Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1881-08-24

with water to the depth of almost half {
foot. When they had started away from
tue. pier landing Fon} had braced hi
feet against a broad cross-cleet, ant
Laura's stout boots rested on the same
dry foothold. Until then neither hal
noticed the water.
; Tom searched in the bottom of til.
boat for bailing-can. He could moi
find one. Laura moved so as to look in
to the little locker under the stern seat
There was no can there.
"What shall we do ?" she said.
II 1iust baa with my hat" be re-
piled slowly, as if thinking it out "the
water must como in very slowly, it is &
long time since we left Washington
street wharf," He looked at his watch
it was then past 4, and they were nearly
opposite Fort Point. So far as they
could see there was not a single sail in
the citing. They looked back at the city
there we're no out-coming tugs or steam
ers, or schoohers even. Then they look
ell ottt through the gate and wondered.
There is an untranslatable poetic
thing about our Golden Gate that the
sympathetic beholder, incoming or out
gong, or gazing upon it from any stand
point, never fills to realize something
which, perhaps, he acknowledges, but
may never put into fitting phrases.
Perhaps it is because it seems so to hold
the keys Of our California life, that we
may not dislocate it from either our his
tory or our future. Perhaps it is be-
cause in looking at it one can never quite
discern its big beyond, of veal or of woe,
of sunshine or of tempest.
eve should never have had this sun
set anywhere else, Laura" and Tom
pointed to the declining sun, hanging
without cloud above the Wilderness
of waves. They looked back at the city,
and all the western windows were
| atlame.
II did not think there was so much
gold in Frisco" said Tom.
"Oh, Tom, don't want to die and
leave it all" said Laura, trembling]y.
The dallying breeze had shaken off the
spell. The air had grown suddenly
chill. Far ahead they could see the
ominous white Of the eareering swell,
and along the shore they heard the dull
boom OF the surf. Lower and lower
sank the white electric dazzle; buff and
pink, and orange toning into narrow
belts Of opal. Right ahead rose the
black Farallones, and as the SUI sank
still lower. they stood out in unbroken
outline against the disk.
With his soft hat Tom made slow prog
ross in bailing. Until then the water
had oozed in SO slowly that danger from
leakage had not alarmed him, until then
the current, too, had carried them along
so gently that the danger of upsetting
had not presented itself. But after
they passed the fort the motion of the
waves changed, not suddenly, but grad
ually, until at last the boat was rocking
like cedar chip in the eddies of mill
race. And still the tide had not turned.
Ceasing his bailing for moment, Tom
thought he heard the sound of water
trickling into the boat. Perhaps it was
his instinct of danger and not his ears
that warned him, for the waves were
slashlng against the outside, and the mo-
ton caused a constant tapping of the
wator within the boat. Tom made
careful examination, and ut last found
little hole through which the water
poured in ftful itream as the boat rock
ed from side to side.
II must stop that Leak" he said.
"Can you bail?'
The sun had set, and the flush was
fading out Of the western sky. Laura
took one long look around. In all the
waste OF waters there was no moving
object. IT there had been aship in sight
she could have seen it, she thought,
almost despairingly.
She began to bail as we'll as she
could, with the felt hat, and in her
cramped position. A long line of gray
was coming up from the south.
lit is fog," said Tom, in. a whisper.
Until he said cit is fog," she did not
realize the almost utter hopelessness of
their position. Even if the tide should
turn before they reached the bar, it
would be impossible to protect them.
selves in a Jog. For moment she
thought she should quite break down.
the fate before them seemed so terrible.
Tom had succeededin stopping the leak,
and had resumed bailiDg. To make the
task easier, he had cut the brim from
his hat. The fog was now all around
them, and it was quite dark. They
thought they heard the surf more dis
tinctly.
"The tide has turned" said Tom.
And SO it had, but just how they
would be affected by the change they
could not tell. Tom had kept on bail.
ing until the amount of water had
materially decreased. They had not
spoken to each other for some moments!
At last Laura leaned forward. Her hand
touched Toms and he took it in his OWL.
That handclasp meant to them things
unspeakable. Her hand was very cold,
almost as cold as his own. In bis pocket
was silk handkerchief; he handed it to
her and babe her tie it about her neck,
for he dared not rise to fastcn it there
himself, Then he took both her hands
between his own, striving to keep them
warm.
Laura was the first to speak, and her
voice was quite firm, scarcely even sor-
rowf1ll: "Tom, dear, [ do not want to
die; and yet death cannot take from us
the boon of having died together"
"But we shall not die now, Laura; I
know we'll not.'' There was ring of
conviction in his tones. The profound
resignation underlying her words had
struck the right key in his own nature,
and the thought Of his first despairing
mood made him almost angry. "But
it's awful hungry we are, my DEAR" were
his next words.
I'm ashamed of you;;" said Laura,
and she actually laughed. Tom laughed
also.
When two persons in such a position
can laugh it is either every brave OF
Every shocking" according to the creed
we first sucked and the $50 forth" of our
salad DAYS.
The fog was all around them, and
neither could see the others face. The
fog was cold, and from time to time
Laura bad shivered once or twice.