ed the door, and asked one of the clerks if she could see the
principal for a moment. He came to her directly. She then said to him,
"He wants fifty pounds; could you let me have it for him?"

"Oh," said the lawyer, cheerfully, "I shall be happy to lend Mr. Monckton
fifty or a hundred pounds upon his own note of hand."

They both stared at him a little; but a blank note of hand was
immediately produced, drawn and signed at six months' date for L52 10s.,
and the lawyer gave Monckton his check for L50. Husband and wife then
parted for a time. Monckton telegraphed to his lodgings to say that his
sister would come down with him for country air, and would require good
accommodation, but would pay liberally.

In most mining accidents the shafts are clear, and the debris that has to
be picked through to get to the entombed miners is attacked with this
advantage, that a great number of men have room to use their arms and
pickaxes, and the stuff has not to be sent up to the surface. But in this
horrible accident both gangs of workers were confined to a small area and
small cages, and the stuff had to be sent up to the surface.

Bartley, who seemed to live only to rescue the sufferers by his own
fault, provided miles of rope, and had small cages knocked together, so
that the debris was continually coming up from both the shafts, and one
great source of delay was averted. But the other fatal cause of delay
remained, and so daylight came and went, and the stars appeared and
disappeared with incredible rapidity to poor Walter and the other gallant
workers, before they got within thirty feet of the pit: those who worked
in the old shafts, having looser stuff to deal with, gained an advance of
about seven feet upon the other working party, and this being reported to
Walter he went down the other shaft to inspire the men by words and
example. He had not been down two hours when one of the miners cried,
"Hold hard, they are working up to us," and work was instantly suspended
for a moment. Then sure enough the sounds of pickaxes working below were
just audible.

There was a roar of exultation from the rescuing party, and a man was
sent up with his feet in a bucket, and clinging to a rope, to spread the
joyful tidings; but the work was not intermitted for more than a moment,
and in a few hours it became necessary to send the cage down and suspend
the work to avoid another accident. The thin remaining crust gave way,
the way was clear,