Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 4, 1922 — page 79: what you’re looking at

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

THE NIGHT SHIFT. their company was much preferable to none at all. Unused to the semi-darkness, panting, stumbling, his head whirling dizzily, eyes almost popping from his head, he had some difficulty in catching up to them. When he reached them they were grouped to- gether close to the opening of the adit, whence came the bounteous mercy of fresh air. They drank it thirstily, filling their lungs deeply with the sweetness of it, ex- haling in mighty gaspings distinctly audi- ble. , “Gawd, that zs hot!” the driller com- plained profanely. ‘ Hotter’n ol’ Billy- hell! Half an hour’s too damn Jong in there!” William, leaning helpless against the rocky wall, most fervently if silently agreed with him. The driller flung the sweat from his face with a powerful hand. William was sur- prised to hear another say: “You're gittin’ soft—that’s all that’s wrong wi’ you. You’d ought to try it be- low the nineteen hundred, where it’s hot. I was jerkin’ out timber for a week down there.”’ The driller paid no attention to such vain boasting. Besides, his head was sunken in a water pail. There certainly was healing in that air, and in the blessed coolness flowing from the adit opening. Already William felt better by some thousand or more degrees, And now he began to think again. These fellows were probably loafing on the job— shirking almost as soon as Hugh McGregor had gone away. But that was no business of William’s, anyway. It was sufficient that McGregor, calm and terrible, had gone. Now, if ever, was his chance to get away. Then, like a knife-thrust to his hopes, he remembered what McGregor had said before: ‘“‘ Man got lost—we didn’t find him for three days.” Lost! In that labyrinth, deep under- ground! Why, the man might never have been found! © William could easily imagine himself wandering, wandering in the dark for days and days. Even hell was prefer- able in company! Then, perhaps, they might not be going back. 389 ““ Time!” called the driller. ‘“ Half-hour is up.” ‘“‘A half-hour!” thought William. “It isn’t possible!” He was following the group toward the stopping again. Fight times that night at half-hour in- tervals William learned what it meant to breathe again; eight times he spent a half- hour in the pit, and suffered as he had not known men could suffer and still live. Once, and once only, Hugh looked in at him. The shift boss questioned the driller with his eyes, nodding toward William. “No good,” said the driller, without tact. “ He’s so soft that he ain’t worth a damn.” “He'll learn,” said Hugh, and went away again. Then William thought a man-size miner’s thought. ‘‘ My God!” he groaned. “I'd love to murder him!” Which perhaps proved that he was capable of learning, just as Hugh had said. But so far all the profit that he got the whole night through Was just one stupendous, fixed determina- tion. He thought about it in every inter- val, mentally reviewed his ability to per- form the feat. Whatever happened, he would get away, Once safely on the surface of the earth, no possible power could get him in that falling cage again. He would leave Hobart if he had to walk—a comparatively simple exer- cise. Then walk, and keep on walking, until he was far away from there. As for what he might do afterward, William’s project did not reach so far. And once, plunging his blistered hands into a pail of water to ease the pain, he had a rather curious idea: ‘If I could only beat Mc- Gregor up!” There was a singular satisfaction in the thought. He remembered—it seemed not so long ago—that at college he had been considered ‘‘ handy with the gloves.” “TI am soft,” thought William; “ that’s at least half of what is wrong with me.” He pursued this thought no. further. It -did not help to ease his body’s pain, nor did it subtract any part from his deter- mination to depart from Hobart, by any means available, and as speedily as pos- sible. This, undoubtedly, William might have COmicCclbooks.Gom