The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1881-03-18
HIGH WATER MARK.
BY BRET HARrE.

Marsh its extending dreariness was mad
pslpable. Its spongy, low-lying surface
, sluggish, lnky pools, and tortueu
sloughs twisting their Shiny way, eel
like, toward the open bay, were all har
I facts. Sc wore the few green trussock
with their scant blades, their amphibiou
favor, and unpleasant dampness. An.
if You choose to indulge your fancy
although the dat monotony Of the Ded
low Marsh was not inspiring-the way,
line Of scattered drift gave an unpleas
ant consciousness Of the spent waters
and made the dead certainty Of the re
turning tide gloomy reflection which
l.no present sunshine could dissipate. II
the bitter fruit of the low cranberry
bushes your fancy might detect natur
ally sweet disposition curled and soure6
by an injudicious course Of too much
regular cold water.
Again, the vocal expression of Dead
low Marsh was sorrowful and depressing.
The sepulchral boom OF the bittern,
the shrek of the curlew, the scream oi
passing brent. the wrsngling of quarrel
some teal the sharp, querilous protest Of
the startled crane, and syllabled. COM
plsint Of the killdeer plover were be-
yond the power of written expression
| Nor was the aspect of these mournful
fowls ut all cheerful and inspiriting.
Certainly not the blue heron standing
| nidleg deep in the water, obviously
eatching cold in its gloomy disregard OF
wet feet and consequences; nor the
mournful curlew, the detected plover
and the low-spirited snipe who saw fit to
join him in his suicidal contemplation.
On the contrary, it was evident at .
glance that the dreary expression of
Deadlow Marsh told fearfu11y on the or
nothologicxl sense, and that the season
of migration was looked forward to with
yelling Of relief and satisfaction by the
full-grown, and sxtravagant anticipation
by the callow brood.
the slack Of the tide, you should have
seen it whom the tide was strong and fall.
When the damp air blew chilly over tho
cold, glittering expanse, and came to the
the faces Of those who looked seaward
like another tide. When a steel-like
CLINT marked the low hollows and the
sinuous line Of slough. When the fog
came in with the tide and shut out the
blae above, even as the green below had
been obliterated. When boatmen lost
in that fsg, padding about in hopeless
way, started at what seemed the brush
ing of mermen's fingers on the boats
keel, or shrank from the tufts of grass
spreading around like the floating hair
OF corpse-and knew by these signs
that they were lost on Dedlow Marsh,
and must make night of it and gloomy
enc ut that-then you might know some
thing Of Dedlow Marsh at high water.
Conspicuous IN my memory is an incl.
c1dent connected with this gloomy pic
ture which never failed to recur to me in
my long cunning excursions upon Ded-
low Marsh, and perhaps cast sensitive
shadow over Its gaunt outlines. Although
the event was briefly recorded in the
county paper, I had the story in oil its
eloquent detail, from the lips of one of
the principal actors, and hardly need say
that the published record was, to the
spoken recital, as the heading Of chap
ter is to the spoken events which follow.
l cannot hope to convey that intensity of
expression which occurs in the narration
Of real adventure by the participation
himself-which is as much in the look
and gesture as in the spoken work-still
less can I hope to catch the varying em-
phasis and peculiar coloring of feminine
delineation, for my narrator was q
woman. But III try.to give at least Its
substance.
She lived midway OF the great slough
OF Dedlow Marsh and good-sized river,
which debeuched four miles beyond into
an estuary formed by the Pacific Ocean,
on the long, sandy peninsula which con-
stituted the southwestern boundary OF g
noble bay. The house in which she lived
was small frame cabin raised from the
marsh few feet by stout piles, and was