Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1886-08-26

his hand. as he took hold OF mine,
burned with fever.
For mercy's sake. Edam, take
care' lfye don't mind we'll be both
IN the water"
".An' what o. that? At any rate
we'll drown together, and yell never
belong TO another man."
clasped my hands in an agony OF
terror. Oh, what fool had been not
to guessed what might happenl
thought OF the poor BARNS at home
waiting for me now to give them their
suppers and hear their prayers
and tuck them up in their beds. and
the tears rolled down my cheeks at
the thought OF how long they might
have to wait.
"0h, Edam, didn't think ye could
be so cruel" / said between my sobs.
But even the tears failed to move him.
You have been cruel enough to me
lit s my turn nowl" he answered sui
ienly, as he altered the sail.
BY this time the lurid gleam had
almost died out from the sky and all
was dark around us. The wind was
blowing strongly and hurryine the
masses of clouds across the heavens
at headlong speed, and tearing at the
water until the air and the waves
mingled in one wild fray How our
little boat lived at all in such storm
is more than | can understand. In
the hand OF less experienced boat
man we should have been lost in no
time.
DO have pity on me and the poor
little ones that have only me to look
to, Edam--dear Edam!"
'Ay, it's dear Edam now you're in
my power, but how long would it last
1t let you win safe to land9 Elsie, il
you'll be ma wife I'll make for shore
this minute-if not"
'What them" faltered.
an run us straight on to the Ribs
o Death, and therell can end on tlp
What was to do? | tried to hs
false to Willie for the sake of dear life,
but iJ was no use. / couldn't get out
the words which would make me sol
II must die / must, and there was no
help for it, but, OH Ii was hard,
while the young blood flowed quick
and warm in my veins, to be plunged
headiong INTO eternity.
gave one loud despairing cry.
"Oh, Willie, Willie, can you not hear
me, my sweetheart, my darling? If
you were only by know you could
save me. It's for your sake | die,
Willie; but love you so, love you
SOP
"rhen die. Elsie, for ye shall never
be his Wife"
sank down in the bottom of the
boat and closed my eyes | could not
look at my death. though | knew it
must come. A dull stupor crept over
me, and the agony OF fear which held
me before was gone. Was it my dis.
ordered imagination which made me
think something had happened which
sounds perfectly incredible?
1t was getting too dark to distin-
guish plainly. but, surely, that was
Eaam Carr's big form | saw at the
other end OF the boat stooping over q
coil OF rope?
Then who was the man busted with
the sail in the centre of it?
We were shut off from all human
help there in the midst of a bowling
tempest, and yet some one had man
aged to come on board, and evidently
to give us his assistance No other
vessel could possibly have approached
us while my eyes were shut, certainly
not without my hearing it. Where
then, had this stranger come from?
All these thoughts flashed through
my mind, but at the time | was too
stupefied to wonder much. My facul-
ties seemed dulled, and Icould neither
suffer nor fear any more, | simply
waited for the end. | could see dimly
the sharp ridge OF rocks we were near
ing, and from which nothing short OF
a miracle now could keep US.
But this miracle did takeplace. All
at once our course changed and the
boat turned from its dangerous way
Then, and not till then, did Edam
seem to awaken to the knowledge that
he was no longer managing affairs.
With sudden oath he started up and
erept forward.
When he got to the figure standing
with its back toward him saw him
raise his arm to thrust it aside. Then
slowly, slowly, it turned and looked
him straight in the face.
lie cried oat wildly, "God help me,
for I'm mad now, any wayl" and,
throwing up his arms, he leaped over
board into the seething waves.
watched him strike out when he
rose, but Twas too paralyzed to scream
even He had not chance in that
terrible sea, but was thrown like bit
OF floating weed upon the very rocks
he had been steering for, chung there
for moment, only to be swept back
by the return of the waves. | saw
this in the last lurid streak OF light
which flashed across the water before
the night came, and in it were shown
at last the features of my strange com
panion. Was it all dream? | did
not know even then. nor Gid / feel
afraid, but as those eyes met mine a
thrill ran through me, and sank into
Inconsistencies. Late that night,
when some of the msn went down to
see that their boats were secure, they
found Edam Carr's new BOAT safely
drawn up on the beach and me lying
in it in dead faint.
After that came a time OF dull, stu
pid misery to me. could never an
swer questions, nor give any account
of that dreadful evening, save that
Edam Carr had gone mad and jumped
overheard, and had been dashed
against the cribs OF Death, and that
| tainted when this happened, and
knew no more But then, how had
the boat been brought intoport? they
asked. My story was proved true by
poor Edam's body being washed
ashore two days after. For long the
people looked at me strangely. Their
superstition made them regard me row
as "uncanny" and shun me as some
thing they could not account for. Be-
sides, instead of the sea claiming its
victim, as they expected it to do, lhad
been miraculously saved from it!
often wonder did not 90 mad my
self during that dreary time.
For settled in my own mind clear
ly enough how it was. / should never
see my bonnie sweetheart more. Ihad
not doubt that he was dead and
that my cry for help had brought him
IN the spirit to my assistance. For a
while | nursed my sullen grief in
silence; but at last Miss Ashford
kindness broke down the barrier and
told her everything. Only for that
and because she did not laugh at me.
but believed that spoke the truth, |
should have lost my senses or my life,
Cor III .A Sacrat was killino mo