The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-01-28

entertaining some dismal forebodings a.
1 noted the alarming rapidity with which
the fiood-wave was rising. Another so
called liam had taken place as the ice
gorge touched upon the shadows near
the island, and could hear the grinding
and clashing of the ice, as slab upon slab
was piled up by the mighty pressure
from above.
had enough to do to soothe the fears
of poor little Mrs. Parnell-a gentle,
blue-eyed little woman-whoh had thanked
and blessed me as her preserver when
we met, but who now, as she saw the
river rushing over the islet, sweeping
away barn and byre, and invading the
lower rooms of the farmhouse, gave up
all for lost /; while the child-a noble
looking little boy-showed scarcely any
sign of alarm.
Those were anxious moments which
succeeded. L could tell by the dull
thud-thud as of steam hammer, that
the ice was beating against the stout
timbers of the farm house. The mead
ows were submerged, the garden dreary
waste of floating fragments of wood
work, up-rooted shrubs and turbid water.
The flood was up to my knees as l
crossed the threshold of the dwelling
itself. That there was no boat but that
which had been carried off by the coward
ly hirelings who had left their masters
family to perish / had speedily ascer-
tanned. OF rescue from the shore there
could be no reasonable prospect. The
danger had increased tenfold since first
set off on my venturous voyage, and
no one was likely to launch boat in the
face of almost certain destruction.
So far as / could see, there were but
two courses open to us. We might re-
main in the upper stories of the farm
house, or, if hard pressed by the mount
ing water, take refuge on the roof, trust
! ing that the strong wooden framework
would hold together till the flood should
abate. But the manner in which the
walls trembled beneath the shock of the
on. coming ice was not reassuring, while
the frightful rapidity with which the
water rose threatened absolute ruin.
The other alternative was to construct
raft capable of battling with current and
pack drift and to this l at once ad
dressed myself. Luckily, number of
empty -four casks, set on end, and some
sheep hurdles, which 1 espied floating
about in the yard, now transformed into
a lagoon, in the midst of which the
affrighted poultry screamed and fut-
tered, supplied the needful materials, while
my professional hardness stood me in
good stead but the peril was pressing
and imminent, for now the blows dealt
by the ice-blocks without made the
house reel as though beneath the strokes
of battering ram.
Never before had 1 toiled as / did
then, well knowing that life and death
depended on my promptitude, and that
the breaking up of another liam, or
temporary ice-dam, would probably
render the river unnavigable, so that,
should the house be swept away, our
last poor chance OF safety would be gone.
SO l worked on with a fierce eagerness,
until the empty casks and the osier
hurdles were as tightly secured with
withes and cords as could be effected
with one pair Of hands; and then the
precious raft was launched, Mrs. Parnell
lending her slight strength to the task as,
slowly and painfully, it was dragged
through the shallow water in search OF
a place where there should be sufficient
depth to set it ahoat There was mo-
ment of agonizing suspense as l strained
every muscle and sinew in the attempt
to drag the light structure clear of some
uprooted trees, while the house shook
perceptibly beneath the laundering
blows of the piled-up ice, which now
rose many feet high at the back of the
islet. Then the raft floated; and bidding
those under my charge to sit still and
leave the rest to me, seized fir-pole
and thrust it off from the bank into the
whirling water.
Once, twice, and yet a third time L
touched the bottom with the pole with
which l tried to steer the rude craft, and
then we were in deep water, and driving
along at the mercy of the current. A
shrek from Mrs. Parnell made me look
back, and J. saw the whole side of the
dwelling we had just left collapse like a
child's house of cards, while with a roar
like that of artillery the ice-barrier
broke up, and in pell.mell confusion the
shining hillocks and glittering slabs be-
gan to hurry towards us, the horrible
grinding sound of the blocks as they
dashed against one another being loud
enough to deafen the ear that heard it.
For a moment, but only for moment,
despair took possession of my heart; but
then, as an eddy swept us iii shoreward,
ringing cheer from the men clustered
on the bank, and then another, attracted
my attention. The ice was very near,
but the shore, thank heaven, was nearer
still, and n long rope was thrown to us.
/ caught il, and we were dragged to the
bank, where midst the drifting ice the
raft was upset, and it was not without
some trouble and peril that, bruised, wet
and breathless, we gained the solid
earth.
Half an hour later Mrs. Parnell and
little Louis, chilled and exhausted but
unframed, were safe under the hospit-
able care of the kindly folks in whose
house 1 lived, while before night her
husband arrived to clasp the rescued
ones to his heart.
"Under Gods mercy" said the hon
est fellow to me, with a quivering lip as
he took my hand and wrung it for the
tenth time, "I owe the preservation of
all love to you. We're friends for life,
guess.