Not until Taylor's groggery was near at hand did he slacken speed, and then, assuming as best he could an air of composure, he opened the door cautiously to peep in.
Cale Billings was the only customer, and on seeing Skip, he cried:
"Come in, lad. I reckon you're here to see me."
Struggling hard to prevent his heavy breathing from being observed by the proprietor, the leader of the regulators entered, and whispered:
"There's been an accident on the lower level, an' two or three shut in."
"Explosion?"
"The top of the cuttin' fell in, an' it won't be a easy job to dig em out."
"Was you there?"
Sam nodded his head in a triumphant manner.
"You're a lad after my own heart," Billings said, approvingly, as he extended a huge, grimy hand for the boy to shake. "If half the men here had your spunk Wright wouldn't have got the best of us so easy. Did you fix that thing I told you about?"