Now, however, he began to consider the matter of his escape.  It was obvious that two methods were open to him.  He could either try to make his way out alone to the old slope near the Dunmore road, or he could remain in the vicinity of Conway’s chamber till help should reach him from the Burnham mine.

But it might be many hours before assistance would come.  The shaft would have first to be cleared out, and that he knew would be no easy matter.  After that the mine would need to be ventilated before men could make their way through it.  All this could not be done in a day, indeed it might take many days, and when they should finally come in to search for him, they would not find him in the Burnham mine; he would not be there.

If he could discover the way to the old slope, and the path should be unobstructed, he would be in the open air within half an hour.  In the open air!  The very thought of such a possibility decided the question for him.  And when he should reach the surface he would go straight to Mrs. Burnham, straight to his mother, and place in her hands the letter he had found.  She would be glad to read it; she would be very, very glad to know that Ralph was her son.  Sitting there in the darkness and the desolation he could almost see her look of great delight, he could almost feel her kisses on his lips as she gave him tender greeting.  Oh! it would be beautiful, so beautiful!

But, then, there was Uncle Billy.  He had come near to forgetting him.  He would go first to Uncle Billy, that would be better, and then they would go together to his mother’s house and would both enjoy her words of welcome.

But if he was going he must be about it.  It would not do to sit there all night.  All night?  Ralph wondered what time it had come to be.  Whether hours or days had passed since his imprisonment he could hardly tell.

He picked up his lamp and can and started on.  At no great distance he found an old door-way opening into the heading.  He passed through it and began to trudge along the narrow, winding passage.  He had often to stop and rest, he felt so very weak.  A long time he walked, slowly, unsteadily, but without much pain.  Then, suddenly, he came to the end of the heading.  The black, solid wall faced him before he was hardly aware of it.  He had taken the wrong direction when he entered the gallery, that was all.  He had followed the heading in instead of out.  His journey had not been without its use, however, for it settled definitely the course he ought to take to reach the slope, and that, he thought, was a matter of no little importance.

He sat down for a few minutes to rest, and then started on his return.  It seemed to be taking so much more time to get back that he feared he had passed the door-way by which he had entered the heading.  But he came to it at last and stopped there.

He began to feel hungry.  He wondered why he had not thought to look for some one’s dinner pail, before he came over into the old mine.  He knew that his own still had fragments of food in it; he wished that he had them now.  But wishing was of no use, the only thing for him to do was to push ahead toward the surface.  When he should reach his mother’s house his craving would be satisfied with all that could tempt the palate.