“If you’ve found the pipe, Nick, plug it up.”
“I haven’t found the pipe, and we can’t stop the escaping gas.”
“Can’t?” echoed Chick.
“No.” Nick jumped from his assistant’s shoulders. “It comes between the joints of those roof stones. If we had tow, and could calk up every crack in the roof, we might save ourselves. But that’s out of the question.”
“What a devilish contrivance!” exclaimed Chick.
“It’s devilish enough to do for us if we can’t find our way out of this hole.”
“You might look for a trap in the roof.”
“As soon as you’re able to bear my weight again, I’ll try.”
“Try now, old man. Every second is worth its weight in gold.”
Nick tried to mount Chick’s shoulders, but Chick was too far gone and could not hold him up.