Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1884-06-13

square Of the window. Here they found
large box. upon which they sat down.
They spoke but little; there were so few
Things left worth utterance i'm such an
hour as this. By and by. as their eyes
grew accustomed 10 the dlmness. they
discerned the general character of their
surroundings. There was table
near them with food; there were boxes
and bundles and a couple of old pict-
ures. brought up bither apparently
when the tide began TO rise. In the
middle lay the black square through
which they had made entrance; at the
lar cad n rorgn help of straw was dimly
distinguished. and from this came rest
less gnawings, scrspngs and rustlings,
causing the woman To shrink and shud-
der
I'll suppose they are rats" she said
once. when the sounds grew louder.
81 suppose So. do you mind very
much9"
"NO, IL we could only see them"
Aya.n for while they were silent,
hearing the little sounds within aud the
evcr-incrcasing sounds without.
Az last the man stood up. and pass
ing his hand across his face, said: '.Oh.
this is very cold-bloodedi They used
to torture witches so. fixed TO stake,
when the tide was coming up"
He novel To- aud fro impatiently and
stood still by the table.
could you not eat somethingp"
mo, thank you
lie broke himself n piece of bread,
and returning to the window, ate n few
mouthfuls. He pushed open the lattice
and leaned out
The water was rising rapidly, and
was already washing on the window of
the room below. lie turned back to-
ward her face of dismay; hers as she
sat within the room was not clearly
visible, but her attitude was calm and
undisturbed. He sighed. and came
back quickly TO sit beside her. But his
quietness was of short duration. He
asked. after n few minutes: Would
you not like to 90 out upon the roof
We shall have To do il sooner or later,
and don't think we should feel quite
so much imprisoned"
door?'
II don't think there is. / looked lust
now. But | can get up through the
window-thc roof is close aboye-and
then can help you"
lie set his foot on the window-sill,
and thrust his head and shoulders
through the narrow opening. "Oh
yes, IL is quite easy. But how IL blowsi
We had better have some of those
shawls."
She brought them and handed them
out. watched him draw himself IN. and
then mounted in her turn from box 10
window-ledge, and, reaching her hands !
upward, found herself lifted safely to !
the summit
The surge of wind and water was |
terrlhci her hat was blown away at |
once anu she was blinded by her hair. |
when she had freed her face and drawn |
up her shawl over her head she was
able to perceive tina, the roof was !
formed OF two long parallel gables, and /
That between them, at each end, a /
stack oil chlmneys rose from n solid |
platform. They went forward to the /
more sheltered group and sat down on |
the block of brick-wOrk at the base.
They had before them the wide, desc |
late eNpansc of waters; below them tor
rents ran laundering between dwellings /
and out-houscs, aud in the pauses of the /
cannonadc that beat the walls and of /
the rushing and rending sounds within |
they heard n southern wind drifting /
with signs between the chimneys. |
There was no token of life. no LIGHT. no
sound of hope. Yet they felt n sense of |
relief and freedom in being here. where
they could see and know what was be-
falling.
''Oh. that is bettcr"' said she. and |
lifted up her face to breathe the freshcr
air.
'One would say" said he, watching
the DARK cameo of her face. as IL de, /
tached itself from the straight line of |
masonry. that you had kind of en-
loyment of all this"
In a sense l have. There il so
much space and power. And there Is
the feeling Of having for once put ac-
ton and responsibility out OF ones
hands. There is nothing now which il
can possibly be ones duty to do"
then?"
I'll fear it physically. of course-the
actual drowning and choking-ah. |
don let us talk of it. But ut least we /
shall have had this hour of freedom and
rest"
81 could bear II better" he returned.
"if there were any element of struggle. |
To sit still in n cage until death chooses |
to come and put an end to you-that's |
horribler'
She turned toward him and seemed |
to consider his point of view until II |
became hers, for she shuddered and /
said! cit Is horribler'
There was silence again between
fhnnn for N 1teNln
her face was bent forward, he was able
10 watch its outline. Surely she was
younger than he had supposed.
What made you stayP" he asked
suddenly. She hesitated little.
''What made yoU"'
81 hardly know, more than what 7
said-that nobody cared much whether
l did OF not, and that did not care
much myself But am older than YOU.
and have had about rs much out of |
life rs it will ever give me-"
81 don't think that IL need be a oues-
ton OF age how much ones life is worth
Mine did not matter to any one, either:
ana u was not very easy or hopeful for
myself Ihad wanted so much. and
had to learn that l must do with so lit
tie. OF course, il is not noble TO care
so much about ones own petty happi.
ness. but oh! one does care! And then.
all ut once, here was way of escape.
not selfish. but to help happier people
and IL seemed che kew TO
everything when you stood up in the
boat and said that you would stay"
yet, said he, 81 could not helm
wondering, as we stepped out, whether
what we we're really giving 10 those
young lovers was only time TO lose their
love Tor each other. even in remem-
orance. For death can only DESTROY the
future but life can destroy the past.
Are you sorry. then. that you staidp''
There was little note of mockerv IN
in tho question. or his conscience Gre
ated Il. N''-
mo. it seemed the thing to do. One