第98章

Even while we were speaking, the train shot into the entrance ofthis dreaded Valley. Though I plead guilty to some foolishpalpitations of the heart, during our headlong rush over thecauseway here constructed, yet it were unjust to withhold thehighest encomiums on the boldness of its original conception, andthe ingenuity of those who executed it. It was gratifying, likewise,to observe how much care had been taken to dispel the everlastinggloom, and supply the defect of cheerful sunshine; not a ray ofwhich has ever penetrated among these awful shadows. For this purpose,the inflammable gas, which exudes plentifully from the soil, iscollected by means of pipes, and thence communicated to a quadruplerow of lamps, along the whole extent of the passage. Thus a radiancehas been created, even out of the fiery and sulphurous curse thatrests for ever upon the Valley; a radiance hurtful, however, to theeyes, and somewhat bewildering, as I discovered by the changes whichit wrought in the visages of my companions. In this respect, ascompared with natural daylight, there is the same difference asbetween truth and falsehood; but if the reader have ever travelledthrough the dark Valley, he will have learned to be thankful for anylight that he could get; if not from the sky above, then from theblasted soil beneath. Such was the red brilliancy of these lamps, thatthey appeared to build walls of fire on both sides of the track,between which we held our course at lightning speed, while areverberating thunder filled the Valley with its echoes. Had theengine run off the track- a catastrophe, it is whispered, by nomeans unprecedented- the bottomless pit, if there be any such place,would undoubtedly have received us. Just as some dismal fooleries ofthis nature had made my heart quake, there came a tremendous shriek,careering along the Valley as if a thousand devils had burst theirlungs to utter it, but which proved to be merely the whistle of theengine, on arriving at a stopping-place.

The spot, where we had now paused, is the same that our friendBunyan- truthful man, but infected with many fantastic notions- hasdesignated, in terms plainer than I like to repeat, as the mouth ofthe infernal region. This, however, must be a mistake; inasmuch as Mr.

Smooth-it-away, while we remained in the smoky and lurid cavern,took occasion to prove that Tophet has not even a metaphoricalexistence. The place, he assured us, is no other than the crater ofa half-extinct volcano, in which the Directors had caused forges to beset up, for the manufacture of railroad iron. Hence, also, is obtaineda plentiful supply of fuel for the use of the engines. Whoever hadgazed into the dismal obscurity of the broad cavern-mouth, whence everand anon darted huge tongues of dusky flame- and had seen the strange,half-shaped monsters, and visions of faces horribly grotesque, intowhich the smoke seemed to wreathe itself- and had heard the awfulmurmurs, and shrieks, and deep shuddering whispers of the blast,sometimes forming themselves into words almost articulate- wouldhave seized upon Mr. Smooth-it-away's comfortable explanation, asgreedily as we did. The inhabitants of the cavern, moreover, wereunlovely personages, dark, smoke-begrimed, generally deformed, withmis-shapen feet, and a glow of dusky redness in their eyes; as iftheir hearts had caught fire, and were blazing out of the upperwindows. It struck me as a peculiarity, that the laborers at theforge, and those who brought fuel to the engine, when they began todraw short breath, positively emitted smoke from their mouth andnostrils.

Among the idlers about the train, most of whom were puffingcigars which they had lighted at the flame of the crater, I wasperplexed to notice several who, to my certain knowledge, hadheretofore set forth by railroad for the Celestial City. They lookeddark, wild, and smoky, with a singular resemblance, indeed, to thenative inhabitants; like whom, also, they had a disagreeablepropensity to ill-natured gibes and sneers, the habit of which hadwrought a settled contortion of their visages. Having been on speakingterms with one of these persons- an indolent, good-for-nothing fellow,who went by the name of Take-it-easy- I called him, and inquiredwhat was his business there.

"Did you not start," said I, "for the Celestial City?""That's a fact," said Mr. Take-it-easy, carelessly puffing somesmoke into my eyes. "But I heard such bad accounts, that I nevertook pains to climb the hill, on which the city stands. No businessdoing- no fun going on- nothing to drink, and no smoking allowed-and a thrumming of church-music from morning till night! I would notstay in such a place, if they offered me house-room and living free.""But, my good Mr. Take-it-easy," cried I, "why take up yourresidence here, of all places in the world?""Oh," said the loafer, with a grin, "it is very warm hereabouts,and I meet with plenty of old acquaintances, and altogether theplace suits me. I hope to see you back again, some day soon. Apleasant journey to you!"While he was speaking, the bell of the engine rang, and we dashedaway, after dropping a few passengers, but receiving no new ones.