Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-03-27
Love Up a Gum Tree.
THE FINALE or A ROMANTIC coURrsHIp

New South Wales is a country pcculi-
arly liable to floods. Its rivers general
ly rake their rise in the lofty mountain
ranges, and in the early part of theiI
course are joined by numerous tributary
streams. When the rainy season has
set in-which generally commences
about the middle of May-the down
pour sometimes continues for six weeks
at time, and then these rivers overflow
their banks and flood the surrounding
country far and near, forming in many
places miniature seas. Upon these oc-
casions hundreds of farmers are ruined,
thousands of sheep and cattle generally
destroyed, and not unfrequently many
valuable human lives sacrificed.
Perhaps the district most liable to dis
astrous floods, in the whole country is
the Hunter, where, every few years,
thousands Of acres are submerged with
a suddenness that is truly appalling.
Houses are frequently buried to the
| chimney-tops beneath the waters, which
rapidly form an inland sea of at least
hundred miles in length by an acre in
! BREADTH
In the year 1866 | was ouartered at
Windsor, little township about TWEEN
tropolis of the country, and for some
months had been engaged in the ardu
Gus and by no means romantic duty of
hunting for Illicit stills, Of which it was
supposed there were several in the neigh
bOrhoOd.
certainly did my best to discover
their whereabouts, but was completely
unsuccessful, and after traversing the
cOY1pfrRr Jayy n flor jaxv orrarxr Iz;pI r.
disguise, until | must have travelled hum
dreds of miles, | at last gave the matter
up as a bad job.
If had not found a still, however,
had in the course Of my wanderings dis
covered what gaye.me a far greater de-
light. for | had fallen across one of the
prettiest and most loyeable little girls
that an Australian or any other sun ever
had the honor of shining upon: and,
what was better, | had so ingratiated
myself in her good graces as to win her
promise that she would never marry any
one but me.
Our acquaintance had commenced in
a romantic manner enough / had res
cued her from wild COW, who would |
certainly have gored her, had | not inter
posed and shot the brute She was too /
frightened to walk home, and so accom-
panied her, was introduced to her parents, /
as a matter of course. and they were pro- |
fuse in their thanks, and begged me !
henceforth to look upon their house as /
my home, and so forth.
promptly took them at their word. /
and every other evening, and sometimes /
even oftener, my charger would be COM 4
fortably stalled for hours at a time in .
Farmer Martins stable and, meanwhile /
the pretty Gertrude and myself would |
be either wandering by the rivers bank, /
studying poetry together III the old sum I.
mer-hOuse, or, as the cold weather drew
on, playing ches in the snug little back .
parlor.
These things continued until the rainy /
season set in, but instead of being deter |
red by the steady down-pours, my visits /
became, if possible, more freqent and /
through the slushy lowlands, where the |
water was often above my horses knees, /
/ nightly logged, like marine centaur, I
to revisit my inamorata.
By-and-by the fathers suspicious were |
aroused. Could ii be possible mounted .
trooper wearing English uniform, would |
ride nightly through mud and rain, and /
thunder and lightning, aud hail and |
wind, to drink glass of grog and smoke
a pipe with an old man of sixty? Com |
mon sense answered NO" and hav- !
ing fair stock of that commodity, so
also said Farmer Martin. ''The girl he's |
after, and it's time to put stop to this
nonsense. was the conclusion he arrived |
at
And so the very next evening | rode /
over; before Gertrude and could finish |
our third game of chess, Mr.. Martin put
his head into the room and said, in dry, /
dignified kind of way
"Hem could speak to you for few /
minutes in the front parlor, Mr.. Rush ?"
| think / knew what was coming, and |
so did Gertrude, for she grew very pale, |
and upset the chess-board in her agita
tion-so that kings, queens, bishops, /
knights, and all the smaller fry went /
rolling over the room.
Meanwhile | followed the old gentle
man into the front parlor-that horrid .
room wherein everything was buried |
either in chintZes or yellow muslin, and |
where a fire was never lighted more than |
once a year; and here he opened the |
trenches, not angrily, but collectedly, |
calmly, determinedly, informing me that /
his daughter could never be mine, for |
that he was a tolerably wealthy man,
and he had resolved never to wed his
child to one who was not possessed OF a /
portion equal to her own.
Invain | told him how much loved
his daughter, that she loved me In re-
turn. and that we never could exist apart |
from each other. The old man merely
smiled sarcastically, and, pointing to my
uniform, said
THE man whose very coat is not his
own, and whose pay is only seven shil
lings and sixpence a day, cannot marry
my heiress"
He laid long stress on the last word,
and l don't know what possessed me,
but replied
.'And what may be the extent of your
present wealth, Mr. Martin 2
The question was certainly very
rude one, but the old gentleman did not /
seem to regard it as such, for he an
swered simply:
'sWell, three months ago | had "a, 900 |
in the Bank of Australia, but | took it |
all out and expended it in the purchase
of additional stock and improvements |
on my farm / dare say am worth al
together G12,0 900, and Gertrude will be |
the sole possessor when / die"
"Then you don't object to me in my |
sell, MI. DldIllus Dul oniy DSCduoC am
poor?" | said, bitterly.
s.Just so, my boy, | object, on princi-
pie; but to show you that | bear no
personal animosity, come into the kitch-
en-. and we will honor your last evening
among US by glass of my best grog, |
and some tobacco, such as you have not
tasted for many a long day.
'sStay a moment, | cried Were
as rich as you, Mr. Martin, would you
give me your child M
''Aye, that would, lad, right Wiling
ly, was the reply. .s
ssAnd directly ! am as rich as you, If
Gertrude is then single, will you consent
to our marriage?" l persisted.
'sAye, verify, l will, on my word OF
honor, Mr.. Rush. But you talk OF I'M
possibilities !" he added. Where are
You You going to realize sudden fortune
All. where was /? My heart sank