The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-09-24

were their own. it seemed as If in this
| spring of 1881 the house had never seemed
| quite so small and quite so sicSly. Both
| Tom and Annie were down with low fevers.
Baby Bum was GROSSLY cutting some
double teeth and series of long, hard
rains had interfered with hod-carrying TO
such an extent that Mr.. Bum. in a battered
rubber coat, had taken to looking for jobs
of wood saving. Dismal, indeed, was the
outlook, and it required ell the Bum forti-
tude to eat suppers of corn-meal cakes and
black sirup contentedly, and to rise I'M
compIaininglv to breakfasts of corn-meal
mush and sky-blue milk.
IF we lived in the country" began Mrs.
Bum, and then checked herself. She was
in no mood to be laughed at. She went on
thinking, however, that if they lived in the
country on an acre Of land, they could at
least have potatoes and turnips and fresh
| eggs. an occasional chicken, and, perhaps
oh mercy of mercies-they might keep
| a cow, by letting the children lead her
along the roads to crop the free pasturage
| there.
Probably Mrs. Bum was getting a little
| feverish herself. for whenever she closed
| her ewes she seemed to see fair green fields
! and dancing brooks, and q white'cow feed
| ing upon the hillsides. and happy children
gathering violetS in the spring sunshine:
and she could hear the thrifty cackle of
| ambitious hens, and the carol OF robbins
on the tip-tOp branches OF the budding
| trees. She closed her eyes as often as her
work would permit. through this last
| gloomy day in the Flats, and felt some
what comfOrted and cheered by her strange
| fancies.
A river runs bv the Flats, separating that
! locality very distinctly from the heights OF
| Upper Lowell. Every spring it rises and
runs away with its usual petty larcenies of
woodsheds, chicken coops and the like:
| but in this spring of 1884 it meant more
| than petty larceny, it meant bold and
| aud defiant raid. Its gray, swirling waters
| almost reached the high arched bridges,
and its usual insinuating murmur was
| turned to a menacing roar. But the Flat
people did not fear it; and even when it
/ creDt up to their back yards and Tapped
| hungrilv around their dOOr-stepS, it was
| still but a new and refreshing excite
| ment-Jhis big rise of the peaceful Little
| WOLF" The men and women living along
| the banks looked after such small, loose
| articles as were likely to be carried away,
and the children made RATS aad padded
about in the pools of back-water in great
| glee. Some authorities rode over to the
| Flats, and suggested that the houses along
the river had better be vacated, and the
| families living there only laughed and
| said thew were not afraid; and every one
went to bed that night feeling entirely
safe, and thankful that the weather had
| cleared and thai there would be chances
for going to work on the morrow.
But lat midnight there was cry" Mr..
and Mrs. Bum did not hear it, for Annie
and Tom were sleeping soundlv for the
first night in week, and the father and
mother, tired out with vigilS. were also
deep in slumber. They were all sleeping
up stairs as the doctor had advised-TOm
| and Annie in their hunks near the window,
| whcr, a breath of fresh air could touch
their fevered faces, three small boys in the
IL 4 Vii - oil ri,
lounge, and Baby Bum with his father
and mother.
The cry came from some of the houses
along the river, and there was only time
for the bewldered snatching Of a little
clothing and a frenzied escape to higher
! ground, every one, il those first wild mo-
| mentS, thinking but of himself and those
belonging 20 him. The Flats had not vet
| achieved street lamps, and only the pale
glimmer of the stars lighted the terrible
| scene.
The little Bum house stood lowest of
any in the Flats, and the river had been
| nosing about it for an hour or more before
it took its final grip. When it really set its
Jaws together, Mr.. and Mrs. Bum were
| awakened by the queer, straininS creak
| and jar, and they now heard the wild
shouts outside, the lap and swirl of the
waters about them, and knew, with freeZ-
! ing hearts what il all meant.
| kind want to die decently, Mrs. Bum
dashed into her gown which hung over the
foot of the bed, and even gave her hair a
! swift twist. Then she caught up Dicky
| Bum, who gave a sleepy cry at such dis
| turbance, and she breathed the name of
Christ's mother, as she held him tightly to
her breast. Mr.. Bum - steering with
| great presence of mind through the sea of
| sleapv children-looked from the window.
| Was there a tOrch-hght procession! And
had all the stars Joined in it: For the
lamps that were now flashing oct from the
windows, and the bright stars above were
all moving in the same direction. No, it
was his own house that was mOviug-they
were afloat! MIR. Bum staggered back to
the bed and drew on his trousers, and felt
about for his stockings, and said not a
word. Nellie, the oldest child, who had
awakened, sat up and called out: 20,
mother" even as her mother had called
upon that other sacred name.
"Be brave, darlin' , and don't wake the
other children! We're all goin' together,
anyhow"
IMavbs she'll hold together" said Mr..
Bum, who always found the hopeful side
| of things. "We'n light the lamp and see
where we are" And soon all the people
who were disinterested enough to b mere
sightseers, noticed a glimmer out on the
dark river-like the light of a will O. the
wisp-eNcept that it was little steadier I;
a light that moved farther and farther
away and was finally lost to sight.
She did "hold together" Through all
those long hours of terror, the little house
-reeling and staggering at times, and
thumped and jammed by floating debris
held together and in the early dawn sailed
along 'all there" as Mr.. Bum expressed
it: and all the children, except Nelly,
slept peacefully, as if lulled into deeper
slumber by the rocking of their one COM
mon cradle. They appeared to be in the
middle of the river. for there was plenty of
sea-room, as Mr.. Bum said, but the shore
on either side, was shut out by heavy
fog. ;.
wouldn't be quite so awful" moaned poor
Nellie, nervously shivering in spite of the
thick shawl in which she was wrapped.
Darlin' be thankful we're spared so
far, and perhaps the dear Lord'll save us
even yet" said her mother. BUTT was in
deed awful" moving on through this
mist with unknown dangers signing and
murmuring all around.
As daylight advanced they seemed 70
have fioated into stiller waters; and pres
entity there came gentle shock as ii the
house had touched bottom.
care we sinking, Donnie, dear!" asked
Mrs. Bum, of her husband.
''Not bit of it, jewel We're on land,
that's where we are; and here's tree be-
side US as big as O church -steeple-a tree
right side up, too-and we've come to q
stoppin' place. sure" and Mr.. Bum, who
had been so cheerful and plucky through
all these hours, sat down on the bed and
buried his face in his red cotton handker-
chief.
"Ah, it will do you good, Dennie dear ~
said his wife, patting him on the shoulder,
and laughing and crying herself.
| The Bum family had indeed come to an
anchorage. Not only one but several trees
} stood about them, and in between two OF
} these stauuch supports the house had