The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-04-20

settle II. Marie UiH 90 If she has 10 walk
You know that as well as | do Saddl
her pony with a good grace, or you vii
have 10 do il with an i'll one. But lool
you;I l care nothing for the dance, an,
1 viii return to she children to night
There, now, are gou contentg"
Pierre turned his broad, honest fac,
TO the speaker, and there was a deal o
admiration in his eyes.
"What boy you are!" he exclaim
ed. " You think of every thing, anC
see your way straight through, and
stumble and stumble, and never come
out right. But you shall not miss tn,
dance. | will come back myself"
"And Marie?" asked Louis, signifi
teantly. :. stay with your wife, Pierre
and protect her, for there viii be {
rough crowd at Colas's."
Y The vacher's face redeemed painful
! ly. Marie's coquettish ways had more
than once involved him in serious diff
eulties. But there was no time &c
weigh the ''pros and cons in his slow
mind. She was going, and he saddled
the horse by the time she returned, and
had gone iu.o the house to make Il few
final preparations.
She did not tell her husband when
she returned that she had found old
.Johan too i'll in bed to come over. Why
should sheP He would fuss and worry,
and make her stay at home Besides, a
great boy like her son Ralph-he was
years old-was surely large enough to
take care of himself, and his little sis
ter, too. So she contented herself with
giving the child orders not to 90 near
the creek, and told him where to find
the cooked provisions for their dinner
and supper.
In few minutes more the party were
trotting rapidly towards the Grand
Prairie. When about half way they
eparated-Marie to pursue the road to
Colas's, and her husband and Louis to
join one of the squads of horsemen who
were rushing after the cattle madly over
the prairie, with loud shouts, and the
cracking of numberless whips.
"See there, LOuis!n cried Laclede.
"TheTe are five of Mons SOubise's cattle
between those two bulls. The bulls
will make a fight, but we must have our
cattle
Below and fight the bulls did; but it
was not in the vacher'S programme that
one of them should gore his leg so Sc
verely that he had to make a speedy re-
treat, and at a safe distance, to watch
the agile movements of his companion
Louis at last brought out the cattle
safely, and drove them to the great herd
of the Soubise stock, which was already
on its way to the corral, and then re-
turned to Pierre.
He found his friend had dismOunted
under a solitary tree which stood near
the edge of the prairie, and was busy
binding up the wound, which, though
not deep, was very painful.
" Here viii / be laid up for a week, -
he groaned. "What luck. And do
you see that sky, Louise" pointing to
the northern horizon, where Il line of
lurid light bordered the heavy black
clouds which had spread over the whole
sky. 'fI have watched the weather
ever since | was boy, and have never
seen that yellow border to the black
curtain fail to bring tempest Help me
to my horse, for l am getting sore and
Stiff
The advance of the storm was so
rapid that the whole party of vachers
had hardly time to reach the Colas farm
before the fury of the elemental war
fare burst upon them. What a gulf
storm can be, particularly an eqUinOc-
tial one, must be witnessed to be real
lied. No words can paint the binding.
continuous glare of the lightning, and
deafening clapS of thunder, the howl
ing winds, and sheets of rain, through
which no object can he discerned. The
house rocked and shook, but it was
broad and low; yet several of the out
houses were leyeled to the ground, and
the high enclosure of the corral was
swept away, giving freedom to the inn
prisoned cattle.
Pierre Laclede, grave before, grew
more gloomy as hour after hour passed,
and the storm continued unabated. His
wife crept up to him rather timidly, and
laid her hand on his shoulder.
"What art thou thinking Of, thou
great bear, with thy face wrinkled up?
Come into the room; dinner is ready"
He turned fiercely upon her.
"What am | thinking of? Of our
poor little helpless children overyondcr,
with no one to cheer them but an old
woman as helpless as themselves. What
are they doing in this storm? Fright
ened to death and crying, poor little
creatures, at the lightning flashing and
the creek
He stopped, as a sudden thought
struck him--a thought which blanched
his face with its terrible suggestions.
"Ah! God forgive metz he cried.
% had forgotten thecreek. Louis -
aRd at the cry the boy, who had been
in a remote part of the house, came
up 10 him -" saddle our
horses-yours and mine-and, for
Heavens sake, be quicki l can not
help you. am too lame. Don't ask
any questions now, but go!"
The vachers crowded around him.
" But are you mad, to 90 out in this
storm, Pierre? What is it? What has
The man made desperate effort to
speak calmly. The point of land on
which my house is built is lower than the
side 1t was overflowed fifteen
years ago; it may happen to-day, and
my children are there
They tried 10 persuade him that it
was impossible-the rain had not con-
timed long enough. 1t was foolish to
let such q crotchet take him out into
the tempest. He only answered.
The creek is already swollen from
rain, Ny children are
there"
Finding him resolved, five or six of
the Stoutest vachers determined to ac-
company him. Marie was by this time
wringing her hands and weeping aload,
in all the impotence Of remorseful grief
Her husbands white, set face did not
turn towards her once, even when he
was helped on his horse, and the party
galloped into the wind and rain.
Pierre did not feel the painful wound.
deafened, coming to raging
foods where, in the morning, a little
twinklng rivulet had played through
The grass, his only Thought seemed to
be to get on-on, Through all perils.
The dark day was sinking into 4
gloomy twilight, and the rain still pour