Biscarratremainedsilent。？\"Tellus，ordie！\"criedthewoundedman，raisinghimselfupononeknee，andliftingtowardshiscompanionanarmbearingauselesssword。？Biscarratrushedtowardshim，openinghisbreastfortheblow，butthewoundedmanfellbacknottoriseagain，utteringagroanwhichwashislast。？Biscarrat，withhaironend，haggardeyes，andbewilderedhead，advancedtowardstheinteriorofthecavern，saying，\"Youareright。？Deathtome，whohaveallowedmycomradestobeassassinated。？Iamaworthlesswretch！\"？Andthrowingawayhissword，forhewishedtodiewithoutdefendinghimself，herushedheadforemostintothecavern。？Theothersfollowedhim。？Theelevenwhoremainedoutofsixteenimitatedhisexample;buttheydidnotgofurtherthanthefirst。？A
seconddischargelaidfiveupontheicysand;andasitwasimpossibletoseewhencethismurderousthunderissued，theothersfellbackwithaterrorthatcanbebetterimaginedthandescribed。？But，farfromflying，astheothershaddone，Biscarratremainedsafeandsound，seatedonafragmentofrock，andwaited。？Therewereonlysixgentlemenleft。
\"Seriously，\"
saidoneofthesurvivors，\"isitthedevil？\"
\"Mafoi！itismuchworse，\"saidanother。
\"AskBiscarrat，heknows。\"
\"WhereisBiscarrat？\"？Theyoungmenlookedroundthem，andsawthatBiscarratdidnotanswer。
\"Heisdead！\"saidtwoorthreevoices。
\"Oh！
no！\"repliedanother，\"Isawhimthroughthesmoke，sittingquietlyonarock。？Heisinthecavern;heiswaitingforus。\"
\"Hemustknowwhoarethere。\"
\"Andhowshouldheknowthem？\"
\"Hewastakenprisonerbytherebels。\"
\"Thatistrue。？Well！letuscallhim，andlearnfromhimwhomwehavetodealwith。\"？Andallvoicesshouted，\"Biscarrat！？Biscarrat！\"？ButBiscarratdidnotanswer。
\"Good！\"
saidtheofficerwhohadshownsomuchcoolnessintheaffair。？\"Wehavenolongeranyneedofhim;
herearereinforcementscoming。\"
Infact，acompanyofguards，leftintherearbytheirofficers，whomtheardorofthechasehadcarriedaway—fromseventy—fivetoeightymen—arrivedingoodorder，ledbytheircaptainandthefirstlieutenant。？Thefiveofficershastenedtomeettheirsoldiers;and，inlanguagetheeloquenceofwhichmaybeeasilyimagined，theyrelatedtheadventure，andaskedforaid。？Thecaptaininterruptedthem。？\"Whereareyourcompanions？\"demandedhe。
\"Dead！\"
\"Butthereweresixteenofyou！\"
\"Tenaredead。？Biscarratisinthecavern，andwearefive。\"
\"Biscarratisaprisoner？\"
\"Probably。\"
\"No，forhereheis—look。\"？Infact，Biscarratappearedattheopeningofthegrotto。
\"Heismakingasigntocomeon，\"saidtheofficer。？\"Comeon！\"
\"Comeon！\"criedallthetroop。？AndtheyadvancedtomeetBiscarrat。
\"Monsieur，\"
saidthecaptain，addressingBiscarrat，\"Iamassuredthatyouknowwhothemenareinthatgrotto，andwhomakesuchadesperatedefense。？Intheking\'snameIcommandyoutodeclarewhatyouknow。\"
\"Captain，\"
saidBiscarrat，\"youhavenoneedtocommandme。？Mywordhasbeenrestoredtomethisveryinstant;andIcameinthenameofthesemen。\"
\"Totellmewhotheyare？\"
\"Totellyoutheyaredeterminedtodefendthemselvestothedeath，unlessyougrantthemsatisfactoryterms。\"
\"Howmanyarethereofthem，then？\"
\"Therearetwo，\"saidBiscarrat。
\"Therearetwo—andwanttoimposeconditionsuponus？\"
\"Therearetwo，andtheyhavealreadykilledtenofourmen。\"
\"Whatsortofpeoplearethey—giants？\"
\"Worsethanthat。？DoyourememberthehistoryoftheBastionSaint—Gervais，captain？\"
\"Yes;wherefourmusketeersheldoutagainstanarmy。\"
\"Well，thesearetwoofthosesamemusketeers。\"
\"Andtheirnames？\"
\"AtthatperiodtheywerecalledPorthosandAramis。？NowtheyarestyledM。d\'HerblayandM。duVallon。\"
\"Andwhatinteresthavetheyinallthis？\"
\"ItistheywhowereholdingBell—IsleforM。Fouquet。\"
Amurmurranthroughtheranksofthesoldiersonhearingthetwowords\"PorthosandAramis。\"？\"Themusketeers！themusketeers！\"repeatedthey。？Andamongallthesebravemen，theideathattheyweregoingtohaveastruggleagainsttwooftheoldestgloriesoftheFrencharmy，madeashiver，halfenthusiasm，two—thirdsterror，runthroughthem。？Infact，thosefournames—D\'Artagnan，Athos，Porthos，andAramis—wereveneratedamongallwhoworeasword;as，inantiquity，thenamesofHercules，Theseus，Castor，andPolluxwerevenerated。
\"Twomen—
andtheyhavekilledtenintwodischarges！？Itisimpossible，MonsieurBiscarrat！\"
\"Eh！
captain，\"repliedthelatter，\"Idonottellyouthattheyhavenotwiththemtwoorthreemen，asthemusketeersoftheBastionSaint—Gervaishadtwoorthreelackeys;but，believeme，captain，Ihaveseenthesemen，Ihavebeentakenprisonerbythem—Iknowtheythemselvesaloneareall—sufficienttodestroyanarmy。\"
\"Thatweshallsee，\"saidthecaptain，\"andthatinamoment，too。？Gentlemen，attention！\"
Atthisreply，noonestirred，andallpreparedtoobey。？Biscarrataloneriskedalastattempt。
\"Monsieur，\"
saidhe，inalowvoice，\"bepersuadedbyme;letuspassonourway。？Thosetwomen，thosetwolionsyouaregoingtoattack，willdefendthemselvestothedeath。？Theyhavealreadykilledtenofourmen;theywillkilldoublethenumber，andendbykillingthemselvesratherthansurrender。？Whatshallwegainbyfightingthem？\"
\"Weshallgaintheconsciousness，monsieur，ofnothavingallowedeightyoftheking\'sguardstoretirebeforetworebels。？IfIlistenedtoyouradvice，monsieur，Ishouldbeadishonoredman;andbydishonoringmyselfIshoulddishonorthearmy。？Forward，mymen！\"
Andhemarchedfirstasfarastheopeningofthegrotto。？Therehehalted。？TheobjectofthishaltwastogiveBiscarratandhiscompanionstimetodescribetohimtheinteriorofthegrotto。？Then，whenhebelievedhehadasufficientacquaintancewiththeplace，hedividedhiscompanyintothreebodies，whichweretoentersuccessively，keepingupasustainedfireinalldirections。？Nodoubt，inthisattacktheywouldlosefivemore，perhapsten;but，certainly，theymustendbytakingtherebels，sincetherewasnoissue;and，atanyrate，twomencouldnotkilleighty。
\"Captain，\"
saidBiscarrat，\"Ibegtobeallowedtomarchattheheadofthefirstplatoon。\"
\"Sobeit，\"repliedthecaptain;\"youhaveallthehonor。？Imakeyouapresentofit。\"
\"Thanks！\"
repliedtheyoungman，withallthefirmnessofhisrace。
\"Takeyoursword，then。\"
\"IshallgoasIam，captain，\"saidBiscarrat，\"forIdonotgotokill，Igotobekilled。\"
Andplacinghimselfattheheadofthefirstplatoon，withheaduncoveredandarmscrossed，—\"March，gentlemen，\"saidhe。
ChapterXLIX:
AnHomericSong。
Itistimetopasstotheothercamp，andtodescribeatoncethecombatantsandthefieldofbattle。？AramisandPorthoshadgonetothegrottoofLocmariawiththeexpectationoffindingtheretheircanoereadyarmed，aswellasthethreeBretons，theirassistants;andtheyatfirsthopedtomakethebarkpassthroughthelittleissueofthecavern，concealinginthatfashionboththeirlaborsandtheirflight。？Thearrivalofthefoxanddogsobligedthemtoremainconcealed。？Thegrottoextendedthespaceofaboutahundredtoises，tothatlittleslopedominatingacreek。？FormerlyatempleoftheCelticdivinities，whenBelle—IslewasstillcalledKalon鑣e，thisgrottohadbeheldmorethanonehumansacrificeaccomplishedinitsmysticdepths。？Thefirstentrancetothecavernwasbyamoderatedescent，abovewhichdistortedrocksformedaweirdarcade;theinterior，veryunevenanddangerousfromtheinequalitiesofthevault，wassubdividedintoseveralcompartments，whichcommunicatedwitheachotherbymeansofroughandjaggedsteps，fixedrightandleft，inuncouthnaturalpillars。？Atthethirdcompartmentthevaultwassolow，thepassagesonarrow，thatthebarkwouldscarcelyhavepassedwithouttouchingtheside;nevertheless，inmomentsofdespair，woodsoftensandstonegrowsflexiblebeneaththehumanwill。？SuchwasthethoughtofAramis，when，afterhavingfoughtthefight，hedecideduponflight—aflightmostdangerous，sincealltheassailantswerenotdead;andthat，admittingthepossibilityofputtingthebarktosea，theywouldhavetoflyinopenday，beforetheconquered，sointerestedonrecognizingtheirsmallnumber，inpursuingtheirconquerors。？Whenthetwodischargeshadkilledtenmen，Aramis，familiarwiththewindingsofthecavern，wenttoreconnoiterthemonebyone，andcountedthem，forthesmokepreventedseeingoutside;andheimmediatelycommandedthatthecanoeshouldberolledasfarasthegreatstone，theclosureoftheliberatingissue。？Porthoscollectedallhisstrength，tookthecanoeinhisarms，andraiseditup，whilsttheBretonsmadeitrunrapidlyalongtherollers。？Theyhaddescendedintothethirdcompartment;theyhadarrivedatthestonewhichwalledtheoutlet。？Porthosseizedthisgiganticstoneatitsbase，appliedhisrobustshoulder，andgaveaheavewhichmadethewallcrack。？Acloudofdustfellfromthevault，withtheashesoftenthousandgenerationsofseabirds，whosenestsstucklikecementtotherock。？Atthethirdshockthestonegaveway，andoscillatedforaminute。？Porthos，placinghisbackagainsttheneighboringrock，madeanarchwithhisfoot，whichdrovetheblockoutofthecalcareousmasseswhichservedforhingesandcramps。？Thestonefell，anddaylightwasvisible，brilliant，radiant，floodingthecavernthroughtheopening，andtheblueseaappearedtothedelightedBretons。？Theybegantoliftthebarkoverthebarricade。？Twentymoretoises，anditwouldglideintotheocean。？Itwasduringthistimethatthecompanyarrived，wasdrawnupbythecaptain，anddisposedforeitheranescaladeoranassault。？Aramiswatchedovereverything，tofavorthelaborsofhisfriends。？Hesawthereinforcements，countedthemen，andconvincedhimselfatasingleglanceoftheinsurmountableperiltowhichfreshcombatwouldexposethem。？Toescapebysea，atthemomentthecavernwasabouttobeinvaded，wasimpossible。？Infact，thedaylightwhichhadjustbeenadmittedtothelastcompartmentshadexposedtothesoldiersthebarkbeingrolledtowardsthesea，thetworebelswithinmusket—shot;andoneoftheirdischargeswouldriddletheboatifitdidnotkillthenavigators。？Besides，allowingeverything，—ifthebarkescapedwiththemenonboardofit，howcouldthealarmbesuppressed—howcouldnoticetotheroyallightersbeprevented？？Whatcouldhinderthepoorcanoe，followedbyseaandwatchedfromtheshore，fromsuccumbingbeforetheendoftheday？？Aramis，digginghishandsintohisgrayhairwithrage，invokedtheassistanceofGodandtheassistanceofthedemons。？CallingtoPorthos，whowasdoingmoreworkthanalltherollers—whetheroffleshorwood—\"Myfriend，\"saidhe，\"ouradversarieshavejustreceivedareinforcement。\"
\"Ah，ah！\"saidPorthos，quietly，\"whatistobedone，then？\"
\"Torecommencethecombat，\"saidAramis，\"ishazardous。\"
\"Yes，\"
saidPorthos，\"foritisdifficulttosupposethatoutoftwo，oneshouldnotbekilled;andcertainly，ifoneofuswaskilled，theotherwouldgethimselfkilledalso。\"？Porthosspokethesewordswiththatheroicnaturewhich，withhim，grewgranderwithnecessity。
Aramisfeltitlikeaspurtohisheart。？\"WeshallneitherofusbekilledifyoudowhatItellyou，friendPorthos。\"
\"Tellmewhat？\"
\"Thesepeoplearecomingdownintothegrotto。\"
\"Yes。\"
\"Wecouldkillaboutfifteenofthem，butnomore。\"
\"Howmanyarethereinall？\"askedPorthos。
\"Theyhavereceivedareinforcementofseventy—fivemen。\"
\"Seventy—fiveandfive，eighty。？Ah！\"sighedPorthos。
\"Iftheyfireallatoncetheywillriddleuswithballs。\"
\"Certainlytheywill。\"
\"Withoutreckoning，\"addedAramis，\"thatthedetonationmightoccasionacollapseofthecavern。\"
\"Ay，\"
saidPorthos，\"apieceoffallingrockjustnowgrazedmyshoulder。\"
\"Yousee，then？\"
\"Oh！
itisnothing。\"
\"Wemustdetermineuponsomethingquickly。？OurBretonsaregoingtocontinuetorollthecanoetowardsthesea。\"
\"Verywell。\"
\"Wetwowillkeepthepowder，theballs，andthemusketshere。\"
\"Butonlytwo，mydearAramis—weshallneverfirethreeshotstogether，\"saidPorthos，innocently，\"thedefensebymusketryisabadone。\"
\"Findabetter，then。\"
\"I
havefoundone，\"saidthegiant，eagerly;\"Iwillplacemyselfinambuscadebehindthepillarwiththisironbar，andinvisible，unattackable，iftheycomeinfloods，Icanletmybarfallupontheirskulls，thirtytimesinaminute。？Hein！whatdoyouthinkoftheproject？？Yousmile！\"
\"Excellent，dearfriend，perfect！？Iapproveitgreatly;onlyyouwillfrightenthem，andhalfofthemwillremainoutsidetotakeusbyfamine。？Whatwewant，mygoodfriend，istheentiredestructionofthetroop。？Asinglesurvivorencompassesourruin。\"
\"Youareright，myfriend，buthowcanweattractthem，pray？\"
\"Bynotstirring，mygoodPorthos。\"
\"Well！
wewon\'tstir，then;butwhentheyarealltogether—\"
\"Thenleaveittome，Ihaveanidea。\"
\"Ifitisso，andyourideaprovesagoodone—andyourideaismostlikelytobegood—Iamsatisfied。\"
\"Toyourambuscade，Porthos，andcounthowmanyenter。\"
\"Butyou，whatwillyoudo？\"
\"Don\'ttroubleyourselfaboutme;Ihaveatasktoperform。\"
\"I
thinkIhearshouts。\"
\"Itisthey！？Toyourpost。？Keepwithinreachofmyvoiceandhand。\"
Porthostookrefugeinthesecondcompartment，whichwasindarkness，absolutelyblack。？Aramisglidedintothethird;
thegiantheldinhishandanironbarofaboutfiftypoundsweight。？Porthoshandledthislever，whichhadbeenusedinrollingthebark，withmarvelousfacility。？Duringthistime，theBretonshadpushedthebarktothebeach。？Inthefurtherandlightercompartment，Aramis，stoopingandconcealed，wasbusywithsomemysteriousmaneuver。？Acommandwasgiveninaloudvoice。？Itwasthelastorderofthecaptaincommandant。？Twenty—fivemenjumpedfromtheupperrocksintothefirstcompartmentofthegrotto，andhavingtakentheirground，begantofire。？Theechoesshriekedandbarked，thehissingballsseemedactuallytorarefytheair，andthenopaquesmokefilledthevault。
\"Totheleft！totheleft！\"criedBiscarrat，who，inhisfirstassault，hadseenthepassagetothesecondchamber，andwho，animatedbythesmellofpowder，wishedtoguidehissoldiersinthatdirection。？Thetroop，accordingly，precipitatedthemselvestotheleft—thepassagegraduallygrowingnarrower。？Biscarrat，withhishandsstretchedforward，devotedtodeath，marchedinadvanceofthemuskets。？\"Comeon！comeon！\"exclaimedhe，\"Iseedaylight！\"
\"Strike，Porthos！\"criedthesepulchralvoiceofAramis。
Porthosbreathedaheavysigh—butheobeyed。？TheironbarfellfullanddirectupontheheadofBiscarrat，whowasdeadbeforehehadendedhiscry。？Thentheformidableleverrosetentimesintenseconds，andmadetencorpses。？Thesoldierscouldseenothing;theyheardsighsandgroans;theystumbledoverdeadbodies，butastheyhadnoconceptionofthecauseofallthis，theycameforwardjostlingeachother。？Theimplacablebar，stillfalling，annihilatedthefirstplatoon，withoutasinglesoundtowarnthesecond，whichwasquietlyadvancing;only，commandedbythecaptain，themenhadstrippedafir，growingontheshore，and，withitsresinousbranchestwistedtogether，thecaptainhadmadeaflambeau。？OnarrivingatthecompartmentwherePorthos，liketheexterminatingangel，haddestroyedallhetouched，thefirstrankdrewbackinterror。？Nofiringhadrepliedtothatoftheguards，andyettheirwaywasstoppedbyaheapofdeadbodies—theyliterallywalkedinblood。？Porthoswasstillbehindhispillar。？Thecaptain，illuminingwithtremblingpine—torchthisfrightfulcarnage，ofwhichheinvainsoughtthecause，drewbacktowardsthepillarbehindwhichPorthoswasconcealed。？Thenagigantichandissuedfromtheshade，andfastenedonthethroatofthecaptain，whoutteredastiflerattle;hisstretched—outarmsbeatingtheair，thetorchfellandwasextinguishedinblood。？Asecondafter，thecorpseofthecaptaindroppedclosetotheextinguishedtorch，andaddedanotherbodytotheheapofdeadwhichblockedupthepassage。？Allthiswaseffectedasmysteriouslyasthoughbymagic。？Athearingtherattlinginthethroatofthecaptain，thesoldierswhoaccompaniedhimhadturnedround，caughtaglimpseofhisextendedarms，hiseyesstartingfromtheirsockets，andthenthetorchfellandtheywereleftindarkness。？Fromanunreflective，instinctive，mechanicalfeeling，thelieutenantcried:
\"Fire！\"
Immediatelyavolleyofmusketryflamed，thundered，roaredinthecavern，bringingdownenormousfragmentsfromthevaults。？Thecavernwaslightedforaninstantbythisdischarge，andthenimmediatelyreturnedtopitchydarknessrenderedthickerbythesmoke。？Tothissucceededaprofoundsilence，brokenonlybythestepsofthethirdbrigade，nowenteringthecavern。
ChapterL:
TheDeathofaTitan。
AtthemomentwhenPorthos，moreaccustomedtothedarknessthanthesemen，comingfromopendaylight，waslookingroundhimtoseeifthroughthisartificialmidnightAramiswerenotmakinghimsomesignal，hefelthisarmgentlytouched，andavoicelowasabreathmurmuredinhisear，\"Come。\"
\"Oh！\"
saidPorthos。
\"Hush！\"
saidAramis，ifpossible，yetmoresoftly。
Andamidstthenoiseofthethirdbrigade，whichcontinuedtoadvance，theimprecationsoftheguardsstillleftalive，themuffledgroansofthedying，AramisandPorthosglidedunseenalongthegranitewallsofthecavern。？AramisledPorthosintothelastbutonecompartment，andshowedhim，inahollowoftherockywall，abarrelofpowderweighingfromseventytoeightypounds，towhichhehadjustattachedafuse。？\"Myfriend，\"saidhetoPorthos，\"youwilltakethisbarrel，thematchofwhichIamgoingtosetfireto，andthrowitamidstourenemies;canyoudoso？\"
\"Parbleu！\"repliedPorthos;andheliftedthebarrelwithonehand。？\"Lightit！\"
\"Stop，\"
saidAramis，\"tilltheyareallmassedtogether，andthen，myJupiter，hurlyourthunderboltamongthem。\"
\"Lightit，\"repeatedPorthos。
\"Onmypart，\"continuedAramis，\"IwilljoinourBretons，andhelpthemtogetthecanoetothesea。？Iwillwaitforyouontheshore;launchitstrongly，andhastentous。\"
\"Lightit，\"saidPorthos，athirdtime。
\"Butdoyouunderstandme？\"
\"Parbleu！\"saidPorthosagain，withlaughterthathedidnotevenattempttorestrain，\"whenathingisexplainedtomeIunderstandit;begone，andgivemethelight。\"
AramisgavetheburningmatchtoPorthos，whoheldouthisarmtohim，hishandsbeingengaged。？AramispressedthearmofPorthoswithbothhishands，andfellbacktotheoutletofthecavernwherethethreerowersawaitedhim。
Porthos，leftalone，appliedthesparkbravelytothematch。？Thespark—afeeblespark，firstprincipleofconflagration—
shoneinthedarknesslikeaglow—worm，thenwasdeadenedagainstthematchwhichitsetfireto，Porthosenliveningtheflamewithhisbreath。？Thesmokewasalittledispersed，andbythelightofthesparklingmatchobjectsmight，fortwoseconds，bedistinguished。？Itwasabriefbutsplendidspectacle，thatofthisgiant，pale，bloody，hiscountenancelightedbythefireofthematchburninginsurroundingdarkness！？Thesoldierssawhim，theysawthebarrelheheldinhishand—theyatonceunderstoodwhatwasgoingtohappen。？Then，thesemen，alreadychokedwithhorroratthesightofwhathadbeenaccomplished，filledwithterroratthoughtofwhatwasabouttobeaccomplished，gaveoutasimultaneousshriekofagony。？Someendeavoredtofly，buttheyencounteredthethirdbrigade，whichbarredtheirpassage;othersmechanicallytookaimandattemptedtofiretheirdischargedmuskets;othersfellinstinctivelyupontheirknees。？TwoorthreeofficerscriedouttoPorthostopromisehimhislibertyifhewouldsparetheirlives。？Thelieutenantofthethirdbrigadecommandedhismentofire;buttheguardshadbeforethemtheirterrifiedcompanions，whoservedasalivingrampartforPorthos。？Wehavesaidthatthelightproducedbythesparkandthematchdidnotlastmorethantwoseconds;butduringthesetwosecondsthisiswhatitillumined:inthefirstplace，thegiant，enlargedinthedarkness;then，attenpacesoff，aheapofbleedingbodies，crushed，mutilated，inthemidstofwhichsomestillheavedinthelastagony，liftingthemassasalastrespirationinflatingthesidesofsomeoldmonsterdyinginthenight。？EverybreathofPorthos，thusvivifyingthematch，senttowardsthisheapofbodiesaphosphorescentaura，mingledwithstreaksofpurple。？Inadditiontothisprincipalgroupscatteredaboutthegrotto，asthechancesofdeathorsurprisehadstretchedthem，isolatedbodiesseemedtobemakingghastlyexhibitionsoftheirgapingwounds。？Aboveground，beddedinpoolsofblood，rose，heavyandsparkling，theshort，thickpillarsofthecavern，ofwhichthestronglymarkedshadesthrewouttheluminousparticles。？Andallthiswasseenbythetremulouslightofamatchattachedtoabarrelofpowder，thatistosay，atorchwhich，whilstthrowingalightonthedeadpast，showeddeathtocome。
AsIhavesaid，thisspectacledidnotlastabovetwoseconds。？Duringthisshortspaceoftimeanofficerofthethirdbrigadegottogethereightmenarmedwithmuskets，and，throughanopening，orderedthemtofireuponPorthos。？Buttheywhoreceivedtheordertofiretrembledsothatthreeguardsfellbythedischarge，andthefiveremainingballshissedontosplinterthevault，plowtheground，orindentthepillarsofthecavern。
A
burstoflaughterrepliedtothisvolley;thenthearmofthegiantswunground;thenwasseenwhirlingthroughtheair，likeafallingstar，thetrainoffire。？Thebarrel，hurledadistanceofthirtyfeet，clearedthebarricadeofdeadbodies，andfellamidstagroupofshriekingsoldiers，whothrewthemselvesontheirfaces。？Theofficerhadfollowedthebrillianttrainintheair;heendeavoredtoprecipitatehimselfuponthebarrelandtearoutthematchbeforeitreachedthepowderitcontained。？Useless！？Theairhadmadetheflameattachedtotheconductormoreactive;thematch，whichatrestmighthaveburntfiveminutes，wasconsumedinthirtyseconds，andtheinfernalworkexploded。？Furiousvorticesofsulphurandnitre，devouringshoalsoffirewhichcaughteveryobject，theterriblethunderoftheexplosion，thisiswhatthesecondwhichfolloweddisclosedinthatcavernofhorrors。？Therockssplitlikeplanksofdealbeneaththeaxe。？A
jetoffire，smoke，andd閎rissprangfromthemiddleofthegrotto，enlargingasitmounted。？Thelargewallsofsilextotteredandfelluponthesand，andthesanditself，aninstrumentofpainwhenlaunchedfromitshardbed，riddledthefaceswithitsmyriadcuttingatoms。？Shrieks，imprecations，humanlife，deadbodies—allwereengulfedinoneterrificcrash。
Thethreefirstcompartmentsbecameonesepulchralsinkintowhichfellgrimlyback，intheorderoftheirweight，everyvegetable，mineral，orhumanfragment。？Thenthelightersandandashcamedowninturn，stretchinglikeawindingsheetandsmokingoverthedismalscene。？Andnow，inthisburningtomb，thissubterraneanvolcano，seektheking\'sguardswiththeirbluecoatslacedwithsilver。？Seektheofficers，brilliantingold，seekforthearmsuponwhichtheydependedfortheirdefense。？Onesinglemanhasmadeofallofthosethingsachaosmoreconfused，moreshapeless，moreterriblethanthechaoswhichexistedbeforethecreationoftheworld。？Thereremainednothingofthethreecompartments—nothingbywhichGodcouldhaverecognizedHishandiwork。？AsforPorthos，afterhavinghurledthebarrelofpowderamidsthisenemies，hehadfled，asAramishaddirectedhimtodo，andhadgainedthelastcompartment，intowhichair，light，andsunshinepenetratedthroughtheopening。？Scarcelyhadheturnedtheanglewhichseparatedthethirdcompartmentfromthefourthwhenheperceivedatahundredpacesfromhimthebarkdancingonthewaves。？Therewerehisfriends，thereliberty，therelifeandvictory。？Sixmoreofhisformidablestrides，andhewouldbeoutofthevault;outofthevault！adozenofhisvigorousleapsandhewouldreachthecanoe。？Suddenlyhefelthiskneesgiveway;hiskneesseemedpowerless，hislegstoyieldbeneathhim。