Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-11-29

The shouting and swearing went reeling
away toward the waters edge, and then,
all OF sudden, they eliminated in fear
full yell-after which came silence.
| What could mean?-wondered Angus
ia; and while she was still wondering
dropped off to sleep again.
CHAPTER xI.-REsCUED.
| Augusta woke up just as the dawn was
| stealing across the sodden sky. 1t was the
smarting of her shoulders that woke her
She rose, leaving Dick yet asleep, and, re-
membering the turmoil of the night, hur-
ried to the other hut. 1t was empty
She turned and looked about her. About
fifteen PAGES from where she was lay the
shell that the two drunkards had used as
a cup. Going forward, she picked it up
1t still smelled disgustingly of spirits.
Evidently the two men had dropped it in
the course Of their midnight walk, or rath-
er roll. Where had they gone to!
Straight in front of her rocky promon-
tory ran out fifty PAGES OF more into the
waters of the fjord-like bay. She walked
along il aimlessly till presently she per.
ceived one of the sailors hats lying on the
ground, or, rather, floating in a pool of
water Clearly they had gone this way.
On she went to the point of the little
headland, sheer over the water. There
was nothing to be seen, not single vestige
of Bill and Johnnie. Aimlessly enough
she leant forward and stared over the
rocky wall, and down into the clear wa
ter, and then started back with little cry.
No wonder that she started, for there
on the sand, beneath fathom and half
of water, lay the bodies of the two Inflated
arms, and lay as though they were asleep
upon that ocean bed. How they came to
their end she never knew. Perhaps they
quarreled in their drunken anger and fell
over the little cliff; or perhaps they STUN
bled and fell, not knowing whittier they
were going. Who can say? At any rate,
there they were, and there they remained,
till the outgoing tide fioated them off to
join the great army of their companions
who had gone down with the kangaroo.
And so Augusta was left alone.
With a heavy heart she returned to the
hut, pressed down by the weight of soil
tude and the sense that in the midst of so
much death she could not hope to escape.
There was no human creature left alive in
that vast lonely land, except the child and
herself, and so far as she could see their
fate would soon be as the fate of the 9TH
ers. When she got back to the hut, Dick
was awake and was crying for her.
The STILL stiff form Of Mr.. Meeson,
stretched out beneath the sail, frightened
the little lad, he did not know why Au-
gusta took him into her arms and kissed
him passionately. She loved the child for
his own sake; and, besides, he, and he
alone, stood between her and utter soil
tude. Then she took him across to the
other hut, which had been vacated by the
sailors, for it was impossible to stay in the
one with the body, which was too heavy
for her to move. In the center of the sail
ors' hut stood the cask of rum which had
been the cause of their destruction. 1t
was nearly empty now-so light indeed,
that she had no difficulty in rolling it to
one side. She cleaned out the place as well
as she could, and, returning to where Mr..
Nelson's body lay, fetched the bag of bis
cults and the roasted eggs, after which
they had their breakfast.
Fortunately there was but little rain
that morning, so Augusta took Dick out
to look for eggs, not because they wanted
any more, but in order to employ them
selves. Together they climbed up on to
rocky headland, where the flag was fly
ing, and looked out across the troubled
ocean. There was nothing in sight so far
as the eye could see-nothing but the
white warehouses across which the black
cormorants steered their swift unerring
flight. She looked and looked till her
heart flank within her.
"Will mummy soon come in boat to
take Dick away?" asked the child at her
side, and then she burst into tears.
When she had recovered herself they set
| to collecting eggs, an occupation which,
notwithstanding the screams and threat
ening attacks of the birds, delighted Dick
greatly. Soon they had as many as she
could carry; so they went back to the hut
and lit a fire of driftwood, and roasted
some eggs in the hot ashes; she had no pot
to boil them in. Thus, one way and an
other the day wore away, and at last the
darkness began to fall over the rugged
peaks behind and the wild wilderness of
sea before. She put Dick to bed and he
went off to sleep. Indeed, it was wonder
full 10 see how well the child bore the hard
ships through which they were passing.
He never had an ache or q pain, or even .
cold in his head.
After Dick was asleep Augusta sat, or
rather lay, in the dark listening to the
moaning of the wind as it beat upon the
shanty and passed away in gusts among
| the cliffs and mountains beyond. The
| loneliness was something awful, and to
| gether with the thought of what tho end
Of it would probably be quite broke her
| spirit down She knew that the chances
of her escape were small indeed. Ships
did not often come to this dreadful and
| uninhabited coast, and if one should hap
| pen to put in there it was exceedingly
| probable that it would touch at some other
| point and never see her or her flag. And
| then in time the end would come. The
supply Of eggs would fail, and she would
be driven to supporting life upon such
birds IS she could catch, till at last the
child sickened anil died, and she followed
| 1t to that dim land that lies beyond KAr-
| guelen and the world. She prayed that
| the child might die first It was awful to
think that perhaps it might be the other
way about; she might die first, and the
| child might be left to starve beside her.
The morrow would be Christmas Day.
Last Christmas Day she had spent with
her dead sister at Birmingham She re-
membered that they went to church in the
morning, and after dinner she had finished
correcting the last revises of "Jemima's
! Vow" Well, it seemed likely that long
before another Christmas came she would