The Meeker herald., 1921-08-20

/ ODeyl0K inc nIbS AmpOl3SS oWAIV " u
sudden outburst Of red flames some
where above him. he forced the block
upward. hack Into III place. jammins
II there with all his strength. until .
sharp click convinced him the punch
con again was securely held. They
| were alone, isolated, In the black
depths. underneath the burning cabin,
buried deep 10 the protecting earth.
He reached bllndly out through the
darkness until he touched her. his On
gers closing convuisively on q fold Of
her dress. In the sudden reaction he
| felt a. weak ~ q child, unable even
| to control his speech.
ut was God who helped u.s." be said
humbly. mo one else could. You are
surs, Olga. you are unhurtr'
II must be bruised, suppose: II
was an ugly fall. and-and really
think lost consciousness 1t arst.
Then I seemed to hear yen call ne Q
long ways Oh. Il the cabin aflrer
"Yes; those devils started It At the
rear. You can hear ths wood crackis
even down here, and Ne must ct Tar
Their back out q the way. When the
roof falls this part Of the Aooe may
cave In also"
In spite Of the Increasing volume Of
flames above, scarcely q glimmer Of
red light succeeded'in penetrating to
where they were hidden. A very
slight glow found entrance through 4
narrow crack above them. yet Shelby
was compelled to learn their immedi-
ate surroundings more BY sense Of
touch than sight
They were in q mere hole scooped
out from the soft earth. hardly wider
than the trap door which led to It. the
other puncheons of the cabin floor
resting solidly upon the ground. Shell.
BY leading the way. feeling his pas
sage along inch by inch. was suddenly
halted by an earth barrier which
seemingly blocked all further progress.
He could feel that II did not wholly
reach the top. leaving space there
through which It might be possible to
crawl. Yet what would there be be-
yondf Why should they venture fur.
ther at PRESENT. Laud was outside
with his Indians. the whole scene lii
up with the glare Of flames. They
dare not venture to expose them.
selves. Here they were beyond reach.
protected from both flames and saw
ages. Unless some among those as
sailants knew the existence Of this
tunnel. or accidentally stumbled upon
Its outer entrance. they could scarcely
bs exposed. Even II one or two found
their way In. this barrier Of earth
would block them, and. II necessary.
form the best possible defense. Con-
ndent that they had pefished. and that
their charred bodies were lying in the
midst Of the still smoking embsrs Of
the cabinp there would b. no guard
Watching for an attempt at escape. He
reached out and grasped her hand.
drawing her down beside him.
"what IL itr' she asked In . wills
per.
"A fall Of earth nearly blocking the
passage" hs explained. II have NO
idea where the tunnel leads to. and.
II I did. We would never dare creep
out into the open At present"
.You-you think We had better re-
main hereT d0ubtfully.
.Until the hre dies down; perhaps
even longer. Let them believe We died
In the cabin; then there may be some
chance for US to get away"
"But they will search the ruinsr
"Not for some time: those logs will
be glowing embers for. hours. That
sounded like the roof falling In then.
II was-see! It has crushed Its way
down through the floor. There 10 q
caldrou Of Dire In that hole we Just
left. but It can't reach ~ here-only
the smoke"
.win 1t not show them where We
have gomez"
II hope not: probably the smoking.
biaxing timbers win choke mp the
opening. leaving It 10 filled with part
" burned woSd n to conceal II entire
". Anyhow. this II our one chance.
| we would be shot down mercilessly
outside"
The glare from the burning rubbish
revealed their faces, and the smoke
began to swirl past them in clouds.
yet did not choke the tunnel. showing
| there must b an opening somewhere
beyond to the outside. Shelby fast
ened his neckerchief over the girls
nose and mouth. and protected her. as
well as himself. BY means Of his coat.
Scarcely conscious Of the action they
sat thus. their, hands ciasped. sazins
At the isapins figures Of flame. and
listening to the VARIETY Of noises
| reaching . their ears The position.
while one Of brooding horror. did not
apparently involve immediate peril.
me flames could not reach them. and
IL was already evident that those
| dense volumes Of smoke. while dis
aSreeable and sudocating, could still
10 endured. Bat being cooped up
there, in that hole underground. un-
able to venture fseth. choked By the
| fumes, their fAses smafting from the
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