Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-03-17

us, and raced on in that wild way they
have, which is not like tbs manner OF
horses in the East In spite OF the fear
which now possessed us all, there was
q certain glorious feeling in that ride.
After we had turned we could look of
at our right at the cloud, which was
rushing on with terrible quickness, and
which now fancied was pursuing us,
and us alone.
Suddenly there was thunderous
sound toward the west. and looking
that way / saw vast herd of cattle
sweeping on, dark, surging mass,
with tossing horns glancing white in
the sunshine, for the sun was shining
brilliantly at this time. 1t was a stam-
pede. never knew whether they were
frightened by tho cloud or had been
urged on by the unexplan ned impulse
that sometimes comes to them to flee
madly over the plains. At another time
this sight would have been of stirring
interests now did not care to watch
the fight of the cattle. l was too in
tent on our own race against the cloud.
The lightning was playing through the
black vapor necessarily. Moro clouds,
having the appearance of common
thunder heads" rose and dispersed
themselves over the sky, and Mt last OBJ
scured the sunlight. It was relief to
me when the sun ceased to shine. for
the scene seemed less abnormally ter
rife.
Within few rods of the opening of
the gulch heard roar, as of oncom-
ing wind. Nan cried out again to her
horse. the animals lurched forward yet
faster, and in a moment we were all
entering the ravine. 1t was eXtr mely
uneven ground and covered by broken
sharp stones. My sister and were
watching Nan; she slipped OF the sad
die and hurriedly motioned to us 10 do
the same. The instant we were dis
mounted the horses scrambled rapidly
forward into the gulch, and we did tho
same, Nan now in the roar and driving
us along. That night found my shoes
cut and cash in my foot, but Id
not feel the wound when / received it.
While we were thus hurrying 10 get to
the deepest shelter of the gully, the roar
above us was awful and was increasing
every moment. It reverberated strange
ly through the ravine. We could not
have heard word had VIC spoken. We
all stopped simultaneously and looked
at each other. They were two very
white faces that | saw, with strained,
frightened eyes. Nan made II move
III mt with her head that we were not to
go on; and we crouched down against
the rocky sides of the earth. The next
instant Emma leaned heavily upon me
and silently pointed upward toward
the chasm's opening, where we
had entered. The black cloud
was just going past our point
of vision; it had dilated to twice its
former size, but still retained its cylin-
der shape. If it could be poss BILE, it
was more dense than ever, and boiling
in its blackness. Balls of fire sped back
and forth in the air; or my sight was
under an hallucination to that effect.
All the phenomena seemed To have
their center in that cone of black cloud.
The straugcst, the most awful thing of
all that fearful experience was what ]
saw now. Behind that black cloud,
whether following tor drivingit know
not, came n tall cloud of intensest,
most dazzling white--a pillar of glory,
growing every instant more like q pillar
of fire, and soon appearing to control
the inky shape. The raving noise was
now at its height In a moment the
two mysterious shapes had passed from
our contracted line of vision; they
marched on, destroying as they went.
The crash of timber along n stream not
far of, the cannonading of the thunder
which had now opened its forces, and
above all the overwhelming roar of the
wind, made us shrink and cover closer
together a liercer blast caused us TO
throw ourselves Hat on the stony
ground grasping at each Others hands.
So ignorant was that believed at the
time that we were in full power of the
tornado, instead of being comparative
ly sheltered by tho walls OF the gulch
Afterward knew that we could hardly
have saved our lives had we not been
able To reach this ravine.
Once | felt touch on my head, from
which my hat had long since gone. |
found that j, was one of th5 horses.
They had all come back from their first
run up the gulch TO be near us; the three
stood huddIcd close by, when we had
chance to look. AS | recall things in II
dream, so recall the incidents of the
time while we remained in that refuge.
Once, in a glare of the lightning, aud
/ while my eyes were open and my head
raised, saw several oh. ects dying over
the top of the gulch. They were sbeco,
and their dead, bruised bodies wore
found, as if they had been Lung hard
, against the ground, after the stolm.
Once something came down close by
me, hitting my hand where l had dug
/ my fingers ANONYMOUSLY down into the
earth. II was small prairie dog, and
, it lay still in death, near rnc. Many
prairie hens, the next day, were found
, dead, with almost all their feathers
nj of bxr tbx id
, terror lasted there was hardly lull in
! the ferocity of it. I thought we had
been hours hiding there, when ut last
the rain began TO come down heavily,
and moment after the wind sensibly
= diminished to hard gale We were di-
, rectly soaked thoroughly, but / think
: none of us cared for that The hurting
noise of the storm was still deafening,
but we felt that the worst was over, for
8 us at least That demon cone of cloud
, was flying further on its road of de-
: struction, but it had left us.
We Immediately got upon our feet.
our horses keeping their heads close to
/ our shoulders as wo did SO. BY the
( time we had CROPPED and stumbled our
, way TO the entrance Of the gulch there
I was blue sky in the north, and the rain
' had dwindlcd to few heavy drops.
We stood moment breathless, look
9 ing about us with scared eyes. 1t was
r wide plain where we were. and all
b the devastation we saw at first was
| that the row of cottonwoods was living,
4 torn up, some of them halfway across
Q the stream they had bordered.
81 am afraid of what / shall find at
a homc," said Nan.
, AS she spoke, she turned to her horse
v and swung herself up into the soaked
\ saddle. These ponies are not tall, and
S it is possible for woman to mount
without help. We both followed her