Page:Randall Parrish - The Red Mist.djvu/237

 Rh only chance, and I must either give it a trial, or resign myself to the certain fate of the morrow.

Iron bars had been left on one side the chimney, forming an irregular ladder, whether for strengthening or some other purpose, I cannot say. My groping hands located these, and by their aid I began to climb slowly upward through the pitch darkness. The chimney walls were at the beginning so wide apart as to afford me no grip, but by the time the iron bands disappeared, which was just below the floor of the first story, the chimney had narrowed sufficiently to enable me to brace myself between its jagged sides. In this manner I not only managed to keep from falling, but even succeeded in advancing slowly, although the sharp edges of the stone lacerated hands and knees painfully. At the level of the first story I came upon a projection of rock, possibly six or eight inches wide, on which I found secure foot-hold, and was thus able to regain breath and strength for a renewal of the struggle. I was crouched opposite the oldtime fireplace, and the band, playing noisily, was within a very few feet of where I hid. However, not a gleam of light was visible, and it was some time before I located the opening which had been left for a stovepipe. Even then I could feel no pipe, but, as I extended my arm, a finger burst through the paper which had been pasted across the entrance, and