The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1932-12-02

He rose stiffly and lifted her to her
feet. "We'll see," he said, but he did
not say it hopefully.
What they saw, when they crossed
to the mouth Of one of the passages
leading out Of the space where they
had slept, was thing that Lands was
not remotely expecting to see. The
passage mouth was the entrance to
long, gently inclined tunnel, at the
lower extremity of which was faint
ly glowing electric light
what does that mean" Betty
asked, whispering as if she were
afraid the miraculous light might dis
appear If she spoke above her breath.
ut means that my guess was right.
We've been lost in the old workings Of
the Quavapai, and that light is in one
of the new workings!"
Nov that we know where we are,
we can get out, can't WEI"
eve can try mighty hard, anyway.
Well go down and see what's at the
bottom of this rathole."
Approaching the lower end of the
inclined passage, they could see that
the light bulb was suspended from the
roof Of much larger drift, through
which ran miniature railroad track.
Landis asked Betty to stay behind in
concealment while he went on to in
vestigate. She consented, merely urg-
ing him to be careful.
"Don't worry about me; I'll hurry
back after / find out whereabouts we
are, and the way out"
Reaching the larger tunnel he found
It empty. Though the working tunnel
was lighted, it was driven on curve
which limited the view in either direc-
ton.
Since there was nothing to deter
mine a choice, Lands turned to the
left. Before he had gone very far he
heard the rumble of a car on the rails
behind him and hastily crowded him.
self into niche in the tunnel wall.
When the car came in sight he saw
that it was pushed by single man. A
slight upgrade in the drift made the
man put his head down and brace to
his work, so he saw nothing as he
passed Landis' hiding place.
Watching the car, Lands had curl
Gus shock when, just before it disap-
peared, the squeaky rumbling of the
wheels stopped abruptly. The car
moved as silently as if the wheels and
the rails upon which they were run
ming were shod with velvet.
Convinced instantly that there could
be but one reason for the sudden 81
lence, Lands crept forward. The tun-
mel Strengthened itself and the scene
he was more than half expecting to
see was revealed.
In the tunnel heading number of
men were at work +; two of them manip-
ulating two big air drills which were
visibly churning away at the rock face
Of the heading. But instead of the
raucous clamor which this should
have raised there was a silence as
profound as that of the gravel
Fully aware now of the use to which
his stolen invention was being put,
Lands made quick search for the
hiding place of the black box. He had
little difficulty in discovering it. It
was half concealed in shelf-like
niche of the tunnel wall close at hand,
the electric current for its operation
being taken from the light wires over
head.
Lands saw that his time for action
was short. In a few minutes, or per-
haps seconds, the car would be COM
ing out. Reaching up quickly, he
opened a slide in the black box and
did that which was needful to paralyze
its delicate and intricate mechanism.
Then, as the deafening, ear-splitting
clamor Of the chattering drills burst
out in the heading, he leaped for
branching side drift.
The effect of the suddenly released
din upon the men in the heading was
astonishing. They had evidently be-
come so well used to the abnormal
conditions that the sudden resumption
of the natural order of things pre-
cipitated wild panic. While two Of
the men FASTENED to shut off the air
pressure from the drills, the remainder
came stumbling out, some with their
fingers in their ears, and so on out of
the picture.
A moment later the two who had
run to stop the drills came along, but
they were not hurrying. When they
came under the nearest light bulb
Lands recognized them at once as
two Of the three he and Markham had
seen in the lobby at the Copah hotel,
two of the trio who had driven west
ward from Copah to disappear so I'M
accountably and mysteriously.
what the hi do you suppose went
wrong with the machine?" one was say
ing as they passed.
at got me for second" said the
other. 81 wasn't looking for it. Think
1t gave the snap away?"
''If it did, there'll be merry hi to
pay. The captain IL want to kill some
body. Today is the day when the big
deal is to be pulled Off"