ALARMING PROGRESS OF THE FLOOD--THE CAPTAIN REMOVES HIS FAMILY TO HIGHER
GROUND--THE BOYS, IN THEIR EAGERNESS TO SAVE MORE PROPERTY, ARE CUT OFF
BY THE WATER.
Directly on receiving the information brought by Harry and Reggy,
Captain Berrington hurried down to the river, followed by Hector, Rob,
and Edgar. Presently, as they looked up the dry bed between the high
banks, they saw a wall of water moving on towards them, such, on a
smaller scale, as might have been beheld by the Egyptians when
attempting to cross the Red Sea. But this was high enough to overwhelm
any human beings, or horses or cattle, which might have been in its way.
The summit hissed and foamed, rising almost to the top of the bank. No
streams advanced before it: it was literally a wall of water. On it
came, its roar growing louder and louder. In less than a minute after
it had been seen it rushed by, filling the whole bed of the river, and
sending its surges up those portions of the bank which sloped more
gradually.
"Back, back, boys!" shouted the captain.
They had to run as quickly as their legs would carry them to avoid the
torrent. Where the ground had just before been perfectly dry there was
now a hissing, foaming torrent of yellow water, carrying along branches
of trees, and even big trunks. The captain, who had been joined by his
brother, watched it anxiously.
"I had hopes that this was merely the result of a thunder-storm up the
country," he observed; "but see, it continues to rise, which shows me
that there must be a vast volume of water behind what there is here. We
have some cattle feeding on the low land higher up; I trust that White
has had the discretion to drive them to the upper ground."
"I fear some animals have been caught, if not ours," observed Mr
Berrington. "There go the bodies of two heifers. See, here comes a
third."
The captain was silent for a few minutes. "Harry!" he exclaimed, "run
and tell Sandy to put the horses in all the drays, and bring them down
here."
"What's that for?" asked Mr Berrington, as Harry ran off to obey the
order.
"The river once came up within three feet of the house. Had it risen a
foot higher it would have flooded the whole ground. It may rise two,
three, or four feet higher than that. I wish to be prepared for the
worst, and to save what property we can, with our wives and children, in
case the house should be flooded."
The captain desired all the party to return with him, and then announced
his apprehensions to the ladies. "We will breakfast first, and then
pack up the most valuable portion of our property, so that we may decamp
if necessary," he said, calmly. His spirit inspired the rest: even Mrs
Berrington, who for a wonder had got up, ate some breakfast. The boys
set to with a will.
"You know we may have some work to do, and it's wise to take in plenty
of provender beforehand. We don't know when we may have time to eat
again," observed Harry, cracking his third egg.
His brothers and cousins followed his example, in spite of the roaring
sound which continued outside.
Biddy and Betty were busy packing up the cooking utensils, while the
ladies were employed in filling their trunks with their clothes and the
most valuable articles they possessed. Poor Mrs Berrington's state can
better be imagined than described. Her sister's time was much taken up
in endeavouring to calm her alarm. The captain again went out. The
river, as he feared would be the case, had greatly increased. Still, it
might possibly not rise higher than it had done before. He stuck
several poles in the ground to mark its progress. The first, then the
second and the third, were reached with unexpected rapidity. Already
the water was rushing over the opposite bank where the ground was
lowest, sweeping everything before it. There was a danger that the
scrub being carried away might form a dam lower down, and, if so, create
much greater damage than if the river continued open to its mouth.
"I wish the drays would come," the captain said to his brother. "We
must get our wives and girls as soon as possible to the top of the
ridge. I thank heaven this did not occur at night, or we might have
been washed out of our beds."
Still Mr Berrington could not believe that the water would come up
higher.
"Look there!" said the captain, pointing to the southward among the
trees; "it is flooding the whole scrub. In a short time this place will
be surrounded."
As he spoke, two or three kangaroos and several wallabies were seen in
the distance making their escape into the open.
"These fellows know there is danger, or they would not be going at that
rate," observed the captain.
As the drays had not arrived, Reggy offered to set off to hurry them on.
"We intend to take you for a morning drive," exclaimed Mr Berrington to
his wife, in as cheerful a voice as he could command.
"But why should we leave the house?" she asked.
"Merely as a matter of precaution," answered the captain. "It is
possible that the water may reach close up to us, and the ground between
this and the ridge is lower, so that we should have a difficulty in
crossing it should the house be flooded."
"Here come the drays," cried Rob, who had been looking out for them.
Harry was driving one, Reggy another, and Bendigo a third. Sandy and
the men had galloped off to gather in the cattle on the higher ground,
and Bendigo and Harry had had a hard matter to put to the horses, which
had caused the delay.
"There is no time to be lost now," whispered the captain to his brother.
"We will load the drays as fast as we can. You shall drive your wife
and mine, with the young children; the rest of us will follow as soon as
we can."
Without a moment's delay the drays were loaded. Biddy and Betty, as
Harry declared, "worked like troopers." The trunks and boxes having
been put in, their bedding was placed on the top of them. Still there
was all the furniture and various articles which it seemed a pity to
leave to the mercy of the flood.
"You go on, father," cried Harry to the captain, "with the girls; Reggy,
Hector, and I, with Biddy and the blacks, will soon load up with a few
more things and quickly overtake you."
The captain, who was anxious to place the girls in safety, with a
portion of their property, trusting to Harry's discretion, followed his
advice.
"Don't delay," he shouted, pointing to the water, which was already
overflowing the kitchen-garden, though it had not yet reached the road
they were to cross. Hector was ashamed to ask to go with the captain,
though he would infinitely rather have done so. He, indeed, exerted
himself far more than he had ever been known to do before.
Biddy and Betty were as active as ever, carrying out all sorts of
things, some of which might have been left behind, until Harry and Reggy
pointed out what was considered of most value. Already the dray was as
full as it could hold. Bendigo shouted out that it was time to be off,
and jumped on the seat.
"We go now, we go now!" he cried.
Biddy and Betty clung to the hinder part of the dray, struggling in vain
to get in.
"Off with you," exclaimed Harry; "we will follow on foot."
Bendigo cracked his whip, and his horses dashed forward at such a rate
that it was a wonder the dray did not immediately capsize. Harry
watched it anxiously as it went down a dip from which there was a gentle
rise. Already a stream of water was running through the hollow, but it
looked a mere rivulet, not half a foot deep, which could be passed over
with a good spring.
"It is a pity we should not get a few more goods," said Harry; "although
I don't believe the water will reach the house: yet, if it does,
everything will be spoiled, if not washed away."
They hurried through the rooms, picking up whatever they thought most
valuable. Even Hector was inspired with a desire to save something,
especially several articles belonging to himself. Harry had taken a run
into the kitchen, where he discovered some dampers, which Biddy in her
alarm had forgotten to remove from the ashes.
"It is a pity to lose these," said Harry, clapping them into the pockets
of his jacket--good capacious ones, as every bushman's should be. There
was, besides, a pot of yams, by this time completely cooked.
"Here, Reggy, stow some of these away," he cried out. "The chances are
that we shall not have too much to eat on the top of the hill there,
unless Biddy has been more thoughtful than she appears to have been when
she left these. What she could have been about I don't know!"
So busily were they engaged that they did not hear the increased roar of
the waters.
"Come, you fellows, it's time to be off, I'm sure," cried Hector, who
had been feeling very nervous all the time.
"Just half a minute longer," answered Harry; "I must lash these things
up."
Hector, however, would not stop, and rushed out of the house. Directly
afterwards he came back, looking very pale.
"The water is rushing through the hollow like a mill-sluice!" he
exclaimed; "we shall lose our lives if we attempt to cross."
Harry and Reggy followed him out. He spoke too truly. They were cut
off from what was now the mainland by a foaming torrent twelve yards or
more in width, which was carrying along fruit-trees, rocks, and palings,
whirling them round and round so that it would be impossible to swim
across or to wade, even should the depth allow of their doing so.
Hector threw down his load and wrung his hands.
"Stay!" cried Harry, "we've got a ladder! we may get across by that."
They all three ran back for it, and attempted to throw it across, but
the channel was too wide, and it was almost torn from their grasp. It
would have been lost had not Harry fastened a rope to the lower round,
by which it was hauled in.
"The ladder may be useful for another purpose," observed Harry.
They lifted it up and carried it back to the house. The water was by
this time rising even faster than before. The maize field, the yam and
potato-ground, the orchard and kitchen-garden, were all flooded.
Palings and hedges were everywhere giving way before the torrent. A
rise of another foot would bring it up to the walls of the house. The
floor was somewhat higher, so that it would not damage that much should
the flood cease to rise when it got thus far. But would it cease? was
the question. If it once began to beat against the walls of the house,
would they stand? Reggy proposed climbing up to the roof by means of
the ladder.
"That would be a place of very doubtful safety," said Harry.
They looked up the stream, now extending a quarter of a mile or more on
either side of its original bed. The whole country around them seemed
flooded, with the exception of the hill to which the drays had gone.
"I am afraid that it will reach the stock-yard," said Harry, "and it
must be close to it already; if so, the cattle will have a poor chance.
See, it has already carried away the hen-house, and there go the poor
hens, flying away towards the nearest branches they can reach.
Unfortunately, I cut the wings of a number only the other day because
they would stray, and now they will all be lost."
"Oh! what shall we do? What shall we do?" exclaimed Hector.
"We are not going to lose our lives if we can help it," said Harry, who
retained his presence of mind.
He was just then watching the piggeries. The torrent struck them,
carrying away the palings and letting the inmates loose.
"Foolish beasts!" exclaimed Harry, "instead of swimming towards the
shore they are going with their heads down the stream, taking it quite
coolly. They might have been on dry ground in five minutes if they had
gone in the right direction."
Notwithstanding Harry's warning, Hector insisted on getting upon the
roof.
"The water would surely not rise much above the floor, and as the house
had withstood the hurricane it would not be knocked down by the flood,"
he said.
Calling to Reggy to help him, he climbed up and took his seat on the
ridge.
"Come up! come up!" he shouted to Harry and Reggy; "you will be safe
enough here."
"You had better come down and get up that tree," answered Harry,
pointing to one which stood on ground of the same level as the house,
and but a short distance from it.
Besides its trunk there were the numerous pendants, which had struck
down and taken root, so that it was more likely to resist the torrent
than any other of the trees near.
Hector, however, was obstinate. He was confident that he was safe, at
all events for the present, and thought he should remain so.
"I should grow giddy if I were to climb up into such a tree as that," he
answered; "Reggy, you may go if you like, but I'll stay here."
Harry, who carried the ladder, placed it against the tree, which reached
sufficiently high to enable them to get hold of one of the lower
branches, by which they could hoist themselves higher. Harry, however,
had no intention of going up until it became absolutely necessary.
Still the water rose. It was now sweeping over the ground on which they
stood. Reggy, again entreating Hector to come, rushed up to the tree
and mounted the ladder. Just then the captain and Mr Berrington
appeared in the distance. The roar of the waters prevented their voices
being heard. Their alarm at seeing their boys placed in so perilous a
position was, of course, very great. Harry saw them making signs and
pointing to the tree.
"They want you to do as I advise," shouted Harry. "Come down! come
down!"
Hector felt the house shake, as a surge beat against it larger than any
of its predecessors. He lost confidence in the safety of his position.
"Slip off the roof by the verandah," shouted Harry.
At length, as he saw Harry still standing below him, not being aware
that the water was over his ankles, he slid down.
When Hector discovered that he must jump into the water, he attempted to
climb back again. This, however, from his alarm, and from being
unaccustomed to climb, was more than he could do, and down he slid,
Harry catching him at the bottom.
"Now run for it!" cried the latter, seizing him by the arm, and they
made towards the ladder, the water hissing and foaming at their heels.