Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1935-09-21
CATASTROPHE

I among the crowd Of sightseerS. hls alb
sence did not reaSSure her altogether
Perhaps he's already inside" si1<
thought. waiting
In q kind OF nightmare she entered
the maze Of passages and caves with
which the mountain was honeycomDed.
From the beginning Of the expedition
her mind was so heavy with appreheu-
sion that she received but q confused
impression Of her surroundings The
marvels Of the stalactites were lost up
On her: she could only plod through
cracks IN the rocks. along galleries. and
up and down endless steps She was
dimly aware Of dripping walls, Of corn
ers OF fantastic draperies. Of what ap-
peared % be guttering stone altaE
candles, but she could neither admire
nor wonder. She could only endure.
How far is it to the end2" she asked
family.
about two and half miles, replied
the little teacher.
The tourists struggled on in a long
thin line like ants on march. Some
times they clustered together In some
chamber while the guide explained its
formation. In three languages, which
did not include English. Stella's brain
was too dull to attempt TO translate;
she was only fretted by the repetition,
although she recognized the standard
lied Jokes by the bursts Of laughter.
All the time she was acutely on the
alert-waiting for some horror which
might await them round the next bend.
The shattering roar Of an explosion
the rumbling avalanche Of rocks seal
ing their tombs the thick, choking
blackness.
'"Tired?" asked Lewis.
20, no. But the airs rather thick,
isn't it?"
"a bit dead probably. We're getting
pretty deep In"
He put his hand through her arm TO
help her as they scrambled onward.
The tourists went in pairs or single
file along the narrow paths. Most OF
them were silent. Some were feeling
the strain of the stagnant atmosphere
and Of climbing steps; some were bored;
some were memorizing what they saw.
But there were others who we're obi
vious Of their surroundings and carry
ing on as usual These included Mitzi
cedent, regarded the mountain as their
private property. They chased each
other down the flights Of steps with
shouts and laughter, pushing aside the
other tourists without ceremony.
Stella's feeling Of oppression deepen
ed as they got further inside the noun
tain. Sometimes when they walked
over the tongues Of rock they caught
glimpses Of a black river boiling down
below.
At one point where it was wide and
oily it Eas spanned by a bridge. The
guide halted to name it the River
Styx and to make jokes about he'll in
three different languages.
Looks pretty foul" remarked Lewis, |
Il shouldn't care to swim in it. Would
your"
81 can't" Stella confessed. TITS aw-
ful, but somehow I never got the |
chance. / suppose I'm unique"
mo, you aren't. hditzi can't swim |
either. She'll do any stunt in the air,
put she's always had a dread of water.
Some sort of complex"
The expedition had now become
,est of endurance They appeared 70
Wind eternally through cracks Of rocks
" stop in the caves during a ghaStly
,eriod of explanation. Everything SEEM
ID calculated to draw out the agony.
The guide had so many regulation
okes to be cracked there we're theatre
al effects Of colored flares to be adj y