Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-02-07
CHAPTER III.
The Bow.

The river toward which Rachel headed
one of the mouths of the Umtavuna, wa
! much further Off than it looked It was
| indeed. not less than mile and a hal
| away. She had said that she feared moth
| ing. and II was true. for extraordinary
courage was one of this child's charac
| terfstics. She could scarcely ever remem
Der having felt afraid for herself, excep,
sometimes OF her father when he grew
angry-or was it mad that he srew-and
ragged at her. threatening her with pun
ishment in another world In reward TO,
her childish sins. Even then the sensat ion
did not last long. because she could not
believe in that punishment which he SO
wildly imagined. So it came about that
now she had no fear when there was SO
much cause.
For this place was lonely: not a living
creature could be seen. Moreover. a
dreadful hush brooded on the face of
earth, and in the sky above: only far
away over the mountains the lightning
fiickered necessarily. as though a mon
ster in the skies were licking their preci-
pieces and pinnacles with a thousand
tongues OF fire. Nothing stirred. not even
an insect: every creature that drew
breath had hidden Itself away until the
coming terror was overpast
The atmosphere was full OF electricity
struggling to be free. Although she knew
not what it was. Rachel felt it In her
blood and brain. In some strange way
il affected her mind. opening windows
there through which the eyes OF her sou!
looked out She became aware of some
new influence drawing near to her life;
Of a sudden her budding wOmanhoOd
burst into flower in her breast, shone on
by an unseen sun: she was no more a
child. Her being quickened and acknowi-
edged the kinship of all things that are.
That brooding. flame-threaded sky-she
was part of il; the earth she trod. it
was a part of her: the mind that caused
the stars to roll and her to live dwelt in
her bosom. and like a babe she nestled
within the arm of its almighty will.
Now, as in dream. Rachel descended
the steep. rock-strewn banks OF the dry
branch of the river bed. vending her way
between the boulders and noting that rot
ten weeds and peeled brushwood rested
against the stems of the mimosa thorns
which grew there, tokens which told her
that in times of food the water flowed.
Well. there was little enough of 1t now,
only a pool or two TO form mirror for
the lightning. In front Of her lay the is
land where grew the cape gooseberries. or
winter cherries. as they are sometimes
called which she came to seek 1t was a
low piece of ground quarter of a mile
long. perhaps, but in the center of ii were
some great rocks and growing among the
rocks trees, one OF them higher than the
rest. Beyond II ran the true river. even
now at the end of the dry season, three |
or four hundred yards in breadth. though |
SO shallow that 1t could be forded by an |
ox-drawn wagon.
1t was raining on the mountains yonder |
raining in torrents poured from those |
Inky clouds. as 1t had done of and on |
for the past twent y-four hours. and above |
their fre-laced bosom fioated glorious
colored masses OF misty vapor. enfiamed |
In thousand hues by the arrows of the |
sinking sun. Above her however. there |
was no sun. nothing but the curtain Of |
cloud. which grew gradually from gray
10 black and minute by minute sank
nearer to the EARTH
(To be continued tomorrow)
Thirty nine Japanese banks SUSPENDED