they could pass through the opening,
although they had to stoop very low. The chief miner went first followed
by all the rest. Once he was in the new gallery, old Ivan lifted his
torch as high as before.

"I have never seen this gallery!" exclaimed the chief miner. He turned
towards Ivan, but at the sight of him the words died in his throat, and
he could only stammer, "What is the matter?"

Great tears were running down the old man's wrinkled cheeks; he was
contemplating with an expression of profound grief the dark entrance of
a side gallery.

"Well, old man! What is the matter?" the miners asked, surrounding him.
He continued to gaze in the same direction. "Does this place remind you
of something?" asked the chief miner. They all listened eagerly for his
answer.

"It is here that my mother was buried in a landslip. Yes, here on this
side."

"Comrades!" the chief miner exclaimed joyfully. "There is no doubt about
it! We are in the Znamensky mine!"

So true is it that one man's grief is another man's happiness.

Old Ivan himself was forgotten. They saw that he had guided them all to
the old mine, which had been long abandoned, but which he remembered
from his childhood. As the mine had been dug in the rock itself, the
shaft was undamaged, but they had to find the entrance to it.

The old man remained motionless where he was, his eyes fixed on the
place where his mother had perished. The chief miner, who had recovered
his collectedness of mind, approached him.

"Well, old man, has Jesus gone without you?"

"No ... He is there.... He waits for me. Here I am, Lord, here I am."

He resumed his march, and the miners followed him cheerfully.

IX

This last part of the journey was not very long. The old mine was not so
narrow as the one they had just left. Large and lofty galleries led
directly to the shaft; it had not been necessary to dig very deep here
in order to find copper ore, and the shaft, which was of a moderate
depth and dry, remained as it had always been. Although they no longer
needed the old man, he still continued to lead them. The exaltation of
spirit which he had shown, gave no sign of sinking, his walk was firm,
and he held with a steady hand his brilliantly-burning torch. There
still seemed to be some living occupants of the mine, though it had been
quite abandoned, for now and then, as the miners proceeded, something
fled out of their path, either a mole frightened by the unexpected sight