In a second or two more he had passed Roberts and bounded out of the rear door, where he disappeared in the darkness.
At the same time the conductor, who had apparently been on the engine, came rushing back to ascertain what was the matter. As the two hurried back to the rear platform Roberts managed to make the man understand what had occurred.
“The fellow must have been crazy,” Roberts thought to himself, as he gazed out into the blackness of the night. “At any rate,” he added, “it is not likely that we will see anything more of him.”
The conductor was evidently of the same opinion, for after several minutes of waiting and after a consultation with the engineer, the train was again started and the journey continued.
The conductor signified to Roberts that the next stop was his destination, and a quarter of an hour later he found himself in the midst of absolute blackness. The train had started on at once, and the passenger stood for several minutes uncertain which way to turn, for there was not a house, nor even so much as a platform beneath his feet.
II
At last, however, as his eyes grew used to the darkness, he managed to make out what appeared to be some kind of structure nearby, and toward it he stumbled. It was a small shed, in the shelter of which he stopped.
“Good heavens!” he muttered to himself. “What kind of a town can this be?”
His cousin had unfortunately not known when he was to arrive, and the mines, as he knew, were a number of miles away, so he had nothing to hope for from that quarter.
“Perhaps there is only this shed and the road!” he groaned to himself. “Not even a hotel!”