Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1912-06-06
CHAPTER XIII.
cleavlns Only Unto Her.

CHAPTER XIII.
cleaving Only Unto Her.
THE made no great cutlery.
saw her bend her face forward
into her hands.
49, "John Cowles of Virginia"
she said. 81 am sorry we are lost"
could make no answer save to vow
silently that il lived she must be re-
turned safely to her home. unhurt
body and soul. dared not ponder on
conventions in a case SO desperate as
I knew ours yet might be. Silently l
unsaddled the horse and hobbled it &C.
curely as might with the bride rein.
Then l spread the saddle blanket for
her to sit upon and hurried about for
plains fuel. Water we drank from my
hat and were somewhat refreshed.
Now we had food and water. We
needed fire. But when came to fum-
BILE in my pockets found not match.
Il was afraid of that" she said.
catching the meaning of my look.
In my sheath was heavy hunting
knife, and now. searching about us on
the side of the coulee bank, found
several fiints, hard and white. Then
/ tore out bit of my coat lining and
moistened it a trife and saturated it
with powder from my flask, rubbed in
Until it all was dry. This inter soaked
fabric thought might serve as finder
for the spark So then struck flint
and steel and got the strange spark,
hidden in the cold stone ages and ages
there on the plains, and presently the
spark was a little fame and then a
good fire, and so we were more COM
Portable
Goals the best we might, and so we
ate with no salt to aid us. The girl be-
came trifle more cheerful, though still
distant and quiet. If rose to leave
the fire for an instant saw her eyes
following me all the time. knew her
fears. though she did not complain.
Night came on. The great gray wolves,
haunters of the buffalo herds, roared
their wild salute to us, savage enough
to strike terror to any woman's soul.
The girl edged close to me. We spoke
but little. Our dangers had not yet
made us other than conventional.
Even as dusk sank upon US all the
lower sky went black. An advancing
roar came upon our ears, and then a
binding wave of rain drove across the
surface of the earth, wiping out the
day, beating down with remorseless
strength and volume as though it
would smother and drown US twain in
its deluge-us, the last two human
creatures of the world!
1t caught us, that wave Of damp
and darkness. and rolled over US and
crushed US down as we covered. l
caught up the blanket from the ground
and pulled it around the girls shout
ders i drew her tight to me as lay
with my own back to the storm and
pulled the saddle over her head. with
this and my own body keeping out the
tempest from her as much as could.
There was no other fence for her, and
but for this she might perhaps have
died; do not know. | felt her strain
at my arms first. then settle back and
sink her head under the saddle flap
and cover close, like some little
schoolfellow. all the curves of her
body craving shelter, comfort. warmth.
She shivered terribly. heard her
gasp and sob. All. how I pitied her
that hour!
AS the rain lessened and the cold In
creased | knew that rigors would soon
come upon us. Walk or we die!" /
gasped. And so led her at last low
er down the side of the ravine, where
the wind was not so strong.
With all my soul challenged my
weakness, summoning to my aid that
reserve of strength had always known
each hour in my life. Strangely / felt,
how | cannot explain, that she must
be saved. that she was |. Strange
phrases ran through my brain. re-
membered only one, "Cleaving only
unto her." and this in my weakened
frame Of body and mind / could not
separate from my stern prayer to my
own strength. once SO ready, now so
strangely departed from me.
To the delirious or the perishing man
time has no measuring. do not know
how we spent the night or how long
it was. knew that Auberry would