ts
hind-legs.

"I do believe it's Socrates," said Paul; and sure enough it was.

Mechanically, and without thinking of what he was about, Paul took a bit
of meat from his lunch-pail and tossed it to the rat, which immediately
seized it in its mouth and scampered away. Then Paul realized that he
was wasting precious food, and made a vain effort to catch the rat. The
beast was too quick for him, and darted away towards a dark corner of
the chamber, whither Paul followed it, hoping to discover its nest and
perhaps recover the meat.

He saw the rat run into a hole in the wall about two feet above the
floor; and putting his face down to it, trying to look in, he felt a
delicious current of fresh air. It was not very strong, but it caused
the flame of his lamp to flicker, so that he withdrew it hurriedly for
fear it should be extinguished.

Suddenly he started as though he had been shot, and almost let fall the
lamp in his excitement. Had he heard a human voice? Of course not! How
absurd to imagine such a thing! But there it was again; and it said,

"Holloa! Is anybody in there?"

The sound came to his ear distinctly enough this time through the hole,
and placing his mouth close to it, Paul shouted back,

"Holloa! Yes, we're in here, and we want to get out. Who are you?"

The boy almost screamed for joy at the answer which came to this
question; for it was,

"I'm Derrick Sterling. Are you Paul Evert?"

Derrick was almost as greatly affected when the voice said,

"Yes, I'm Paul, and there are a lot more of us in here, and we are
stifling. But oh, Derrick, dear Derrick! I'm so glad you're not
drowned."

Then Paul went back to the others, and found it almost impossible to
waken them. He finally succeeded; and when they comprehended his great
news, each one had to go to the hole, draw in a deep breath of the fresh
air, and call through it to Derrick, for the sake of hearing him answer.
It was so good to hear a human voice besides their own; and though they
knew he was a prisoner like themselves, it somehow filled them with new
hope and longings for life. They had no tools with them, but all fell to
work enlarging the hole with knives, the iron handles of their
lunch-pails, or whatever else they could lay hands upon, while Paul
stood by and held the lamp.

Although Derrick had plenty of air and space to move about in, his
situation had been fully as bad as theirs, for he had been alone.
Nothing is so terrible unde