The Yale expositor., 1912-05-30

torrent toward him and with It came
the woman.
She was almost spent. She had
been struck by log upheaved by
some mighty wave, her hands were
moving feebly. her eyes were closed.
she was drowning, dying. but indomit-
ably battling on. He stopped down
and as surge lifted her, he threw
his arm around her waist and then he
braced himself against the rock to
Sustain the full thrust of the mighty
flood. AS he seized her she gave way
suddenly, as II after having done all
that she could there was now nothing
left but to trust herself to his hand
and Gods. She hung dead weight
on his arm In the ravening water
which dragged and tore at her madly.
He was man OF giant strength,
but the struggle bade fair to be too
much even for him. Vt seemed as If
the mountain behind him was giving
! way. He set his teeth, he tried des-
peratefy to hold on he thrust out his
right hand. holding her with the 9TH
er one. and clawed at the dripping
rock in vain. In a moment the tor
rent mastered him and when it did SO
it seized him with fury and threw him
like stone from sling into the
seething vortex of the Eafd-stream.
But In aIi this he did not, or would
not, release her.
Such WIS the swiftness Of che mo-
tion with which they were swept
Il l.
swim. his only effort was to- keep his
head above water and to keep from
being dashed against the logs that
tumbled end over end or whirled
sideways, or were jammed into clus-
ters only to burst out on every hand.
He struggled furiously to keep him
self from DsTng overwhelmed liz the
seething madness, and what was
harder, to Keep the lifeless woman in
his arms from being stricken or
wrenched away. He knew that below
the narrows where the canon witened
the water wUuld subside, the awful
fury of the rain would presently cease
II he could steer clear of the ROCKS in
the broad he might win to land with
her
The chances against him were shou-
sands to nUrhing. But what are
chances in the eyes of God! The man
in his solitude had not forgotten to
pray, his HABITS stood him in good
stead now. He petitioned shortly,
brokenly. in brief unspoken words as
he battled through the long dragging
seconds.
Fighting. olfnging, struggling. pray
ing, he was swept on. Heavier and
heavier the woman dragged in an un-
conscious heap. 1t would have been
easier for him If he had let her go;
she would never know and he could
then escape. The idea never once oc-
Cured to irfm. He had indeed with
drawn from his kind. but when one
depended upon him all the old appeal
of weak humanity awoke quick re-
sponse in the bosom of the strong.
He would die with the stranger rath-
er than yield her to the torrent or
admit himself beaten and give up the
fight. So the conscious and the un-
conscious struggled through the mar
row of the canon.
Presently with the rush and hurl OF
a bullet from the mouth of a gun.
they found themselves in a shallow
lake through which the waters still
rushed nightly, breaking over rocks, |
digging away shallow-rooted trees,
leapng, biting, snarliug. tearing at the
big walls spread away on either side. |
He had husbanded some Of his |
strength for this final effort. this last
chance of escape. Below them at the |
other end of this open the walls came |
together again. There the descent |
was sharper than before and the wa
ter ran to the opening with racing |
speed. Once again in the torrent and |
they would be swept to death in spite
of all.
Shifting his grasp to the wcman's |
hair, now unbound he held her with |
one hand and swan hard with the |
other. The current still ran swiftly |
but with no gigantic upheaving waves |
as before. 1t was more easy to avoid |
floating timber and debris. and on one
side where the ground sloped some
what gently the quick water flowed |
more slowly. He struck out desper-
ately for it. forcing himself away from
the main stream into the shadows
and ever dragging the woman. Was
1t hours or minutes or seconds after
that he gained the battle and neared |
the shore at the lowest edge?
(TO BE CONTINUED