Show j adventurers CLUB I 1 DEADLINES aea FROM THE LIVES ko 1 l V Q of PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF Fl 1 yf m burgod alive ELLO EVERYBODY 1 1 adventure sure laid on an icy hand on the shou shoulder ider of 01 aih kuritz who sent me one of the best written yarns je hija to date joes at brooklyn now and at last writing auld have used a job he gave up his youthful ambition to 1 ja a ftc ahing engineer r as a result of events related in hd switched to mechanical engineering but if you K methe bithe t m magazines aga are looking for people who can write t y Q L jd joe e accordingly im following his script pretty close in rill joe was a surveyor with the glen alden coal scranton Sc scranton Tanton pa it was his first job and he was assigned investigating pillar robbing in the cayuga mines ill plaint af i miners must leave enough coal to support the roof of the ine which consists of shale et a scaly rock that caves in illy pillar robbing means stealing coal from these remaining sup ats and to Is illegal since it may cause cave lna ins in which workers and water matris mains burst even explode and brick buildings 1 1 acon tho he t land collapse c oU apse its earthquake ore and flood ial old timbers prove useless as support th bayuga had been be en deserted tor for 50 years inside joe and three found pillars cracked and crumbled by the weight of n millions illi lons lot 1 rock ock I they had held up tor for five decades As supports to they ifil unless us oless and might lust just as well have been mined out old umber timber c aby miners to protect themselves in those tar far bygone years kj raX oUd useless A touch and they collapsed to fungi angl infested mil i ved edi duat duit not much between joe and the millions of tons ot of rock ir r hU head U tT orse the workings were of tho the pitch type each chamber jong sloping tunnel some very steep the roof was dan eidly cracked slabs of shalo shale hung 0 so o loose a breath would t fie crashing to the floor fallen rock covered the steeply ort g floor in sizes from a flat fist to dining room table this can start an avalanche on the slanting tunnel door 14 1 jol duties lovely lovay cobl were to climb over this loose rock covered if he made it it was safe for the others to come up if started a fatal avalanche joe forgot to tell about that i 1 joe Joos s lamp ignites a pocket of wil WU 41 lr joe climbed gingerly upward clinging to the glistening coal ilar lar lati atthe althe side peering ahead by the faint light of the lamp fastened f ova hleap lie stepped light as a falling feather testing every w W n er A V I 1 kill IN N A joe clung to the pillar on his stomach all at t the top our human fly as joo joe calls himself was to es 0 dash jah a point tor for the transit a surveyors instrument to shoot at ft jue never made it twenty feet from the top an explosion joslon like a klant bass drum shook the earth in a bolt of livid hvid ft Bie GASI joes light had bad ignited a pocket packet of whited ampt clackl crasha the shock jerked rock toppling from the it on the loose gob on the steeply slanting floora the was an aist with thumps scarcely audible above the rolling rumble of the 0 flame over his head then in a roaring crescendo jagged rock in and thundering downward past joe hurtling into the hell bell darkness niss far below docs A j acs lamp had gone out with the explosion but above him at glare a marching surf of blue and red streaked fire re up the chamber overhead blistering white beat above 1 ShiR cring flood of angry rock below 1 joe clang 0 o the pillar on iba lomach mach ducking hurtling rocks shrinking from the blazing above with clawing fingers and toes that vainly sought ld id in the hard floor he lay there it seemed ages aching diminished the carbonic oxide es a torture the slide burned fitfully threatening any second to seek out with its IF iw flames another pocket spreading in chain explosions e x h the underground terrain burying joe and ills his companions ile ho began to figure ills his chance for escape bought ought of the others had they been crushed to a jelly smear e he e tons of rock trapped in some or crosscut cross cut in a pillar I 1 oiling flames died went out in the inky black joe groped tor for A ut his lamp the floor was clear he stepped out instantly to tied down on a slab of rock he had overlooked four hundred it he brought up short on the heap of loose rock it had blocked ce completely was caught like ft a rat lie sat on a rock wondered that not frightened began to figure his chances of seeing sun eun gain it seemed suddenly very precious pre cleus sun and open air air 1 the rock had sucked much out the explosion had driven at out and the fire are had burned he be know how bow much of e D giving oxygen in that black pit pil would the rest last till ot of to him joe says panic did grip him he shouted himself hoarse ed a rock repeatedly against a pillar listened not a sound ce terrible silence joe saw slow death ahead suffocation rv atlon unwounded he wished for death swift death rather drawn out agony now he could only wait helplessly ays ys he prefers to forget the next nine hours imagination can ost st horrible form of torture but buthis his companions compan lona had escaped hope gone tor for joe they had notified the surface ur face A relay of aws working as only mine rescue crews coin can dug through the im an adjoining chamber and pulled joe 0 out ut nine hours later that day on the only coal joe can stand looking at is in a quit the mining engineer career cold but I 1 cetih say he cull cm a professional what do you think copyright service |