The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1882-11-16

what.
At the brow of the hill she paused
and looked down. The road wound
like brook down the long hillside,
turning to the right and to the left,
with here and there steep pitches and
many bars, till it was lost in the dark
ness far down toward the valley. AS
far as her eyes could reach there was
nothing unusual to be seen; but at her
feet lay broken harness strap. Up
that road Fan had come, and down that
road Dear must 60.
On and on, over bars and pitches,
scarcely touching the ground, loose
stones hit by her feet flying before her,
till, suddenly, halfway down the steep
est pitch, she came to a place in the
road where the stones and the gravel
had been plowed up as if by the plung
ing of a horse.
Here lay the wagon seat. A little
farther on lay two or three planks across
the road, and at the foot of the steep
pitch lay, on its side, a wrecked lumber
wagon, which had run backward till it
capsized; and across the steep gutter by
the roadside lay load of plank which
had slid from the wagon as it went
over Here was a part of the broken
reins belonging to the harness, with the
ends under the load OF plank.
The wagon was her fathers, Dear
knew that; but where was her father?
She stood and looked on either side, up
the hill and down into the valley
Nothing mo ed; there was not even
wind enough to bend the tall dead
grasses by the roadside, and no sound
was to be heard in all the still night but
the purling and babbling of the little
brooks that had quilted deep channels
in the waterways on either side of the
road. Dear could bear this silence no
longer.
Papa, papa, where are you?'' and
the wild cry went up the hillside and
down into the valley, bringing no an
swer.
80 papa, papa! what shall 1 do?''
she called again, and as she listened
with straining ears, she heard, or
thought she heard, low moan near her.
She dropped on her knees. Papa,
papa, are you here?" 1t was PRAYER
now. Surely she heard a sound as if in
answer. and it seemed to come from
the plank that had slid over the gutter.
In an instant Dear was over there
peering among the planks She could
see nothing, but she could hear sound
plainly now. She tried with frantic
haste to raise the planks, but there was
not strength enough in her small arms
for that, and almost without thought
she darted, not up the hill to her
mother, but down into the black valley
at the foot of the hill, where cart-path
leading from the woods intersected the
road. Along this dark path, overgrown
with alders, she went till she came to a
low shanty built between two trees,
and, bursting open the door, she cried:
go Biddy Mccoy! come quick; some
thing dreadful has happened on the
hill"
"What is't yer sayin' P" said the
startled Biddy, starting from her seat;
but as Dear was already out of doors,
she added, suiting the action to the
words: Here, Bridget. tax the babby,
and you Nike" to stupid boy by the
fire, ''get yer lanthern and come
along" and without waiting to put any
thing on her head she followed Dear.
The child was already out of sight,
but Biddy went on at a sounding gallop
till she came to the foot of the hill
There she saw the small figure flying
before her and reckoning her on.
"Shure, an somethin' dreadful has
happened said the breathless Biddy,
crossing herself rs she came up to the
wrecked wagon. Is any one hurted?'
as Dear called her to help.
- IN afraid-Pm afraid there's some
one under the planks," gasped Dear,
trying single -handed to lift the load.
''Here, CURL, that's no way to warruk,
TAX the top one first Mike, yo lazy
sowl, get along wild yer lanthernr' and
her voice went down the hillside like
the blast of a trumpet starting even the
slow Mike into a run.
Oh
inc the lantern to Dear, and with Bid
dy's stout arms at one end and Mikes
ut the other, the planks were flung over
into the road. Dear held her breath,
and before the planks were all off they
could see that a man lay there stretched
in the bed of the gutter. The planks
were over him like roof, or the cover
of q box, and, when the last one was off,
Dear saw her fathers face, still and
white, but she could not utter a sound.
Howly Mother, help u.s." CALCULATED
Biddy. take his feet Mike, and help
get him out of the wather. He'll be
drowned intirely if he no kilt already"
For rs he lay damming up the narrow
channel, the chOked water had risen
and spread around him in an ever-rising
pool.
As they took him up and laid him
down in the road, the motion seemed to
rouse him to life, for Biddy, stopping
over him with the lantern, saw his eyes
suddenly open. He looked. about him
in a bewildered way, and then clutched
at the reins that were still in his hands,
shouting: "Whoa. Fan. whoar' Then
he slowly raised himself on his elbow,
and seeing the planks scattered about
him muttered: "Whyi she's got away
=" Are We much hurried, surP' asked
Biddv. cOnceruedlY. taking his arm as
if she would help him to his feet.
81 don't know, Pm cold" said he,
slowly
=. An we'll We might be, lynn in all
that wather," and she told him how
they had found him lying in the gutter,
with the planks over him, but not on
him, and the water around him.
lis that you, DearP and has the horse
gone homeP" asked he after a moment,
seeing the little, shaking figure beside
him.
:" Yes, papa and all at once the
convulsive sobs leaped beyond her con
troll. and she fell on her knees, quite
unable to say or do anything but Sob
The sight and the sound of her sobs
did more than anything else to restore
her father to himself. With Biddy's
help he slowly rose from the ground,
and, after standing a moment, he said,
steadily: Il believe l am all right, only
cold and a little confused. The fall
must have stunned me, and but for your
help, my good woman, l should have
been dead man soon.
1T was yer little CURL toud US. We
shouldn't have known"
He held his hand to Dear, and she
caught it and held it under her chin,
still unable to speak
do We think We could walk, sur?
We, We no right to be standin, here wild