St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1898-12-24

the bushes. He looked ut the stretched
buffalo skin with affection. thinking
| what good turn it was doing him. All
day he lay concealed in the vicinity,
not mouthful Of food entering his lips.
With the gathering darkness he was
soon afioat, bound for "down-river" and
the old Missouri home.
He could scarcely tell the number OF
Gays after awhile; he did not care to
keep account. All he desired was to
| escape those who were doubtless pur-
suing him. Wandering Indians gave
him food when he dare seek it. He
held his breath when he passed the
forts and settlements on the river
banks in the night. He even fancied
that the beatings of his heart could
be heard on the shore.
"If Elviry knowed how 1t war;" he
said to himself. "she might be a-prayin'
for me, as she uster."
The thought gave him renewed cour-
age. He bent to the paddle with .
giants strength. and the bull-boat went
along faster than the current, yet could
not keep pace with his impatience.
At length he began to chuckle grim
" with satisfaction. Hour by hour he
felt that he was nearing home. In
dian wigwams no longer dotted the
plains. Dark objects loomed up on the
hills, which he knew to be school
houses or churches. Steamboats, passed
more frequently, and he was obliged
to use great caution in avoiding them.
although few ever remained out in the
river at night. Still he chuckled. for
every hour lessened the danger. They
would never look for him SO far down
the river. surely-they would think he
had fed toward the interior.
Tomorrow night" he assured him.
self. "I'll leave the river and tramp
for it." >
His face frightened; the sky. the
river, the plain took up new express
sion of hopefulness and the remainder
Of the night his paddles dipped un-
ceasingly.
"P'r'haps she amt quite so bad of
as the doctor thinks, arter all. an
kin take care of her now; an I'd just
work for her." He dropped the paddles
moment as pleased smile crept over
his bronzed face.
"Ah! the children has growed like
sixty, Of course"
The heavens seemed to don an an
swering smile, the east bursting into
rosy glow, while the distant hills
and rolling prairies assumed new and
delicate tints of beautiful summer life.
'It amt the wurst sort o. world, after
all-it can't be SO bad az all that" he
went on, disconnectedly.
Yet all around him the river rushed
in discolored. rapid food. The "June
rise" was sweeping down from the
northern mountains; the unsightly
sandbars lay concealed beneath the
dashing waves; logs, trees, debris of
various kinds, went whirling past.
Once the carcass OF buffalo-shot
needlessly by some passenger on an
up-river boat, doubtless-bore down
against him, and he was obliged to
push it away with his paddle.
"How they must "a growed!" he re-
peated to himself, cheerily. 1t seemed
as though he had been away a century.
His head dropped as a succession If
homely incidents passed through his
quickened brain.
A village. with its white-spired
church, rose from the nearer bank.
The boat, carried around an abrupt
bend and suddenly detected from its
course by the strong eddy. headed di-
rectly for that shore. The wary voy-
ager. yielding for one instant to sud-
den sense of security and repose, sat
with dropping face and made no re-
sistance.
There was a sudden shock. The lit
tie boat bumped against a snag; and
scme one cried out from the guards
of a steamboat at that moment pre-
pairing to push out into the stream.
The startled soldier lifted his head.
and sat as though petrified. A detach-
ment of United States troops met his
bewildered gaze.
Suddenly he seized the paddle with
frantic haste. Would Elviry ever know
how he had tried?
An officer was standing on the lower
deck
"a deserter, by heaven!" he ex-
claimed to the sergeant>by his side.
Then, in stentorian voice. he COM
manded:
"Pull in shore. if you value your life."
But the man in the boat paid no At
tention. He began to push out with
rapid, energetic strokes. How clumsy
the craft seemed to him then-how
slowly the distance widened between
him and the dreaded foe!
Cold beads of perspiratiop glistened
on his face. The moraing sunshine.
flooding the river with golden beams.
showed clearly his tense. agonizcd ex-
preston with startling vividness.
If you could only reach the other
side! Then Elviry and the children
HALT. you fool!"
Zack Brayton pulled away with the
unreasoning, desperate energy of de-
spair.
There was hurried order. the tramp
of feet on deck. followed by fiery
fash and the sharp crack OF musketry.
The deserter rose to his full height in
the topplingcanoe. His hands clutched
the air, and then his stalwart form sank
into the rushing. turbid waves of the
Missouri.
Only the little boat, aimless and un-
guided, drifted on toward .down river
and Elviry.-N. 7. New&