Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1885-09-27
WHAT HE REGRETTED


Emery on the wild Dor lcrs Of little north
ern lake while had mclange of sea,
| mountain, river and city.
Emery was the only ono who had any
| thing very dramatic TO tell He had been
drowned in hs beloved lake and brought to
life again by the arduous and prolonged
efforts Of his friends and the grace OF
Heaven. In regard to this experience he
| rceked with sensations, which he was IN no
way averse to describing.
| was the last to hear the tale with all its
embellishments, and ! reproduce it from
memory:
Those little Minnesota lakes arc as
treacherous as red Indians. They will be
as unruff,ed As prairie, and in ten min
utes nal ignant little squall will dart out
OF nowhere. and bo down upon YOU like a
roaring lion and deputy sheriff before
you have had time TO shift the mainsail or
turn yourself arounu. You wouldn't sup
pose danger could lurk in such sweet LARS
as those blessed little lakes, They look
like bits of glittering silence dropped here
and there to rest human beings, not to
menace them. And as for fish, they're alive
with them
''On one of the brightest afternoons in
early August, about 2 o'clock, two friends
and went out in dancing little boat not
much bigger than bath tub, built for row.
ing but equal to an adjustable sail when oc.
casion demanded. There was a light but
steady breeze when we started. IL sent US
plowing into the middle OF the lake in no
time, and then fell away, to come and go
fittully every few minutes like cat play
ing with mouse.
'One of my friends was trolling without
much success, and the other, lucky rascal
when it came to piscatorial performances,
was haulng in bass often enough to dazzle
an amateur fisherman. managed the boat,
and I'm no novice at it either. Grew up in
Long Island seaport town, you know, and
lirei on and IN the water most Of my time
We were idling along that af tcrnoon on the
shady side of the lake, enjoying tho beauty
and quiet and freshness which are to he
io'md on water only. never upon land. |
"ast an eve around quite frequently for
cats paws, and, as captain of the craft, con
sidered myself ready for any emergency.
81 wasn't. however An emergency in the
shape OF a tearing, clustering gale from a
cloud that had mraculously concealed itself
until that moment, was upon us in a twink.
nng dropped the rope to ease the sail and
sprang to the PROV to remove the sail Be
fore ! reached it there was flash of light
ming snap like twenty pistol shots, close
ty our heads, apparently, ani sudden
sbivering and splintering loud and terrible
enough to be the dismembarment of an
ocean steamer The snap was eau sed by the
splitting of the sail to the very mast, while
the crash came from the splinterIug of the
mast close TO the boat. 1t was twisted out
Of its socket and flung on the water in an
instant, exactly as though "A spiteful giant
had done the work with his han Is. An elec-
trio OF magnetic current was in the breath
of that wind, Ierhaps. I'm sure l know
nothing about such things.
What do know is that the water and the
sky became inky black; a heavy sea began
to roll, and although | grabbed the oars and
tried to keep the boat in shape to ride the
sea, l didn't keep it that way long The
oars were blown out of my hands. The wind
had grip in it wickedly human. Without
oars the Marigold was blown about like a
hat in whirlwinl. In few seconds a
wave struck her stern and over she went
lit near the broken mast and grabbed ii.
My two chums clung desperately to the
boat, which luckily soon righted itself
again. One Of them caught one of the oars,
crawled into the MarIsOld, and, As the gale
abated in five minutes, they reached the
shore. held to the mast an hour or more,
but at last overcome with weakness lost
my hold and sunk.
Talk about the sensations of drowning
man; know them. You may doubt it, but
| tcns drowned If ever nIau was. TIE bows
rowed out, half dead as they were, and pickle |
me up and We landed close by the camp os
some city fishermen who had brandy, blan.
kets, not water-everything necessary for
the occasion.
81 was very weak when ] sank the first
time, but knew what was happening. 1t
seemed to me that could see through the
water to the sky almost. After the first
roaring sound, when my ears were filling
with water all was utter silence. was at
the bottom Of the lake drowning, and |
knew it. ! could do nothing to save my
self, and, indeed, didn't think of doing
anything then. My mind was busy with
the panorama Of my past, ] have listened
with incredulity a hundred times to the
Nories Of drowning men remembering every
act Of their lives as they were sinking.
believe them to be true now
At least Remembered everything Queer
est feeling in the world, | forgot that was
drowning-that is, forgot to be frightened
by it, ! seemed to he resting on some ele.
walton and watching my life fly past Inc,
one scene after another just like a pano-
rama. tell you l WINGED several times AZ
certain things, long forgotten, were pictured
in strong colors. Many deed that had
lightly committed and lightly dismissed
from mind, looked very dark to ne. AMI
there was no shutting my eyes to them.
There they were, grim accusers, accompany
ing me to the bar of judgment Ibeleve
in recording angel, and think his name
is Memory. have seen his account a ayainst
me up TO that date, and III do my best not
to increase it.
81 can't explain how it was done, but
every deed carried its motive and conse
quences in full view. have often wondered
which Of my sins would seem the darkest
when ] should look them over from the
other side OF life. know now, and III tell
you. 1t was sin of cowardice-moral
cowardice. A young girl in our town got
the tongue of scandal after her. She wa,
almost alone in the world and poor but an
bright rs a diamond, and with pleasant
face and graceful manners. She was en-
ploysd as bookkeeper in one Of the stores,
and somehow there began to be some DANA
able gossip about her and her employer