The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1893-04-28

TOO late-too late!
For one moment he held his own
against the current, advancing not an
inch, notwithstanding his desperate
strokes, and then suddenly, quicker than
eye could follow or pen could describe,
he vas seized in the grasp of a giant
hand, resistless in its might, and whirled
away like a shaft from the bow.
Down! down! he went, along the speed
ing waters, smooth as glass, into the vor-
tex of the whirlpool, where they writhed
and Missed and Numbered on the jagged
rocks. A single cry escaped him-a cry
that rolled from shore to shore and died
in quavering echoes high among the
mountain gorges. Then he ceased to
struggle, and his head fell Imply back as
the mist closed round his sinking form.
May | never feel again the agony of i'm
potent helplessness l endured that mo
ment! My friend, the schoolmate of my
boyhood, the beloved companion of my
later years, rushing to a horrible death
before my eyes and l unable to stretch
out a helping hand. Was there no escape
ne help?
All, yes, brave John! noble heart of oak!
As I sit here calmly writing in my study,
how l long to grasp again that sturdy
hand that may meet mine no more!
He had seen the colonel's peril as l
gave my warning cry, and in the mo-
ment of my confusion had time to grasp
the situation and discern with unerring
judgment the only possible mode Of res
cue. A man born and bred to the sud-
den dangers of the wilderness acts with
almost instructive precision, while others
stand helplessly by. And so, even as |
watched with anguished heart the strug-
giles of my friend, he had sped from my
side, casting away his gun as he went.
He reached the brink of the rapids and
paused. One hasty glance at the ~colonel's
body, borne on the crest of the speeding
current-one swift scrutiny of the furious
waters that seethed and boiled before
him-and then he gathered himself like
a panther about to spring.
I watched him, spellbound, fascinated
by the noble daring of the deed he con
templated. Full Is feet from the shore
in midstream rose a large rock of rugged
granite, against which the angry waters
roared in impotent fury, and toward this
grim buttress the %colonels helpless body
was hurrying head foremost. He must
reach that rock before the drowning mar
or all was lost.
A seconds pause, during which these
objects flashed before me like a vision,
and then John made the effort. Like a
panther he had crouched, like a panther
he sprung, and as his lean body shot out
over the waters my prayers went with
him. Would he make it? Yes, thank
God! He cleared the rapids and gained
a foothold on the slippery rock, clutch
ing it with both hands as he landed.
There was not an instants pause.
With the agility of a cat he swung round
the crag just as my friend shot toward
him. saw him make a desperate clutch
saw a brief struggle in the mist and
turmoil-and the next 1 was aware a
limp form lay upon the rock beside him.
How human strength could overcome
the momentum of that furious eddy is
more than l can realize, but John was
more han human-he was a man of
iron.
Then I bestirred myself, and under the
Indians calm directions we got the colo
nel's unconscious form ashore by means
of ropes, which we always carried with
is. John followed next, clinging to the
cord I had attached to a point of rock.
The noble fellow made light of his brave
deed and seemed only anxious to escape
any tokens Of gratitude.
Well, we bore the colonel into camp,
where he lay Frustrated for many days.
But he recovered in time and is now
well and prosperous. And, be sure, his
prosperity has benefited the savior Of
his life.
And John? | have never seen the
brave fellow since and probably never
shall again. But of this I am certain
in one corner of my heart I shall always
hold his memory greene. G. Archer
in Cincinnati Post.