Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1893-01-05


the Jail.
He sped onward. running and walking
briskly alternately, till he came to q
place where a board fence was capped
by a narrow strip. He mounted it and
walked as far MS the fence extended,
perhaps a hundred yards, hoping by this
means to throw the dogs off the scent
for a few minutes. and thus gain a little
time. Then he jumped down and hur-
ried forward. A man passed and called
TO him. but he paid no attention to the
call, and the man stood looking after
him, doubtless suspccting that the girl
was a runaway slave.
At last the grateful sight of the river
met his gaze. Ii cheered him and
seemed to beckon him on to rest upon
its bosom, or, as an alternative with the
dreadful tragedy of the morning, to find
oblivion beneath its surface. Between
the river before him, and the Jail, the
dogs and the gibbet, for a time his feel
ings of hope and fear neutralized each
other and left his faculties free to act
with perfect GOODNESS.
He stood for a moment beneath a low
clump of trees ON the bank listening
and looking up and down the river. A
boat was passing, and he felt it necessary
to wait for il to go by. He lost five
minutes, but it seemed half an hour.
Then taking OF his dress and shoes and
bonnet he pnt the dress and the shoes in
the bonnet and tied the strings around
his neck, resting the bundle on his back.
Going down TO the margin. and again
listening IA moment to make sure he was
not observed. he waded out as far as he
could touch bottom, and then began to
swim.
As it was midsummer he had expected
60 find the water warm. His expecta-
lions We're realized to a reasonable de-
gree, ana he felt that he could remain
m it a long While without being chilled.
His plan was 20 drift down a consider
able distance. lie might be expected to
swim across as rapidly as he could, and
the current in this case would land
him perhaps a mile below the town.
Those who would follow him with dogs
would doubtless track him to the
river margin, then take the dogs across
and endeavor 20 pick up the scent some
distance bel w ON the other side. Mark
had weighed all these circumstances.
and determined TO drift down as far as
possible, land at the month of a creek if
he could find one, enter it and swim or
walk up il in the water, thus rendering
it diiiicult for the dogs to track him.
He WAN slowly till he reached fine
middle of the river; then, floating with
scarcely any motion % his hands and
feet. he permitted himself TO drift down
with the current. a f1yorite way with
him, when IA boy, OF testing in the
water. had been TO float ON his back.
Unmindful Of the wetting he would give
the clothes tied around his neck, liz
turned over and drifted with his arms
spread beside him, his eyes turned
directly to the sky.
1t may seem singular hat a man who
was being carried from so dreadful a
death should have thought of anything
else. But Mark did not want to think
OF it.. RE had never been unneryed ex-
cept after his sentence. with an almost
execution before him, and felt i'll
best to let his mind drift into other
channels. Then danger is not. aud was
not, especially with Mark. to be COM
pared with certain destruction. The
on the field of battle Is q differ
ent man from one who awaits the bull
OF a file of soldiers drawn up in line
to take his life deliberately. Mark was
a changed man from the moment he got
into the river, for he then felt that he
had n chance for his life.
In the position ON his back he could
look upward at the stars. There
was the great dome above him spangled
with myriads Of bright points aud
spanned by the milky way He had
been fond Of the stars, and in
to divert his mind picked IL
sofne Of his ~favorites and traced a few
consultations with which he was famil-
In this way he diverted his mind
until his nerves became quite steady. +,
His observations were suddenly !
checked by a sound. II was very faint.
but enough 10 freeze the marrow in his
bones. II was the distant bark of a dog. t.
He listened and presently could hear i
more. Evidently there was a pack. /
They drew nearer. Then they ceased :
or awhile. Perhaps they had come to +,
.he place where he had walked on the
Then the banks began again. /,
only slightly louder as they /
,ame, for Mark was floating rapidly
the point where he had entered the
aver. 4
He involuntarily turned over on his /
hest and struck ont Justify. The cur !
tent was swift: swimming would not !
add to his safety-it would only tax his :
strength and render him more liable to /;
-ecapture On the other shore. But swim /.
le must. With the terrible sound of
hose dogs in his ears he could not lie q
dly on the water and leave the current |
bear him onward. /
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