AMEEICAl^^ AGEIOULTUEIST. 
[Mabch, 
118 
Out of the Waters, 
BY AGNES CaKR. 
-o- 
“ Charlie, what’s a moggage ?” asked little 
Nancy Linn, as she and her brother picked their 
way over the mile of muddy roadway between the 
stone schoolhoiise and their rather isolated little 
home, on the picturesque bank of a broad river.— 
•‘I duuno; some animal I reckon,” and Charlie 
.shied a stone into a big puddle at the jiatli side.— 
•‘I don’t believe it’s ’xactly an animal,” said 
thoughtful little Nancy slowly, and then dropping 
her voice mysteriously, “ I think it must be a giant 
or a dragon.”—“Ah! mebbe it is,” assented Char¬ 
lie, pleased at the romantic idea, a dragon with a 
iiery mouth, “for pa said, if ’twas’nt for the mog- 
gage we could have a new roof on the house ; and 
the fairy book dragons swallowed horses and cows, 
and sometimes buildings.”—“And when I asked 
mortgage.”—“Oh! ma, will you see it ?” asked 
Nancy, with a frightened face.-^“ What dear?” 
—“ The moggage.”—“ Tes, I expect I shall, and 
thank Heaven, we have the money to pay this half, 
though it has been hard work. But you’U be quite 
safe with Stumps in the house, and we’ll be back 
by noon to-morrow.” 
An hour later, the old yellow stage drove up to 
the door, aud Charlie and Nancy waved farewcU to 
their parents, feeling quite important at being con¬ 
sidered big enough to keep house.—“ Be sui’C and 
lock the door to-night, aud don’t set anything on 
fire,” called back papa.—“ And don’t run outdoors, 
for it rains again,” said mamma, as she donned 
her waterproof, and the shouts, “ Tes, we’ll be 
very careful, good bye, good bye !” The little 
couple watched the coach out of sight, and then 
sat down by the kitchen fire to think what they 
should have for supper.—But when the twilight 
shadows gathered and a heavy rain poured down, 
Nancy looked sober, and was sure the parlor car¬ 
pet would be spoiled; and at last both became 
frightened, as the water dashed in more wildly. 
“ We.must go upstairs,” said Charlie.—“ But let 
us take something to eat,” said Nancy, “for you 
don’t know when we can get down again.” So 
wading to the cupboard they packed a basket with 
bread, meat aud milk, and then, followed closely 
by Stumps, made their way with some difficulty 
up to the floor above, as the rising water already 
covered the second step.—“ Dear me ! what would 
pa and ma say if they could see us now,” sobbed 
Nancy.—“ We must sit up all night and watch the 
house,” said Charlie; “but don’t cry, Nancy,the 
water won’t come up here, for it has stopped rain¬ 
ing, aud somebody will come to-morrow to take us 
out. Let’s play Eobinson Crusoe, and pretend we 
are cast away on a desert island, and Stumps can be 
our man Triday.—But Nancy would not be com¬ 
forted, and at last sobbed herself to sleep with her 
A FLOOD THAT BBOTJGHTAN TTHEXFECTED BLESSINTa. 
Drawn and Engraved for the American Agriculturist. 
ma to buy me a silk dress, like Kittie Allen’s, she 
sighed and said, ‘ No, dear, not while the mog¬ 
gage exists.’ It must be a horrid creature not to 
let a little girl have even a nice frock.”—“ I wish I 
could cut him in pieces, and drown him,” cried 
Charlie, now quite excited, “ aud now’s a good 
time, for see how high the river is.” Sure enough 
the mighty stream, swelled by heavy spring rains, 
and the melting snow on the hills above, was rush¬ 
ing turbulently along, filled with floating ice cakes, 
era.shing a.gainst each other.—But now “ Stumps,” 
the ugliest looking dog alive, with only an inch of 
tail, and a pair of torn and battered ears, but the 
children’s dearest friend and playmate,came bound¬ 
ing to meet them, and diverted their attention. 
On entering the house they found mother pre¬ 
paring for a journey, and their father counting a 
pile of bank bills on the old pine table. — “ We are 
going to leave you alone to-night,” ^aid Mrs. Linn, 
“ for your father wants me to go up the road with 
him to Squire Fielding’s, to pay the interest on the 
it seemed a little lonely, though the bright fire and 
comical old Stumps tried their best to make it 
cheerful. When the tea-things were put away 
Charlie and Nancy returned to the mysterious 
“moggage,” wondering why it made their mother 
so sad, and their father’s face wear such a worried, 
careworn look whenever it was mentioned.—“How 
the river roars to-night ?” said Nancy, about eight 
o’clock—“And see! what is that!” exclaimed 
Charlie, pointing to a tiny stream stealing under 
the door, and trickling across the floor. “ The 
river must be rising !” He rushed to the window, 
but the dense darkness obscured everything.—Be¬ 
fore long the whole floor became wet, and the 
children curled their feet on the chair rungs, while 
Stumps sniffed uneasily, as if he thought something 
was wrong. The water kept on, creeping, creep¬ 
ing up ; and coal scuttles, brooms and baskets be¬ 
gan to swim round comically. Charlie thought it 
was “jolly fun,” and taking off shoes and stock¬ 
ings paddled round after the Various articles ; but 
arms around Stumps’ neck, with her brown curly 
head pillowed on his rough coat.—Charlie tried 
to keep awake, but finally threw himself on 
his little bed, and slept soundly until the morning 
sun came streaming in.—All things seem brighter 
by daylight, ar.J Nancy awoke quite her happy self 
again, though both children were startled when 
they looked out of the window. They were, in¬ 
deed, literally surrounded by water, which was up 
to the top of the front door, and covered the gar¬ 
den fences, while the angry stream seemed carrying 
all things before it. Trees torn up by the roots, 
dead bodies of horses, cows, and sheep, barrels of 
potatoes and turnips, chairs and tables, all went 
sailing by, being whirled along, or caught between 
cakes of floating ice. “Oh ! see that poor little 
piggy!” cried Nancy.—“And how funny those 
red apples look, bobbing about,” said Charlie ; and 
running for his fish-pole, tided to drag some of the 
things towards him. — “But they were horror 
stricken when in the outer channel, where there 
