The Pulaskian., 1919-12-12

I | said to myself, must mean death.
1t came with sudden crunching pain, a
swift tightening round my heart, as
! though black ropes were being dashed
tightly about it, squeezing out my
breath; then entire blackness engulfed
me and / knew no more.
y
How long 1 lay there in the darkness
I cannot tell. All I remember is
suddenly opening my eyes on intense
blackness and vaguely wondering
where I was. My head seemed entire
ly detached from my body, of which
SO far I was unconscious. But pres
emily the realization of it returned,
and involuntarily 1 tried to move
to find with a sort of Indifferent mild
surprise that it was impossible.
So there l lay, oddly content, in the
dark-the pungent smell of the earth
my only sensation, and my head use
lessly clear.
The remembrance of what had hap
pened began to grow in force and
| keenness and, of a sudden, the thought
of Calypso smote me like a sword |
! Spurred to desperate effort, stood
up on the instant and leaned against
rocky wall Miracle of miracles
[ could stand. [ was not dead, after
ali. I was not, indeed, so far as
could tell, seriously hurt. Badly
| bruised, of course-but no bones bro
ken. 1t seemed incredible, but it was
so. The realization made me feel
weak again. and l sat down with my
back propped up against the rock, and
waited for more strength.
Slowly my thoughts fumbled around
the situation. Then, as by force of
habit, my hand went to my pocket.
God be praised l had matches, and
| cried with thankfulness, out of very
weakness. But I still sat on in the
dark for a while. L felt very tired.
After thinking about it for long time,
I took out my precious matchbox,
which unconsciously / had been hug.
| ging with my hand, and struck q light,
| looking about me in daZed fashion.
The match burnt down to my fingers,
and l threw it away, as the flame
stung me. / had seen something of
my surroundings, enough to last my
tired brain for a minute or two. I was
at the bottom of a sort of creyasse,
a narrow cleft in the roeks which con-
tinued on in a slanting downward
chasm into the darkness. 1t was a
natural corridor, with a floor of white
sand. The sand had accounted for
my coming off without any broken
bones.
After another minute or two 7
struck another match, and 10 another
miracle. There was my lantern lying
beside me. The glass of it was bro
ken, but that was no matter. AS lit
the wick my hopes leapt up with the
flame. AT the worst l had light.
l swung my lantern aloft, seeking
the possibilities of a climb, but every
where it was sheer, without a ledge
or protuberanee of any kind to take
advantage of, and it was utterly de-
void of yegetation-not sign of a
friendly shrub or root to hold by.
/ had sense enough to know that I
was too tired to think proftably, and
drowsiness coming over me told me
that an hour or twos sleep would give
me the strength / needed to renew
with will and more chances of sue
cess my efforts to escape.
Light was too precious to waste, so
blew out my lantern, and, curling up
on the sand. almost instantly fell
asleep. But before l lapsed into I'M
| col, 7 1aI 90
one sustaining thought in the dark
ness-the assurance of Calypso's safe
ty, so confidently announced by her
| father: "Don't be afraid for her. /
know my daughter" Whatever hap
pened to me, she would come out all
right. AS her brave shape flashed be-
fore my minds eye, down there under
the earth, I could have no doubt of
that.
My instinct had been right in giving
way to my drowsiness, for / woke up
from my sleep new man. How long
I had been there, of course, had no
means of knowing; but fancy I must
have slept a good while, for l felt so
refreshed and full of determination to
tackle my escape in good earnest.
l had hardly relit my lantern when
its rays revealed something which 1t
seemed impossible for anyone with
eyes, however weary, to have over
looked.
In the right-hand corner of the
little cavern, five or six feet above my
head. was a dark hole, like the en-
trance to a tunnel, or, more properly
speaking good-sized burrow-for ii
was scarcely more than yard in d.
ameter. 1t seemed to be something
more than mere cavity in the rock
for, when / flashed my lantern up to
it / could see no end To climb up
to 1t at first seemed difficult; but
| nuidnntiallu had q stout cIaSr