ten times as far, if necessary. But once more, Mr. Starr,

wasn't my communication worth your trouble in coming to hear it?



Just dare to say no, Mr. Starr, dare to say no!"

"Well, my old friend, I haven't felt so happy for a long while!"



replied the engineer; "the small part of this marvelous mine that we

have explored seems to show that its extent is very considerable,



at least in length."

"In width and in depth, too, Mr. Starr!" returned Simon Ford.



"That we shall know later."

"And I can answer for it! Trust to the instinct of an old miner!



It has never deceived me!"

"I wish to believe you, Simon," replied the engineer, smiling.



"As far as I can judge from this short exploration, we possess

the elements of a working which will last for centuries!"



"Centuries!" exclaimed Simon Ford; "I believe you, sir!

A thousand years and more will pass before the last bit of coal



is taken out of our new mine!"

"Heaven grant it!" returned Starr. "As to the quality of the coal



which crops out of these walls?"

"Superb! Mr. Starr, superb!" answered Ford; "just look at it yourself!"



And so saying, with his pick he struck off a fragment of the black rock.

"Look! look!" he repeated, holding it close to his lamp;



"the surface of this piece of coal is shining! We have here fat coal,

rich in bituminous matter; and see how it comes in pieces,



almost without dust! Ah, Mr. Starr! twenty years ago this

seam would have entered into a strong competition with Swansea



and Cardiff! Well, stokers will quarrel for it still, and if it

costs little to extract it from the mine, it will not sell



at a less price outside."

"Indeed," said Madge, who had taken the fragment of coal and was



examining it with the air of a connoisseur; "that's good quality

of coal. Carry it home, Simon, carry it back to the cottage!



I want this first piece of coal to burn under our kettle."

"Well said, wife!" answered the old overman, "and you shall see



that I am not mistaken."

"Mr. Starr," asked Harry, "have you any idea of the probable direction



of this long passage which we have been following since our entrance

into the new mine?"



"No, my lad," replied the engineer; "with a compass I could

perhaps find out its general bearing; but without a compass



I am here like a sailor in open sea, in the midst of fogs,

when there is no sun by which to calculate his position."



"No doubt, Mr. Starr," replied Ford; "but pray don't compare

our position with that of the sailor, who has everywhere and



always an abyss under his feet! We are on firm ground here,

and need never be afraid of foundering."



"I won't tease you, then, old Simon," answered James Starr. "Far be

it from me even in jest to depreciate the New Aberfoyle mine



by an unjust comparison! I only meant to say one thing,

and that is that we don't know where we are."



"We are in the subsoil of the county of Stirling, Mr. Starr,"

replied Simon Ford; "and that I assert as if--"



"Listen!" said Harry, interrupting the old man.

All listened, as the young miner was doing. His ears, which were



very sharp, had caught a dull sound, like a distant murmur.

His companions were not long in hearing it themselves.



It was above their heads, a sort of rolling sound, in which though

it was so feeble, the successive CRESCENDO and DIMINUENDO could



be distinctly heard.

All four stood for some minutes, their ears on the stretch,



without uttering a word. All at once Simon Ford exclaimed,

"Well, I declare! Are trucks already running on the rails



of New Aberfoyle?"

"Father," replied Harry, "it sounds to me just like the noise



made by waves rolling on the sea shore."

"We can't be under the sea though!" cried the old overman.



"No," said the engineer, "but it is not impossible that we

should be under Loch Katrine."



"The roof cannot have much thickness just here, if the noise

of the water is perceptible."



"Very little indeed," answered James Starr, "and that is the reason

• opening [´əupəniŋ] n.开放；开端 a.开始的 (初中英语单词)


• portion [´pɔ:ʃən] n.嫁妆；命运 vt.分配 (初中英语单词)


• enormous [i´nɔ:məs] a.巨大地，很，极 (初中英语单词)


• immense [i´mens] a.广大的，无限的 (初中英语单词)


• celebrated [´selibreitid] a.著名的 (初中英语单词)


• incline [in´klain] v.(使)倾斜 n.斜坡 (初中英语单词)


• running [´rʌniŋ] a.奔跑的；流动的 (初中英语单词)


• communication [kə,mju:ni´keiʃən] n.通信；通讯联系 (初中英语单词)


• secondary [´sekəndəri, -deri] a.第二的；次要的 (初中英语单词)


• valuable [´væljuəbəl, -jubəl] a.有价值的，贵重的 (初中英语单词)


• working [´wə:kiŋ] a.工人的；劳动的 (初中英语单词)


• retreat [ri´tri:t] v.&n.退却；撤退；放弃 (初中英语单词)


• mineral [´minərəl] n.矿物 a.矿物的 (初中英语单词)


• supposed [sə´pəuzd] a.想象的；假定的 (初中英语单词)


• riches [´ritʃiz] n.房地产；丰富 (初中英语单词)


• extent [ik´stent] n.长度；程度；范围 (初中英语单词)


• wealth [welθ] n.财富，财产 (初中英语单词)


• marvelous [´mɑ:viləs] (=marvellous) a.奇异的 (初中英语单词)


• frontier [´frʌntiə] n.国境；边疆；边界 (初中英语单词)


• movement [´mu:vmənt] n.活动；运动；动作 (初中英语单词)


• breeze [bri:z] n.微风；不费力的事 (初中英语单词)


• vegetable [´vedʒtəbəl] a.&n.蔬菜(的)；植物 (初中英语单词)


• contents [´kɔ:ntents] n.容纳物；要旨 (初中英语单词)


• beginning [bi´giniŋ] n.开始，开端；起源 (初中英语单词)


• gallery [´gæləri] n.画廊；美术馆；长廊 (初中英语单词)


• formerly [´fɔ:məli] ad.从前，以前 (初中英语单词)


• observation [,ɔbzə´veiʃən] n.观测；注意；意义 (初中英语单词)


• lately [´leitli] ad.近来，不久前 (初中英语单词)


• atmosphere [´ætməsfiə] n.大气；空气；气氛 (初中英语单词)


• emotion [i´məuʃən] n.感情；情绪；激动 (初中英语单词)


• venture [´ventʃə] n.投机 v.冒险；敢于 (初中英语单词)


• height [hait] n.高度；顶点；卓越 (初中英语单词)


• altitude [´æltitju:d] n.高度；海拨 (初中英语单词)


• awhile [ə´wail] ad.少顷；片刻 (初中英语单词)


• confess [kən´fes] vt.供认；坦白；承认 (初中英语单词)


• instinct [´instiŋkt] n.本能；直觉；天资 (初中英语单词)


• fragment [´frægmənt] n.碎片；破片；断片 (初中英语单词)


• competition [,kɔmpi´tiʃən] n.比赛；竞争 (初中英语单词)


• probable [´prɔbəbəl] a.大概的n.很可能的事 (初中英语单词)


• compass [´kʌmpəs] n.指南针；圆规 (初中英语单词)


• assert [ə´sə:t] vt.认定；维护；坚持 (初中英语单词)


• feeble [´fi:bəl] a.虚弱的，无力的 (初中英语单词)


• distinctly [di´stiŋktli] ad.清楚地，明晰地 (初中英语单词)


• kentucky [kən´tʌki] n.肯塔基 (高中英语单词)


• massive [´mæsiv] a.厚实的；魁伟的 (高中英语单词)


• formation [fɔ:´meiʃən] n.形成；构成；排列 (高中英语单词)


• tightly [´taitli] ad.紧，紧密地 (高中英语单词)


• fantastic [fæn´tæstik] a.奇异的；荒谬的 (高中英语单词)


• mining [´mainiŋ] n.采矿；矿业 (高中英语单词)


• geography [dʒi´ɔgrəfi] n.地理(学) (高中英语单词)


• torrent [´tɔrənt] n.奔流，激流，洪流；迸发 (高中英语单词)


• granite [´grænit] n.花岗岩 (高中英语单词)


• perfectly [´pə:fiktli] ad.理想地；完美地 (高中英语单词)


• cavern [´kævən] n.大山洞；大岩洞 (高中英语单词)


• picturesque [,piktʃə´resk] a.似画的；别致的 (高中英语单词)


• sturdy [´stə:di] a.坚强的；坚定的 (高中英语单词)


• explore [ik´splɔ:] v.勘探；探索；探查 (高中英语单词)


• exploration [,eksplɔ:´reiʃən] n.探索；探险；考察 (高中英语单词)


• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)


• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)


• extract [ik´strækt, ´ekstrækt] vt.取出；摘录 n.精华 (高中英语单词)


• bearing [´beəriŋ] n.举止；忍耐；关系 (高中英语单词)


• hearing [´hiəriŋ] n.听力；听证会；审讯 (高中英语单词)


• successive [sək´sesiv] a.相继的；接连的 (高中英语单词)


• thickness [´θiknis] n.厚；浓；粗；稠密 (高中英语单词)


• sandstone [´sændstəun] n.砂岩 (英语四级单词)


• scottish [´skɔtiʃ, ´skɑtiʃ] a.&n.苏格兰人(的) (英语四级单词)


• domain [də´mein,dəu-] n.领土；版图；范围 (英语四级单词)


• matchless [´mætʃləs] a.无敌的，无比的 (英语四级单词)


• uncommon [ʌn´kɔmən] a.非常的，非凡的，罕见的 (英语四级单词)


• exterior [ik´stiəriə] n.&a.外表(的) (英语四级单词)


• totally [´təutəli] ad.统统，完全 (英语四级单词)


• bituminous [bi´tju:minəs] a.含沥青的 (英语四级单词)


• unjust [ʌn´dʒʌst] a.不公平(正)的 (英语四级单词)


• mammoth [´mæməθ] a.庞大的 (英语六级单词)


• excavation [,ekskə´veiʃən] n.挖掘，洞，穴 (英语六级单词)


• numberless [´nʌmbələs] a.无号码的；数不清的 (英语六级单词)


• geological [dʒiə´lɔdʒikəl] a.地质学的 (英语六级单词)


• labyrinth [´læbərinθ] 迷宫；错综复杂之事件 (英语六级单词)


• extended [iks´tendid] a.伸长的；广大的 (英语六级单词)


• orifice [´ɔrifis] n.口；孔；通气口 (英语六级单词)


• ventilation [,venti´leiʃən] n.通风(设备)；换气 (英语六级单词)


• practicable [´præktikəbəl] a.可实行的；适用的 (英语六级单词)


• holding [´həuldiŋ] n.保持，固定，存储 (英语六级单词)