“You’ll feel a kind of ticklin’ feelin’ in the throat at first, but that’s all O.K.—only the chemical the flannel’s saturated with. Now follow me, please, an’ would you mind runnin’, the rain’s apt to weaken the solution. This way!”
Dutifully we hasted after him, ploughing through the wet sand, until we came to a heavily timbered doorway that seemingly opened into the hillside, and, beyond this yawning doorway I saw a thick, greenish-yellow mist, a fog exactly the colour of strong absinthe; and then we were in it. K.’s tall figure grew blurred, indistinct, faded utterly away, and I was alone amid that awful, swirling vapour that held death in such agonising form.
I will confess I was not happy, my throat was tickling provokingly, I began to cough and my windpipe felt too small. I hastened forward, but, even as I went, the light grew dimmer and the swirling fog more dense. I groped blindly, began to run, stumbled, and in that moment my hand came in contact with an unseen rope. On I went into gloom, into blackness, until I was presently aware of my companions in front and mightily glad of it. In a while, still following this invisible rope, we turned a corner, the fog grew less opaque, thinned away to a green mist, and we were out in the daylight again, and thankful was I to whip off my stifling helmet and feel the clean wind in my hair and the beat of rain upon my face.
“Notice the ticklin’ feelin’?” enquired our sub., as he took our helmets and put them carefully by. “Bit tryin’ at first, but you soon get used to it—yes, rather. Some of the men funk tryin’ at first—and some hold their breath until they fairly well burst, an’ some won’t go in at all, so we carry ’em in. That gas you’ve tried is about twenty times stronger than we get it in the open, but these helmets are a rippin’ dodge till the chemical evaporates, then, of course, they’re no earthly. This is the latest device—quite a tophole scheme!” And he showed us a box-like contrivance which, when in use, is slung round the neck.
“Are you often in the gas?” I enquired.
“Every day—yes, rather!”
“For how long?”
“Well, I stayed in once for five hours on end—”
“Five hours!” I exclaimed, aghast.
“Y’see, I was experimentin’!”