center?"

"I do not know, Perry," I answered; "but thank God, if I am to die
it shall not be by fire--that is all that I have feared. I can
face the thought of any death but that."

Down, down went the mercury until it stood as low as it had seven
miles from the surface of the earth, and then of a sudden the
realization broke upon us that death was very near. Perry was the
first to discover it. I saw him fussing with the valves that regulate
the air supply. And at the same time I experienced difficulty in
breathing. My head felt dizzy--my limbs heavy.

I saw Perry crumple in his seat. He gave himself a shake and sat
erect again. Then he turned toward me.

"Good-bye, David," he said. "I guess this is the end," and then
he smiled and closed his eyes.

"Good-bye, Perry, and good luck to you," I answered, smiling back
at him. But I fought off that awful lethargy. I was very young--I
did not want to die.

For an hour I battled against the cruelly enveloping death that
surrounded me upon all sides. At first I found that by climbing
high into the framework above me I could find more of the precious
life-giving elements, and for a while these sustained me. It must
have been an hour after Perry had succumbed that I at last came
to the realization that I could no longer carry on this unequal
struggle against the inevitable.