The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-05-11
roar efrnsbinp waters,

was near her when the food struck the
house; he might be somewhere near her
now.
She raised her voice agzin, and called his
name with a desperation born Of fear and
love. A dark object was floating near her,
| tossing up and down on the resistless cur
rent. She could see that it was a man,
| clinging to mass of boards. The face was
| turned from her, but the head looked fa-
! miliar. She called again, and the man
| turned and looked at her.
SIS it you, Eloise?" he screamed; and
then she barely heard hi1n-''you, Eloise?
| Thank God!''
She breathed sigh of relief She felt
safe now-safe even on the bosom of this
| rushing ocean of fierce waters and crashing
debris-if be were near
| She saw that he was trying to get to her,
| but could not; that he dared not loosen his
| hold on the boards and trust himself one
| instant in that mighty current. She could
| see his face, white and agonized, turned to
| her-always turned to her. Something had
| struck him and cut cash in his head, and
! the blood was trickIing down his pallid
| cheek. She could see it from where she
| chung In the branches of the elm tree.
| She did not knew that one beautiful,
white arm was bare to the shoulder and
! bleeding from a cruel blow she had re-
| ceived-she did not realize the pain in her
| head where the tree had struck her-such
| things were trivial now. Life was the only
| thing to be thought of-life-and death-if
death should come.
| A house came reeIing down and struck
| the mass of boards to which Richard chung.
The shock loosened his hold and tossed
70, in Tho nj
dercurrent sucked him in and he sank from
sight. The next moment his white face
showed above the water Such horror and
despair Eloise had never seen as she saw
there One last appealing look at her, one
cry from his white lips, and he was gone
again. Eloise prayed-prayed as she had
never dreamed of praying before; crying
aloud for help and pity in this time of need.
Richard came to the surface again-near
her this time Could she reach him? Only
little nearar-he was half unconscious
and could not help himself. She leaned far
out over the dark torrent, holding to the
tree firmly with one arm, and touched him
with her hand-caught him by his collar
and held his head above the water as they
were borne along. She called to him wild
w. He heard and understood, made one
great effort to seize the branches of the
tree, and at last with an almost superhu
man strength drew himself up into the
sheItering arms of the old elm.
There he clung with what frail strength
was left him; but he was too weak for
words. 1t was no time for speech. The
scene was more terrible than any of the
imaginings OF Dante. Great masses of
timbers, that ten minutes before had been
houses and homes, came rushing by with
shrieking women clinging to them, and
little children borne along upon them.
Strong men were tossing like egg shells on
the waters, and horses and cattle were
pIunging madly for life among the ruins of
great barns that came crashing by. Now
and then some wild shrek or unearthly
moan would mean the death cry of human
being going down to eternal sleep under
the roaring waters.
A great mass of timbers came tearing
along down the highway of death; with
one blow it sent the elm tree spinning far
ahead on the waters. Eloise and Richard
were hurled into the air and fell together,
clinging to whatever they could find-a
door, fenCe-anything to keep afoat. At
last they climbed TO the ridge pole of
house and chung there. All night they
floated, bruised and cut by heavy objects
striking them, almost losing their hold
many times, but never quite-tossing,
plunging, flying with speed that was ter
riblc
In the first gray dawn of morning they
were rescued Friendly hands drew them
from their periIous position and bore them
to a place of safety. There they lay for
days unconscious. The shock had been too
great-human endurance had been too
sorely tried.
The physicians who dressed their wounds
and the nurses who cared for them shook
their heads gravely over the young stran-
gers given so mercifully into their hands.
Richard woke to consciousness first, but
lay with closed eyes, resting and trying to
think why he was there and what had hap
pened.
All at once he heard n voice be knew and
loved. 1t was Eloise, delirious with fever.
Richard" she was saying, II love you
now, 1 loved you all the time but did not
know it. Richard, did the horrible waters
drown you? O, my darling.'
He opened his eyes and looked across the
room toward the weak voice dying away
into silence What he saw was EIoise lying
on the snowy cot with closed eyes and
flushed cheeks-Eloise pitifully thin and
changed, but Eloise still, despite the streaks
of silver in her dark hair, and the lines of
pain on her white brow, left there by the
agony of that fatal night.
Richard, looking at her thus, loved her
all the better for these marks of sorrow;
they made her tenfold dearer to him; their
mutual distress had welded together their
souls forever.
1t was a very quiet, very oriSf ceremony
that made them man and wife. 1t was no
time for merry making and rejoicing.
Death and poverty were everywhere. Her
father was among the lost; the servants
were missing; many of her friends were
gone from human sight forever. Every
dollar of her fathers wealth had been
swept away. She was penniless. The beau
tiful home was entirely destroyed Nothing
that had been hers remained.
Nothing she had loved in the old days
was left her. Nothing2 Yes, thank God,
her husband-her good. brave Richard. |
They had gone together through that |
dreadful nj yht, their paths hencefoTth |
through life lay side by side
Etc, e was a changed woman. What |
had been wrong in her became good. What |
had been vain and foolish became beautiful !
and pure. Her whole nature was changed |
her heart onpobled and uphfted, made |
sweet and womcnly and good.
It is no wonder that her husband, tender |
ly sUroking the dark hair with It's streaks of |
silver, smiles and is thankful for her, re-
joicing in her Is the giis OF the food, which |
desolated SO many kearts-glad and proud !
that she is in his home and at bis Preside.
Harriet Frances Crock in The New York /
Ledger.
Household Hints.