. | waited an instant, crouched
breathlessly on the upper step, listen,
ing. My eyes surveyed those contract.
ed surroundings curiously. The candle
a mere fragment, burned dimly In one
corner, revealing what appeared to be
the interior of huge box, with a
platform built half across 1t, It's outer
edge protected by a low rail. A small
wheel ingeniously arranged to operate
a lever, occupied one end of the plat
form, and directly across was an open
ing In the side wall next the floor
barely large enough for mans body
to squeeze into. Nothing else was
visible; no evidence left Of the two
who had already passed that way.
slipped down the steps, lowered
my body silently to the damp floor.
entered the hole head first, dragging
and pushing with hands and feet, eager
to get quickly into the open. Almos
before | realized the possibility, M
head and shoulders emerged into thu
outer air and | hung suspended oyeI
rock ledge, staring blindly down In
to the unknown depths of a ravine
The ledge itself was barely wide
enough to afford foothold, yet | sue
ceeded in creeping out upon 1t, ant
then in standing upright. The shoul
der of the hill was sufficiently steel
and high to shut out all view of tn,
log walls of the church, while below
was a black void, out from whicl
arose the faint splashing Of distan
water. But the church itself mus
have been lit up by this time, for
reddish glow of light tipped the banl
above, and bridged the dark ravine
The rock ledge extended to the right
a fairly smooth path, and | followed
cautiously, finding no other availabl
passage. II led gradually downward
until it seemed to merge into a beate
! track, running directly south throug
a tangle of underbrush not far abov
the stream. The way was intensel
! black. yet not difficult to follow by tn
, sense of touch, while the incessan
roar of the nearby water blotted out a
sound from above. Once | heard tn
crack of guns, but they sounded at
distance, and looking up, | could Pc
, ceive the red reflection on the tree
lining the bank far above. But fo
these was plunged In black sol
tude, through which l must grope m
way, each step liable to plunge m
into uncertain peril A hundred yard
|, two hundred, and the trail swerve
, more to the right, and began to mour
; upward, zig.zagging among the tree
Slowly, cautiously, my head aros
above the crest, and the moon, jus
. peering out from behind the edge of
cloud, gave me glimpse along the Levi
plateau.