Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1877-11-17


There, on t'other side, fifty yards low
er down, was bit of shelf of earth that
kept crumbling away as the water
washed it, was Jael, kneeling down with
her young 'un and as / looked, some
thing seemed to give my heart iigg,
just as if some coon had pulled q string.
"Well, he's bout gone," I says !;
"and they can't hold bout three min
utes then they'll all drown together,
and she can take old Hez his last babby
to nuss, 'cuss 'em Tn safe enough.
What's it got to do with me? sha'n't
move"
[ took out my wet cake of 'bacca, and
whitfield off bit, showed it in my cheek,
shut my knife with click, and sot thar
watchin' of 'em-father, and mother and
/ BARN.
"You've been too happy, you have"
[ says out loud ; not as they could hear
it, for the noise of the waters "Now
you'll be sorry for other people. Drown,
blame yer stock, and lock, and barrel |;
I'm safe"
just then, as [ sot and chawed, telling
myself as a chap would be mad to try
and save his friends out of such food,
let alone his enemies, blame me if Jael
didn't put that there little suuealer's
hands together, and hold them up as if
she was making it say it's prayers-a
born fool when that thar string seemed
to be pulled, inside me like, agin my
heart; and-I couldn't help it-I Jumped
up.
"Say, Dab" says to myself, "dont
you be q fool. You hate that lot like
pison, you do. Don't you go and drown
yOursel ="
[ was bout mad, you know, and
couldn't do as I liked, for, if I didn't
begin to rip off my things, wet and hang
to me. How they did stick but /
cleared half on 'em of, and then, like a
mad fool, [ made run and a jump, and
was fighting hard with the water to get
across to Hez's wife and child.
1t was bit of fight. Down l went,
and up ] went, and the water twisted me
like leaf but [ got out of the roar
and thunder, on to the bit of q shelf
where Jael knelt whenif the silly thing
didn't begin to hold up to me her child,
and her lips, poor darling, said, dumbly;
"Save i! ! oh, save it !"
In the midst of that rush and roar, as
saw that poor gal, white, Mortified,
and with her yaller hair clinging round
her, all my old love for her comes back,
and swore big oath as I'd save her
for myself or die.
tore her dress into ribbons, for there
warn't q moment to lose, and l pound
that BARN somehow on to my shoulders,
she watching me the while and then,
with my heart beating madly, I caught
her in my arms, she clinging tightly to
me in her fear, and stood up, thinking
how I could get back, and making ready
to leap.
The food didn't wait for that, though.
In moment there was quiver of the
bank, and it went from beneath my feet,
leaving me wrestling with the waters
once more
| don't know how I did it, only that,
after fight and being half smothered.
| found myself crawling up the side of
! the Gulch, ever SO low down, and drag.
| ging Jael into safe place with her
| BARN.
She fell down afore me, hugged my
legs and kissed my feet; and then she
started up and began staring up and
down, ending by seeing, just above us,
old Hez clinging there still, with his
sound arm rammed into the bush and
his body swept out by the fierce stream.
The next moment she had seized me
by the arm, and was pinting at him, and
she gave q wild kind of shrek.
"Save him save him !" she shrieked
i'll my ear.
What, Hez? Save Hez to come be-
tween us once more Save her husband
the man hated, and would gladly see
die? Oh, couldn't do it, and my looks
showed it, she reading me like book
the while. No, he might drown-he was
drowned-must be. No; just then he
moved. But, nonsense wasn't going
to risk my life for his, and cut my own
throat as to the futur'.
She went down on her knees to me,
though, pinting again at where Hez
still foated; and the old feeling Of love
fer her was stronger on me than ever.
You're asking me to die for you,
Jael? ?" shouted in her ear.
"Save him-save Hez !" she shrieked.
eyes, save him p groaned to my
self. Bring him back to the happiness
that might be mine. But she loves him
she loves him; and I must"
gave one look at her-as thought
my last-and could't help it. If she
had asked me dumbly, as she did, to do
something ten times as wild, should
have done it; and, with run, got we'll
up above Hez afore [ jumped in once
more, to have the same fight with the
waters till was swept down to the bush
where he was.
I'd got my knife in my teeth to cut
the bush away and let him free but as
] was swept against it my weight tore
it away, and Hez and went down the
stream together. him so done up that he
lay helpless on the water.
Something seemed to tell me to finish
him off. A minute under water would
have done it; but Jael's face was before
me, and at last got to the other side,
with her climbing along beside us, and
if it hadn't been for the hand she
stretched down to me, should never
have crawled out with old Hez-I was
that done.
As I dropped down painting on the
rock, Jael came to my side, leaned over
me and kissed me, and ] turned away
for the next moment she was trying hard
and bringing her husband to, and was
) beginning to feel once more that I had
been fool.
amt much more to tell, only that
the flood went down most as quick as
it had come up, and Hez got all right
again, and did WELL They wanted
muchly to be friends, but / KEEP away.
] felt as I'd been fool to save him, anC
, l was kinder 'shamed like of it, so I tool
off to Frisco, where, after cumming
: about, I took to going voyages to Pan
|