Year: 1870

| At last the foot of the mountain was


reached, and against the dull sky / could


see the outlines OF the great struggling


trees which had been scathed by the fire,


and which stood leafless about my clear
fng. Their dead branches creaked be-


meath the fury of the tempest, making a
dismal, moaning sound, which seemed like


an omen of some terrible disaster inn
| pending over the valley. ..


I moved down among them, and in a


moment found myself to my middle in
| water, and l sprang back again, fearing


that the next step would carry me beyond


my depth. Great God was the valley


flooded With water, and had my cabin and


its loved inmates been swept awayP


Sick at heart, and oppressed with this


terrible fear asked myself the question,


as stood trying to pierce the darkness


which filled the valley before me, and TO


comprehend the exact spot where l stood.


At last 1 decided the latter question by q


study of the dead trees before me, and


then moved slowly down the valley TO


bring myself opposite to the spot where l


had left my cabin standing in the morn


ing.


Just then, to my great Joy, light


beamed out through the darkness. For


a moment it wavered, and then burned


brightly, and knew that as yet my cabin


had not been moved from the spot where


l had placed il; but the rays of the light
| glimmered upon a sea of dark water


which lay between it and the spot where


| stood, and any moment 1t might float
away.
| l wondered why it was that the water
| was so still, and not the rushing torrent
oh Lar . ha &.
| but this was soon made plain as reflected
upon the subiect. A short distance
down the valley the hills came close
down to the hanks of the stream, and
here, owing to the amount of drift wood,
Jam had been formed which the force of
the water had not yet been able TO break,
and so had flowed it back, covering the
entire valley. How much lOEger the
drift-wood would bear the strain it WAS
impossible to tell, but it did not seem as
though it would for many minutes, as |
could hear the rush and roar of the waters
as it battled with it from the spot where l
stood. TrTR T-r ~ vi "


Suddenly shrek, full Of mortal terror,
rang over the water. Ny heart stoOd still
in my breast, for recognized the voice as
that of my wife, and | knew that some
fearful danger menaced her and the child.
Again it was repeated, and sent back an
answering cry. A moment more, and |
stood mute with horror and dismay. The
Ljgitt soGs DlOU5ng sI0tOtg dopR to the bottom Of
tie clearing, telling as plainly as words
could have done, that the cabin was
gttoat. I'm t.--tt. ~
For few moments it seemed as though
! were chained 10 the spet where stood
The light, as it fioated downward, pos
sessed a terrible fascination, and I could
not take my eyes from it If | would. l
could seem TO see its timbers falling
asunder, and the pale faces of my wife
and child sinking into the black, turbulent
waters. The horror of that moment /
shall never forget so long as live II


Another horrible crash among the
mountains, to the northward-a sound as
if a huge cliff had been hurled downward,
broke the terrible spell that bound me TO
the spot, and reused me to an effort to try
and effect the escape of my loved ones.
Another cry of despair which reached me
from the cabin, I answered back, though
| doubted if was heard, the cabin was
SO near to the rushing current of the
river and then hurried along the edge
of the clearing, which was the boundary
of the lake, toward the spot where the
river broke through the hills, and where
the jam had been formed which flowed
the waters back.


Steadily the light glided down the
waters of the little lake, and fromIts mo-
tion l judged that it had not as yet float
ed into the current of the river, and
breathed silent prayer in my heart that
it would not be so, for then all hope would
be gone. Ii the cabin would but hold to-
gether and keep out OF the current of the
river, it would lodge among the trees at
the foot of the clearing, where would be
ready to bear them from it to place of
safety.


The way round to the bank of the
river was difficult to get over in the dark
ness, but accomplished it much sooner
than had expected, and by the time the
cabin had f1oated half the distance from
its site to the spot where l now stood.
But the light was moving faster now,
and in a very few minutes the fate of the
helpless ones would be decided.


Upon the jam piled high in the river,
with the foaming waters breaking
through and over it, their lives depended
Could it resist the force of the water but
few minutes longer they would be
saved; but did it break, the fierce flow of
the waters would bring it into the
stream, where it would at once be hurled
TO pieces. This much / saw and COM
pretended in the darkness, and you can
imagine, stranger, with what fearful in
terest l watched the jam and the fast ap-
preaching light upon the water.


Nearer and nearer came the cabin, and
shorter grew the rays of light which
streaked out between it and the spot
where / stood l called to Mary at the
top of my voice, but If any answer came
back it WAS drowned by the roar of the
jam. Two minutes more, and if it kept
on its course it would glide in among the
trees where | could reach 1t and bear
them off in safety. --.--. b b


At this moment, when my heart beat
high with the hope that they would be
spared TO me, with mighty roar and
crash the jam gave way, and the surging
waters madly followed. In a moment
the cabin obeyed the new impulse given
it, and moved towards the centre Of the
stream. II was moment OF fearful sus-
pense to me, but it was soon over. To
my great joy it lodged for a minute
against the trees, upon the bank, and in
that time | had my vile and child in my
arms, and had borne them to the solid
earth. Then their frail bark surged into
the stream, and in moment after was
torn apart, and its timbers floated singly
down the stream.


We found a shelter beneath some over
hanging rocks,where we staid until morn
ing, when we made our way over the
mountain to fathers, thankful for the es-
cape we had had from the tempest, which
would not be forgotten TO our dying day.


On the morrow came the sad news
from the Notch, and as Mary and lis
tened to the story, we shuddered as we
thought of our own peril amid the waters.
'r.,


Mr. EASY keeps a hotel, taking both
transient and permanent boarders, as they
may offer. Some time since he had a
young married couple among his guests,