Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-05-13

was full OF criminals, and the ja1lerS
wives came TO Oloi with their chill
dren, now and then to church, on Sum-
days and saints days; and Roxandra knew
well enough the two daughters Of Alexis
Alexovitch, the head jailer. Indeed. on her
raft she had padded up to the palace and
lain on her back in the sun looking at the
splendid large windows of the upper part,
and at the dungeons below with the air
holes cut in the masonry and barred with
iron.
Where was ita When was it?' Rox-
andra thought to herself. that she had stood
upon a beautiful parapet, like this one
yonder, and with flowers in her hand had
run to meet-well, whom"
All, it was surely very perplexing, and she
would certainly talk moro 10 the good priest
about it all.
| Which she did
| Month in and month out; year in and year
out; until the Lake baby was finally Is years
old; fine, nay a beautiful young maiden
with straight and erect features, and long,
silky golden braids.
'Now," she said to the priest, one early
spring day, ''tell me about myself, for l am
sure you know; where did l come from?
am not the true child of my mother, that
/ know-they do not call ne Lake baby for
nothing; come now, be agreeable, and tell
iue; all | ask for is the good truth"
flush, tush,n the old priest said, adjusting
his spectacles.
mo, no; know, I feel that I am, you
know, some one-some one else! that is it!
! just so-eh"
well well, what Of it,"
/ tfRr1t | an, liSfaT7jncr oh ~
He glanced at her; and then quite simply
! he told her the history Of the day that Mari
anka found her asleep on the Lake of karka;
all of it.
''And let me see, now, the packet Of pa
pers; oh, yes" Her lovely eyes sparkled and
! flashed THAT tells who am, eh."
! He shook his head.
''What Well, what Of it thenl"
| II will show you"
! And he did SO, unrolling carefully the thin
paper that had lain undisturbed for nearly
II years.
! a few words were written on the outside
in Russian thus: "My daughter baptized
Roxandra-" She eagerly seized them.
"AhIn cried she, MY mother wrote this,
and l can remember her-beautiful-yes-
and then, ah, she fades So"
"Well" The priest held up before her
/ eyes picture.
! Roxandra caught it and pressed it to her
| lips frantically.
''Oh, she sobbed half laughing, ''this is
/ she! How many times have tried to describe
! her to-mother-and l could not-and this"
/ she takes the other portraits from the hands
OF the priest
SIS this my fatherl" her tone sinks to a
whisper.
He mods.
"Where is her
The old priest shrugs his shoulders
"And my mothers"
81 know not"
"Who are theya Who were theya Oh,
who am I.'
"How do know!"
"That is true"
"Why was L set adrift upon the lake of
Karka, .ehF"
"Who can sayT'
"Sure enough"
care you satisfied
Roxandra walks away, and she spends the
rest of the day. far into the twilight, floating
on the Lake, although several times Ivan
Ivanovitch shouts to her from his work on
the shore that the waters are rising and that
all the springs are overfowing, and that
there are foods coming.
The girl does not heed him. until Marian
ka's shrill voice rouses her When the stars are
out, and it is chill on the lake Then she
comes in, and sullenly eats her supper and
goes to sleep.
Roxandra dreams that night, not of palaces
and ladies, but of the Lake of karka, rising
rising, until the hut floats, and she herself,
once more, she fancies, sleeps quietly On its
brown bosom.
In three days this is not far
from the fact; the spring floods are
come that way, and the lake has risen al
ready five feet, and the hut is in great
danger.
Roxandra gets upon her raft.
"Well, what nowF cries Marianka-
u am going to see how the prison Of
Okanin fares"
Better stop at home and look after the
cabin OF Ivan Ivanovitch, your fatha-
"What can DOR
always little"
"Oh, no; you are safe. All our things arc
already up on the hill by the church, and,
after all, we have nothing much to lose"
Everything"
swell, am going"
"You are bad one"
"No, mother; but 1 have to go-I cannot
help it Ask the priest; he will tell you
why"
"Oh. bahl"
Roxandra laughs and goes on. She has
seen spring foods IN her short life beside the
Lake of karka, but none quite SC bad as this
Even as she paddles on she feels the sluggish
waters swell beneath her little craft. And,
yes, truly all the dungeons are under water,
almost as high up as the prisoners heads
must come. This has not happened before.
The young birches and the pines lie strewn
on the surface OF the lake, their tangled roots
breasting the rush of waters the young part
ridges futter and whistle over the places
where their nests were yesterday the sky is
gray, with ominous yellow streaks liz the
north that bodies more wind and more rain.
Oh. well, sne hurries on, and presently she
has reached the Palace of Okanin-
i scene of terror greets her sight.
The lailers and their families stand On the
parapets shrieking and praying, and even
cursing as they gaze blankly down ct the
rapidly rising waters-for again il Is raining.
W hen tbsy behold Roxsndra 90 Der raft
they call to her, to approach and take
them on.
Say" she calls back, making q hollow
trunpet of her hands. as she stands on the
swaying raft Have you let out the
prisoners down below therer
You fool. no." yells the head lailer, that
would be worth my head TO ne. come along
quick and take us on, we viii let ourselves
down with these ropes; see!'
Il won'tp Roxandra says. "You are safe