The Penn's Grove record., 1888-08-18
NUMBER 3.
Ro1andra gets upon her raft.

ECIo uBoh Z EhIts
"Well, what nowP" cries Marisnka.
Okanin fares"
"Better stop at home and look after
the cabin of Ivan Ivanovitch, your
father"
"What can l do7"
always a little"
"Oh, no; you are safe. All our
things are already up on the hill by the
church, and, after all, we have nothing
much to lose."
"Ev%erything."
"Well, | am going"
You are a bad one."
mo, mother; but | have to COL
cannot help it. Ask the priest; he will
tell you why"
"Oh, BAH"
Roxandra laughs and goes On. She
has seen spring floods in her short life
beside the Lake of Karka, but not
quite so bad as this. Even as she pad
dies on she feels the sluggish waters
swell beneeth her little craft. And,
yes, truly, all the dungeons are under
water, almost as high up as the prison.
ers' 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 partridges fiutter and
whistle over the places where their
nests were yesterday, the sky is gray,
with ominous yellow streaks In the
north, that bodies more wind and more
rain,
Oh, well. she hurrles on, and pre-.
sently she has reached the Palace of
Okanin.
A scene of terror greets her sight.
The jailer5 and their families stand
on the parapets shrleking and praying,
and even curslng, as they gaze blankly
down at the rapidly rising water5-for
again it is raining.
When they behold Roxandra on her
raft they call to her to approach and
take them on.
"Sayp' she calls back, making a hol.
low trumpet of her hands. as she stands
on the swaying raft, "Have you let
out tue prisoners down below there?"
"You fool no." yells the head jailer,
THAT would be worth my head to me;
come along quick and take us on, we
will let ourselves down with these
ropes; see!"
II won'tP' Roxandra says. "Youl
are safe enough up there for hours toi
come; but they down yonder, they havs|
not half an hour to get away IN with
their llves."
"Oh, bah, what Of their lives!'' they
all called in concert. 1.-THE place Isl
surrounded by water on every side, andl
We have no means of escape; aid u.s.,
comel comel you, now. l sayl'
1.-THE prisoners tirst," the girl said
~doggedly.
"Oh, "shrieked an old woman. "Yout
are a witch, you are. you have no fesr
of the lake, you sprung from It,"
yes" cried a young man IS Rox-
andra pulled away and around toward
the side of the dungeon. "You will
set the prisoners free will you-ehp and
where are the keysS" He jingled
them in his hand as be spoke, and held
them up for her to see. But she saw
nothing of him. She saw, by this time,
merely n thing. 1t was that one OF
the prisoners-perhaps he had worked
at it for many ~years-had filed the
three bars at his dungeon window, that
he had cut through The masonry, aud
that-ohl wonder anu irony of Fatel-
he stood up to his throat in water. with
his body free to go--and could not
stir!
She looked again. She shaded her
eyes with her hand for an instant-and
then, with a low. pitiful shrek that
yet was joyful through all-Roxandra
threw up her arms and said: MY
fatherl''
The original OF the portrait she had
seen a week ago was before her.
She pulled hard to reach him. She
made signs and shouted, she got to
him-she knelt down, and dragged him
and pulled him Oh the rift-she kissed
his hands and forehead, and wept and
shrieked, and all those others watching
thanked God as they said:
SIT is Prince OkaninI Well, we'll,
well, twelve years is a long slice u OF
IA mans life. But pshawI he will be
sent now to SiberIa-tlat is all-that
is ALL"
When Roxandra was once more back
at the village of OIoi, she sent others
to help those unfortunates at the
prison, while she half led, half dragged
her father up the little hill to the
priests house.
He said little; lie was terrified.
Prince Okanin, stunned and blighted,
was too dazed to understand how Rox.
andra was his daughter. But size
brought him dry garments and hot
milk-oh, heaven.
Well, he had worn damp clothes ami
eaten cold food-often frozen-for u
dozen years, although in his own pal
ace; there is ag an the irony of destiny.
And presently he began to speak,
and was looking ut his own picture
when there arose IA CHATTER Gefore the
house. Roxandra started to look out.
The good priest shrauk with terror as
he saw himself already in the mines of
Siberia for harboring an escaped Mill
istI and Prince Ukanin, meantime
dazel, picked up the portrait of his
wife. The tears rushed to his eyes.
He pressed it u his bosom. Yes, yes;
he remembered how grief had craZed
her when she lie armed of his arrest that
day; and how they had told him she
had thrown lie, child into the lake OF
Karka. Yes; a Il, yes"
Roxandra hal flown to the door,
trembling; she san there what, TO her
eyes, seemed a magnificent travelling
clrriAge-it was, in leel, a very ordi-
nary one-wlth three horses with fine
.trappings, and bells all covered with
mud, as indeed were the positions and
the robes Of the lady who sat therein.
Yesl no. Roxandra stood breathless
fell upon her
kness praying.
This lady was her mother.
She left the carriage, and waving
the good priest, who shlvered no
since his visitor proved to be q
and not the officers of the police
she said very gently:
~ think the Prince OkanIn is here,
1 am his wife-oh, yes, l am quite
these many years although"-shs
falterod, ''once i'll was different. 1
have toiled to obtain his pardon for ten
years. This" she held up a little sealed
paper -"is It," And very soon in the
little church of st. Isaac. between the
two m~alachita cnlumua bafnra tho