The Coconino weekly sun., 1896-06-04

mind rushcs when he gets so near the | border!
 "I shouted for help, in the hope of attracting some one, but it only eX- haustcd me, and my struggles caused | me to sink faster.
 "In extreme agony of mind, threw | myself on my face-I had not sunk be- low my waist--and clawed the bank in | a frantic endcavor to draw myself out. My fingers slipped through the soft mud and touched some hard, smooth substance, buried about three inches below. the surface.
 q struggled to grasp it, but it was too large for my fingers to grip. Itwas tree that had probably grounded on the flat long ago. and the tides had gradually drifted the sand over it. "When one is in a position of great | bodily t.anger, events succeed one an- other much more rapidly than they can be afterward told. The telling of this has taken great deal longer time than its actual occurrence. A few min utcs only had passed since started to- ward the dyke.
 .'The sound of the tide now rushing over the lower part of the flats called me to sense of new danger.
 Even if I was able to keep from sink ing for little while, the red water would soon rise over the place of my imprisonment and complete what the quicksands had so surely begun.
 Drowning is said to be the easiest of deaths,' thought l, though any kind was preferable to being smothered in oozy quiclisand.
 "In the water, too, could at least struggle-fght for life. But in that narrow, clinging grave, every limit bound as with elastic cords, allowing freedom only to the extent of simply maddcning one, caught like a miserable fly in a spiders web, would not even have the satisfaction of struggling.
 "The feeling of fear that first pos, sessed ne gradually left, or maybo numbed my senses, and in its place came strange fancics, such as ona dreams when lying half awake.
 "Thc sun seemed beating its piercing rays into my brain. The hoarse cry of c raven far up in the sky came faintly to me. pictured him and his mate, dark spec!ts showing against background of white clouds, foating-foating and watching.
 Il wondered if the peck of a ravens beak on ones head would hurt much-if they were up there waiting for me to die. Then remembered that befo,e l was dead would be buried.
 'I smiled grimly at the thought O. cheating them. But if they came be. fore? Instinctively felt for my knife. could keep them off with it. My knife! Like . flash came the thought that it would be means of rescue.
 "The cloud of fancies seemed to lift from my brain. With trembling fin gers, hurHicdly drew it out and opened it. It vas the kind known among school. boys as 'toadstabber, stout and strong.
 Hopefully, with one hand, I felt for the tree; but had sunk so far in the mud that it was now beyond my reach. A groan burst through my clenched teeth, as my last hope fled.
 Tt seemed as if must give up. But life is sweet-so sweet to one about to lose it. One more effort, then-a re- quiem chanted by the waves and flung landward by the winds.
 Making violent struggle, thrust my hand that held the knife as far for ward as could and struck down with all my strength.
 "The tree must have been lying obliquely along the sides of the gully, so that my left hand had not been able to reach it; but my right, in which was the knife, had found it. The blade sank into the soft, half-decayed wood. Slip ping my hand down as closely to the tree as possible, so as not to pull the knife out, and placing my left hand over my right, to give myself greater pur- chase. pulled. Slowly, almost impcr- ceptibly, the dreadful sucking power was lessened-was stopped! Slowly | my arms bent-I was gaining! Wrench ing the knife out, drove it in farther up the trunk, repeating this again and again, for l was able to draw myself only a few inches at a time, until I finally lay my length over the tree saved!
 q had thrown the gun high up on the flat when I first found that was fast. Recovering it now, gained the dyke, to fall weak and trembling on the grass. I lay there until the tide had risen to the dyke. Then washing the mud out of my clothes I spread them in the sun to dry. When l had finished it was flood tide, the water was still and | smooth as mirror, except where here and there mounds of amber-colored | foam or a piece of driftwood broke the surface
 q shuddered as my eyes, drawn by a strange fascination, sought out the spot, now covered by many feet of water, where q short time before had Eo narrowly escaped terrible death.
 "When reached my boarding house, tired and hungry, the harvest moon was shining brightly. I thought with a .h ,f ho ,D1l ,,,I.xo I