We were walking along, he a little in the rear,
when he suddenly disappeared. I could not imagine what had become of
him. I looked everywhere. The earth seemed to have opened and swallowed
him. I called, and called, but could get no answer. Presently I heard
a groan that seemed to come out of the bowels of the earth; but, as yet,
I could not make out where he was. Going back to camp, I procured a
light, and after whooping and hallooing for a long time, I heard another
groan, this time much louder than before. The voice appeared to be
overhead. There was no tree or house to be seen; and then again the
voice seemed to answer from under the ground, in a hollow, sepulchral
tone, but I could not tell where he was. But I was determined to find
him, so I kept on hallooing and he answering. I went to the place where
the voice appeared to come out of the earth. I was walking along rather
thoughtlessly and carelessly, when one inch more and I would have
disappeared also. Right before me I saw the long dry grass all bending
toward a common center, and I knew that it was an old well, and that
my comrade had fallen in it. But how to get him out was the unsolved
problem. I ran back to camp to get assistance, and everybody had a great
curiosity to see "the man in the well.
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