The Florida agriculturist., 1907-06-26
A WILFUI GIRL.
By Ida Shepler.

"a W1lful, DARING girl. L learned my
lesson after while, and the Incl
dent [ tell you of helped me learn it.
Little river, bankless stream, mar
row and black in summer, vast, en-
croaching mass Of water in the rainy
seasons, was years ago forced into
deep ditch by the dredging machines,
handing over the land it once ruined,
to the making Of fruit and grain fields,
and the possession Of handsome
homes. But still, though it's waters
may no more do harm, they envelop
me sometimes in dreams, and [ awake
crying for help.
[ was a girl of about 10, and my
brother Jamie was two years younger,
but years wiser than I, as I can now
see. Despite that Jamie was thought
full, careful and given to listening to
good advice from older people, I, be-
cause Of being older, often led him
into trouble against his will. We
lived out on farm four miles beyond
a town where at that time I was at
tending school. It was noted sem
mary, with boarding houses on it's
grounds, where we country pupils
rented rooms and did Our own cook
ing.
Friday evening usually saw a great
exodus of country bound, to come
back again Sabbath afternoon or
Monday morning, bringing supplies
to tide us over the school week. My
rule, invariably, was to get back IN
time to attend night services with my
particular set of school friends
It was in April that a rainy spell
set in, outdoing the rainy spells Of
many a past year in that country.
Friday evening Of the week it began to
rain and Jamie came for me IN light
buggy. Il may get you home safe in
this. but I'll not get you back safe IN
it." he remarked in his grave way.
EWe1l, Master James, I'm coming
back to school Sunday evening If l
have to walk back I flung back in
my positive way.
'Have to learn to swim, then, be-
tween this and that time if you come
that way" Jamie replied.
At the edge of the town we crossed
the high bridge of that famed water
way of mans handiwork, the Wabash
and Erie canal From this bridge
high graded road went straight to an
other bridge that spanned Little river.
This bridge, stretching for long
wavs on each side the original bed
to trv to cover the river when it
p1ayed at being Big river, was
crude, o1d-fashioned affair, topless,
and with frail railing at its sides.
From somewhere in the hills be-
yond the town came a creek which
creDt through the town, went under
the canal, to empty into the river at
one side of the bridge. The road had
been graded high, partly because OF
the creeks inclination to go over 1T
with every rain AS we drove, Jamie
pointed out how very close to the top
of the road the creek was running.
"Tt is Little river backing its waters
I'D into it that is going to cover this
road before morning" he explained.
'And Just look" motioning to the
trees, standing out Of the flooded area
beyond the sides of the river, 81
heard man say over in town that
not for 80 years had the water come
I'D to those marks on some of those
trees, but if it didn't get there and
over this time he would miss a good
guess"
High water did not appall me. Yet,
as the old buggy ratified across the
loosening boards Of the bridge and 7
caught the rush of the yellow water
below, 7 remembered something 7 had
heard an Indian woman who lived
on the hill beyond the bridge say
that Little river always buried its
drowned peonle. Never was one ever