Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-07-02


rInd1ess underbrush, alive with III
go. vas sitting He decided to make once moio
-. 49, hank Of the stream, in the hope that It's
character might by this time have cnanseu -
n AFFORD him an easier and more open paul.
a.. aside to his left, he presently saw the green
.,,r,, tighten before him. Blue sky ana eoiu0N
hight came low through the Thinning ''0'
4h.n CLEAN Of unrufhed water. He was he"4Ans
-, .a.a now. and because the underbrush was
. .h,c, about him he began to go cautiously.
All at once he felt his feet sinking; anu 'no
.cr.an Of thick bushes before him leaned away d.
!, bowed by a heavy gust. Desperately ne ciuecn-
- With both hands at the underground and sap
1ings on either side; but they all gave way "''n
.,m In a smother Of LEAKAGE and binding lash
=. hr.rches he sank downward-at first, as II
seemed, slowly, for he had time to THINK many
4ninxs while his heart was jumping In MS 'nroa'
Then shooting through the lighter bushy COM
,.n. :, h,s fall. and still clutching convusively
Il those upon which he had been able to lay h'S
xr.sp. he plunged feet first into dark water
rha water was deep, and cold. Barnes went
down straight, and clear under, with stransieo
gasp His feet struck, with some force upon d
+or,,ed Welding mass, from which he rose again
With spring. His head shot above the surface
shove the swirl OF foam, LEAKAGE. and debris; ana
..n,tterfns,y he gulped his lungs full Of air. But
before he could clear his eyes or his nostris' Or
recover his selfpossession, he was steathliy drag
god down again With a pang of horror he real
ICED that he was caught by the foot
" with his arms and came to the surface again
at once, rising beyond the shoulders But oy SO
much the more was he violently snatched back
again. strangling and desperate, before he had
time to empty his lungs and catch breath. Ihis
time the shock sobered him. flashing the full peril
Of the situation before his startled consciousness
with tremendous effort of will he stopped his
struggling, and contented himself with a gentle
1addling to keep upright. This time he came more
foam, and DEBRIS and turbulence of little waves,
ssethed about his lips and the sunlight danced con-
fusngly in his streaming eyes, but he gulped
fresh lungful before he again went down.
Padding warily now, he emerged again at once.
and, with arms outspread brought himself to
precarous equilibrium, his mouth just clearing the
surface SO long as he held his head well back.
Keeping very still, he let his bewisdered wits COM
pose themselves and the agitated surface settle to
quiet.
He was in Deep tranquil cove, hardly stirred
by an eddy. Some ten PAGES farther out from the
shore the main current swirled past sullenly if
weary from the turbulence of falls and rapids.
Across the current little space of sandbeach.
iutting out from the eafy shore, shone golden in
the sun. Up and down the stream, far as
his extremely restricted vision would suffer him
to see, nothing but thick overhanging branches
and the sullen current. Very cautiously he turned
his head-though to do SO brought the water over
his lips-and saw behind him just what he ex-
pected The high, almost perpendicular bank
SCARED by a cash of bright raw reddish earth
where the brink had slipped away beneath his
weight.
Just within reach of his hand lay, half sub
merged. the thick leafy top of fallen poplar
sapling its roots apparently still clinging to the
he laid
hope that it might prove solid enough to enable
him to haul himself out. But it came away in
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