The elevator was a simple one to operate. But the Chief let the former operator take charge of it again as soon as we had started, only directing two of his men to keep a tight hold on the man and another to keep him covered. But there was little fight or trickery left in that fellow.
Just before the car stopped I spoke to the Chief again. “Are the others coming after us?”
“One more load,” he answered. “I’m sending Foster up again. The others are going into the woods to surround the house and cut off any attempt at breaking out. That’s why I sent out two scouts to look over the land. But I think you and I had better keep on with this, eh?”
“I’d hate to miss it,” I answered. A moment later the elevator stopped.
We stepped out into a brightly lighted room, the top of which was of rough wood shored up with heavy beams. The walls were of unpainted planks. Ahead of us stretched a long tunnel about ten feet high by eight feet wide, lit at intervals by small electric bulbs. The floor of it carried a narrow-gauge track. The air was dank and cool, as I well remembered.
The elevator went up to the surface again under the charge of Foster, and the Chief turned to the operator. “Where’s the car?” he demanded.
“At the other end, sir,” whimpered the fellow.
“Is it automatic or operated by hand?”
“Automatic electric, sir. But if I signal for it, the operator at the other end will have to send it. He’ll be on the look-out for us, then. Shall I signal it, sir?”
“How long a ride is it?” demanded the Chief.