6. "Oh, I'm afraid that we shall all be burnt up," said John, beginning to
whimper. "What shall we do?"
7. "Why, we must get out of it as fast as we can, and leave the house to
its fate."
8. "We can't get out," said the man, in a low, hollow tone, which seemed
the concentration of fear; "I would have got out of it if I could; but
just step to the back door, ma'am, and see."
9. Behind, before, on every side, we were surrounded by a wall of fire,
burning furiously within a hundred yards of us, and cutting off all
possibility of retreat; for, could we have found an opening through the
burning heaps, we could not have seen our way through the dense canopy of
smoke; and, buried as we were in the heart of the forest, no one could
discover our situation till we were beyond the reach of help.
10. I closed the door, and went back to the parlor. Fear was knocking
loudly at my heart, for our utter helplessness destroyed all hope of our
being able to effect our escape. The girl sat upon the floor by the
children, who, unconscious of the peril that hung over them, had both
fallen asleep. She was silently weeping; while the boy who had caused the
mischief was crying aloud.
11. A strange calm succeeded my first alarm. I sat down upon the step of
the door, and watched the awful scene in silence. The fire was raging in
the cedar swamp immediately below the ridge on which the house stood, and
it presented a spectacle truly appalling.
12. From out of the dense folds of a canopy of black smoke--the blackest I
ever saw--leaped up red forks of lurid flame as high as the tree tops,
igniting the branches of a group of tall pines that had been left for saw
logs. A deep gloom blotted out the heavens from our sight. The air was
filled with fiery particles, which floated even to the doorstep--while the
crackling and roaring of the flames might have been heard at a great
distance.
13. To reach the shore of the lake, we must pass through the burning
swamp, and not a bird could pass over it with unscorched wings. The fierce
wind drove the flames at the sides and back of the house up the clearing;
and our passage to the road or to the forest, on the right and left, was
entirely obstructed by a sea of flames. Our only ark of safety was the
house, so long as it remained untouched by the fire.
14. I turned to young Thomas, and asked him how long he thought that would
he. "When the fire clears this little ridge in front, ma'am. The Lord have
mercy on us then, or we must all go."
15. I threw myself down on the floor beside my children, and pressed them
to my heart, while inwardly I thanked God that they were asleep,
unconscious of danger, and unable by their cries to distract our attention
from adopting any plan which might offer to effect their escape.
16. The heat soon became suffocating. We were parched with thirst, and
there was not a drop of water in the house, and none to be procured nearer
than the lake. I turned once more to the door, hoping that a passage might
have been burnt through to the water. I saw nothing but a dense cloud of
fire and smoke--could hear nothing but the crackling and roaring of
flames, which was gaining so fast upon us that I felt their scorching
breath in my face.
17. "Ah," thought I--and it was a most bitter thought--"what will my
beloved husband say when he returns and finds that his poor wife and his
dear girls have perished in this miserable manner? But God can save us
yet."
18. The thought had scarcely found a voice in my heart before the wind
rose to a hurricane, scattering the flames on all sides into a tempest of
burning billows. I buried my head in my apron, for I thought that all was
lost, when a most terrific crash of thunder burst over our heads, and,
like the breaking of a waterspout, down came the rushing torrent of rain
which had been pent up for so many weeks.
19. In a few minutes the chip yard was all afloat, and the fire
effectually checked. The storm which, unnoticed by us, had been gathering
all day, and which was the only one of any note we had that summer,
continued to rage all night, and before morning had quite subdued the
cruel enemy whose approach we had viewed with such dread.
DEFINITIONS.-l. A-bat'ing, lessening. List'less-ly, not paying attention,
heedlessly. 3. Fal'low, a new clearing usually covered with brush heaps.
8. Con-cen-tra'tion, bringing into a small space, the essence. 9.
Can'o-py, a covering or curtain. 10. Ef-fect', to bring to pass. 11.
Suc-ceed'ed, followed. Ap-pall'ing, terrifying. 12. Lu'rid, dull red.
Ig-nit'ing, setting on fire. 15. Dis-tract', con-fuse, perplex. 16.
Parched, made very dry. 18. Wa'ter-spout, a column of water caught up by a
whirlwind.