Graham guardian., 1922-02-03

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OF course, Daddy was chock full OF
sympathy and concern, mixed up with
a good bit of curiosity.
"One of the suction pipes" ex-
planned, beginning TO crawl back into
my clothes. II was foolish enough to
get under 1t and II grabbed and held
me. If you hadn't stopped the pumps
I'd have been a gone goose. l was just
about all in, as il was"
We'll. YOU found out the pumps are
suckin' all right. anyhoc," he re-
marked.
"Thcy sure are; you'd think so II
you'd been where was" Then he
gan to recall some of those mixed and
mingled Impressions had gathered.
what kind of soil is there under tllis
floor Daddy:" ! asked.
''lIuh." nc SnortCd; "what soil there
is on this here ledge you could mighty
near pat in your eye, reckon. 'Tan't
nolhin' hut rock. and blame hard rock,
at that"
That was my notion. But If the
shaft is in rock, Why did they hoy II
50 strongly with timber? Surely there
wouldn't be any danger Of a cave in
solid stone"
"Wcll now, I'm dingcd!" he re-
turned, musingly. Long as I've been
momkeyin' round mines and such, it
never once come 10 me TO wonder about
that!'
Spea;ing Of the wooden hulEheadiug
renewed that other impression. or rath-
er two of them; one cf having the feel
ing that ! was shut in a tight box at
the moment of the fierceSt struggling.
and the other Of fancying that | had
felt a SWirling inruSh of the liquid ice
as well as the sucking 0utrush. But
the recollection was SO confused that
attached 10 importance to it. When
Il man is fighting for his life ten or
twelve feet under water, pipe-dreamS
are nothing to the things he can i'm,
agiue.
1t was while we were sitting at the
shaft-house door. hammering away at
the old puzzle Of why the water level
never Narie, so much as fraction ot
an inch in the shaft. in wet seasons or
dry-aS Daddy testified il never did
and why the subtraction of two six.
inch streams NJ Il velocity sufficient to-
stir up veritable whirlpool at the
.ncIinn intnlnS ChaulI An M In,
iicssinn upon it that | began to no.
tice tie queer actions of the pie-faced
collie, Barney First he would come
ard stick his cold nose into my hand !:
then he'd tr0t over to the cabin and
back, and maybe loaf little way down
the road toward tho bench level. Com
ing around to the sluft-huuse again.
he'd sit beside Daddy Hiram, yawnlng
and painting as II he were waiting i'm.
patiently for us to stop talking and
pay some attention tn him
Poor Did Barneys homcSick. and I
don't blame him. said. I'm feeling
II good bit that way. myself, Daddy"
Then to the dog; Come here, old
boy"
The collie came to HEX my hand, and
while ! was pettIng him | found a
pretty bad cash just behind one of his
ears.
+'Sce here, Daddy" | broke out;
the dogs hurtw
We examined the wound and decided
at once that II was not bite. II was
Il bruised cut, looking as IL 1t had been
mAdc by some blunt instrument or
weapon. | had a hot-fash vision pf
Bullcrtoh kicking the dog with his
lron-slIod heel in an attempt to drive
him back home, and II was SO real that
| couldn't shake II of.
When 1t began to grow dusk In the
shait.louse we shut up shop and went
over to the cabin to cook our supper.
The dog went along. but evidently with
reluctance While we were crossing
the dump head he turned back and
once more started of down the road
toward the bench below, but when he
found that we were not following him
nc came To heel again. SIN, neither
of us had dog sense enough IT, guess
what was The matter with him.
Daddy Hiram and !, being merely
stupid humans, were commenting upon
his queer actions, and laying them to
Icanic's absence, when again the dog
>inrtpd of down the road looking
bnck aud barking when he found that
we were still sitting ON the doorstep,
Al that, since even solid ivory can be
penetrated II the would-bc drillcr Of II
stays on the job long enough, we final