Page 93 - The snake's pass

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THE SECRETS OF THE BOG. 81
old Gombeen thought he had it that time ! " and
Dick laughed.
" How did you manage the bog ?
" That is the only difficult part ; we have poles on
opposite sides of the bog with lines between them.
The magnet is fixed, suspended from a free wheel, and I
let it down to the centre from each side in turn. If
there were any attraction I should feel it by the thread
attached to the magnet which I hold in my hand."
"It is something like fishing ?
" Exactly."
Murdoch now returned and told us that he was ready,
so we all went to work. I kept with Sutherland at the
far side of the bog, Murdoch remaining on the near side.
We planted or rather placed a short stake in the solid
ground, as close as we could get it to the bog, and
steadied it with a guy from the top ; the latter I held,
whilst Murdoch, on the other side, fulfilled a similar
function. A thin wire connected the two stakes ; on this
Sutherland now fixed the wheel, from which the magnet
depended. On each side we deflected the stake until
the magnet almost touched the surface of the bog. After
a few minutes' practice I got accustomed to the work,
and acquired sufficient dexterity to be able to allow the
magnet to run freely. Inch by inch we went over the
surface of the bog, moving slightly to the south-west
each time we shifted, following the edges of the bog.
Every little while Dick had to change sides, so as to
cover the whole extent of the bog, and when he came