BURIED ALIVE.
And so they stumbled blindly on, blindly, for they could not open their
eyes because of the fearful dust and ashes. The thick cloud of dust and
ashes came forth in a mighty avalanche, burying the land and filling the
air with its death-dealing particles; making such a darkness as could be
felt; a close, suffocating darkness more like the blackness of an
unventilated dungeon than the open darkness of night; a darkness which
was penetrated only by the mighty light of the belching volcano, the
light varying with every phase of the eruption; now a lurid glare which
gave the dust-covered earth the appearance of a blood-stained floor;
again it would change to a blue which would almost equal the soft rays
of the moon; then it would die away to a faint green, casting a
death-like glow over all.
And the fearful rumbling continued and far down in the bowels of the
earth, could be heard that great lake or river of molten rock and ore,
rushing to the outlet which would free it; and the earth would tremble
with the fearful fight of the mass as it surged and burned and crushed
its way through its underground channels. Then again could be heard the
hissing and blowing off of the steam as it escaped from the crevice in
the crater.
About the fleeing army fell the hot ashes and steam. They had made a
wild rush toward the villa when the first shower had struck them, and
they were still hurrying as fast as their bleeding feet could carry
them. They had covered miles, and this was wonderful when it was
considered, that the ashes had fallen almost to the depth of a foot; and
each step that they took they would sink into the hot, ragged substance
which would burn and blister their feet, protected only by sandals. And
their progress would be suddenly checked now and then, by great
fragments of rock, having been hurled by the awful power of the volcano,
falling directly in their path, perhaps crushing one of the poor Onians
beneath its weight. Then in their blindness they would rush into each
other, knocking each other down, and burnt and bleeding, and almost
smothered by the fearful dust, they could hardly regain their feet. But
hurry as they would their progress was growing slower each moment and
they were not getting out of the fearful shower of dust and ashes. This
seemed to grow worse as they advanced, and the survivors, who were still
left to suffer on, were fast giving out.
It looked as if they could not possibly survive the terrible struggle,
this unequal fight with the forces of the earth’s interior. The
atmosphere would clear for a moment, and the lurid glare of the volcano
would again light up the scene, giving a momentary hope which would be
killed again by a heavier downpour of ashes and dust. Then the struggle
would recommence; a silent struggle, for no sound was made by these
helpless creatures, as they fought on, gasping for breath, reeling in
their weakness, falling now; but putting forth another great effort and
standing erect once more they would stumble ahead again and so on,
until, strength exhausted, they would fall for the last time, the shower
of ashes and dust soon choking their last breath, and burying the burned
and bleeding bodies beneath their awful folds. But these Onians were
more than ordinary men, they had more vital life in their bodies, they
were strong to the last muscle; their every sinew was developed and
health and exercise made them powerful, and so they kept up the struggle
longer than would our friends had they been on foot. But they had been
mounted on great elephants during the battle. They at first mounted them
upon leaving the camp in the morning, expecting only to accompany the
men to their scene of labor when they would return. So when the negroes
were met, and they saw that a battle was inevitable, they remained
mounted so as to better conduct the fight.
At first it had been suggested that they should ride zebras, but it was
decided to take the elephants, as they would stand the hard journey over
the bad lands better. And it had been a lucky decision on their part,
for now they were saved the fearful fight with that hot shower of ashes,
which not only filled the air, making it almost impossible to breathe,
but which also made a bed which was nearly impossible to walk over or
through, as the bed had grown to such a depth, that it was nothing more
than wading, Sedai had been foremost, in the charge of the elephants
into the negro band, and had gotten far ahead of his friends, reaching
the volcano even before some of the negroes had. When he saw that awful
sea of lava pouring over the side of the crevice, he had turned and
motioned his comrades to follow, and had made Gip understand that he
must travel as he had never traveled before. The intelligent animal
seemed to understand, and hurried on, too, by the heat and burning ashes
as they fell on his back, he started on a run which would have soon
brought them safely to the villa, if the air and road had not been
obstructed by the miserable ashes.
But the elephants, all of which had followed Gip, were, too,
experiencing the torture of the awful cloud and shower, and they had
stumbled many times, over the rocks and in the soft bed which was
getting deeper each moment. The elephants had kept close together
though, and had in this way, kept trodden a very good path. Our friends
could see, during the few intervals when the cloudy atmosphere would
break and the light of the volcano penetrate this, the poor Onians
stumbling along in the darkness and scorching cinders. They had called
to them to keep up courage, but it was needless advice to these men, for
they would not give up until the last moment.
They had tried to get the elephants to kneel, and take on their backs,
as many as they could carry; but the animals, crazed by pain and fear,
dashed on, often crushing beneath their feet, those whom their riders
would save. And so the elephants rushed on and as the light would break
through the awful blackness, the riders could see that the number of
poor pedestrians was growing less and less, until at last, none were
seen. They had all succumbed to the overpowering cloud of ashes, and
their bodies now strewed the ground, which but a few hours before they
had passed over, strong in healthful life; and of the five thousand who
had started on the march that morning not one was left; all, all had met
their fate. Some by the deadly hatchets of the negroes, others by the
fearful downpour of hot cinders.
The Land of On had met its first great catastrophe; it had for the first
time in his history, experienced some of those adversities, which had so
frequently befallen the other countries of the world. But our friends
were still alive. Onrai, Mr. Graham, Mr. Bruce, Harry and Sedai, were
being borne through the blackness by the elephants. Their throats were
parched, even their lungs seemed burning up with the great heated shower
of ashes, which they had been compelled to breathe so long. Their eyes
were almost swollen shut, their faces and bodies were covered with
blisters where the cruel, hot cinders had struck them. Even they, who
had not been exposed wholly to the storm, and who had been spared the
awful struggle of limping through the hot bed of cinders, even they
began to despair of ever getting out of this radius of dust and ashes.
And the elephants were now beginning to stumble and sway from side to
side, growing weaker and weaker with the terrible exertion, their
strength being sapped by the plungings into the ash-bed, which was now
beyond their knees. They would rock from side to side striking each
other, but, again bracing up, try it once more. The position of our
friends was becoming unsafe, as the elephants were liable to fall at any
moment and crush them beneath their huge bodies; but it meant sure death
to leave their backs, so expecting death to overtake them each moment,
either from the burning air which was scorching their very lungs, or
beneath the prostrate animals which were now struggling so bravely to
save them. They were hurrying on, but where? Only to death. Again there
was a fearful rumbling, the very bowels of the earth seeming to be
disjointed and ground to fragments. It grew louder and louder; it almost
deafened the sounds of hissing steam and ashes which fell around the
little group, and the sucking sound caused by the sinking in and pulling
out of the feet of the fast-failing animals.
Finally the earth began to shake and the exhausted elephants, unable to
withstand this new enemy, fell to their knees and then flat on their
sides. The men had strength enough left to jump and save themselves from
being crushed, but they were forced nearly to the hips into the ashes,
and they could not extricate themselves. Then this was the last, this
was the end of the happy sojourn in the Land of On. No, it could not be,
they must not die here in this miserable way and be buried by the
never-ceasing shower; they must struggle on.
“Up,” said Mr. Bruce to his elephant, as the rumbling ceased and the
earth again became steady. “Once more, now,” he halloed out as he
reached forward and struck the poor beast across the ear with his hook.
But the elephant, after making several ineffectual struggles, gave a
plaintive cry and let its head drop into the relentless ashes. As in a
quicksand, the five men stood perfectly helpless, and their lives fast
going out. The elephants had, one by one, given up the struggle, and
were now panting and gasping and waiting for the end. They seemed to
realize that they were doomed and the plaintive cry would break from
their gasping throats, as if asking aid of those whom they had tried to
save, but all were powerless. Hope was fast failing them. They could not
possibly last much longer, but what mattered it whether they went now,
or lived to suffer for a few moments longer. There was no power on earth
that could save them now, and they must look death square in the face.
It seemed hard surely, to die so near to friends, and life and sunshine,
for they knew that this death-dealing shower could not extend many miles
unless it be worse than was that other.
They knew that the dear ones were safe in the villa, for, though they
were in the radius of the shower, they were sheltered from this, and the
flow of lava had not run toward the villa, or they would have seen it.
It was some consolation then to know, that if they must die, these dear
ones at least were safe. But what will become of them alone in this
strange land? They would have to entrust themselves wholly to the
people, who had once looked upon them with superstitious fear, and who
might again, after this dreadful catastrophe, turn on them, and having
no longer any one to protect them, or having no defense to offer as they
had before, destroy them. It was not pleasant to think thus as the awful
ashes continued to pile up around them, burying them alive.
The pain which this thought gave them of possible danger to their loved
ones, was worse than the physical tortures which they were now
suffering, and they turned and wrenched their bodies in their living
graves, in very agony of mind. And Onrai, too, seemed to be suffering
more than bodily pain. If his thoughts could have been read, they
probably would have told the story of baffled hopes, and of the death of
aspirations which the love for Enola had kindled in him. It was harder
for him to die thus than for any of the others, for he had been so
strong and mighty, and his life was full of such bright hopes, and he
had so much to live for, but it was ended. All, all was lost.
But may be not, thought Mr. Bruce, for Gip, who had laid for a moment
perfectly quiet, had now begun to again exert his awful strength and was
twisting and plunging about, as if to make a place on which he could
stand. He accomplished this finally and rose to his feet. He had had a
short rest from the fearful struggles of the flight, and he could again
commence the fight. Sedai, who was near him, caught the howdah as he
rose and was lifted out of the ashes. He then made Gip understand that
he was to help the others, and one by one the great elephant, lifted by
his trunk, raised them to his back. Then starting in the direction,
which they had kept since starting on the awful ride, the great beast
fought on; they had been moving thus for several moments, when he
suddenly stopped and refused to move further. Just then the sky became
light for the moment, and a zebra was seen lying in their path, and
lying beneath it, the body of Enola.