Rocky Mountain Sam — page 71: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

62 | ROCKY MOUNTAIN SAM. CHAPTER VIII. THE MUD VOLCANO—A WONDERFUL MAGNET. These rock-ribbed walls that from foemen defend us, These purple-piled peaks and chasms stupendous, Have quivered ere this at the earthquake’s tread; And still beneath us those forces unquiet Mutter at times of the olden riot, Till the brain grows dizzy with horror and arent Lest again from their fastness the fires should burst, To rend and destroy as they did at the first. On the morning after the air-voyagers had made their camp in the strange canon, Rocky Mountain Sam was awakened just about daylight by the sound.of a dreadful explosion, and sprang to his feet, rubbing his eyes and striving to collect his slumber-shrouded thoughts. At the same moment Fayaway—probably awakened by the same startling sound—came running from behind the screening blanket which had been hung up to afford her more privacy in passing the night. What had happened? There lay the balloon, fiat and lifeless, upon the ground, with its last remnant of gas evaporated, and they noted with considerable alarm that their companion had already arisen from his couch of blankets and skins, and was nowhere to be seen. Pretty soon, however, they observed him coming toward them through the uncertain haze of the early morning, which was rendered doubly obscure by the steady vaporings of the numerous volcanic crevices which seamed the upper floor of the little canon, while, ever and anon, there came to their ears a dull, looming, rever berating sound. as of sub- terranean thunder, and Sam was not sure that he did not feel the solid ground quivering and waving under his feet. The presence of the professor speedily explained all. “Ah!” said he, rubbing his hands in the cold-blooded ghastly way he had of expressing a philosopher’s satisfaction; i “the noise of that explosion has routed you both out I see, OS Do Abe know what has happened?” > comicbooks.com ee ee a eee ee | ee, f Sate. —s be WS OE ce. ~The Ns _= , 4 : . .