The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1921-12-30

dim figures stealing down the roat
that led to the bench below, / hearC
Daddy say: "Now, what In the nam,
o Jehoiachim-"
He had turned away from his peep
hole and | could sense, rather than see
that he was rubbing his eyes. Then
realized that upon me, also, a sudder
blindness had fallen; the interior o.
the shafthouse had become as darl
as the inside Of a pocket. The effecI
vas so Supplying that 1t took botf
of us a minute or so to understand
that some change as yet undefnabl(
had been wrought either In us or In
our surroundings during the noisy In,
terlude.
"Great Jehu I" exclaimed the old
man-though he was within arms.
dim shadow-"Great JehuI IL b1ieve
I'm goin' blind, Stanniei II cant
see nothin' a-talll u
"DOn't worry" l FASTENED to say
I'm In the same boat. We've been
looking too long and steadily through
those auger-holes. It'll pass In a min
ute"
But 1t didn't pass and presently the
voice of my old side partner came
again out Of the darkness.
"P'raps It's cloudin' up some," he
suggested in a half-whisper. II can't
see no stars through them windows"
At this l looked toward the window
AnAnfnnc hut tho fnfarfOr hIa o1rpaCc
had blotted them put completely. AL
most %instinctively I turned back to the
door and put an eye to a loophole.
One glance was enough. The trouble,
whatever 1t might be, was with us and
not with the sky. The stars were
shining as brightly as ever.
Don't move, Daddy" I cautioned.
and then CROPPED my way along the
wall and climbed to the top Of our
~earth-sack breastwork at a point which
/ guessed to be under the nearest of
the two windows.
When / drew myself up and tried to
thrust a hand through the opening
the mysterious darkness was ex-
planned. The window embrasures were
stopped up, both Of them, on the out
side by something hat felt like q
heavy canvas curtain, though how the
curtain was held in place / could not
determine. But 1t vas firmly braced
in some way. With all the purchase
l could get-which wasn't much-I
couldn't dislodge it or push 1t aside.
Making my way back to the door
I told Daddy what 1 had found.
"Huh !" he said "that old tarpaulln
that was out yonder In the ore shed.
How dye reckon they got 1t there,
Stannie?"
tits hoisted m a framework of
some kind, and they did 1t while we
were rubbering and trying to find out
what all that noise was about"
We we're not kept very long In doubt
as to what the next enemy move was
to be. With the cessation Of the tom
tom clatter the collie had grown curl
ously restless. We couldn't see him,
but we could hear him running from
post to pillar, smiling at the cracks
and occasionally giving a whining
growl. Presently he began to cough
and sneeze then he came racing back
to us, fattening himself to hold his
nose to the crack under the door and
long breaths as If he were half
l stopped to pat him and i'm
mediately imagined l was smelling
burning sulphur matches.
Get down here, Daddy, and smell
this dogt" 1 whispered. as 1t old
fashioned matches, or what?"
One sniff was all that the old man
needed.
''Gosh-to-gee- whiz-brimstone !" he
them devils are smokin' us
out That's why they stopped up them
window holes; so we couldn't get any
="
There appeared to be little enough
line for any defensive move. The as
)hyxiating gas was coming stronger
very moment, and any search for its
Iource seemed utterly hopeless. Yet
We went at It, coughing and choking,
md stumbling over everything in the
darkness. as a matter of course.
After all II was Barney who Il honor
with the human pronoun because
lie certainly deserved it) 1t was Bar
icy who showed US the devils door
way. The red glow was now sending
nough light through cracks and crew
ces and the bullet rippings overhead
Q make our inner darkness a degree
r so less than Stygian. Missing the
log for a moment at u common
reathing hole, we saw him circling a
'%articular spot In the floor and snarl-
ng at 1t as if 1t were something alive.
At that we both remembered that
he shafthouse floor was raised a foot
r so from the rocky ledge ON the
own-mountain size, and that the
pace underneath was partly open.
daddy pointed to the cirellng dog.
"Barney's got I'll" he painted.
They've run their chimney up under
he fioorr' Then: "'Where In Sam
I'LL did you leave that AK"
The ak was near at hand and I ran
Or 1t. Holding my breath l began to
hop madly at the floor planking. BY
nc limo tho air uaS en- had fhot 81