Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1882-01-26

"Its Jo," cried Charlie, a. the boat
swung around 30 they could see his
face, land HIS dead"
Colomb cried out at that and begged
them not to stop, and indeed they
could not in that swift river. How ter
rible it all seemed as they went on.
Far off, the bluffs, like the banks OF
the sea in the centre of which was
their struggling boat, on every side
roofs Of churches, houses, barns, or
wrecks of them all. The comfortable
farms that the year before had been
covered with wheat, buried in water
and ice, some half washed into the
river, and many covered with deposit
of sand that had ruined them for years
at least. Cattle, horses, reapers, now
ers, everything gone, and sometimes
the owners, too, like poor 10. Great
trees we're torn up by the roots, or cut
of clean and smooth, some stripped oil
their bark, their large trunks seeming
half human Is they lay there ruined
and helpless.
One was still standing. and perched
in its baanches were three women,
whom Lucy recognized as her former
neighbors, Mrs. Oleson, Mrs. Starkson,
and Mrs Peterson. Each had babe
in her arms, and all called loudly for
help. The men brought the boat a.
near as possible to them, and promised
| k<, hal ~ k,,A =
boat was full. The women begged pit
eously. They had all got together in
one house, they said and when that
was going had climbed into this tree,
and had been there all night, and were
so cold. Colomb knew their husbands
we're with Peter, after VOID, but she
asked where Mrs. Oleson's other child
rem were, and the poor woman broke
out sobbing and said th ey we're in the
river. Sarah had slipped down into
the water when they tried to get up in
the tree, and Hans had dropped of in
the night wher she had fallen asleep
Just a minute.
Further on, Charlie pointed out a
house standing on higher land than the
others, where he told Lucy family
were up stairs waiting to be taken off il
need be, but allowing others in more
danger to go first, and near by, man
had lain in another house with both
hands and feet frozen so badly the doc
tors were going to amputate them. AT
last they reached their destination, the
great elevator where the owner, who
had been rich the day before. but was
now a poor man, was doing all he could
to make the people comfortable. They
were soon among the other sufferers,
some worse of than themselves, and
the men who had brought them only
waited to take little food, then started
out again with others.
Day after day and week after week
the flood continued. Skifis and yawls
were hastily built, and parties of rescu-
ers were out continually. One day
they brought in family who had lived
days on raw chickens, the fowls having
been driven to the house by fright, and
another day it was two old ladies who
had lived more than week in their
barn. Little children only half dressed,
consequently half frozen, were brought
from all sorts of strange perches, and
their rescuers had many narrow escapes
while trying to save them. Huge bar
ricades Of ice, sometimes thirty feet
high, must be crossed, and again swim
open open currents and, sometimes
thin ice, on which planks were laid to
make ii more secure, or the boats were
dragged across to reach another open
place. Day after day they brought
them in, taking sixty persons from the
roof of one large house, and picking
up others here and there, all half
frozen and half starved, and who des-
titute. The owner of the elevator
drew up by means of puIleys, a few
cattle that had been saved, slaughter
ing them in one of the upper floors,
and feeding the people. They had no
lights, for the kerosene and even the
candles had given ous everywhere the
boats could reach; bat they bore that
quite patiently as long as they had
some sort of food.
Peter returned with his neighbors,
but came in a boat and their wood went
on down the river. Neither he nor
Colomb said word more against
Charles love making, though they
saw it progressing in the intervals he
had from his work in the boats; and
old Gautier could not forget that
Charlie saved his life, and if he NUT
tered it was only to praise him.
And Lucy and Charlie think the
was not altogether without its advan-
ages.-SprinGfeM Republican.
Demand for Cows.