The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1905-04-04
THE FLOOD TI0E.


through. For she was a London girl.
and this was her first glimpse cf tie
sea After much deii1era.ion and stusy
Of time tables ald illustrated gud.
books which she had found pien iia.g
at her disposal at the rooms OF lac
Polytechnio, She had decided upon
little place on the Norfolk coast @
place not much frequented as yci.
though boldly advertised as "conins
She had never met anyone WHO hal
been there. ard had the mind 10 fornr
her own Independent Judgment And
hers was not a mind to which a.eac
tions commonly accepted as popular
could appeal. She was a gentle. dreamy
creature, whom circumstances had cass
upon the world in which she was nm.
htted to strive. But though gentle. shs
was not weak her mouth had firm.
decided curve, and in the great house
whe' she endured that curious form So
martytdom called "liying-inr the lcrg.
arm line seldom left her lips. For this
reason she was not a favorite, though
some Of her worst detractors had prov.
ed her Kindness of heart. She h1d
found the sea. on the whole, disapDom-
ing. Its vast loneliness oppressed one
whose heaviest cross was her own pe.
culiar isolation from aor kind.
In 1t she found TO companion hip.
but rather a sense OF shrinking and
fear It's "reminiscences aad power
haunted her, in tn; night It's dull boom
lJep. her wide-eyed upon her pillow.
There were very few visitors left az
CHAMPION Cove ia the last week OF Sep
tember. Except for handful Of child
rem who regularly played IN the beach
morning and afternoon, the little shcp
girl had it mostly 10 herself The rest
had done her good, and though she lid
not know it, her face looked very sweet
under the trim Of her cheap sun hat.
Yes, il was quite a wlnsome face Her
book, which she had taken from the
village library, had interested her thor.
oughly for nearly two hours: when she
shut it at last she was surprised to SEE
that a change seemed to have come
over the spirit of the place.
The sun. which had been 50 bright
when she sat down, had gone; in its
place a thick, fine sea-fog seemed to
have been unrolled from some systerl-
Gus background. Across che fat, wet
sands came the boom Of the waves, and
their foamy outline could jast be seen.
She rose in no way alarmed. interested
in what was phenomenon to her. And
just then she heard the voices of the
children. and turning her eyes in The
opposite direction. saw the red skirt OF
the little girl making welcome lii CT
color among the prevailing gray. As
she walked towards them she was SUR
prised to see that they seemed TO be
quite alone. playing unconcernedl'
among their numerous sand castles.
and taking no heed to the fog. For
there was neither cold nor rain with ii;
It had stolen in very softly, almost as
# f. sought something stealthly to
hide.
Fherc were three little ones, a chu5-
by girl of 9. and her two brothers
younger, the baby a dear fat mite.
making picture with his clothes bun
died about Him. and his bare legs pad
ding contentedly On the wet sand.
isn't it time you were going homo.
dears?" she said pleasantly, If ittle
tlmidly; don't you see how thick it
has grown2"
Mana is coming back" said the lit
tie girl "she only went up to the vii
lage to buy herself a paper"
Ursula nodded, but fingered, deter.
mined that she would not leave them
until the nurse returned. And glancing
round, she saw something in the oppo.
site direction quite away from the sta
which gave her little start. It was
the gleam of water. and she realized
/ with feeling of sudden sick horror
that they mus, be on the sandbanI, and
perhaps were already quite cut on. She
had often watched the rapid flow Of the
incoming tide just here. and the quick
engulfng Of the sandbank with the big
rock In the furh her end, which was al
most, but not quite. covered at high
water. And they were at least 500
yards from the dry bents, which the
tide could not reach. She said nothing
to the children, but crossed the firm
hard bank OF sand, and took her bear
ings. And sure enough the tide was
around them. an encircling band or
every side. 1t was already too broad to
leap. She pulled off her shoes and
stockings and waded in. But the bank
sloped quickly. and in a moment sh,
was almost beyond her depth. Her face
Whitened. and she looked anxlousls
around for a moment not as ye ser
lousy alarmed, because the purse sure
ly must hasten back quickly, and w0ult
undoubtedly airing relief She sail
nothing TO the children; in fact, She
went close to taem again. and began t.
play with app.vent uneoncern. prom
Using 70 show tgnm a quite new kind o
| cqztle never before seen uDou IA,