Three Kentucky Boys.

Auckland Star, Volume XXV, Issue 149, 23 June 1894, Page 11

Three Kentucky Boys.

Ay Advektube in a Spbing Fbmpjet.

By Martha M'Culloqh Williams,

Tpbre was a flood in the river. T/h.e ( M,ar. yip bpjß, jAQk and Ansel, were putting in tilt their time on the, bluff watching the yellow foamy water creep higher over th« familiar landmark,rocks apd clefts and bar bwiated tree roots. The boys almosb lived on the river in the summer, and though Jack was pub J4 and, Ansel two years younger, could swim the, stream where ib ran half a. mile wide; in fact they could dive, float, treAd wa,fter and paddle a ca,noe with any of the old.ar river hands. Naturally they liked the time of high water, especially such aa this, which came from spring rama in the mountains near the river head. Their home lay here, 300 miles down the stream* and the sun waa. fchining bright—so bright that the peach buda were burning to pinky flowers, although. \t w«ia t»a,rely t.fee middle of Fqbrua,ry. Greab swirls of leaves and, dead, tim Per had been sweeping by for the. last hour, sure aign thab there was a big rise behind. I Maybe,' said Jack to Ansel, •in a little while longer we'll see Bomethin' in the water that'll be worth goin' oub afber. And the canoe's all ready. Don't you remem< ber when Daddy Jiggerß and Tommy caught the big walnub logs ?' • Yes, I remember,1 Ansel said eagerly, * an' the man that owned the timber came along an' gave them a hundred dollars for savin' ib. I don'b wanb anybody to lose anything this time-r-but if they do I hope we'll ketch ib for 'em.' ♦I don't keer much aboub logs,' Jack said. • Whab I'd like would he to see a houae come aailin' down, with somebody in it—gay a lady, a beau-ti-ful lady, an' a little baby girl, an' we could go oub an' geb her an' bring her safe home. An 1 then the little one would grow up an' be our sister, like that story ma read us.' Ansel laughed. He waa still too young for a touch of aentimenb. 'Thab'a all a story—thinga don'b happen that way,' he Baid, beginning to whisble. Jack put his scooped hands ovef bia eyebrows and looked long and hard up the abream. Up a watery world rabher. The back water had spread over all the lowland, in places ib was more than two miles from bapk to bank. The boya stood upon a point of rocks that ran bebween bhe main stream and a smaller affluent. This bluff rose twenty feeb above bhe highesb flood mark. Its top was well wooded and perhaps fifty yarda across. Ib ran back in a lqng line to the mainland, where the Marvin homestead waa located. Either side of the ledge the water lay wide and yellow, lapping againab its rocky facea wibh an oily pun. Ordinarily the river channel was twenty yarda from the bluff. There waa no current in the unflooded smaller etream—itß water waß dammed and held a clear blue masß by the turbid torrent rushing down from the mountains. The canoe lay, lightly rocking, upon tbia blue water, safe from the dangerous flotsam Bailing down the main stream. Ib needed, though, but a few strokes of the paddle to send it round the poinb and oub across the eddy water and into the rush of the tide. After awhile all sorbs of thinga began to go by—fence rails, posts, foot bridges, ball trees, waving their greab boughs in above the water, saw logs, boards and staves without number. By and by came sodden hay stacks, a wagon or two, harrows, a plow, rakes and hoes in plenty. It was horribly faecinating to sit and see, what would come nexb. 'Who-ee! Look ab her rise—the water has dumb bix inches aince we sob here.' Ansel said, looking down at the root which Berved them as guage. " ' An' it ftin't done yeb, said Jack a little anxiously. ' See, the leaves keep runnin'— bhab'p a sure sign the water iB still runnin' from the hills. It's up to stables and barns somewhar—l do hope ib would waßh away no houses, bub if ib doea—Anse! look yonder 1 quick! Is that or house comin' or jesb o raft er loose stuff?' Anaei bad a hawk eye. Shading ib lightly with hia hand, he, too, peered up stream for a breath's apace. Then he shouted aloud : ' Jb's a house 1 I see ib plain. An' there's Bomethin I—somethin'1 —somethin' alive on the roof ? It'a comin'—pomin' this way, right clqse to ua. No, 'taint. It's hung, over there by the island. I know what caught it—-them shrub cotton woods. They've caught it fast. Jack 1' he added, sharply, ' gib the canoe. I tell ye there ia soinethfn' alive—l kin see ib move !' Jack had not been able to ace whether the dark piaes was stationery or floating, much less whether there waa 'somebhin' alive' on ib, bub he ran to the canoe. It waß a full half mile to the poinb where the floatipg house had sbranded, bub Ansel described ib aa a small frame structure" with a flatbish shed roof. He bhoughb a small rag of^ome kind was waving from a stick that stood up aslanb on the roof, and be thought, too, that he could make out a, dark hulk of some sorb. Now and again there was a curious lurching ipotion of the house, aa though ib was gebting a heavy jar all through. ' An, says he 'aposen that s a bear swum onto that house.' They had struck into the running water. Straining ab his paddle Jack answered back over his shoulder, 'Bearp dqn'b fly rage1, and you said there was a rag a-fly|n\ It's folks, Ansel, Huy 1 but would they be glad we saw and came after them ! Steady !' and the boya pulled sharply aside to escape a huge floating tangle of brush ' and railß. • Steady ! quick ! Here cornea er pig pen on the other side.' Both had bo ply their paddles for dear life. In, out, now this way, now that, the two lads senb their craft in a sinuous course. Ib was really a tremendous risk— bbc abtempb to cross this half-mile of flood water. The boys felt ib dimly, bub neibher would admit to the other that there was anything beyond pleasure ip their expedition. . The dangers of their course, took their eyes until they were almosb beside the Btranded house/for a bouse it was. It sab rocking in eddy water, almoßt at tho tail of the inland. . As the boab ehob into this eddy water Aneol looked up, then gave a cry. 'Jack! It'ser horto up there—look at 'im up there ! O, but ain't he a beauty ?' ' I see him,' said Jack, resting his paddle on the boat edge as the bow grated againsb the house, and looking up. ' We'll take him off. I reckon bo kin swim, but if be kin Ydon'Mee why be didn't coiae along oub o' this.1 , , I 1 wouldn't leb him. Don'b you see he a gob on a bridle ?' a piping voice spoke down from the roof, and next minnte a smaller boy than either Jack or Ansel crawled to the edge and looked down on them. ' I thought somebody would come, be said, 'bub 1 was gittin' purty hungry an' eorber uneaay,' • who are you ? How did yon pome here ?' Ansel asked. Jack aaid, 'Neysr mind jfcha*. leb a gib him off, 5 bub the boy on bhe roof answered down promptly:

'Dan Triekob, my dad, he runs tho ole jedgefc big hose farm up in the Bend — reckon ye've heered of it. Las' night, jee* ho day, the water came bulgin' all iv <und us before we knowed it. Dad he took maw an' the rest of us in the wagin' fer the hills, bub there's so many on us he didn't count us, an' he didn'b miss me. He bole the men ter git all the critters oub an' take 'em erlong. I was feared ohey'd forgib this yere one in a stall by hisself an' I went ter see 'boub sim, ier I alters see 'bout him a good deal, an' sho' 'nough they had forgot. So I turned him oub an* gob on him, thinkin' he'd take me along. But he ain'b fairly bridle wise—he's jesb er bwo-year-ole—an' he bolted and took me an' him right spang inter the big slaigh thab runs through the shed poster. ' Then firgt thing I knowed we was in the river. We swum and swum till it began ter gib light, an' we was gettin' purby well knocked to flinders. And I knowed we'd geb drowned fore long, a' then I seen this yere little house, an' I dumb offen him on to ib, an' arter a while I managed ter geb him on top it' too. That's all, ceptin' I caught er sbick an' pub my hankercher on it ter leb folks know, there was trouble yere. Say, did yer Bee it? Jfi thab whut fotch yer here V ' Partly, 1 Jack said, while Ansel looked admiringly at the beautiful blapk colt, who stood bracing himself, yet impatiently stamping the frail roof. Dan rose to his knees and laid his cheek to the creature's glossy head, whispering to him. * Why don't yer unbridle him an' leb him swim oub ?' Ansel asked. The boy answered promptly enough : ''Cause he'd get drowned, We've come more'n twenty miles down stream, an' he'd jes try ter swim all thab way back home oub among the drifb. 1 ' No, he woen't; he's gob too much sense —tain* you, purty boy?' Ansel said, scrambling to the roof and beginning to stroke the white-starred forehead. 'He might, Ansel, an' geb tangled an' drown,' Jack said, after a moment. 'We must take 'em both off. An' we must be quick erboub it. Thar's more water comb, an' 'twon't be long before this house is afloat again. So come on boy with yer colt unless ye wanb to keep on ter New Orleans.' Dan came climbing down into the canoe, Bnd a little later it was headed across river, the three boys sibbing snug in it, the black colt swimming fearlessly behind. He had shivered and snorted a bib over the nrsb plunge, but now seemed tq have caught the spirit of adventure and looked tranquilly at Dan, who clung tenaciously to che rein and never once looked away from the splendid, powerful young creature. Two-thirds of the way was safely paesed, the drifb and the lodged trees dexterously avoided, when as the boat shob forward the Colt suddenly lagged and was almqst drawn under. As he came again to the top the lads could see that he was helpless—try as he might, three of his feet were fettered. '1 know what's the matter —ibs thab thar big syoamore,' Ansel said. 'He has got his feeb tangled in the top of it1. Why didn't we go further off around it?' 'Yes, why didn'b you?' shrieked Dan, tears running down his cheeks. ' O-oo ! O-oo! You'll drown my putty bay, an' I'll kill you for ib, yes I will !' • Hold still my eon. Keep your shirt on —do,' Ansel admonished, flinging off his coat, while Jack held the canoe steady. Jack himself made as though to drop his paddle. •It bad better be me, Ansel, I'm stronger.' 'That's why you're to stay and keep the boat righb here,' Ansel said, kicking off his shoes, and taking his open knife between his teeth. Then he dived from the stern while the others held their breath. A minute passed—two, Then the black cplfc gave a joyful surge thab almost overpet the oanoe. The next second Ansel came up red and spluttering to say, as he clambered over the canoe side : • Jest like I said—he'd hung his feeb in bhe grape vine on thab old tree. An* he's a gentleman—most any other colb in his place would a kicked me clean to tlje bottom when I pub my hand on his pastern tryin' ter get 'im loose.' Dan looked ab Ansel with a face of wonderment.- ---' You oughter have 'im,' be said, nodding toward the gallant creature. ' I—l thought I keered more erboub him than anybody, but I could,n't a tiono thab—no, nob if he had drownded.' Ansel never did own the black colt. Ib turned oub he was of a famous racing strain. Bub the old judge did not overlook the lads' gallantry, for early in May there came to the Marvin homestead two beautiful gold watches marked 'Jack' and • Ansel.' And inside the lid of each you read : 'In memory of a good deed, bravely done.' What he gave Dan Ido not know. Probably the colb'a company was enough for