A FEARFUL NIGHT. 409 



dashing over the gunwales. A wilder night I never 

 saw, and our position off there in the centre of the 

 angry lake made it still more fearful. I, however, kept 

 my eye steadily turned in the direction of the clearing, 

 and felt relieved as each -flash showed us steadily ad- 

 vancing towards it. But after a longer interval between 

 the flashes than usual, I saw by the sudden gleam, that 

 instead of being right ahead as before, it was over my 

 right shoulder. I immediately hallooed to Charlie, and 



CD 



asked where he was going. " To the nearest shore," he 

 replied. " What for?" I asked. " The waves are get- 

 tin °- too hi^h," he shouted back, " and we must get 



O CD / 



ashore and turn our boats over, and get under them till 



morning." "No, we don't," I exclaimed, for such a 



prospect was worse to me than the horrible uproar and 



crash around us on the lake. " Steer by the flashes 



straight for that clearing; I'll risk the waves." He 



protested loudly, and I could see by the sound of his 



voice that he was thoroughly cowed. I, however, made 



him go on, and we rowed forward, drenched to our 



skins. The fury of the storm soon broke, as I knew it 



would, and by the time we reached the shore the rain 



was nearly over. . Shouldering our carpet-bags, we 



stumbled on up to the log-hut, and entered without 



18 



