He taught me the method of descent, acquainted me with the necessary precautions, as well as with the names of the various objects and divisions. He led the way, and slid down a round beam, grasping with one hand a rope, which was knotted to a transverse bar, and with the other his lamp. I followed his example, and in this manner we soon reached a considerable depth. I have seldom felt so solemnly; and the distant light glimmered like a happy star, pointing out the path to the secret treasures of nature. We came below to a labyrinth of paths. My kind master was ever ready to answer my inquisitive questions, and to teach me concerning his art. The roaring of the water, the distance from the inhabited surface, the darkness and intricacy of the paths, and the distant hum of the working miners, delighted me extremely, and I joyfully felt myself in full possession of all that for which I had most ardently sighed. This complete satisfaction of our innate taste, this wonderful delight in things which perhaps have an intimate relation to our secret being, and in occupations for which one is destined from the cradle, cannot be explained or described. Perhaps they might appear to every one else common, insignificant, and unpleasant; but they seemed to me necessary as air to the lungs, or food to the stomach. My good master was pleased at my inward delight, and promised me that, with such zeal and attention, I should advance rapidly and become an able miner. With what reverence did I behold for the first time in my life, on the sixteenth of March, more than five-and-forty years ago, the king of metals in small, delicate leaves between the fissures of the rocks! It seemed as if, having been doomed here to close captivity, it glittered kindly towards, the miner, who with so many dangers and labors breaks a way to it through its strong prison-walls, that he may remove it to the light of day, and exalt it to the honor of royal crowns, vessels, and holy relics, and to dominion over the world in the shape of genuine coin, adorned with emblems, cherished by all. From that time I remained at Eula, and advanced gradually from the business of removing the hewn pieces of ore in baskets, to the degree of hewer, who is the real miner, and who performs the observations upon the stone." The old man paused a moment in his narration, and drank, while the attentive listeners pledged his good luck, as they drained their cups. Henry was delighted with the old man's discourse, and was desirous to hear still more from him. His listeners related descriptions of the dangers and strangeness of the miner's life, and had many marvels to tell, at which the old man often smiled, and endeavored to correct their odd representations.