Year: 1870

| IIIdO uuSSSu W lily uctt16 do u1OhH-


ing men will, they say, clutch at q


straw; but again my heart sank with


in me as the roar ofthe torrent filed


my ears. No human voice could be
heard above the terrible sound, which


was increasing in violence every mo-
1ment.


1 threw myself on the bottom of


the cave and gave up to the despair


that lay upon me, crushing me, as it


were, into the earth. Many were
the hours of danger that 1 had pass


ed through; times when it seemed


that there was possible chance of es-
Icape; yet hope had never completely
forsaken me as it had now.


The ray of light faded away and


all was darkness. Night had come


to me in my tomb, as dark and terri


BILE as though 1 was surrounded by
scores ofmouldering dead. As time


must seem to spirits of the lost so


that night seemed to me. Morning


came at last and again little hope


with the ray of light that found its


way in to me, as if to say that 1 was
not entirely cut of from the outer
world.


The roar of the torrent still sound
ed on my ears, but not as loud as it
had done. If my comrades should
come up to seek me, it might be pos
sible that might make myself heard.
But how was l to hnow when they
had come? Try as l would, I could
not gain a position where 1 could get
glimps of the world without. NV
only chance was to call at the top of
my voice, and hour after hour I did
so, until / was so hoars that I could
hardly speak; but 1 heard nothing
come from without to repay me for
the exertions had made The fore
noon wore away, and began to feel
the pang of hunger and thirst, and
then and not till then, did l fully re-
alize all the horrors of my situation.
My despair was terrible, and, in my
agony, l threw myself on my face
upon the floor of the cavern, and, |
with the action a new hope sprang
up in my heart.


For the first time since my impris- |
onment the thought came to me that
a possibility of escape lay back of
the cave. If I could but remove the
distractions that blocked up the
passage, so thatI could pass through, |
it might possibly lead to daylight in
some direction. Caves often have
more than one outlet or entrance,
and such might be the case with this
one.


Faint as this hope was, l clung to
it, and went to work with will. The
rocks I found would move easily,
and the sand I scraped away with
my hands, and soon l had place
large enough to force my way
through. Encouraged by this, 1 did
so and after crawling along for some
fifteen or twenty feet l found myself
in large apartment of a hight that
would admit Of standing erect. An
other passage led off to the right
from this, and at once entered it,
it was so dark that l had to
feel my way along. The way was
crooked, turning shary angles and
long curves, and 1 could form no idea !.
of the direction in which I was 90
ing. 1t seemed almost intermina.
BILE; but at last, to my great, joy, 1
saw light ahead, and in a few mo-
ments 1 stood in the bright sunshine
that l never expected to have seen
again.


You can imagine the state Of my
feelings as l made my way down the
banks of the stream, after casting a
Iook up to where the great boulder
was laying that had sealed up my
5omb. 1t was larger than 1 had
thought, and the strength of our
whole. party could not have moved it.


There was great joy at the camp
over my return. My cOmpanionss
lad spent the night, and all the day
5hus far in looking for me, and had
come to the conclusion that 1 must
nave fallen into the ravine and been
washed away, and in a half an hour
more would have been on their way,
eaving me to my fate.