n made by the claws of birds. But there were no
other footprints. This tower had been undisturbed for a long, long time.

He came to the well and looked down. There was dark there, dark in which
the pulsations of light from the pillar shown the stronger. But that
glow did not extend beyond the edge of the well through which the thick
rod threaded. Even by close examination he could detect no break in the
smooth surface of the pillar, nothing remotely resembling hand- or
footholds. If it did serve the purpose of a staircase, there were no
treads.

At last Travis put out his hand to touch the surface of the pillar. And
then he jerked back--to no effect. There was no breaking contact between
his fingers and an unknown material which had the sleekness of polished
metal but--and the thought made him slightly queasy--the warmth and very
slight give of flesh!

He summoned all his strength to pull free and could not. Not only did
that hold grip him, but his other hand and arm were being drawn to join
the first! Inside Travis primitive fears awoke full force, and he threw
back his head, voicing a cry of panic as wild as that of a hunting
beast.

An instant later, his left palm was as tight a prisoner as his right.
And with both hands so held, his whole body was suddenly snapped
forward, off the safe foundation of the floor, tight to the pillar.

In this position he was sucked down into the well. And while unable to
free himself from the pillar, he did slip along its length easily
enough. Travis shut his eyes in an involuntary protest against this
weird form of capture, and a shiver ran through his body as he continued
to descend.

After the first shock had subsided the Apache realized that he was not
truly falling at all. Had the pillar been horizontal instead of
vertical, he would have gauged its speed that of a walk. He passed
through two more room enclosures; he must already be below the level of
the valley floor outside. And he was still a prisoner of the pillar, now
in total darkness.

His feet came down against a level surface, and he guessed he must have
reached the end. Again he pulled back, arching his shoulders in a final
desperate attempt at escape, and stumbled away as he was released.

He came up sideways against a wall and stood there panting. The light,
which might have come from the pillar but which seemed more a part of
the very air, was bright enough to reveal that he was in a corridor
running into gr