Roxy Hastings — page 17: what you’re looking at

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

8 : A ROXV HASTINGS. “Thank Heaven! she lives yet!” said the father, “ but‘ ah! how long?” “Tt is not ten minutes yet,” replied the young man, “and I think one might breathe there for an hour; don’t—don’t you think s0 ?” “JT cannot tell, but I think not, Mr. Lee. I have read of some experiments showing how fearfully soon animal life becomes extinct in a perfectly air-tight room, even larger than that. Oh, it is too horrible!” Charles remembered how nearly stifling was the air of the vault to him, even when he entered it for a few minutes, with the door open, and his heart sank with new terror. They replied from time to time to the signal of the im- mured girl by striking with a hammer upon the door, hop- ing thus to keep up her courage; nor did they cease to try the lock on various combinations of numbers, though in a feeble, hopeless way. While thus engaged one of the clerks returned, accom- panied by an agent of the manufacturers, to whom Wilsey turned with great eagerness. “You have come alone, and without tools,” he said, - angrily, “when I want this vault broken open instantly, to save my daughter’s life.” “Sir,” replied the man, solemnly, “we have not force enough in our establishment to open that door, or to effect any entrance into that room in less than twelve or fifteen hours.” Wilsey groaned. * And the combinations?” he asked. “How many are there? How long will it take to try them all? What are © the chances ?” “There is no hope in that direction,” replied the man— “at least none worth counting on; though you can keep trying, of course. If Mr. Lee really locked the door with the porter’s figures, and you can find him in time, all will be right. But this is your only hope.” ~ Let me go for him!” said Lee, wildly. “Let us all go in different directions. Let us sound the alarm through the city. Surely we can find him somewhere !” The painful tidings were indeed already fast spreading ; the bank was filling up with curious and anxious specta- tors, and volunteer messengers were constantly starting off in search of the man on the discovery of whom such momentous results depended. At this moment a book-keeper entered, who had been cComicbooks.com.