Smyrna times., 1893-06-21
GAVE HIS LIFE FOR Her.
BY PAUL CARSON.

motion of any sort, it had left no rec
rd on his face We called him "the
raven image" and we hated him |
With perfect hatred.
1t was in the days when Wisconsin !
vas "Out West" before the massive |
,ineries had been cut from half the |
state; and the domain over which this |
with dispOtic power was
| big saw mill on the Upper Mississ-
ppi. MIR. Bentley was superintendent |
If the mill and all the work connected |
herewith. We felt aggravated at his
illing the position, because, when Mr.. !
seymour, our former superintendent,
was killed, we expected that big Ben
Davis, whom everybody liked, and
who had been with the company sew
eral years, would have been promoted
10 the vacant place. Instead the COM
Dany, composed of Eastern capitalists,
sent out David Bentley TO take the
lead mans place.
We were prepared to dislike him as
an interloper, any way, but before he
had been with us a month we detested
him for his own sake. He might have
been one of the logs that lay inside the
boom for all the human feelings he
seemed to possess. His will was law,
and from his decision there was no ap-
peal. The mill was so far away from
its owners that they had a very haZy
idea as TO the character of their work
men, and ere forced to trust almost
implicitly to their superintendent Mr..
Bentley was devoted to the interests
of the business, aud that having been
fully demonstrated, the company con
cerned itself very little as to the char
acter Of their faithful servants
He lost no opportunity of impressing
upon US the fact that we were ma.
chimes, and every man felt that could
"a mechanical appliance be found to
take his place, Mr.. Bentley would wei
come it as a thing that would obey his
orders withOutquestiOn. But mechan-
ical appliances were less common
then than now, and he was obliged to
make use of men to do the neces-
sary work.
He associated with nobody, confided
in nobody, and we had no idea that he
was married man. until one day he
told the proprietor Of the one hotel in
tue lGinitl TOW u illdt MS WilC duu
daughter were coming from Maine,
and would Want his best room.
They came-a tall, slender woman,
with face Ike ii saints, and man
ner that charmed every one to whom
she spoke, aud little year-Old girl =,
with big violet eyes and long yellow
curls, whom they called Florence
Every Que liked Mrs Bentley from
the first, and when she and Florence,
came down to the mill one afternoon,
every man who saw Il em said or
thought, ''W that on earth did she
marry him for?" 1t was near six
O'Clock. and some of us watched them
when they came out of the Office The
little girl tlut:,d along by her father,
talking to him "a ceaseless stream of
prattle. We were amazed at the
change in the man the lead -colored
eyes glowed with light, the face
beemed with affection, as he looked
at his daughter.
Just then came up to speak TO him
about the last logs that were to be
sawed that night. 1t was as if a mar
Ole mask had heen dIOpprd over his
face, so suddenly did he change. The
light went out Of his eyes, the smile
fell from the lips, and the curt, cold
tone in which he answered me bore no
resemblance to that in which he re.
piled to his child ten seconds before
| Florence look at him in wonder as they
left the mill.
well" said Ben Davis, did you
ever see anything like that?" l could
have sworn the man had no heart
and yet he loves that child"
The little girl was often at the mil
after that, and became great favOritt
with the men. She had her mother
winning manners, and it was curious Il
note the influence she exerted owe
her father; the craven image came t.
life in her presence only; but for he
we should have thought him scarcel!
human, and still we wondered VIII,
his wife married him She brought n,
light to his eye, no smile to his lips
ia fact, she rarely spoke to him, ant
he seldom looked al the calm, beauti
full woman whom his idol called Imam
ma"
1t was the first week in June
There had been heavy rains, and tn
river was very high; the boom wa
full of logs, and we expected ever
hour that it would break. Extra mel
were put on at night to watch it, an
to catch what logs they could beloN
the dam if it should break. The mil
was running night and day, saving a
fast as possible to save the logs, an
every available team was presse
into service to haul the lumber fa
enough from the water, that it, toe
would not be carried away.
The river rose hourly, but the pro,
pect that the boom would surely breal
and hundreds of logs be carried away
did not seem to worry Mr.. Bentley i
the least. He was just as cool as eve
gave his orders in the same curt col
voice, and watched the rising wate
with the same expressiOnless face.
He stood looking out of an ope
door on the north side of the mill.
sharp cry rang through the building
rising above the roar of the dam an
the Shrek of the saws. We turned |
see Mr.. Bentley spring through th
doorway, clear the little space betwee
it and the boom, and leap out on I'll
mass of logs.
Looking beyond him, we saw whi
had caused that terrible cry. Lift
} Florence was walking across the lol
toward the mill. They were wedge
so tightly near the shore, where 81
had evidently stepped upon them, thi
she had a comparatively firm foOthol
: But every step, Us she approached Il
mill, grew more and more insecur
We could see the logs slip from und,
4 her fathers feet as he flew toward he
and just as he reached her, with a lou
report the boom snapped, and instant
the logs began moving toward the daI
We stood horrOr-stricken, powerle
1 to aid them. Apparently understan
r ing his peril, Mr.. Bentley sat dow
+, astride the log upon which he stoO
8 holding the child in his arms, and ia
: ing death with that same granite fac
' us there no way to save them
! / asked.
No one answered me. Faster al
! faster moved the logs already Il
/ first ones out were trembling over Il
dam. Suddenly Ben Davis shoute
"Quick Maybe / can save theI
Run plank out the window over d
dam !"
We caught bis idea instantly. The
I was a small window in the west side
% the mill, only few feet from the ca
end OF the dam. We hastily pushed
long, heavy plank out OF 1t, and BE
who was powerful man, ran out a
l. tied rope to the end, letting it ha