Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1883-05-09
A Hero OF the Floods.

~ hundreds. whose homes were swer
away with scarce moments warning
will be the icy oyeI dow of that calamitou
season.
From all its numerous tributaries, from
he trickling rills OF the snow. ca ppe,
mountains 10 the broad and sluggish rive
Platte, the bands of ice, suddenly loosed
ct forth watery torrents to swell tn
mightier river ill it poured down to th
Mississippi with destructive haste tia
rad Lever been witnessed before.
Many a tired farmer who went to hi
rest after Il hard days work, and dreame'
for a time, perchance, OF growing crop
and abundant harvest as the result of hi
nhors, arose to find his farm a water,
waste. the angry river already at his ver,
door, and his live stock Wading and swim
ming distractedly about amid floating
masses Of ice, brushwood, and the debri
of other inundated farms above. In vail
| he sought ,o save his horses, his cattle, ol
| mis- household goods; it was often all ht
conld do to save his wife and little ones.
Upon a broad aud we'll cultivated far
on the Nebraska side Of the Missouri
there lived "A family named Wilson. in .
~ ut44C u''iSC tIttt Op-A III - SiC'O VI Ia =
but scattered trees near the bank of lh
stream.
Cultivated fields and we'll fence d stool
pastures extended back across the inter
wales. The soil was dark and extremely
fertile. the land lyiHg but little above
hi-2 watnr mark, on which account the
sprng lreshets always caused Mr.. Wilson
considerable uneasine The oldest set
tiers thereabouts, however. had never
known this tract 10 be entirely covered
and this. with Mr.. Wilson's own expert.
ence, had, as the years went by, consider.
ably lessened his first misglyings.
Therefore the great ioed of 1881 found
Mr.. Wilson wholly unprepared, and, at
the time of its coming, both he and his
wife were absent from home They had
felt little reluctant about leaving home,
rs the river was swollen nearly to the
high water marx, but urgent business
compelled them to ride to the nearest
railroad town. some thirteen miles away,
from which they intended 10 return on the
day following.
MIS-. Wilson carried her youngest child
and there remained at home, Henry, a lad
Of fif cen. and two little daughters aged
ten AT d six years, with the hired man,
Rrfolph.
Rudolph had relatives living two or
three miles back from the river, and whet
the cho eS were done at night, he left the
house, telling Henry that he was gong
over to see his folks" and would be back
at ten o'clock.
The boy and his sisters had been left
alone Of an evening before. They were
not afraid, and went to bed By nile clock,
TO sleep soundly, as such children will.
When the boy awoke in the morning,
he found the sun Feepng in at his
window, and leaping oul OF bed, he called
Rudolph, rs his Ia her WAS in the habit
Of doing But Ruioph did ro' answer.
Rude must he up ard doing he
chores" thought Henry; and then, >p-ak
ing aloud. lie said, "Nhat a tremendous
roaring the river makes this morning. II
sounds as if it was all around u.s."
Goodness. l blieve it is he added
after listening a moment; and then ht
Ian TO the window TO look.
S outer hearts than his might have
quaiied at the scene which met bis eyes.
Every where was wa era tuTbid, black,
tumul,uous food-dashing up against the
trunks OF the great trees, Il odng the
stock yard fence completely out Of sight
Logs, boards, aud great cold looking
cakes Of white ice, even the bodies OF
dead cattle. were swept furiously On.
The heads-oniy the heads and horns-of
some OF their own cattle could be seen
here and there. as the creatures swan to
and fro.
Looking down in frightened awe from
( ! q tho lad co u that tho
,c.viug, guttering current had already
attacked the foundation of the house,
which stood considerably higher than the
cattle yards, and that the doorsteps below
were under water
S the danger of the situation dswned
uron him, the lads terror grew. Again
and again he shouted to Rudolph; bur
there WAS no response save the rush and
roar Of the river.
Then he ran 10 the room of little
Jennie and Izah. who had already been
awakened BY his shout. With frightened
sobs the children clung to their brother,
seal cely daring 10 look out upon the fear
ful scene about them. "Where is Ru-
dolph9 Where is Rudolph?' they sobbed.
Henry soothed them as best he could
and leaving them at the head of the
stairway, he went below to see how high
the water had risen.
To his increased alarm he found that
the kitchen floor was already covered, and
be muddy wa er was pouring IN through
the cracks about the door. II was rising
fast,-had risen even since he looked
upon it.
Then for few moments the boys
courage almost deserted him; he trem-
bled violently, and the tears came into
his eyes. 20 father! mother! why ain't
you here?' he cried out.
Then the crash Of 4 huge ice cake
against The door aroused him.
Young as he was, he REALIZED that The
house must soon be swept away if the
water continued 10 rise, and almost fiercely
wiping away his tears, he tried to think OF
some means by which he might save his
little sisters and himself.
Through the kitchen window he saw
the trunk Of the great elm beneath which
stood the glindstone, only a few feet from
the broad doorstep,-a huge tree, four or
five feet in diameter. The waters were
dashing against its massive trunk; that,
as least, seemed proof against their
utmost strength.
The old elm! Ihe old elm! he cried
If we could o1ly get up among the big
limbs.' And then he formed his heroic
plan, and proceeded TO put it into execu-
tiol
The elm had great outstretching
branches, one of the largest of which
extended across the kitchen roof which
was nearly fiat and easy of access from a
window in the second story of the house
Henry had often climbed out there and
mounted the branch. from which he could
ascend nearly to the top of the tree,-a
dizzy height, however, which he seldom
attempted.
the flood can't dig tine old elm out"
he thought. "It's stood there tos long
But little Izlh and Jennie! be feared
for them. 1t was as much as he himself
dared to do to climb the tree, and he
feared the little girls would grow dizzy
and fail into the rushing waters beneath.
The brave boy thought of all this, and
solved the problem in a manner that
speaks we'll both for his courage and his
invention.
Wading through the water on the
kitchen floor, he reached the woodshed
- thara ,,roouroJ his y,nofharia clothas