Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1876-08-23

$ q quantity of gigantic masses G
}, the cleaning crystal had brokel
away from the slow moving gorge
and were rushing furiously dow
: the stream, revolving in giddy cir
cles as they came. Almost mechan
5 ically | gave one long sweeping
stroke with the paddle, and, as tn
canoe darted forward, rose to m,
J feet and sprang into the water
which proved to be little more thar
! waist deep at the spot, so that
easily scrambled up the garder
bank, while my frail craft, caught
and crushed between two of the
drifting blocks, floated a helples,
wreck along the river.
Up to this moment | had achieved
a partial, but only partial success
l had reached the island, but the
heaviest part of my task, as | was
well aware, lay before me. The
canoe was gone, so that unless some
boat belonging to the farm should
be still fastened to the bank must
depend on my own ingenuity for
the means of conveying myself and
those, to save whose lives | had
imperilled my own, to firm ground.
Had | but time | had little doubt
that, by some one of the expedients
that suggest themselves to train
cd engineer, could effect safe
passage to the shore; but l could
not avoid entertaining some dis
NAL forebodings as i noted the
alarming rapidity with which the
flood wave was rising. Another
socalled ',jam" had taken place as
the icc gorge touched upon the
shadows near the island, and 1
could hear the grinding and clash
ing of the ice, as slab upon slab
was piled up by the mighty pres
sure from above.
had enough to do to soothe the
fears of poor little Mrs. Parncll-
a gentle, blue-eyed little woman
who had thanked and blessed me
as her prcscfver when we met, but,
who now, MS she7 saw the river
rushing over the islet, sweeping
away barn and 'byre, and invading
the lower rooms of the farm house, |
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. / could tell by
The dull thud-thud, as of a steam
hammer, that the ice was beating
against the stout timbers of the
arm house. The meadows were
ubmerged, the garden a dreary
waste of floating fragments of wood
york, up-rooted shrubs and turbid I
yater. The flood was up to my
.nees as / crossed the threshold of
he dwelling itself. That there was t
o boat but that which had been I
arried off by the cowardly hire
ngs who had left their masters I
amily to perish, had speedily as i
ertained. OF rescue from the '
bore there could be no reasonable q
respect. The danger had in I
reased ten fold since | first set off Q
n my venturous voyage, and no
ne was likely to launch a boat in h
ie face of almost certain destruc- v
on. n
SO far as / could see, there were q
Mt two courses open to us. We a
ight remain in the upper stories tl
tho farm house or if hard press g,
| by the water, take refuge on the O
'of, trusting that the strong wood Fl
J framework would hold together a
i the flood should abate. But
% manner in which the walls
beneath the shock of the r
l-coming ice was not reassuring, ss
hilc the frightful rapidity with u
hicb the water rose, threatened fr
'solute ruin. The other altcrna- "
70 was to construct a raft capa- 90
9 of battling with current and OF
elk drift; and to this at once Ia
dressed myself. Luckily, anum- II
n Of empty -four casks, set on T
d, and some sheep hurdles, which
,spied floating about in the yard,
w transformed into lagoon, in sp
Q midst of which the affrighted "7
ultry screamed and fIuttercd, de
pplied the needful materials, ril