ear it again!
We took some long drinks there, I can tell you. Then we scooped up
with our hands some coal dust to lie on, and slumped down again. I was
beginning to feel pretty weak."

"About what day do you suppose that was?" the reporter asked.

"I haven't any idea. Sometimes I thought we'd only been down there a
few hours, sometimes it seemed like weeks. I suppose, really, it was
about the third or the fourth day.

"I woke up suddenly.

"Somebody was laughing!

"It was a queer high-pitched laugh, and half-choked, something like
the neighing of a horse.

"Anton heard it, too.

"'The knockers are coming for us!' he said to me, hoarsely. 'It's just
like Father said. They're laughing at us!'

"Well, I don't mind telling you my blood ran a bit cold. I'm not
superstitious, but, for the second time in that mine, I was scared
enough to run. But where to?

"Anton was gasping horribly; it made me worse to hear him. I put my
hand on his shoulder to quiet him. He was trembling and shaking, like
as he had a chill.

"The laughing came nearer, and louder.

"The louder it got, the less I was scared. After the first few seconds
of fright, I got all right again, and started to think quietly. Then
the real reason came to me.

"It must be Jim!

"I let out a loud shout.

"The laughing stopped dead.

"Then I knew it was Jim; things that weren't human wouldn't care if I
shouted or not.

"'Keep quiet!' I said to Anton. 'It's Jim, and he's coming this way.'

"Presently the laughter began again, a sort of half choked scream,
like I said, but it was laughing just the same. It made my flesh creep
to hear it. Somehow it wasn't quite human, more like an animal trying
to laugh like a man.

"It was quite close to us, now. I got up, for I could hear steps
shuffling along the gallery.

"Suddenly, something bumped into me, though I thought the steps were
several yards away.

"It was Jim, sure enough.

"He gave a sort of screech and both his hands went up to my throat, in
a strangling grip.

"I'm a good deal bigger than Jim, but I was like a baby in his hands.
He had me like in a vise.

"'Help! Help! Anton!' I called. 'He's throttling me! It's Jim!'

"At that, the kid got up, tottering. He was weak enough, but, as you
know, he's really got muscles of iron. In spite of his scare--for he
was dead sure that it was something supernatural--he came to my help.

"The minute he got his hands on Jim and found that it was real