Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1873-02-06

muslin, and where fire was never
lighted more than once a year; and
here he opened the trenches, not an.
grily, but collectedly calmly, deter
minedly, informing me that his daugh-
ter could never. be-mines for that he
was a. DlsrabH wealthy pap, and
he had sresplysd Ieysr 10 wed big
child tobns who. was dot POSSESSED Of
a portion equal to her own.
In vain I told him how much |
loved his, daughter, thtt she, Loved
ms ii srstat1,l and that Rg never
| eodla exist saraarttI from Seach othef.
The old man merely smiled ,sarcas-
tically, and, pointing to'my Uniform,
sac "fRs smaal WHOSE vvety yrsso'al rsso'al is h0t
his own, and whose only pay is only
seven shillings and sixpence a day,
cannot, marry my heiress. "' H..
He laid long stress on the last
| word, and / don't know what pos
sessed me, but I replied:
sl1;And what may be the extent
of your present wealth Mr.. Martini
;. The question was certainly q very
rude one, but the old gentleman did
not seem to regard, regard, itaas such, for fFoaAs he
answered. simply: "A,
Well, three months ago I had
"a, 900 in the Bank Of Australia, but
I took it all out and expended it in
the purchase of additional stock and
improvements for my farm I sdare
say &Gwosth altogether AR0G
and aefHuds wilEbe the sole,p@se@
sor when die"
"Then you don't. object &c, me 'in
myself, Mr.. Martin, but only because
I am poor?" said, bitterly.
"Just 30, my boy. object on
principle; but, to show you that l
bear no personal animosity eoReinto
thekitchan, .sndi i've wM honaF your
last evening among us by a glass Of
my best grog, and myslbest tobacco,
such as you have not seen for many
long day"
"Stay a moment, I cried, were
fas t;cR as y0u,' Mr. Martin; '@ould
you give me your child?'
".Aye, that l would, lad, right
willingly" was the reply.
aAnd directly I am as rich as
you, if Gertrude is then single, will
you consent to our marriage ?"- /
persisted.
Aye, verify, I will on my word
of honor, MIR. Rush. But you talk
of impossibilities, he added. {" Where
are you going to realize a sudden
fortune ?"
Ali where was L? My heart sank
as 1 asked myself the question, and
1 followed the old man into the kitch-
en- in almost heartbroken silence. A
bright fire was burning onthe hearth.
for CRATES are still very rare in Aus
tralia-in fact, they would be i'll.
adapted for the logs of red gum wood
that form the invariable fuel. -
Presently the gla ees.and the pipes
were laid on the table, and l did my
best to rekindle hope within my
breast by the aid Of Hollands and
Barratt's twist, but it was no good.
On the other side Of the fire sat
Mrs. Martin, a comely dame of fifty
years, fully as broad as she was long,
and With 4 mind wholly given to the
concern of the dairy and the making
of orange marmalade. Gertrude,
knl wing that something was wrong.
but scarcely guessing what, nestled
up to my side, and, to my great JOY,
her father did not rebuke her.
And thus we sat for a long time,
neither Of as speaking a word. but
listeninsto thsfalling rain and howl
ing wind without, and to the great
forest trees as their branches were
swayed and tossed by the blast. Anon
came another spund-a loud, yet
soothing murmur, like the sighing
Of a summer breeze amid a cork
wood.
No one seemed to notice It but me,
and I only did so as wondering how
so gentle and so musical a murmur
could make itself audible above the
uproar of the wind and tempest.
Suddenly, however, there broke upon
our ears the dasbing open Of gate,
and mans voice shouting:
sMaster Martin, if: you value your
life, look sharp The river has over
flown its banks, and the waters are
out. 49,. a.;
Then we heard ths splash. splash,
splash of horses feet, as the warning
visitor rode away.
water outl Impossible r NUT
tered the old farmer. Why bless
my heart, the river was not on a lev
ell with the banks by some inches. this
morning, and we've had no rain to
speak of since. ::
You. DON t know what weather it
has been among The mountains, Mr..
Martin" I said. '" And; hark.I put
your ear to the hoory Heavens The
warning was q timely one. We. have
not moment to lose"
We all bent our heads down, and
listened, and now we could hear "a
hollow, gurgling sound under our
feet, and little jets Of spray leaped
up from between the crevices OF the
flooring, : w 81 sAfits 81,
The house, aeoordingtSshe custom
in the colonies. was bnlt ION piles,
and thus the -staifs rooms were
about four feet from the ground, be-
tween which and, the flooring The an !;
cry waters were, row. fretting and
Tuning, and dashing. against. the
stout woodwork with q momentapty
increasing power. '' t'n- "a
F., f. The women began to cry; the far
mer was too ssupefed to move; 80
"This will never erdo," I said, there
is not a moment to lose. I can take
one of you upbehind me on my horse,
and I know that Carlo and / will get
through it somehow. The rest had