THE WATERS OUT. PART I.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 12, Issue 951, 13 June 1868, Page 4

THE WATERS OUT. PART I.

["From " Chambers' Journal."] • Three days' heavy rain, and the clouds ;' heavier and more leaden-looking than ever, 'as they poured down an incessant torrent : of water, save when, with a fierce gust, the wind came down from the hills, driving the ' rain before it in a perfect cloud of spray, * which dashed against the windows, and beat beneath the door, while the old house . seemed to shake to the very foundations. I had just come to lire at the Mill then — ' at. least so we called the house adjoining :the old- water-mill, built over a branch of 'the river. . '"•" "Plenty of water,, eh !" I said laughingly to old Smith, the miller; "no ; standing still and. stone-chipping to-day." "Too much, sir; too much," said the old man grimly. " The waste water don't carry it, off half fast enough. The low ground's all flooded now; and if this .keeps on, .we shall be swamped before ,long:"r :■■.;... . . Another day, and the waters higher ; „the,rain pouring down more fiercely than ..ever,, pitting the surface of the yellow -river, whose, waters foamed and churned along ) ,covered with twigs and grass, for .<?very RQW and then, when the wind rushed .through the, tall elms that overlooked our hpuse, a, dead branch, would be snatched .off, ; and .'hurled, savagely into the river. ..Once, a couple of -tiles shared the same fate, haying been struck by a heavy bough which caught the corner of the house. But a ;paii placed beneath the spot where the .water dripped through into the attic met that, disaster ; and after saying that I would: give orders to the bricklayer to come <and repair damages, I passed my cup. to. my sister for a little more coffee. . ; ??_But, you surely won't start on such a morning?', said my sister. " It rains more than ever." . ** Must," I said. " I promised to meet Harris, and I wont fail. " But is it not dangerous ? Don't you think the flood may get worse ?" " Ho, my dear," I said. " I think the water, will go down now ; and as to danger —well, I may get wet." . .'But you must go?" said the little, tender, pale-faced thing, that I always wondered some huge he had not stolen from my side years before. </.'. Must— must — must," I said laughing. "And; now, don't, pray, be uneasy; for if the.house is swept away before I come back; you have plenty of stores to last you on your cruise for a whole week, before starvation brings , you down to colza oil and jam ■; and even then, there's the box of candles — I mean the dips ; but I would ndt eat the wicks ; and whatever you do, don't touch the composites — arsenic, you know." "Don't be foolish, Fred," she whispered. "I can't help feeling nervous; the house seems to shake ; and I lay for hours- last night listening to the wind howling, and the waters rushing past the piles so furiously ; and I could not help thinkingthat if '- — - *.* If the house set sail, and floated down the current, you would be wrecked upon a- willow-stump down in the marsh," I said. "Ifow, don't be ai little goose ; but occupy your mind with something till I get* back to an early dinner— say four; , artd mdst likely I shall bring Harris back with me:-*-What are you blushing for?" -"Don't be so foolish, dear," said the littlething with her face aflame. So I ",..," ordered; the cob I rode to be brought round';, and 'after setting rain well at defi- •_.'.'.' ahc£) .with india-rubber leggings and mack- ;;;-;' : 'intQ.&/I;"v.entout.tp'see how the water ..•.\;.;st^od.V'.v' T -"-,', '"' '.' - ;..'- : '?-;;It'.Qerlta^y^ was;' coming down furiously, , \ ;-:'.; and^d^Mp^g by "ihe .sides of the. island upon.whic]f|our house stood at a fearful rate, -'making th. old wooden bridge quiver, ':/-wMel;'.saf •iat.l.must, have a small '."_■ biikkrpf; earth thrown up in front of the .■.;'-■ dpor. or, the water would soon be in the -.-.. : ; Sister Helen into fits. iyi 7yM^\^> fishing I" j. thought to my:r.;self;f&ri had taken up my .residence at ■7 .^ike^hurst Mill on.accpunt of the goodly .. ; >\s 3J»res ; pf finny prey in . dam and pool, as swift river on the otlier side £and;npwt_usVfloo(l seemed ITyTyfimt^i^^ fiah put of

>the stream. As to danger, such an idea never once entered niy head, as soon after mounting my cob, I trotted over the echoing wooden bridge, and then went splashing. along the swimming road till it turned up the hill ; and then, as I rode along the crest towards the town — the pleasant ride where I had so often watched the meanderiugs of the silver river — I was almost startled at seeing the extent to which the flood had extended — meadows and fields, far and wide, were under water, with farms here and there, like islands in a wil-low-pollard-dotted lake; while the river itself could be traced more by the rushing water than' by the trees which grew upon its sides. The man at the turnpike was full of news of the mischief done — sheep drowned, pigs swept away, and how that a farmer, trying to cross the ford in his gig, had lost his life ; but he was not quite sure whether it was the farmer or the horse. I had a six-miles' ride to the town, where I executed various little commissions, paid a visit or two, lunched with my friend Harris, and then, after finishing our business consultation, he walked with me down to the hotel where I had left my horse. "By Jove ! how the water's up," said Harris, as we neared the bridge which crossed the navigable part of the river ; and well he might exclaim, for, as we neared a crowd, we saw a couple of heavily laden barges float swiftly along, with bows apparently on a level w r ith the crown of the one-arched iron bridge ; then there was a shriek and a rush, as those who were upon the bridge fled, while, with a crash, the barges, one after the other, came in contact with the railings, swept the bridge away, and then slowly forging round, were wrecked, as it were, amongst the ruins, forming a dam right across the narrow river — a barrier which grew stronger every moment, with the boats, timber, and fragments brought down by the fierce stream ; till, leaping and breasting in vain at this obstacle in its career, the swollen river dashed right and left along the river-street, flooding houses, running into cellars, and doing incalculable mischief in a few minutes. " She's risen a foot an hour ever since ten o'clock," a man said close to my elbow ; and as I started and changed colour, Harris caught my arm, and whispered eagerly : " Will all be safe at home ?" " Come on," I said huskily ; for it now struck me that I had treated the flood in too cavalier a manner, and that, after all, the Mill, if not in danger, would be so far flooded as to drive its inmates up-stairs, and frighten them almost to death. But I had no occasion to hurry my friend, for he was in the hotel-yard before I was, and I heard him order a horse to be saddled as well as mine. ■•Where to, sir?" said the head-hostler. " Pikehurst Mill," said my friend hurriedly. I did not speak, but I was so glad of the friendly act that I gave Harris's hand a warm squeeze, one which he returned in a way that shewed how thoroughly we understood one another. '- For Heaven's sake, be smart, men !" I said, as the second hostler brought out one horse saddled, the other man having disappeared into the house ; but he now returned with the landlord, who said to Harris in a quiet, respectful way : " Impossible to get to the Mill this afternoon, sir. Can't, with justice to myself, let a horse of mine go, sir." " What?" shouted Harris fiercely. " Why, sir, the beast would be drowned, certain sure, if you attempted it. But you don't mean the Mill itself, do you, sir ?" •• Never mind, Harris," I said, for I was mounted — " I'll go on." " Stop ! for God's sake, stop !" he shouted. — " Here, Mr. Ellis, what's your horse worth ?" " Thirty pounds to me, sir," said the man. y I'll pay you that if I injure the beast," said Harris eagerly. "JNow saddle it quickly." "And suppose you don't— don't get back, sir ?" said the man ominously. "If you'll take my advice, you'll both of you stop here, or else go in a boat." Harris's reply was to run into the bar, seize pen, ink, and paper, and write a pro-missory-note for the amount named, which he thrust into the landlord's hands ; and the next minute we were clattering down the street towards the old stone bridge, which we crossed just in time, for, half an hour after, a pier gave way from the fearful pressure, and a side-arch crumbled into j the running flood. j All the lower parts of the town were under water ; and the cold sweat rose upon my forehead as I saw that two or three houses had regularly sunk down into the current ! while in dozens of places, people were being taken out of the upper windows into carts and boats ; for I thought of the Mill, and the mighty stream beating upon the great pile at the island-head; while remembering the fate of the iron bridge in the town street, I trembled for the old, frail wooden bridge, and wondered whether, if it were swept away, the horses would swim the current, for now, in our slow progress, with the water, in some places, above their girths, they snorted and shivered, and more than once stood trembling and afraid to proceed. But there was no mercy for them. Whip and spur forced them on, till we were upon terra firma once more, and, side by side, going uphill at a brisk gallop, Harris pale, and with his teeth set, answering my every remark with a monosyllable, as he pressed on till we were high above the watery waste, and could now see the ruin and devastation around. fTo be concluded in our next. I