The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-07-28

s.,
the sunlight slanting on my face, and the
water rushing round me before moved
again. l was hungry, too; but when /
tried to get down and reach the cup
board the water took me off my feet,
and | crept back to bed, and on to the
shelves of the dresser, to be out of the
way. said my prayers two or three
tunes, and L said some prayers for Bob
berry, too, for knew he would be sorry
when he found me some day, where
had died all alone, and in the dark And
then tried to think how things looked
from our window, with the water sweep
ing up to the very sill, and the red sun
set lying on it-and beyond, the pref
ty town and the steeple with the clock;
and thought it was better for me to die
than Robbery, after all, for he could see,
while II had no pleasure in my life.
And yet | wanted to live; l wanted to
hear Bobbery's voice again; wanted the
waters to go down, and somebody to re-
member me at last-for | was afraid
Well, sir, God answers our prayers
sometimes in way that is terribly just.
1t takes us a long time to find out that
/ y L
come to learn it at last-and learn, too,
| to leave our prayers as well as the an
swers to God. Somebody did remember
me at last, and came back somebody
whose laughing voice across the waters
was nearer every minute somebody
whose hands were on my shoulder, whose
eyes, felt, were on my face-somebody
who had never forgotten me Robbery!
" Robbery! Bobbery!' l cried, and I
| stretched out my arms to him.
Robbery said: 81 came over in a tub
only think! such lark bat as climbed
in at the window our tub drifted away,
and however we're to get over can't
| tell"
"Gou must think of something, said.
Robbery, it was a long day"
"Whv, of course it was" Robbery an
swered, without me. Come along, the
rivers rising like fury"
I" Is it very wide?" / asked
ooh, not more'n good stretch from
here to the dry land but deep; over six
feet, should say-and rising"
But the bed, Robbery" said, and
the other things?"
"Wel, we must just leave them I'M
til it's all right again"
"Will it ever be all right" l asked.
"Why, yes, of course" said Robbery
He was such a splendid chap, sir, was
Robbery, and so clever! He took the
two chairs that were drifting about the
room, and tied them close together, and
then we waded across to the window,
and stood upon the sill.
81 think it's jolly good fun" said
Robbery, If you could only see how
your boats bobbing up and down in
front here! Get in quick, or can't hold
her. Here! port her helm, or something!
Are you all right?"
g It's splendid" said; leone along"
But when Robbery put his foot on to
the unsteady raft she went down on one
side with a plunge. "Never mind, he
said; you've just got to push yourself
ashore with this pole, as straight as you
can go, and I'll follow"
swear to you, sir, l thought that it
was true, or | never would have left
Robbery, | took the pole he gave me,
and went out on the restless waters, that
| felt were bloOdred where the setting
sun had touched them. People on the
opposite side cheered and cried and
called me, and Robbery behind cried out
once or twice, "Ship ahoyr' in shrill
voice, that knew and loved better than
anything on earth, and once heard him
say, fAintly-he seemed so far away
g In port at last"
At last!
The people On the shore had ceased
their shouts of excitement and encour-
agement, the light had died utterly away.
In an awful silence, and an awful
darkness, jumped to land, and held out
my two hands.
Robbery! Bobbery!" cried, 81 want
to thank you"
Did Robbery hear, sir, do you think?
Do people hear anything, do people I'M
derstand anything, after they have gone
away?
| only knew that the awful silence was
turning me to stone, that the awful dark
ness was rising like a wall between me
and Bobbery-and l was afraid. When
| called no one answered me and | was
glad. If his voice was silent, any other
voice would have maddened me Just
then, and | wanted nothing more to tell
me all the truth. / learned through the
silence on land and sea how God had an.
swered my prayer. .....
They told me afterward how the plank
he was launching to help himself to the
shore drifted away from his hand and
was out of sight directly how they would
have saved him if they could, and how,
when they began to shout to him direc-
tions, he made sign for silence, and
stood straight upon the sill, with the
sunset creeping all about him and the
waters washing at his feet. They Won
dered why he had made no effort to reach
the shore with me-they used to wonder,
for long after, why he had stood so
silent, with his eager eyes and restless
feet SO strangely still. 1 knew, of
course; but what right had anyone else
to come between Robbery and me? 1t
wouldn't have done anyone any good to
know what | knew-that Robbery
wouldn't let me lose the faintest chance;
thought my blind, helpless life quite as
well worth saving as his own. | would
have done the same for him, sir any day
for, Robbery and me, we were always
fond of each other.
The story's been longer than thought,
sir; but just the evening, and the floods
again, and your wanting to know about