The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1922-01-27

had been. While / fancied could see |
dim figures stealing down the road |
that led to the bench below, heard |
Daddy say: snow, what in the name
o. Jehoiachin1-r
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, sudden
blindness had fallen; the interior Of
the shafthouse had become as dark
as the inside Of pocket. The effect
was so stupefying that 1t took both
of us a minute or so to understand
that some change as yet undef1nable
had been wrought either In us or In
our surroundings during the noisy In
| terlude.
Great Jehur' exclaimed the old
man though he was within arms
reach could make him out only as q
dim shadow Great Jehui IL b'lieve
I'm goin' blind, Stanniei Ii can't
see nothln' a-talil'
Don't worry fastened to say;
'Tm In the same boat We've been
looking too long and steadily through
those auger-hoIeA It'u pass In min
ute"
But II didn't pass and presently the
voice of my old side partner came
again out Of the darkness
.P'raps les cloudin' up some" he
suggested in half-whisper. II can't
see no stars through them windows"
| At this I looked toward the window
openings, but the interior blackness
had biotted them out completely. Al
most instinctiveiy 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 cautioned,
and then CROPPED my way along the
wall and climbed to the top of our
earth-sack breastwork at point which
guessed TO be under the nearest OF
the two windows
When I drew myself up and tried 10
thrust q 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 that felt like q
heavy canvas curtain, though how the
curtain was held in place could not
determine But 1t was firmly braced
In some way. With all the purchase
, / could get-whtch wasn't much
couldn't dislodge 1t or push 1t aside.
Making my way back to the door
I told Daddy what had found.
"Huhl" he said; "that old tarpaHlin
that was out yonder In the ore shed,
How dye reckon they got 1t there,
Stannief"
"It's hoisted ON 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 were not kept very long in doubt
{ as to what the next enemy move was
! | to be. With the cessation OF the tom
t tom clatter the collie had grown crri
: ously restless. We couldn't see him
, but we could hear him running from
3 post to pillar, smiling at the cracks
, and occasionally giving a whining
= growi. Presently he began to cough
and sneeze; then he came racing bach
: to us, fiattening himself TO hold his
4 nose to the crack under the door an6
: taking long breaths as If he were hall
stified. stopped to pat him and Inn
D mediately imagined 1 was smelling
i burning sulphur matches.
SECT down here, Daddy, and snei
this dogH / whispered: as it old
fashioned matches, or whatr
One sniff was all that the old mar
needed.
! "Gosh-to-gee- whix-brimstone IL b.
j choked them devils are smokiR' "
\ out That's why they stopped up then
| window holes so we couldn't get an.
l air r.
| There appeared to be little enough
| time for any defensive move. The as
| phyxiating gas was coming stronge
| every moment. and any search for 1T
| source seemed utterly hopeless. Ye
i we went at 1t, coughing and choking
i and stumbling over everything In tn
darkness. as a matter OF course.
q After hi IL was bdfAbGy WHO n uuhtO
7 him with the human pronoun beeaus
he certainly deserved IT. 1t was Bar
\ ney who showed US the devils door
| way. The red glow was now sendin
enough light through cracks and GREY
Ices and the bullet rippfngs oVerhea
to make our inner darkness 8 degre
or 80 less than Stygian. Missing tn
H dog for moment at our eommo
breathing hole. we saw him eiscling
particular spot In the fioor and snar
ing at it as If 1t were something alivt
At that we both remembered tina
the shafthouse floor was raised foe
or so from the rocky ledge on tn
down-mountain size, and that tn
le space underneath was partly opez
Daddy pointed to the cineiing dog.
10 'sDarney's got Nr he pantet
re They've run their chimney up unds
d the floorir Then: Where In Sai
l. Hill did you leave that ax7.'
4 l. "