Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1912-03-14

"They weren't there"
"Did you search for them"
Certainly"
"But they can't have been drowned"
she exclaimed piteously.
''Of course not" he began reassur-
ingly. "Kirkby Is veteran Of these
mountains and"
"But do you know him." queried the
girl in great surprise.
'T did once" said the man, flushing
darkly at his admission. II haven't
seen him for five years."
So that was the measure Of his iso-
lation, thought the woman, keen for
the slightest evidence as to her COM
panion's history, Of which, by the way.
he meant to tell her nothing.
"Well% she asked, breaking the
pause.
"Kirkby would certainly see the
cloud burst coming and he would take
the people with him in the camp up on
the hogback near 1t. 1t Is far above
the flood line; they would be quite safe
there"
"And did you look for them there"
81 did. The trail had been washed
out, but scrambled up and found un-
disputed evidence that my surmise
was correct. / haven't doubt that
all who were in the camp were saved"
"Thank God for that" said the girl,
greatly relieved and comforted by his
reassuring words. "And Robert Matt
land and the rest on the mountain,
what do you think Of them?"
II am sure that they must have
escaped, too. I don't think any Of
them have suffered more than thor
ough drenching in the downpour and
iiseir 5aei Ssyto tho settlements now"
"But they wouldn't 60 back without
searching for me, would they?" cried
the girl.
"Certainly not. suppose they are
searching for you now."
"Well then"
"Wait," said the man. "You start
ed down the canon, you told every.
body you were going that way. They
naturally searched in that direction.
they hadn't the faintest idea that you
were going up the river.
no" admitted Enid, that is true.
did not tell anyone. l didn't dream
of going up the canon when started
out in the morning, it was the result
of sudden impulse"
"God bless that" burst out the
man, and then he checked himself
flushing again 'lark:r.
What h"d hc 1c'" Hbcut to sayr
The question flashed across his own
mind and into the woman's mind at
the same time when she heard the
incompleted sentence; but she, too,
checked the question that rose to her
lips.
"This is the way I figure It," con.
tinued the man hurriedly to cover up
his confusion. "They fancy them
selves alone in these mountains,
which, save for me, they are; they be-
lieve yen to have gone down the can
on. Kirkby with Mrs. Maitland and
the others waited on the ridge until
Mr.. Maitland and his party Joined
them. They couldn't have saved very
much to eat or wear from the camp,
they were miles from settlement;
they probably divided into two parties,
the larger with the woman and chill
dren, started for home, the second
went down the canon searching for
your dead body!'
"And had it not been for you," cried
the girl, impulsively, they had found
it."
"God permitted me to be of service
to you," answered the man, simply.
az can follow their speculations exact
ly: up or down, they believed you to
have been in the canon when the
cloud burst, therefore there was only
one place and one direction to search
for YOU"
"And that was?"
Down the canon?"
"What did you do then?
81 went down the canon myself. l
think l saw evidence that some one
had preceded me, too"
did you overtake them?"
Certainly not, they travelled as
rapidly as l; they must have started
early in the morning and they had
several hours the advantage Of me-"
"But they must have stopped some
where for the night and"