The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1891-10-01

1Or tney 1Ounu Cnag 70 t0uch shore tra4
impossible, and they were more wi. ling
to trust themselves to the violence Of
midlake than the sure destruction be-
low. But they had gone down too far
and the swift current was dragging
them steadily along toward the fatal
brink. They waved their lanterns
madly when they saw the lights
cleaning in the fort and again cried
and cried for help, but the air was
full OF the booming noises of the storm
and their voices fell far short of reach
ing the shore. Then the raft reached
the toughest piece of water they had
encountered yet; it heaved and
strained. and Is the great pillows
rolled under it its surface looked
almost as uneven as tho face of
the lake. Then, with a crash,
it parted almost in tho middle.
the end where the steering oars were
placed drifting of from the part con-
tanning the caboose, the boys and the
wild animals. The shanty was placed
in the middle of the joint. and the
brothers. fearing that the whole mass
would 20 to pieces, stood by the door
still waving their lanterns. The bear
was seized with the general terror, and
crept about from log to log, getting
farther away from the edge. He soon
smelled the two deer, but made no at
tempt to attack them, being evidently
too terrified to care for anything except
his own safety. Now the raft was di.
rectly opposite the reef where the wa
ter was toughest; it lurched and
swayed for minute or SO, then, in
some indescribable way, it seemed to
go all to pieces at once, each joint,
however, remaining intact. Two of
the joints adhered to the ono on which
the shanty stood. But the bear was
set adrift on a square of his own, and
the waves at every souse nearly COW
cred him. The two deer crept around
to where the boys were standing and
shuddered with dread.
Then the dark shore was suddenly
illuminated, there was loud report,
and dark object struck the raft near
where the shanty stood and went roll.
ing over it into the sea. The brothers
ventured from the door of the caboose
to see what had happened and found
stout rope lying across the joint next
to the one upon which they stood. The
truth dawned upon them; the cable had
been shot from a mortar in the fort,
and here was their deliver
ance. They at once took hold of
the heavy rope and made it fast to
the two outer corners of their little
raft, then swung their lantern. In few
seconds twenty pairs of stalwart
arms were pulling on the cable
and drawing it slowly foot by foot
in the teeth of the hurricane
toward the shore. The diminished
raft was dragged into leeward of the
reef and at last pulled upon the be ach.
In fifteen minutes more the boys would
have met their death below the falls.
The deer permitted themselves to be
secured by ropes and led ashore, and
they were afterward put in park near
by the garrison where they became
tame and docile. The brothers returned
home next day, but the rest of the raft
went over the falls and the bear with
it; his body was found afterward whirl.
ing around among the rocks below.
The method of sending the rope to the
raft was as follows: Several coils of
the rope were placed in a shell,
the rope itself passing out from hole
in the side, coil of about four hun
dred yards being placed near the gun;
the she'll was fred from one of the
heavy mortar, and at the first shot was
successful-Edmund Collins, in N. Y.
Independent.