The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1922-03-03

had been. While | fancied | could see
that led to the bench below, l heard
Daddy say: Now, what in the name
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, n sudden
blindness had fallen; the interior of
tie Shafthouse had become as dark
as the inside of II pocket. The effect
was SO SUPPLYING that 1t took both
Of us Il minute or SO TO understand
that some change rs yet uudetinable
had been wrought either in us or in
our surroundings during the noisy in
terlude.
Great Jclu!" exclaimed the old
man-though he was within arms
reach | could make him out only rs Il
dim shadow-"Great Jehu! II b'lieve
I'm goin' blind, Stannie! II can't
see nothin' a-tall !"
Don't worry" | FASTENED TO say :;
I'm i'm the same boat. We've been
looking too long and steadily through
those auger-holes. It'll pass in a min
ute"
But ii didn't pass and presently the
voice Of my Old side partner came
again u Of the darkness.
"P'raps it's cloudin' up some" he
suggested i'm q half-whiSper. II can't
| see no stars through them windows"
At this | looked toward the window
openings. but the interior blackness
had blotted them out completely. AL
most instinctively | turned back TO the
door and put an V to Il loOphole.
one glance was enough. The trouble,
whatever ii might be, was with us and
not with the sky. The stars were
shining MS brightly rs ever.
Don't move, Daddy" | 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
Aill uSb a. hhiih ihiohSh III VII
the mysterious darkness was eX-
plaiLed. The window embrasures were
stopped up, both Of them, on the out
side by something that felt like a
heavy canvas curtain, though how the
curtain was held in place | could not
determine. But it was firmly hraced
in some way. With all the purchase
/ could geJ-which wasn't mucil-i
couldn't dislodge it or push it aside.
Making my way back 10 the door
tad Daddy what | had found.
Huh! :" he said that Old tarpaulih
that was out yonder in the ore shed.
How dye reckon they got it there,
Stannie?'
Its hoisted on q framework OF
some kind, and they did it while we
were rubbering and trying TO find out
what all that noise was about"
We were not kept very long in doubt
as to what the next enemy move was
10 be. With the cessation Of the tom
tom clatter the collie had grown curl
0usly restless. We couldn't see him,
but we could hear him running from
post to pillar, shifting ut the cracks
and occasionally giving a whining
grOwl. Presently he began to cough
and sneeze; then he came racing back
to us, fiattening himself to hold his
nose to the crack under the door and
taking long breaths as If he were halt
stifled. ! stopped TO pat him and i'm
mediately imagined l was smelling
burning sulphur matches.
Ger dOwn here, Daddy, and smell
this dog" ! whispered. as it old
fashioned matches, or what?"
One sniff was all that the old man
needed.
Observation-Disclosures :" he
chOked them devils are smokin' us
out That's why they stopped up them
window holes; so we couldn't get any
airl"
There appeared to be little enough
time for any defensive move. The as
phyXiating gas was coming stronger
every moment, and any search for its
source seemed utterly hopeless. Yet
we went at it, coughing and choking,
and stumbling Owe everything in the
darkness. as a matter OF course.
After all it was Barney who q honor
him with the human pronoun because
he certainly deserved IT'D Ii was Bar
ney who showed us the devils door
way. The red glow vas now sending
enough light through cracks and crew
ices and the bullet rippings overhead
TO make our inner darkness a degree
or so less than Stygian. Missing the
dog for a moment at u common
breathing hole, we saw him rcircling q
particular spot i'm the floor and snarl-
ing at II as if 1t were something alive.
At that we both remembered that
the s~hafthOuse floor was raised a foot
or so from the rocky ledge on the