ItwasnotuntilJanuary,1917,thatwelefttherefuge。Allhadbeenarranged。Wetookourplaceatonceasagents—provocateursintheschemeoftheIronHeel。IwassupposedtobeErnest\'ssister。Byoligarchsandcomradesontheinsidewhowerehighinauthority,placehadbeenmadeforus,wewereinpossessionofallnecessarydocuments,andourpastswereaccountedfor。Withhelpontheinside,thiswasnotdifficult,forinthatshadow—worldofsecretserviceidentitywasnebulous。Likeghoststheagentscameandwent,obeyingcommands,fulfillingduties,followingclews,makingtheirreportsoftentoofficerstheyneversaworcooperatingwithotheragentstheyhadneverseenbeforeandwouldneverseeagain。
CHAPTERTWENTY—TWO。
TheChicagoCommune。
ASAGENTS—PROVOCATEURS,notalonewereweabletotravelagreatdeal,butourveryworkthrewusincontactwiththeproletariatandwithourcomrades,therevolutionists。Thuswewereinbothcampsatthesametime,ostensiblyservingtheIronHeelandsecretlyworkingwithallourmightfortheCause。ThereweremanyofusinthevarioussecretservicesoftheOligarchy,anddespitetheshakings—upandreorganizationsthesecretserviceshaveundergone,theyhaveneverbeenabletoweedallofusout。
ErnesthadlargelyplannedtheFirstRevolt,andthedatesethadbeensomewhereearlyinthespringof1918。Inthefallof1917wewerenotready;muchremainedtobedone,andwhentheRevoltwasprecipitated,ofcourseitwasdoomedtofailure。Theplotofnecessitywasfrightfullyintricate,andanythingprematurewassuretodestroyit。ThistheIronHeelforesawandlaiditsschemesaccordingly。
WehadplannedtostrikeourfirstblowatthenervoussystemoftheOligarchy。Thelatterhadrememberedthegeneralstrike,andhadguardedagainstthedefectionofthetelegraphersbyinstallingwirelessstations,inthecontroloftheMercenaries。We,inturn,hadcounteredthismove。Whenthesignalwasgiven,fromeveryrefuge,allovertheland,andfromthecities,andtowns,andbarracks,devotedcomradesweretogoforthandblowupthewirelessstations。ThusatthefirstshockwouldtheIronHeelbebroughttoearthandliepracticallydismembered。
Atthesamemoment,othercomradesweretoblowupthebridgesandtunnelsanddisruptthewholenetworkofrailroads。Stillfurther,othergroupsofcomrades,atthesignal,weretoseizetheofficersoftheMercenariesandthepolice,aswellasallOligarchsofunusualabilityorwhoheldexecutivepositions。Thuswouldtheleadersoftheenemyberemovedfromthefieldofthelocalbattlesthatwouldinevitablybefoughtallovertheland。
Manythingsweretooccursimultaneouslywhenthesignalwentforth。
TheCanadianandMexicanpatriots,whowerefarstrongerthantheIronHeeldreamed,weretoduplicateourtactics。Thentherewerecomrades（thesewerethewomen,forthemenwouldbebusyelsewhere）
whoweretoposttheproclamationsfromoursecretpresses。ThoseofusinthehigheremployoftheIronHeelweretoproceedimmediatelytomakeconfusionandanarchyinallourdepartments。InsidetheMercenarieswerethousandsofourcomrades。Theirworkwastoblowupthemagazinesandtodestroythedelicatemechanismofallthewarmachinery。InthecitiesoftheMercenariesandofthelaborcastessimilarprogrammesofdisruptionweretobecarriedout。
Inshort,asudden,colossal,stunningblowwastobestruck。BeforetheparalyzedOligarchycouldrecoveritself,itsendwouldhavecome。
Itwouldhavemeantterribletimesandgreatlossoflife,butnorevolutionisthesitatesatsuchthings。Why,weevendependedmuch,inourplan,ontheunorganizedpeopleoftheabyss。Theyweretobeloosedonthepalacesandcitiesofthemasters。Nevermindthedestructionoflifeandproperty。LettheabysmalbruteroarandthepoliceandMercenariesslay。Theabysmalbrutewouldroaranyway,andthepoliceandMercenarieswouldslayanyway。Itwouldmerelymeanthatvariousdangerstouswereharmlesslydestroyingoneanother。
Inthemeantimewewouldbedoingourownwork,largelyunhampered,andgainingcontrolofallthemachineryofsociety。
Suchwasourplan,everydetailofwhichhadtobeworkedoutinsecret,and,asthedaydrewnear,communicatedtomoreandmorecomrades。Thiswasthedangerpoint,thestretchingoftheconspiracy。
Butthatdanger—pointwasneverreached。Throughitsspy—systemtheIronHeelgotwindoftheRevoltandpreparedtoteachusanotherofitsbloodylessons。Chicagowasthedevotedcityselectedfortheinstruction,andwellwereweinstructed。
Chicago*wastheripestofall—Chicagowhichofoldtimewasthecityofbloodandwhichwastoearnanewitsname。Theretherevolutionaryspiritwasstrong。Toomanybitterstrikeshadbeencurbedthereinthedaysofcapitalismfortheworkerstoforgetandforgive。Eventhelaborcastesofthecitywerealivewithrevolt。Toomanyheadshadbeenbrokenintheearlystrikes。Despitetheirchangedandfavorableconditions,theirhatredforthemasterclasshadnotdied。ThisspirithadinfectedtheMercenaries,ofwhichthreeregimentsinparticularwerereadytocomeovertousenmasse。
*ChicagowastheindustrialinfernoofthenineteenthcenturyA。D。AcuriousanecdotehascomedowntousofJohnBurns,agreatEnglishlaborleaderandonetimememberoftheBritishCabinet。InChicago,whileonavisittotheUnitedStates,hewasaskedbyanewspaperreporterforhisopinionofthatcity。\'Chicago,\'heanswered,\'isapocketeditionofhell。\'Sometimelater,ashewasgoingaboardhissteamertosailtoEngland,hewasapproachedbyanotherreporter,whowantedtoknowifhehadchangedhisopinionofChicago。\'Yes,Ihave,\'washisreply。\'MypresentopinionisthathellisapocketeditionofChicago。\'
Chicagohadalwaysbeenthestorm—centreoftheconflictbetweenlaborandcapital,acityofstreet—battlesandviolentdeath,withaclass—consciouscapitalistorganizationandaclass—consciousworkmanorganization,where,intheolddays,theveryschool—teacherswereformedintolaborunionsandaffiliatedwiththehod—carriersandbrick—layersintheAmericanFederationofLabor。AndChicagobecamethestorm—centreoftheprematureFirstRevolt。
ThetroublewasprecipitatedbytheIronHeel。Itwascleverlydone。
Thewholepopulation,includingthefavoredlaborcastes,wasgivenacourseofoutrageoustreatment。Promisesandagreementswerebroken,andmostdrasticpunishmentsvisiteduponevenpettyoffenders。Thepeopleoftheabyssweretormentedoutoftheirapathy。Infact,theIronHeelwaspreparingtomaketheabysmalbeastroar。Andhandinhandwiththis,inallprecautionarymeasuresinChicago,theIronHeelwasinconceivablycareless。DisciplinewasrelaxedamongtheMercenariesthatremained,whilemanyregimentshadbeenwithdrawnandsenttovariouspartsofthecountry。
Itdidnottakelongtocarryoutthisprogramme—onlyseveralweeks。WeoftheRevolutioncaughtvaguerumorsofthestateofaffairs,buthadnothingdefiniteenoughforanunderstanding。Infact,wethoughtitwasaspontaneousspiritofrevoltthatwouldrequirecarefulcurbingonourpart,andneverdreamedthatitwasdeliberatelymanufactured—andithadbeenmanufacturedsosecretly,fromtheveryinnermostcircleoftheIronHeel,thatwehadgotnoinkling。Thecounter—plotwasanableachievement,andablycarriedout。
IwasinNewYorkwhenIreceivedtheordertoproceedimmediatelytoChicago。Themanwhogavemetheorderwasoneoftheoligarchs,Icouldtellthatbyhisspeech,thoughIdidnotknowhisnamenorseehisface。Hisinstructionsweretooclearformetomakeamistake。PlainlyIreadbetweenthelinesthatourplothadbeendiscovered,thatwehadbeencountermined。Theexplosionwasreadyfortheflashofpowder,andcountlessagentsoftheIronHeel,includingme,eitheronthegroundorbeingsentthere,weretosupplythatflash。IflattermyselfthatImaintainedmycomposureunderthekeeneyeoftheoligarch,butmyheartwasbeatingmadly。I
couldalmosthaveshriekedandflownathisthroatwithmynakedhandsbeforehisfinal,cold—bloodedinstructionsweregiven。
Onceoutofhispresence,Icalculatedthetime。Ihadjustthemomentstospare,ifIwerelucky,togetintouchwithsomelocalleaderbeforecatchingmytrain。Guardingagainstbeingtrailed,I
madearushofitfortheEmergencyHospital。Luckwaswithme,andIgainedaccessatoncetocomradeGalvin,thesurgeon—in—chief。I
startedtogaspoutmyinformation,buthestoppedme。
\'Ialreadyknow,\'hesaidquietly,thoughhisIrisheyeswereflashing。\'Iknewwhatyouhadcomefor。Igotthewordfifteenminutesago,andIhavealreadypasseditalong。Everythingshallbedoneheretokeepthecomradesquiet。Chicagoistobesacrificed,butitshallbeChicagoalone。\'
\'HaveyoutriedtogetwordtoChicago？\'Iasked。
Heshookhishead。\'Notelegraphiccommunication。Chicagoisshutoff。It\'sgoingtobehellthere。\'
Hepausedamoment,andIsawhiswhitehandsclinch。Thenheburstout:
\'ByGod！IwishIweregoingtobethere！\'
\'Thereisyetachancetostopit,\'Isaid,\'ifnothinghappenstothetrainandIcangetthereintime。Orifsomeoftheothersecret—servicecomradeswhohavelearnedthetruthcangetthereintime。\'
\'Youontheinsidewerecaughtnappingthistime,\'hesaid。
Inoddedmyheadhumbly。
\'Itwasverysecret,\'Ianswered。\'Onlytheinnerchiefscouldhaveknownuptoto—day。Wehaven\'tyetpenetratedthatfar,sowecouldn\'tescapebeingkeptinthedark。IfonlyErnestwerehere。
MaybeheisinChicagonow,andalliswell。\'
Dr。Galvinshookhishead。\'ThelastnewsIheardofhimwasthathehadbeensenttoBostonorNewHaven。Thissecretservicefortheenemymusthamperhimalot,butit\'sbetterthanlyinginarefuge。\'
Istartedtogo,andGalvinwrungmyhand。
\'Keepastoutheart,\'werehispartingwords。\'WhatiftheFirstRevoltislost？Therewillbeasecond,andwewillbewiserthen。
Good—byandgoodluck。Idon\'tknowwhetherI\'lleverseeyouagain。
It\'sgoingtobehellthere,butI\'dgivetenyearsofmylifeforyourchancetobeinit。\'
TheTwentiethCentury*leftNewYorkatsixintheevening,andwassupposedtoarriveatChicagoatsevennextmorning。Butitlosttimethatnight。Wewererunningbehindanothertrain。AmongthetravellersinmyPullmanwascomradeHartman,likemyselfinthesecretserviceoftheIronHeel。Heitwaswhotoldmeofthetrainthatimmediatelyprecededus。Itwasanexactduplicateofourtrain,thoughitcontainednopassengers。TheideawasthattheemptytrainshouldreceivethedisasterwereanattemptmadetoblowuptheTwentiethCentury。Forthatmattertherewereveryfewpeopleonthetrain—onlyabaker\'sdozeninourcar。
*Thiswasreputedtobethefastesttrainintheworldthen。Itwasquiteafamoustrain。
\'Theremustbesomebigmenonboard,\'Hartmanconcluded。\'Inoticedaprivatecarontherear。\'
Nighthadfallenwhenwemadeourfirstchangeofengine,andI
walkeddowntheplatformforabreathoffreshairandtoseewhatI
couldsee。ThroughthewindowsoftheprivatecarIcaughtaglimpseofthreemenwhomIrecognized。Hartmanwasright。OneofthemenwasGeneralAltendorff;andtheothertwowereMasonandVanderbold,thebrainsoftheinnercircleoftheOligarchy\'ssecretservice。
Itwasaquietmoonlightnight,butItossedrestlesslyandcouldnotsleep。AtfiveinthemorningIdressedandabandonedmybed。
Iaskedthemaninthedressing—roomhowlatethetrainwas,andshetoldmetwohours。Shewasamulattowoman,andInoticedthatherfacewashaggard,withgreatcirclesundertheeyes,whiletheeyesthemselveswerewidewithsomehauntingfear。
\'Whatisthematter？\'Iasked。
\'Nothing,miss;Ididn\'tsleepwell,Iguess,\'washerreply。
Ilookedatherclosely,andtriedherwithoneofoursignals。
Sheresponded,andImadesureofher。
\'SomethingterribleisgoingtohappeninChicago,\'shesaid。
\'There\'sthatfake*traininfrontofus。Thatandthetroop—trainshavemadeuslate。\'
*False。
\'Troop—trains？\'Iqueried。
Shenoddedherhead。\'Thelineisthickwiththem。We\'vebeenpassingthemallnight。Andthey\'reallheadingforChicago。Andbringingthemovertheair—line—thatmeansbusiness。
\'I\'vealoverinChicago,\'sheaddedapologetically。\'He\'soneofus,andhe\'sintheMercenaries,andI\'mafraidforhim。\'
Poorgirl。Herloverwasinoneofthethreedisloyalregiments。
HartmanandIhadbreakfasttogetherinthediningcar,andIforcedmyselftoeat。Theskyhadclouded,andthetrainrushedonlikeasullenthunderboltthroughthegraypallofadvancingday。Theverynegroesthatwaitedonusknewthatsomethingterriblewasimpending。Oppressionsatheavilyuponthem;thelightnessoftheirnatureshadebbedoutofthem;theywereslackandabsent—mindedintheirservice,andtheywhisperedgloomilytooneanotherinthefarendofthecarnexttothekitchen。Hartmanwashopelessoverthesituation。
\'Whatcanwedo？\'hedemandedforthetwentiethtime,withahelplessshrugoftheshoulders。
Hepointedoutofthewindow。\'See,allisready。Youcandependuponitthatthey\'reholdingthemlikethis,thirtyorfortymilesoutsidethecity,oneveryroad。\'
Hehadreferencetotroop—trainsontheside—track。Thesoldierswerecookingtheirbreakfastsoverfiresbuiltonthegroundbesidethetrack,andtheylookedupcuriouslyatusaswethunderedpastwithoutslackeningourterrificspeed。
AllwasquietasweenteredChicago。Itwasevidentnothinghadhappenedyet。Inthesuburbsthemorningpaperscameonboardthetrain。Therewasnothinginthem,andyettherewasmuchinthemforthoseskilledinreadingbetweenthelinesthatitwasintendedtheordinaryreadershouldreadintothetext。ThefinehandoftheIronHeelwasapparentineverycolumn。GlimmeringsofweaknessinthearmoroftheOligarchyweregiven。Ofcourse,therewasnothingdefinite。Itwasintendedthatthereadershouldfeelhiswaytotheseglimmerings。Itwascleverlydone。Asfiction,thosemorningpapersofOctober27weremasterpieces。
Thelocalnewswasmissing。Thisinitselfwasamasterstroke。ItshroudedChicagoinmystery,anditsuggestedtotheaverageChicagoreaderthattheOligarchydidnotdaregivethelocalnews。Hintsthatwereuntrue,ofcourse,weregivenofinsubordinationallovertheland,crudelydisguisedwithcomplacentreferencestopunitivemeasurestobetaken。Therewerereportsofnumerouswirelessstationsthathadbeenblownup,withheavyrewardsofferedforthedetectionoftheperpetrators。Ofcoursenowirelessstationshadbeenblownup。
Manysimilaroutrages,thatdovetailedwiththeplotoftherevolutionists,weregiven。TheimpressiontobemadeonthemindsoftheChicagocomradeswasthatthegeneralRevoltwasbeginning,albeitwithaconfusingmiscarriageinmanydetails。Itwasimpossibleforoneuninformedtoescapethevagueyetcertainfeelingthatallthelandwasripefortherevoltthathadalreadybeguntobreakout。
ItwasreportedthatthedefectionoftheMercenariesinCaliforniahadbecomesoseriousthathalfadozenregimentshadbeendisbandedandbroken,andthattheirmemberswiththeirfamilieshadbeendrivenfromtheirowncityandonintothelabor—ghettos。AndtheCaliforniaMercenarieswereinrealitythemostfaithfulofalltotheirsalt！ButhowwasChicago,shutofffromtherestoftheworld,toknow？ThentherewasaraggedtelegramdescribinganoutbreakofthepopulaceinNewYorkCity,inwhichthelaborcasteswerejoining,concludingwiththestatement（intendedtobeacceptedasabluff*）thatthetroopshadthesituationinhand。
*Alie。
Andastheoligarchshaddonewiththemorningpapers,sohadtheydoneinathousandotherways。Thesewelearnedafterward,as,forexample,thesecretmessagesoftheoligarchs,sentwiththeexpresspurposeofleakingtotheearsoftherevolutionists,thathadcomeoverthewires,nowandagain,duringthefirstpartofthenight。
\'IguesstheIronHeelwon\'tneedourservices,\'Hartmanremarked,puttingdownthepaperhehadbeenreading,whenthetrainpulledintothecentraldepot。\'Theywastedtheirtimesendingushere。Theirplanshaveevidentlyprosperedbetterthantheyexpected。Hellwillbreaklooseanysecondnow。\'
Heturnedandlookeddownthetrainaswealighted。
\'Ithoughtso,\'hemuttered。\'Theydroppedthatprivatecarwhenthepaperscameaboard。\'
Hartmanwashopelesslydepressed。Itriedtocheerhimup,butheignoredmyeffortandsuddenlybegantalkingveryhurriedly,inalowvoice,aswepassedthroughthestation。AtfirstIcouldnotunderstand。
\'Ihavenotbeensure,\'hewassaying,\'andIhavetoldnoone。I
havebeenworkingonitforweeks,andIcannotmakesure。WatchoutforKnowlton。Isuspecthim。Heknowsthesecretsofascoreofourrefuges。Hecarriesthelivesofhundredsofusinhishands,andI
thinkheisatraitor。It\'smoreafeelingonmypartthananythingelse。ButIthoughtImarkedachangeinhimashortwhileback。Thereisthedangerthathehassoldusout,orisgoingtosellusout。I
amalmostsureofit。Iwouldn\'twhispermysuspicionstoasoul,but,somehow,Idon\'tthinkI\'llleaveChicagoalive。KeepyoureyeonKnowlton。Traphim。Findout。Idon\'tknowanythingmore。Itisonlyanintuition,andsofarIhavefailedtofindtheslightestclew。\'Wewerejuststeppingoutuponthesidewalk。\'Remember,\'Hartmanconcludedearnestly。\'KeepyoureyesuponKnowlton。\'
AndHartmanwasright。BeforeamonthwentbyKnowltonpaidforhistreasonwithhislife。HewasformallyexecutedbythecomradesinMilwaukee。
Allwasquietonthestreets—tooquiet。Chicagolaydead。Therewasnoroarandrumbleoftraffic。Therewerenotevencabsonthestreets。Thesurfacecarsandtheelevatedwerenotrunning。Onlyoccasionally,onthesidewalks,weretherestraypedestrians,andthesepedestriansdidnotloiter。Theywenttheirwayswithgreathasteanddefiniteness,withaltherewasacuriousindecisionintheirmovements,asthoughtheyexpectedthebuildingstotoppleoveronthemorthesidewalkstosinkundertheirfeetorflyupintheair。A
fewgamins,however,werearound,intheireyesasuppressedeagernessinanticipationofwonderfulandexcitingthingstohappen。
Fromsomewhere,fartothesouth,thedullsoundofanexplosioncametoourears。Thatwasall。Thenquietagain,thoughthegaminshadstartledandlistened,likeyoungdeer,atthesound。Thedoorwaystoallthebuildingswereclosed;theshutterstotheshopswereup。
Butthereweremanypoliceandwatchmeninevidence,andnowandagainautomobilepatrolsoftheMercenariesslippedswiftlypast。
HartmanandIagreedthatitwasuselesstoreportourselvestothelocalchiefsofthesecretservice。Ourfailuresotoreportwouldbeexcused,weknew,inthelightofsubsequentevents。Soweheadedforthegreatlabor—ghettoontheSouthSideinthehopeofgettingincontactwithsomeofthecomrades。Toolate！Weknewit。Butwecouldnotstandstillanddonothinginthoseghastly,silentstreets。
WherewasErnest？Iwaswondering。WhatwashappeninginthecitiesofthelaborcastesandMercenaries？Inthefortresses？
Asifinanswer,agreatscreamingroarwentup,dimwithdistance,punctuatedwithdetonationafterdetonation。
\'It\'sthefortresses,\'Hartmansaid。\'Godpitythosethreeregiments！\'
Atacrossingwenoticed,inthedirectionofthestockyards,agiganticpillarofsmoke。AtthenextcrossingseveralsimilarsmokepillarswererisingskywardinthedirectionoftheWestSide。OverthecityoftheMercenarieswesawagreatcaptivewar—balloonthatburstevenaswelookedatit,andfellinflamingwreckagetowardtheearth。Therewasnoclewtothattragedyoftheair。Wecouldnotdeterminewhethertheballoonhadbeenmannedbycomradesorenemies。Avaguesoundcametoourears,likethebubblingofagiganticcaldronalongwayoff,andHartmansaiditwasmachine—gunsandautomaticrifles。
Andstillwewalkedinimmediatequietude。Nothingwashappeningwherewewere。Thepoliceandtheautomobilepatrolswentby,andoncehalfadozenfire—engines,returningevidentlyfromsomeconflagration。Aquestionwascalledtothefiremanbyanofficerinanautomobile,andweheardoneshoutinreply:\'Nowater！They\'veblownupthemains！\'
\'We\'vesmashedthewatersupply,\'Hartmancriedexcitedlytome。\'Ifwecandoallthisinapremature,isolated,abortiveattempt,whatcan\'twedoinaconcerted,ripenedeffortallovertheland？\'
Theautomobilecontainingtheofficerwhohadaskedthequestiondartedon。Suddenlytherewasadeafeningroar。Themachine,withitshumanfreight,liftedinanupburstofsmoke,andsankdownamassofwreckageanddeath。
Hartmanwasjubilant。\'Welldone！welldone！\'hewasrepeating,overandover,inawhisper。\'Theproletariatgetsitslessonto—day,butitgivesone,too。\'
Policewererunningforthespot。Also,anotherpatrolmachinehadhalted。Asformyself,Iwasinadaze。Thesuddennessofitwasstunning。Howhadithappened？Iknewnothow,andyetIhadbeenlookingdirectlyatit。SodazedwasIforthemomentthatIwasscarcelyawareofthefactthatwewerebeingheldupbythepolice。I
abruptlysawthatapolicemanwasintheactofshootingHartman。
ButHartmanwascoolandwasgivingtheproperpasswords。Isawthelevelledrevolverhesitate,thensinkdown,andheardthedisgustedgruntofthepoliceman。Hewasveryangry,andwascursingthewholesecretservice。Itwasalwaysintheway,hewasaverring,whileHartmanwastalkingbacktohimandwithfittingsecret—serviceprideexplainingtohimtheclumsinessofthepolice。
ThenextmomentIknewhowithadhappened。Therewasquiteagroupaboutthewreck,andtwomenwerejustliftingupthewoundedofficertocarryhimtotheothermachine。Apanicseizedallofthem,andtheyscatteredineverydirection,runninginblindterror,thewoundedofficer,roughlydropped,beingleftbehind。Thecursingpolicemanalongsideofmealsoran,andHartmanandIran,too,weknewnotwhy,obsessedwiththesameblindterrortogetawayfromthatparticularspot。
Nothingreallyhappenedthen,buteverythingwasexplained。Theflyingmenweresheepishlycomingback,butallthewhiletheireyeswereraisedapprehensivelytothemany—windowed,loftybuildingsthattoweredlikethesheerwallsofacanyononeachsideofthestreet。Fromoneofthosecountlesswindowsthebombhadbeenthrown,butwhichwindow？Therehadbeennosecondbomb,onlyafearofone。
Thereafterwelookedwithspeculativecomprehensionatthewindows。Anyofthemcontainedpossibledeath。Eachbuildingwasapossibleambuscade。Thiswaswarfareinthatmodernjungle,agreatcity。Everystreetwasacanyon,everybuildingamountain。Wehadnotchangedmuchfromprimitiveman,despitethewarautomobilesthatwereslidingby。
Turningacorner,wecameuponawoman。Shewaslyingonthepavement,inapoolofblood。Hartmanbentoverandexaminedher。Asformyself,Iturneddeathlysick。Iwastoseemanydeadthatday,butthetotalcarnagewasnottoaffectmeasdidthisfirstforlornbodylyingthereatmyfeetabandonedonthepavement。\'Shotinthebreast,\'wasHartman\'sreport。Claspedinthehollowofherarm,asachildmightbeclasped,wasabundleofprintedmatter。Evenindeathsheseemedloathtopartwiththatwhichhadcausedherdeath;
forwhenHartmanhadsucceededinwithdrawingthebundle,wefoundthatitconsistedoflargeprintedsheets,theproclamationsoftherevolutionists。
\'Acomrade,\'Isaid。
ButHartmanonlycursedtheIronHeel,andwepassedon。Oftenwewerehaltedbythepoliceandpatrols,butourpasswordsenabledustoproceed。Nomorebombsfellfromthewindows,thelastpedestriansseemedtohavevanishedfromthestreets,andourimmediatequietudegrewmoreprofound;thoughthegiganticcaldroncontinuedtobubbleinthedistance,dullroarsofexplosionscametousfromalldirections,andthesmoke—pillarsweretoweringmoreominouslyintheheavens。
CHAPTERTWENTY—THREE。
ThePeopleoftheAbyss。
SUDDENLYACHANGECAMEoverthefaceofthings。Atingleofexcitementranalongtheair。Automobilesfledpast,two,three,adozen,andfromthemwarningswereshoutedtous。Oneofthemachinesswervedwildlyathighspeedhalfablockdown,andthenextmoment,alreadyleftwellbehindit,thepavementwastornintoagreatholebyaburstingbomb。Wesawthepolicedisappearingdownthecross—streetsontherun,andknewthatsomethingterriblewascoming。
Wecouldheartherisingroarofit。
\'Ourbravecomradesarecoming,\'Hartmansaid。
Wecouldseethefrontoftheircolumnfillingthestreetfromguttertogutter,asthelastwar—automobilefledpast。Themachinestoppedforamomentjustabreastofus。Asoldierleapedfromit,carryingsomethingcarefullyinhishands。This,withthesamecare,hedepositedinthegutter。Thenheleapedbacktohisseatandthemachinedashedon,tooktheturnatthecorner,andwasgonefromsight。Hartmanrantothegutterandstoopedovertheobject。
\'Keepback,\'hewarnedme。
Icouldseehewasworkingrapidlywithhishands。Whenhereturnedtomethesweatwasheavyonhisforehead。
\'Idisconnectedit,\'hesaid,\'andjustinthenickoftime。Thesoldierwasclumsy。Heintendeditforourcomrades,buthedidn\'tgiveitenoughtime。Itwouldhaveexplodedprematurely。Nowitwon\'texplodeatall。\'
Everythingwashappeningrapidlynow。Acrossthestreetandhalfablockdown,highupinabuilding,Icouldseeheadspeeringout。I
hadjustpointedthemouttoHartman,whenasheetofflameandsmokeranalongthatportionofthefaceofthebuildingwheretheheadshadappeared,andtheairwasshakenbytheexplosion。Inplacesthestonefacingofthebuildingwastornaway,exposingtheironconstructionbeneath。Thenextmomentsimilarsheetsofflameandsmokesmotethefrontofthebuildingacrossthestreetoppositeit。