Part 45 (2/2)
”Right,Do as I did, and co
”Eight or nine fathom, my lad Neverhis teeth hard he pressed his hands against the wall on either side, felt about with one foot, drew the other up to it, and then let go and began to slide down a steep slope, the passage taking away his breath, so that he was panting hard when his heelslike a hollohisper, said:
”Bottom o' this bit”
”What, is there any”It's only a great ziggery-zag crack running right through the rock fro to ot the lanthorn They were so close after et the one I left up yonder in the cliffs
Now, then, I'ain It's quite dry, and worn soing down Just the same as before, ood deal on it, and randfathers, fathers, and us lot finished it a bit at a ti sound directly after, and the se
Aleck followed again with e into some horrible well-like hole full of water with he knew not what horrible, eel-like creatures waiting to attack him This time the slide down felt co, as he followed his unseen guide, Aleck actually began to think that such a way of progression must be bad for the clothes
”You'll have to ease yourself down this next one,” said Eben, as he was starting for the next descent; ”it's a bit steeper Let your hands run along the wall over your head, just touching it, and that'll be enough
Don't shove hard, or you'll be taking the skin off”
”I'll mind,” said Aleck, rather hoarsely
”What's the ainst the roof”
”Huot to tell you about that bit
It's the only place where you can touch the top, and you run agen it
Hurt yerself much?”
”No”
”Then come on”
The rather swift descent was accomplished more easily than Aleck anticipated, and he slid down into a pair of hands
”Now, then, the next bit's diff'rent,” said the sler ”You'll sit down on your heels like to slide, but it arn't steep, and every now and then you'll have to give yerself a bit of a shove to help yer down to the next bit, and that's worse still”
”Worse?” said Aleck, trying to suppress a catching of the breath; but the sler detected it
”Not what you think bad,” he said, with a hoarse chuckle, ”but e call bad You have to walk all the way”
”And there are no side places where you ht slip into?”
”Not half o' one, my lad There was a nasty hole at the bottoht down to the end of the world
P'raps it did, but we brought up big bits o' rock till soed into niches, and then we kept on till we filled it up level, and you wouldn't know it's there Now, then, let's get down”