"
"You have," said the Colonel, "and would to God I had known the truth
before. She is not Bartley's daughter at all; she is Hope's daughter. Her
virtue shines in her face; she is noble, she is self-denying, she is
just, she is brave; and no doubt she can account for her being at the
Lake Hotel in company with some man or other. Whatever that lady says
will be the truth. That's not the trouble, Walter; all that has become
small by comparison. But shall we ever see her sweet face again or hear
her voice?"
"Father," said Walter, trembling, "you terrify me. This sudden change in
your voice that I never heard falter before; some great calamity must
have happened. Tell me the worst at once."
"Walter," said the old man, "stand firm; do not despair, for there is
hope."
"Thank God for that, father! now tell me all."
"Walter, there has been an explosion in the mine--a fearful explosion;
the shaft has fallen in; there is no getting access to the mine, and all
the poor souls confined there are in mortal peril.
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