The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1909-05-19
The Day the River Rose.
BY Margaret Whitney.

THAT is just what I was thinking
Of" said Joe. This is a good day
for fishing, and we can stay several
hours, for supper will be late because
father and mother will not be home
early"
The boys had been alone all day,
for their father had some business to
attend to in the city about five miles
away and their mother had gone with
him. The boys had nearly finished
the field they were blowing, and their
father had told them that they need
not try to do anything else until he
could help them the next day.
Fred was past sixteen and Joe was
about two years younger. They were
strong, active, wide-awake boys, and
could look out for themselves on most
. occasions. Their home was pleasant;
they had games and books for their
leisure time and a father and mother
who sympathized with them in their
plans and were training them to be
useful, happy men.
As there were no girls in the fam
lily the boys had been taught to work
in the house as we'll as in the field,
and when their mother was gone for
a day now and then they could very
easily get their own dinner. This Is
what they had done to-day, but their
mother would be home to get the
supper, so they had nothing to do
after the corn was finished but to fish
or do anything they liked.
When the horses were unhitched
and put in the barn the boys looked
up their poles and lines and started
for the river. The banks Of the river
were grown up with trees covered
with wild grape vines in places, and
between the trees the river could be
seen sparkling in the sunlight. The
river was quite wide, and while it
spread out over fiat land, yet there
were places where it was ten Of
twelve feet deep.
Both boys could swim like fish, sc
their parents never felt any alarm
when they went to the river, and they
had gone fishing by themselves for
years. They went down where their
boat was tied, but Fred said he was
going to have a swim before he began
to fish. Joe took the boat and pad
died up stream for a little distance
to a sheltered place rather out of the
current of the river and then threw
out his line. He had no luck at first,
but soon the fish began to bite, and
he caught several fine ones. He sud-
denly noticed that the water was
very muddy and was rising rapidly.
He found at the same time that he
was being borne down stream by a
strong current, while branches Of
trees, rails and an occasional log
went by.
Joe knew what this meant, for sew
eral times since they had lived along
this river there had been heavy rains
farther up the water course, and the
river had n time risen ten feet in a
few hours. 1t had gone rushing and
tearing along with a muddy, swollen
stream, while along its lower course
there had been no rain. After several
attempts to use the oars he found
that they we're useless, for he was
borne along with the rapid current,
and before he was aware he had
passed the place where Fred had been
bathing.
Fred was on the bank dressing,
and saw Joe go by. Joe did not see
him, for he was occupied in trying
to keep the boat steady. He knew
there was danger of the boat running
against a log or Of a log humping
into the boat and upsetting it. He
was powerless to help himself, and
hoped that the boat might be driven
into some bend in the river where the
current was not so swift, and then
he could use the bars to reach the
shore.
When Fred saw Joe float past him
he called to him, to let him know that
he would help him, but Joe had been
too much occupied in keeping the
boat straight, and did not hear him.
Fred hardly knew what to do, but
he thought a rope would be a good
thing to have, so he ran to the barn
as fast as he could to get a long
heavy rope which they used for vari-
Gus purposes, and which was lying
on the floor. Then, before jumping
on the horse, which he planned to
ride along the road to a place where
it ran parallel with the river, he
wrote a short note to his father and
mother, telling where he had gone,
and put it where they would find it
as soon as they got home. Then
with coil of rope on his arm he
mounted the horse and galloped
down the road.
All this took some time, and his
! great fear was that Joe might be up
set in the river or that he might not
! reach the place where the road met
the river before Joe went by. He
knew the boat was large and fiat, and
not easily upset, but Joe might get
excited and turn it over accidentally.
The place Fred wanted to reach was
several miles down stream, but as
the river made three or four turns
the road was more direct, and he
hoped to get there in time.
All this time Joe was being swept
along with the swollen current. He
knew he would pass houses that were
| close to the river, but doubted if he
could make the occupants hear him
If he called for help. He also remem-