Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-11-02

and raised It from the wet Ice. The
low sun illumined the tuIa.,led mass
of reddish brown hair aud revealed
with startling clearness the prema-
ture lines about her eyes and mouth.
them there; that If he had gone straight
and married her five years ago she
would have been a different woman.
And yet be had begun smuggling in Or
der to raise money enough to start a
home as good as Bob could give her.
A prolonged growl came from the
wall of Ice. something snapped. and
then the entire mass moved shudder-
ingly forward. The cake on which they
lay began to settle. The water crept
steadily up the sides. ran into the crew
ices about the edge and reached his
shackled hand: He drew her closer to
him and with infinite difficulty placed
her upon his back. One dainty ear
curled like the petals of a rose vas
within a few inches of his mouth. and
he remembered as from another world
the first time he had kissed 1t. y
The chilly water vas covering his
chest now. and he rose upon his elbow.
1t reached his shoulder. his neck, his
ear; then a falling cake splashed the
water into his face. For a few mo-
ments he struggled blindly. ~frantical-
ly, like a trapped animal, nearly losing
his hold upon her wrist. When his
death struggle came. would he abandon
her then like a selfish cowardf His
fingers frightened upon her wrist with
a grip of steel. and as a wave broke
over his head he closed his eyes in an
ticipation of the end.
Pop! He instinctively clutched at the
edge of the leaping cake with his man.
acled hand. They were out of water
now, moving swiftly away on a de-
tached piece of ice. The cakes had
thinned until the black water showed
everywhere between them, and the
danger was greater than v e before,
but he gathered her into his arms and
staggered on.
A lane OF water ten rods wide opened
before him, and he could go no farther
unless he swan. Ora wing her arm
about his neck. he took her sleeve be-
tween his teeth and plunged In. The
sleeve gave way. and he closed his
teeth upon her wrist. The ice they at
last reached proved rotten. breaking
under his weight again and again. FL
nally he rolled out like a log and, hook
ing his manacled wrist about a hub.
drew her after him.
Gho tlr, f..nro hso fnu hath Ifkn ~ In
an ague fit, he was STOPPING to pick up
his burden for the final dash when sud-
denly he paused and looked across the
~clashing. grinding blocks to the shore.
Yes. it was Bob Peterson running along
the headland to meet him. he looked
about him like a hunted animal brought
to bay. Bob Peterson would have no
mercy on him, eve If he had saved his
wife's life. To go on meant ball and
chain and that horrible stone trap.
Yonder was the precipice. All he had
to do was to sit still and let the swift
current bav. It's way. To allow her to
drift over with him before her hus-
bands very eyes would be a crowning
revenge upon the who bad hunted
him so mercileSSly. An, 1t was just
past that headland there were she
had cried to him in her childish voice
from the drifting boat. For a moment
he listened again to that cry as it rang
In his ears across the years. Then,
with set face, he snatched her up and
hurried on, at length sinking exhausted
with his burden upon the bank not ten
rods above the brink of the falls.
"Thank God!" exclaimed the sheriff
f~ervently as he bent above his still un-
conscious wife. Then his eyes encoun-
tered those of the man who had res
cued her.
"Well, put on the irons. There's no
more fight left in me-" gasped the pros
trate man deiantly. holding out his
lacerated hands.
For answer the sheriff produced a
long blue envelope. "Pity didn't get
it yesterday. 1t would "a saved me