back as quick as I could, bearing my precious burden. She was as light
as a feather--no weight at all. I carried her as tenderly as if she
was a little baby. As I emerged from the smoke Ethel rushed up to me
and set up a cry, but I told her to keep quiet and it would be all
right. Then I directed the guides to carry her down, and I myself then
carried down the child-angel.

"You see I wasn't going to give her up. I had had hard work enough
getting her. Besides, the atmosphere up there was horrible. It was
necessary, first of all, to get her down to the foot of the cone,
where she could have pure air, and then resuscitate her. Therefore I
directed the guides to take down Ethel in a chair, while I carried
down the child-angel. They had to carry her down over the lava blocks,
but I went to a part of the cone where it was all loose sand, and went
down flying. I was at the bottom a full half hour before the others.

"Then I laid her upon the loose sand; and I swear to you, Hawbury,
never in all my life have I seen such a sight. She lay there before my
eyes a picture of loveliness beyond imagination--as beautiful as a
dream--more like a child-angel than ever. Her hair clustered in golden
curls over her white brow, her little hands were folded meekly over
her breast, her lips were parted into a sweet smile, the gentle eyes
no longer looked at me with the piteous, pleading, trustful, innocent
expression which I had noticed in them before, and her hearing was
deaf to the words of love and tenderness that I lavished upon her."

"Good!" muttered Hawbury; "you talk like a novel. Drive on, old man.
I'm really beginning to feel excited."

"'The fact is," said Dacres, "I have a certain set of expressions