Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1878-11-21

dividual, who, on receiving the full
value of his boat 10 advance, and q
, handsome gratuitY on the use of her
consented TO let the English mad.
men have their way. lie agreed to
leave the boat in readiness at con-
venient spot and then took his leave
1t was considerably past IL O'Clock
that night, and Burdett, mindful OF
the toneh work that awaited him
next moFping, was preparing for
bed when Montague (who slept in
the next room) burst in with flush
of unusual excitement on his face.
'Sed, old fellow, we must alter our
time of starting. Those meddlesome
asses, the local authorities, are going
to put o spoke IN our wheel
DO you mean thai they'll try to
stop us p asked Bnrdett, with the
natural amazsment of an English.
man at any ono presnming to oppose
his will.
Il do indeed ! That pranting fool
OF boatman (see If i DONE punch
his head when it's aIl over) must
have let the cat out of the bag; for
as | came through the hail Just now,
| heard the landlady say to her hus-
band Ought we to let tbem 90
Its really no better than suicide =
and the old sinner ans wered with a
chuckle, BE easy my Gretchen when
these young distracted ones get to
their boat they will find il in charge
Ct certain gerichts ACKNOWLEDGMENT
who are less foolish than they, ana
no harm will be DONE
Just like their COMPOUNDED cheek |
cried Burdett What shall we do
then?'
DO ?Why set the alarm clock two
hours earlier j am safe to hear it
where | am )and start at instead of
6 and we'll just meet the minions of
the law on our way back to break
fast, and a jolly set it'll be for them.
My word, every mortal thing seems
to have couspired against this ven-
ture of ours, buc Ill go through with
it,no matter who stands in my way
For $ moment thrill of supersti-
tious awe shot through the stout
heart of Sedley Burdett. Gould /:
be that these countless hindrances
were really last barrier vainly
opposed to the fatal impulse which
was hurrying them both to destruc-
ton? The unnatural excitement of
his comrades manner, the feverish
lustre of his eyes, the heated flush
in his usually pale face, were all ter
riblv suggestive of one goaded to
his doom by some irresistible frenzy
flashing upon Burdett's mind with
CHASTITY vividness, the sudden men,
DRY of long forgotten painting of
the young German knight Iured to
his death in the hungry waters of
the Rhine by the siren song of the
Lorelei. He opened his lips to pro-
pose the abandonment of tho, whole
project, but the fear of ridicnie Chat
fear when has destroyed mary d
gallant man) withered the whole.
some impulse and the favorable mo-
ment went by-forever.
Morning at last-s bright. breezy,
glorious summer morning over which
all things in earth and heaven seem
ed to rejoice. The blue skies, the
waving woods, the green. sunny
slopes, the broad, bright stream of
the great river itself, all seemed to
smile q welcome to the eyes that
might so soon be closed forever.
Even the two English athletes, alb
sorbed as they were in their peril
GUS enterprise, felt the influence of
the hour and muttered with involun.
tary admiration:
what royal day"
One vigorous stroke sent the
light boat out into the swift, dark
current, down which it shot like an
arrow from the bow. Rocks, trees,
houses, seemed racing past on either
side. No need to strain at the oars
now! all that could be done with
them was to keep the boats bow
perfectly straight, so as to offer as
little space as possible TO the rush of
a current which seemed we'll able to
carry away an entire city.
Suddenly there came q dizzv
shock that threw both
men from their places-and all
around was one boiling whirl of foam
and the boat was flung to AID fro,
and dashed up and down, amid an
uproar that seemed to rend the very
sky. For one feverish moment life
and death seemed to hang by sin
gle hair; and then the two daring
men found themselves floating on
the little border line of calm water
that separated the first fall from the
worse perch Of the second.
"Hurrah !" shouted Montague glee.
fully, "who can sag that it can't be
done now2 Keep her head straight,
sed, my boy, and We'll come out ali
right yet"
The triumphant cheer was ans
wered by cry of dismay from the
shore, and the two oarsmen, looking
up, beheld Marion Wentworth rush
distractedly toward the edge of the
high bank that overhung the second
fall, followed BY Montague's Eoglish
At the sound of his be-
trothed's voice. Montague turned his
face toward her and waved his
hand cheerily; and seldom has any
painter conceived such picture as
the one which that moment branded
forever on the memory of those who
saw it. The stern black rocks on
either hand, fecked with living
green by the shrubs that clung to
their cragey sides; the vast hin of
leaping foam half way down which
the boat lowered like leaf; the
Rainbow arch that spawned the black
bowling gulf beneath; the glory of
the sunrise stealing softly into the
pure, peaceful sky, in strange con.
trast with the rock-rending uproar
below; the stalwart figures of the
two gallant lads straining every
nerve to accomplish their perilous
task; the handsome, reckless face of
the last of the Montagues, with a
gay smile on his short curved liz.
and an ominous glitter in his large,
dark eyes.