Year: 1876

ard child, started for Shireton. | had
been married two years aud our little
babe, girl, was year old, our pride,
our pet, aui our darling Shirpton was
a distance Of about thirty miles. We
had been having rainy weather for -
J week or so and it had now cleared off
bright and beautiful We stopped and
| took dinner at waysde inn four miles
| beyond which was a stream which
must he furdcd The innkneper told
me that the stream was somewhat
swollen from the late rains, hut that il
my horse was trusty there could he no
danger"


" Arrived at the stream the Wam>
patuck rivrr-I found the water indeed
risen, and the current strong, but ] saw
that others had recently gone over, and
| resolved TO venture. | knew my horse
and had faith in him. My wife was
anxious, but she trusted my in ulgment.
A third OF the way across the water
was over the hub Of the wheels a lit,
tie more and it would have reached the
body Of'the wagon. began to be
alarmed ! feared / had left tha true
track Presently my horse stumbled
and staggered, having evidently step
ped upon moving stone. The wagon
swayed and tipped, and the food
poured in upon us. My wife slipped,
and in moment more we were in the
water. With one hand | graspcd the
harness upon tie horse, and with the
other ] held my wife. | was thus
struggling when a wild cry from her
lips startled the air. Our child was
washed away.


" Oh, my soul 7 cannot tell you
what l suffered during those moments.
| could not help our darling. If left
my wife she was lost. | clung to the
horse and clung to my shreking wife -
shrieklng TO God for mercy for her
child. The horse was struggling for
the shore. In the distance upon the
bosom of the surging flood | could see
our little one, her white drcSs cleaning
in the sun, being borne swiftly away,
a moment more ] saw man plunge
Fl ON the bank into the river | saw
this much and then an intervening
poiEt of laud shut out the scene. The
horse was now rapidly nearing the
shore, aud ere long my wife and | were
upon dry land, with thb horse and
wagon. A soon as ! was sure my wife
was safe left her to care for the horse
while poStei off down the liver bank
in quest of the swimmer and the child.


" You may well understand that all
this time was frantic. | was machine
being operated upon by IA Surging and
agoni2ing emotion. How long or how
far | wantertd | do not know, but
at length | mt a man, wet and dripping
with my darling in his arms my darl-
ing safe and sound He told me that he
had caught the child within few rods
Of the falls, and that in landing he had
cleared the fatal abyss by not more
than two yards. He was q young man
not more than twenty y-fve-hand-
some aud Stalwart He said he had
seen my wagon tip, and was coming to
my assistance when he saw the child
washed away. :. threw my life into
the balance, said he with a genial smile,
and thank God both the lives were
saved +


g. | asked him how shoul ever re-
pay him, He stopped me with an i'm
plOring gesture.


~ ypu tam vi ulOlC lldN llldH /
have already received, he said, IF you
can rob me of the only solid reward |
can claim, mercy if saving the life of
such cherub is not enough reward in
Itself, then hard is the heart that can
crave more And with moistened eyes
he told me that he had child OF his
0wn at hOme-an only child-of nearly
the same age.


&C asked him if he would tell me
his name. With a smile, he ais wered
that his name did not matter-he was
not sure that he had a name. | then
asked him if he knew me. He nodded,
and said he thought ! might be Mr..
burlington, of Waldbridge. When |
told him that he was correct he said
that | must excuse him. He was wet
and must hurry home. An with that
he turned away. / was too deeply
moved to stop him, and when he had
disappeared started to rejoin my wife
with dawning impression that the
man might be slightly deranged
But my darling was safe-her broad
aeecy cloak had tlOated out and kept
her head above water-and went on
my way lNJpl'illSi lOoplfSt llltv lllb
preserver of my child should not be for
gotten.


81 will not tell you of the emotion of
my wife when she held her child once
more in her arms. We reached Shire
ton before night and found quarters at
a comfortable tavern.


"On the following day Laban Sarfurt
called upon me and was about to spread
his evidence for my inspection, when
| interrupted him. | told him | could
not accept his confidence until l had
made up my mind to take his case in
hand. Something seemed to whisper
that there was danger ahead. did not
feel comfortable in that man. presence.
felt as though he was trying to buy
me. The court would sit in four days.
| told him | would give him fiual
answer in two days from that.


"That evening made a cunfidant of
my wife, and asked her what l should
do. If take the case, i said, i am
sure of five thousand dollars She
bade me do what was right God has
been very good to us, she said. Let
us look to him for our guidance.


"Aftrr this | called on the clergyihhu Y
of the place, whose son had been my