Year: 1872

A FIERY BLAST.

 Not often-no oftener than necessary You see it has to be special affair; the engines at the pumping stations have to be going hard so as to lower the sewage, and fine weather has to be chosen, for the sew CTS are risky enough without having danger to run from floods.

 They're built, you see of the finest and best bricks to be had, and, buried below the streets, you have some of the neatsst patchwork in London. The object was to get bricks of the smoothest and finest, so that when built into great tunnel or pipe, there should be no stay to the water run ming easily through.

 My first journey through the sewers was after this fashion notice had come down that about four miles were to be inspected -four miles sounds good deal, but there are two thousand miles under London and preparations were made. Five, men were sent to open all the iron traps over the ways down, one of which there is about every five or six hundred yards, 50 as to ventilate the sewers and the pumps hay ing been kept well going, fifteen oPus start

 

 lantern, for the spot where we were to go down.

 Now full half had never been down be- fore, and there was a good deal ot laughing going on as VIC put on the .india-rubber dresses fitting tight up to the wrist and neck, and with great hood to cover over one's head and face when danger came about which Pm going to tell you. When we stood there ready in our big boots, though, l saw great, stout, six-foot men turn as white and queer as could be.

 Take nip of brandy each, my men" says the foreman, and light your pipes as well as your lanterns. We may as we'll be jolly over our job"

 There was plenty of brandy handed round, and I saw that good drop was ready to be taken down.

 "Dutch courage" says to myself, and then too besan.to feel bit uncomforta- ble; for the grating was raised, and was looking down a square we'll with foot-holds stuck in tho wall, and on asking one of the men how far it was down, he told me it was sixty feet.

 "Sixty feet" I didn't say anything, but 1 thought. A walk of four miles through great drain all that distance be- low the surface! told you saw some men look queer. know felt so.

 "Now then, all ready p says the fore man. You go first then, Smith" he says, speaking to an old hand, and stopping back himsef-not to keep from taking the lead, but as saw at once, to see that none of his men turned tail and shua1ed off so early in the job.

 Judging from the unwilling way in which some of the men cIept down through that iron trap one at time, like the demons and imps of theatre, don't think there's doubt about five. or six of them having meant to slip of; but the foreman was right and came down last.

 know my first feeling, as stepped off the last iron into lot of black mud, was ono of wanting to go back, an6 that feeling grew stronger as, almost pushed forward by the next man, moved out of the en- trance into the sewer, and stood with the water up to my middle, striking cold through my india-rubber clothes, and pres sing against me as if to sweep me down right away to the river. The place was for all the world ikea great cellar stretch ing out into darkness, our lanterns glim- mering and glistening on the black water that seemed to go stealthily whispering along and the faces of the men about me looked yellow and ghastly, as they all clustered together for safety like sheep in . strange fold.

 Now, my lads,n the foreman says, in a oheery voice, " there's nothing to be afraid of, without, like little children, you don't like being in the dark, so on we go."

 On we did go, very slowly, with two or three of the old hands in front, and the foreman at the rear the men who had made bit of a laugh about being in the dark, talking all the same in low whisper that sounded very hollow and queer.

 I don't know whether I'm weaker than other men, but somehow, at every step took, with the water bearing against me and pressing me On, there was . cold feel. ing of scare creeping oyer me, and kept on think, think, think, about all sorts o things that should have felt better if I'd been free of. First I got thinking about rain; suppose it should rain and the gullies run fast, the water would rise quickly, ant we should all be swept away.

 got the better of that by remembering the side entrances, out of which we could easily get.

 Then there was another horrible thought came to worry me, and as if it was some thing putting it all into my mind, 50 as tt torture me, there came at the same time the recollection of my wife and little ones and 1 wondered what would become o them if we should be all overcome and sufocated by the bad gases that loated about over the water.

 I started just then at our foreman's voice for it was evident that some one had not only been thinking the same. but speaking about it, for the foreman says:

 And suppose there was gas about W. had the doors open to ventilate the place.

 The man gave a sort of grunt, and wt went slowly splashing on, our lights flash ing about in dull yellow way Now WI are halted to use our spades, at the moutl of some drain, where there seemed to be little collection of sediment; and again al another place, where we could feel tha there was mud under our feet but it wa soon sent sweeping down, for the smooth hne brick of which the tunnels were made kept back but little refuge.

 If we could have bean kept on busily a work, believe. that nothing would Aav happened; but as it was, wadius alon through the topl watss first one and the AaetbRs maH got lew end 8ssysss, sad tb