A Daughter of Delilah — page 27: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

18 IN THE TUNNEL. track, but that infernal monster fills up every inch of space !’’ On itcame with a snort, a shriek, and a roar, with a noise that all the unloosed demons of the infernal regions would fail toimitate. The earth trembled, the rails gleamed before the savage eye of fire like writhing, molten snakes, and Alston flung himself to the earth in a frenzy of fear, as the monster swept along. He saw the open jaws of a roaring furnace, from whose lurid depths was flung a glow that girdled the tunnel round—that shone on the faces of two men—the engineer and the fireman—who looked like exultant, grimy fiends as they flashed by. In thirty seconds the express was gone. Its mocking screams were half a mile away, and Edgar Alston was upon the point of scrambling to his feet again when he was astounded by the sound of a human voice! ‘*Keep still, sir, if you value your life!’’ were the words that rang in his ears. ‘*Who the devil may you be?’’ demanded Alston. ‘‘Never mind who Iam,’’ was the savage retort. ‘‘Let it be sufficient that I have you covered with a six-shooter, which I shall use unless you are willing to listen to reason. Hold there, blast you! I can hear you fumbling for a light, and, by the living God, I’1l1 shoot you dead if you strike a match! You are at my mercy, and this is the chance of my life! Iamafool to run any risks, when I have only to touch the trigger to put an end to all doubts and fears! Noone can interfere, and your body would be cleaned away by the rats long before ‘“You need not conjure up all the horrors of your pleas- ant imagination,’’ Alston coolly interrupted. ‘‘I am sitting Eomichooks: Go m