“I’d climb over to the other side if I had the time,” Tubby declared, feeling perhaps that he would be safe enough behind that man-made cliff.
At last all was in readiness. Some laborers near at hand, glad of any excuse to drop work, laid down their shovels to see what would happen when the “Go-devil,” as they called it, was set off.
Mr. Raynor gave a look behind him at Ram who was crouching low at quite a distance from the hole.
“All right!” he shouted.
Ram gave the string a jerk and dropped it. Then he too started sprinting toward the boys.
“He’s dropped it!” exclaimed Mr. Raynor. “Watch it now!”
It seemed to the boys as if Ram, swiftly as he ran, would never get to a place of safety. Their hearts fairly stood in their mouths as they watched him running like a greyhound.
Suddenly came a subdued roar. The earth shook. The solid ground trembled as if it had been a jelly. A second later, from the mouth of the hole there shot a mighty column of earth, stones and smoke. It was accompanied by a screaming, whistling sound and then came the detonation of a mighty roar. Up and up shot the column as if it meant to pierce the blue sky. The workmen shouted and ran for places of safety.
Suddenly Mr. Raynor, who had been watching with hawk-like eyes, gave a sharp, commanding cry:
“Run, boys! Run for your lives! After me!”