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Page 46
Directly the boys came panting up, stopping in the doorway to look
behind them. They were both well winded.
"That bum detective back there," Tommy exclaimed as soon as he could
catch his breath, "is putting in dynamite enough to blow up the whole
mine. He's attaching a long fuse, so he can get out before the
explosion comes. We tried to get down far enough to choke off the
fuse, but couldn't do it. In just about another minute, you'll hear
something like a Fourth of July celebration!"
CHAPTER XVII
THE SIGNS IN STONES
"We thought he'd send the shot off before we got up the ladders!"
exclaimed Dick. "We're expecting to hear the roar of it every minute
now!"
"Perhaps something went wrong," suggested Will.
"What part of the mine is he in?" asked Jimmie.
Tommy explained the location of the cross cutting and Jimmie gave a
whistle of dismay. In a moment he asked:
"Was he cutting into one of the pillars?"
"Yes," was the answer, "he was getting ready to blow it down with
dynamite. It's a wonder we don't hear the explosion!"
"If the spot where he's working is the place I think it is," Jimmie
continued, "the gink stands a pretty good chance of finding something.
We've been searching in that chamber, and just before you boys showed
up tonight we thought we were on the right track. Whether the money
is there or not, it is a sure thing that the walls of the chamber have
been tampered with. We think, though, that the money is there!"
"Then we mustn't let Ventner get it!" exclaimed Will.
"It won't do him any good to get it after that stick of dynamite
explodes!" exclaimed Tommy. "It'll blow him to Kingdom Come."
"Well, why don't we go down and see about it?" asked Will
"Not for me!" exclaimed Tommy.
"He may blow his own head off if he wants to," Dick put in, "but he
can't blow off mine, not with my consent. I've got only one head!"
"I don't believe there's going to be any explosion at all!" exclaimed
Elmer. "He wouldn't be apt to lay a fuse that would burn fifteen or
twenty minutes, and you've certainly been that length of time coming
up here, to say nothing of the time we've been talking!"
"All right!" Tommy exclaimed. "Perhaps he was loading up that pillar
with dynamite just for the fun of it!"
"It would be a nice thing to have him blow that money out of the
pillar and get away with it, wouldn't it?" scoffed Will.
"Come on, then," shouted Tommy, "I can take you to the firing line in
about a minute. If you want to see an earthquake in a coal mine, just
come along with me! You'll see it, all right!"
The boys left the old tool house without spending any more time in
conversation, and hastened down the ladders to the lower level. On
the way down the last gangway they heard some one moving about in the
darkness, and then came a cry of warning.
"Stand clear! Stand clear!"
"That's Ventner's voice!" exclaimed Will.
"There's a blast going off in a minute!" the voice came again.
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