Part 61 (1/2)

”Come!” he said, ”the way's clear an' we'll find better air in there.”

But Bachelor Billy did not respond. He had fallen against the lower face of coal, unconscious. Conway saw that he must do quick work.

He reached over, grasped the man by his shoulders, and with superhuman effort drew him up to the shelf and across the body of the mule. Then, creeping into the opening, he pulled the helpless man through with him into the old mine, and dragged him up the chamber out of reach of the poisoned current. He loosened his collar and chafed his wrists and the better air in there did the rest.

Bachelor Billy soon returned to consciousness, and learned where he was.

”That was fulish in me,” he said, ”to weaken like that; but I'm no'

used to that white damp. Gi' me a minute to catch ma breath an' I'll go wi' ye.”

Conway went down and walled up the opening again. When he came back Bachelor Billy was on his feet, walking slowly down the chamber, throwing the light of his lamp into the entrances on the way.

”Did he go far fra the openin,' thenk ye?” he asked. ”Would he no'

most like stay near whaur he cam' through?”

Then he tried to lift up his voice and call to the boy; but he was too weak, he could hardly have been heard across the chamber.

”Call 'im yoursel', Mike,” he said; ”I ha' no power i' my throat, some way.”

Conway called, loudly and repeatedly. There was no answer; the echoes came rattling back to their ears, and that was all that they heard.

”Mayhap he's gone to the headin',” said Billy, ”an” tried to get oot by the auld slope.”

”That's just what he's done,” replied Conway, earnestly; ”I told 'im where the old openin' was; he's tried to get to it.”

”Then we'll find 'im atween here an' there.”

The two men had been moving slowly down the chamber. When they came to the foot of it, they turned into the air-way, and from that they went through the entrance into the heading. At this place the dirt on the floor was soft and damp, and they saw in it the print of a boy's shoe.

”He's gone in,” said Bachelor Billy, examining the foot-prints, ”he's gone in toward the face. I ken the place richt well, it's mony's the time I ha' travelled it.”

They hurried in along the heading, not stopping to look for other tracks, but expecting to find the boy's body ahead of them at every step they took.

When they reached the face, they turned and looked at each other in surprise.

”He's no' here,” said Billy.

”It's strange, too,” replied Conway. ”He couldn't 'a' got off o' the headin'!”

He stooped and examined the floor of the pa.s.sage carefully, holding his lamp very low.

”Billy,” he said, ”I believe he's come in an' gone out again. Here's tracks a-pointin' the other way.”

”So he has, Mike, so he has; the puir lad!”

Bachelor Billy was thinking of the disappointment Ralph must have felt when he saw the face of the heading before him, and knew that his journey in had been in vain.

Already the two men had turned and were walking back.

At the point where they had entered the heading they found foot-prints leading out toward the slope. They had not noticed them at first.