Part 43 (1/2)
”Oh, yes, sir, bigger than I thought for.”
”Some mines are very far to the end, aren't they?”
”Miles,” said the man calmly, and Gwyn gave his companion a nudge.
”I've been in some of 'em myself. Why, I know of one long 'un--an adit as goes from mine to mine to get rid of the pumpings--and it's somewhere about thirty miles.”
”Hear that, Joe?” whispered Gwyn.
”Yes, I hear,” said the lad, breathlessly.
”I don't say there's anything of the kind here, of course; but I know one place where there's more than sixty miles o' workings, and it would take some time to go all over that, wouldn't it?”
The boys were silent, and the engineer went on.
”Oh yes, that's right enough,” he said; ”and to my mind it's rather bad for any folk strange to go down a mine they know nothing about.”
Joe started violently.
”You see it's all noo to 'em,” continued the engineer, ”and they may wander away into places they know nothing about, and never find their way out again.”
”Gwyn!” groaned Joe.
”Hus.h.!.+ Be quiet!” was whispered back.
”I have heard of such things.”
”But that was in deserted mines,” said Gwyn, sharply.
”Yes, I believe it was in deserted mines, now you say so, sir.”
”Of course it was, Joe, where n.o.body knew that they had gone down.”
”How could they have gone down without anyone knowing?” cried Joe.
”There must have been someone to let them down.”
”Nay, they might have been venturesome and gone down by ladders, same as the old ones used to be from sollar to sollar.”
”What's a sollar?” said Gwyn, more for the sake of saying something than from a desire to know.
”What you calls platforms or floors,” said Dina.s.s. ”Well, I will say one thing; I do hope the guv'nors haven't lost their way.”
”Of course, mate,” said the engineer; ”so do I; but if I was you young gents, I should begin to feel a little uncomfortable about them below.”
”We are horribly,” cried Joe, wildly.
”Exactly so, sir, for you see it must be getting on for four hours since they started.”
”Nay, not so much as that,” cried Dina.s.s.