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THE CAROLINA SPARTAN.
by cavis & trimmier. Deuoleft Jo Southern iiifi[l)ts, politics, ft-griculture, aitfc Hliscellamj. 32 per ahvuh.
VOL. XIII. fct*ARTAl\BURG, S. C., THURSDAY, JULY 24, 1856.
^ , , .
THE CAROLINA SPARTAN.
BY CAVI8 & TRIMMIER.
T. 0. P. VERNON, Associate Editor,
Price Two Dollars per unouin in advance, or
$'2.50 ut the cud of the year. If not paid until
after the year expires $3.00.
Puyinont will bo considered iu advance if made
within three months.
No subscription taken for less than six months.
Money may bo remitted through postmasters at
our risk.
Advertisements inserted at the usual rates, ntul
contracts made on reasonable terms.
The Spartan circulates largely over this and
adjoining districts, and oilers an admirable medium
to our friends to reach customers.
.fob work of all kinds promptly executed.
Illanks, Law and K juity, continually on liauJ
or priri ed to order.
BLACK THUltSDAY.
Aa the vtynger Approaches the shores of j
Victoria, the first welcome land which greets i
him is the bold promontory of Cape Otway.
If it l>o at night, the blaze from tho light- |
house on its southern point sends hi in its j
choering welcome for many a league ncross
the ocean which he has so long traversed .
in expectation, and calls forth rapturous !
hurrahs from the throng of passengers who '
crowd to the forecastle. If it Ixj day, the I
eye rests on its lofty forest hills with a rpiiet !
and singular delight. These heights fully
rospond to llio ideal of a new land
only recently peopled. Clothed with for- j
csls from tho margin of the sea to their
very summtU, thoy realize vividly tho ap- '
proach to a vast region of primaeval nature.
The lull while stems of tho gum-trees stand ;
thickly side by side like so many hoary
columns; and here and there ainoug them
descend dmk ravines, while piles of rocks on
the heights, alternating with jugged chines ,
and projecting spurs of tho mountains, present
their solitary masses to the breeze of 1
ocean.
Amongst the locks of this wild shore j
there are sea-caves of vast extent and sol
emn aspect, which have never y :t been J
thoroughly explored. The forest, extend- |
ing fifty miles or more in all diioclions, is
one of the most denso and savage in the
whole colony. Until lately it was almost
Impassable from tho density of the scrub,
and from tho masses of v nes, (that i >, almasor
creeping cord like plants,-chiefly parnsi
tical,) which, as in the forests of South
Amoiica, climb Iron) tree to tree, knitting
the woods into an obs-uro and impenetrable
shade. Expecting along the track from
Mr. lloadkuiglu's station, near the source^ .
of tho liar war, through tho heart of the .
forest to Apollo Hay, u di?tuMCO of forty
miles, you might cut your way wiih an are,
butavoul I find it difficult to make prngre s
otherwise. The. greater part of the pro- j
inonlory consisting of strep hills covered t
with gigantic trees intersected by shelving
Valleys, and dark witii congregated ferntree*,
beetling precipice*. and stony deelivi- (
ties?Kflbrds no final for enllle. In oiio day, !
however, known l?> the colonist.'? as Ml.u-k ;
'l'liui.-day, a Iintiie.me of tkune opened iis I
ru le and imprnctienble v\ iI terno-s to the
fool of man, but presented hiin at the same j
with a black and blasted chaos of charred
trees and gigantic fallen trunks and branches.
It vras in this forest, in the early morning !
\>f this memorable day, the sixth of Kcbru ,
aVy, eighteen hundu-d and fifty one, tlint a
young man opened liis eyes and sat up to '
look about Ikiin. lie had, the day before,
driven a herd of fifty bullocks from the sla? .
tiort of Mr. Roadknight tlius far on bis way
towards bis own rosideiico in the country j
between Lake Coritngamito and Mount (>cllibiand.
lie bad reached at evening a
small grassy valley in tho outskiits of the
forest, watered by a creek fulling into (he
western lbtrwar, and b;ul there paused for
the night, liis mob of cattle, tii.danl
hungry, were not inclined to stray from the
rich pasturage before them; and, hobbling
out his splendid black horse Sorcerer, he
prepared to pass the night it) the simple
fashion of tho settler on such journeys. .\
fallen log supplied bint with a convenient;
scat, a tire was quickly lit from the dead ,
boughs which lay plentifully around, and
his quart cup, replenished at the c ?ek, was
soon hissing and bubbling with its side
thrust into tho glowing tiro, lie hud a
good stoie of kangaroo sandwiches, and
there he sat with his cop of btror.g bitah-tcu
?looking alternately at the grazing cattle,
and into tho solemn, gloomy, and sound- ,
loss woods, in which even tho laughing i
ja kass failod to shout his clamorous adieu
to tho falling day. Only the distant monotone
of tho inoropork?the nocturnal cue |
koo of the Australian wilds? reached his]
? ir, making the profound soHtdde still idore.
solitary. 1 Lo very soon rolled himself in
9 his travelling-rug, and flung himself down
uerore tuo liro?having previously piled
fresh supply of limber upon it?near where
his trusty dogs lay, and where Sorcerer, in j
the favorite fashion of the bush-horse, slept I
Ms he stood.
The morning was hushed and breathless.
Instead of that bracing chill, with which
the Australian lodger out of doors generally
wakes up, ltobort Patterson found the (
perspiration standing thick on his face,:
and ho fell a strange longing for a deep
breath of fresh air. liift motion there was
none, except in the little creek which trickled
with a fresh and inviting nspect at a
few yards from him. He arose, and strip- j
ping, plunged into the deepest spot of it
that he could find, and thus refreshed re- 1
kindled his fire, and made his solitary
broakfast. l>ut all around him hung, as it !
were, a leaden and death like heaviness. '
Not a bough nor a blade of grass was mov-1
ed by the air. The trees stood inanimately
moody and sullen. ilo cast his eyes
through tbo gloomy shadow beneath
them, and a sultry suffocating densi- :
ty seomod to chargo the atmosphere. The
sky nbove him was dimmed by a groy
haze,
' Thero is something in tbo wind to day,
old fellow," he said, addressing iiis horse.
In bin usual way; for he had long looked '
ou hi? as a companion, and firmly beiiev J
ed that he understood till that he said to t
hiiu. "There is something in the wiud; c
yot, where is the wind ?" v
The perspiration streamed from him with a
the mere exertion of saddling his horse, o
and as ho mounted him to rouse up his cat- v
tie, horse, dogs, and cattle, manifested a t
listlessness that only an extraordinary con- fi
dition of tho atmosphere could produce. If 1
you had seen the tall, handsome young v
man seated on his tall and noble horse, c
you would have felt that they were togetli- f<
or formed for any exploit of strength and g
speed. Hut tho whole troop?cattle, man,
and horse?went slowly and soberly along, v
as if they were oppressed by u groat fatigue ?
or the extreme exhaustion of famine. j a
Tho forest closed in upon them again, h
and they proceeded along a narrow truck, t
Hanked on each side by tall and densely- n
growing trees*, tho creeping vines making t
of tho whole forest ono intricate, impeno- t
trnble scene. All was hushed as at mid- t
night. No bird enlivened the solitude by r
its cries, and they had loft tho little stream, ii
Suddenly there came a puff of air; hut it o
was like the air from the jaws of a furnace: ' *
hot, dry, withering in its very touch. The *
young settler looked quickly in the diroc- ' c
lion from which it came, and instantly r
shouted to the cattle before him, in a wild,
abrupt, startling shout, swung aloft the I
stock whip which ho hold in his hand, and J
brought it down with the report of a pistol, 1
and the sharp cut as with a knife, 011 the 0
ear of the huge bullock just before him.
The stock whip, with a handle about a , <J
half a-yard in length and ft thong of throe , c
yards long, of plaited bullock hide, is a tor- 1
liblo instruuieul in tho hands of a praclis- f
ed stockman. Its sound i> a note of terror f
to tho cattle?it is like tho report of a s
blunderbuss, and the stockman at full u
gallon will hit any given spot on the beast i
that he is within reach of, and cut the piece )
clean away through the thickest hide that ; s
hull or bison ever woro. lie will striko a , s
lly on a spot of mud at full speed, and take t
away tho skin with him, making the rosy 1 Ii
blond spting into the wind, and tho astnn*
ished animal dart forward as if mad. 0
Louder and louder, wilder and more 11
fiercely, shouted the sniinttrr. and IasIio.I !i
his horse forward over (allot trees, through
crashing thickets, first on one side of lire I
road, and then on tho other. Crack, crack, J
went tho stingilvg, flashing whip; loud was , I
tho l?ui k of dogs; and the mob of cattle o
rushed forward* at headlong speed. The t
young man gazed upwards; and, through )
the only uariow opening of the forest, saw i i
strange volumes of smoke toiling south- : t
ward. Hotter, hotter, stronger, nud more I
steadily eajue tho wind. JIo suddenly >
clucked his horse, and listening, grew pale 1
at the sonud which reached lum. It was ' fi
a low deep roar, as of a wind in the tieo i I
top, oi of a heavy waterfall, distant, and t
smothered in sOtno deep ravine. 1 t
*'G< d have lucrcy! ' ho exclaimed, "a s
hush fuel and in this thick forest!'' Once j I'
tUoie he sprang fotwatd, shouting, tLun* 1
doting with his whip. Jle and the herd j e
were galloping along tlio narr-w wt .1 , t
track. J?ul as ho had turned westward in j
tho direction of his homo, the woods?< f ; t
which ho had before seen the loundary? I
now cloved for some miles upon him; and 1
as ho could not turn right or left for the t
clmos of vines and scrub that ob tructed the
forest, the idea of being overtaken there by I
the bush lire was horrible. Such ail event I
would be death, and death only. <
Therefore, ho urged on his living herd a
with desperation. Crack upon crack fioni >'
his long whip resounded through the hoi- il
low wood. The cattle themselves seemed J
to hear the ominous sound, and Miilf the c
now stroii"lv liori?i'nlilil.i
B-J l 1 "
11..: lour of the tito came louder, and evei r
and anon seemed to swell and surge us if f
urged on by a rough rising blast. The heal n
was fierce and sutlbcatiiig. The young 1
squatter's clothes hung to hiiu with stream- >
it.g prespiration, 'lhe horse and cattle t
steamed and smoked with boiling heat, s
Yet onward, onward they dashed with loll- r
ing tongues. Sorcerer,specked with patches .
of foam on his dark shining body, seetned r
to grow-furiously impatient of the obslrtie i
tion offered by tlie bullocks in bis path. i
As bis master's whip exploded on their
flanks, lie laid back bis curs; and, with I
llainiug eyeballs and bared teeth, strove to t
tear them in his rage. 1
Robert Patterson knew that the extraor- ?
dinnry heat and drought of the summer had I
scorched up the gras->?the very ground; '<
had licked np the water from crabhole, t
pool, and many a creek; had withered the I
herbage into crisp hay, and so withered the s
foliage, that you might crumble it between I
your fingers. The country appeared tho- I
roughly prepared for a conflagration, nn.] i
only required this fiery wi'ul to send a blase 1
of extermination over the whole land. For <
weeks?-nay, months?iho shephetds and '
sawyeis had spoken of tires binning in tho t
hills; and in the fern treo bieaks of this I
very foiest ho had boon recently told that 1 '
llamcs had been observed in vaiious direc- 1
lions burning redly by night.
If the firo reached hitn attd his herd before
they escaped into tho opun plains,
they must bo consumed like stubble. The cattle
began to show signs of exhaustion, t
hanging out their parched tongues, and 1
panting heavily; tho prespiration on himself <
and horso was dried up by tho awful heat; <
and the dogs tan silently, or only whining
lowly t? themselves, as they hunted every i
hollow in their way for water. Suddenly, I
they were out in an open plain, yet with I
the forest on either hand, but at a conside- 1
raid* distanco. i
What a scene! The woods were flaming t
and crackling in ono illimitable conflagra- j
lion. Tho wind, dashing from the north I ^
in gusts of incouccivablo heat, secuiod to t
sear the very face and shrivel up tho lungs. 1
Tho firo leaped from treo to tree, flashing
and roaring along with tho speed and tho i *
dostructivoness of lightning. Tho sore fo- i 1
liage seemed to snatch tho fire, and to per- 11
ish in it iu a riot of demouiacal revelry. On t
it flow, fast as the fleetest horse could gallop;'s
and consuming acres of leaves in a niomeut, l
still remained to rage and roar amongst the I <1
tranches ami in tho hollow stems of an-1 in a
ient trees. Tho whole wood on tho left 1 mind
ras an enormous region of intenses! flame, 1 her v
,nd that on the right sent forllrtho sounds ' emin
>f the snino ravaging Grcs; but, being to } boy r
riudward, tho tlames could not bo seen fbr | her a
ho vast clouds of smoke, mingled with 1 had
iery sparks, which were rolled on tho air. her h
rbero was a sound as of thunder, mingled there
villi tho crash of fulling trees, and tho wild ! in th
lies of legions of birds of all kinds, which wilhi
till scorched and blackened and dead to tho ( not r
;round. > a re
Onco out on this open plain, the cattle I \vhol<
tore speedily lost in the blinding ocean of built
moke, and the young settler obliged to she c
bandou them, made a dash onward for 1 the h
lis life. Now tho Humes came racing along 1 Th
ho grass with the speed of the wind, and eon v
nowiug all smooth as a pavement; now it Tho
ore fmiously t rough some near point of wliol
ho forest, and Hung burning ashes and tho i
angles of blazing bark upon tho galloping Then
ider. Hut Sorcerer, with an instinct more cauli
nfallible than human sagacity, sped on, looter
ver thicket, and stone, and fallen lice, Thill
norting in tho thick masses of sinoke, and j stock
tretching forward his gasping jaws as if to comj
atch ovoiy broath of air to sustain impelled had 1
expiration. i they
When the wind veered, the reek driven I'atu
nckward revealed a most amazing sight. \ horse
'ho blazing skirts of tho forest; huge bo- tiou
utod trees, glaring red?standing columns and 1
if fiie; hero a vast troop of wild horses with i herd;
lying manes and tails, rushing with ilium men,
leiing hoofs over the plain; llicro herds of troo|
attle iunuing, with bloodshot eyes and open
langing tongues, they knew not whither, porai
rom the firc?; troops of kangaroos leaping housi
ranlically across the rider's path, their hair J one *
inged nnd giving out strongly the stench j row.
f lite; birds of all kinds nnd colors slniek- was
ng pileously as they drove wildly bv. and coulc
et saw no sj ot of safety; thousands <. f flock
beep, standing huddled in terror on the ; eatth
corclied flats, with singed wool, deserted ine;
?y their shepherd-, who had fled for their scout
ives. but
Hut onward flow the intrepid Sorccier, Lake
inward stretched his rider, thinking light- pastt:
ling winged thought of home, and of his dozei
lelpless, paralyzed mother theie. ' fully
With a caution inspired by foimcr out- : loss,
ireaks of bush fires, lie had made at some ' of ye
listunce round hi< homestead a bare ciicle. be f?
ie had felled the fo:est trees, leaving only T1
ilie here and there nL *iii-li .15 ?t?in/? ?.. il.-.t
hero was iittle fear of ignition. As tlio lloch
uinmor diied the grass, lie had set tiro t<> miv.1
t on days when the wind was gentle enough ni.
0 leave the lhuuo at command, watching, catth
irnnch in linud, to bout out any blaze ilia: pooh
night have travelled into the forest. Uv ilami
his moans lie had hitherto prevented the with
iie hum reaching his homestead; and he ; blind
1 id stiougly recommended the saino plan fund!
o his neighbors, though generally with lit iho ?3
le effect. Now, the tire was so teirible, and wi.h
paiks tlow so wide on the wind, that lie 1 he
eared they might kindle the grass round of t!.
.is homestead, and that he ini^ht tin ! ho'.::
vervthiittf and eveiv per- n tlier'.'ccnsunt 1 ealal
d.' ' i "1
Iiilt, behold! the g'eMijing, Wei onto wa e l ?
irs of l.ake Oolae! Soieercr rubln-d head "x
mig towards it; and wading hastily up to his i
lis side- in its cooling tloo I, thrust his head ate <
o the eyes into it, and diuuk as if he could ed y
leyei bo satistie I with le>s than the whole I doi
ake. Europeans, now to the scene, would j of re
ihvo trembled for the horse; hut the bush ? )
teed, knowing best what ho needs, eats clt c
aid drinks as likes him l>est, and flourish- .
> t>n it. Smoking liut, the rider lots him Mrs.
Irinlc his till, and all g as well. The luat s;i;, '
>reduces perspiration, and tlio evaporation p|cni
i?ols and so"lhes him. lJobert Patterson ol,t ,
lid not luse a moaicut in followint? S.ire.i- 1 ..s
t-r's example. lie llurg himself headloi g |
iout llio saddle, droned us lie was, dived, far."
ind ^dashed, and urank exuberantly, lie i infield
again and again his smarting face and |
inged hands in the delicious water; then toui
lirew it over the steed, that now, satiated,
tood panting in the flood. Ho laved and . ;t frc
ubbed down the grateful animal with : ?ow.i
vave after wave, cleaning the dried pernpi- i juile
ation from every hair, giving him refresh told
uent at every pore. Then up and away t|u, |
'gain. i )je h
lie had not ridden two hundiel I him
efoio he saw, lying on the plain, a horse ' j,r i,j
hat had fallen in saddle and bridle, and .-Tra?
ay with his logs under him, and head ! ,
trclcheJ atilHy forward, with glaring eye- |,llLrt
>alls, but dead. Near bint was a man, with
dive, but sunk in exhaustion. Ilia eyes j H j*lir
limed wildly on the young squatter, and wjtJ,
lis parchod lips moved, but without a j barn
ound. Robert Patterson comprehended 1 smol
lis need; and, running to the lake, brought ; W:is
lis pannikin full of water, and put it to his saw
noulb, It was the water of life to him.! wct|.
lis voice and some degree of strength caino ^v0i<j
juickly hack, llo had come from the , his I
torth, and had ridden a race with llio Ore, sCori
ill luirca uml timti !? %-! 1 '
... ?. ? .....* ....... ii.iii uvrt', mo Kiel.
torso never to rUe again. But i'atiersou's >!
lecd was too urgeul for delay, lie found 1 |,.IS |
ho uian had no lack of provisions; lie carrie 1 i
dm in his arms to llio margin of the s?.arl
ake, mounted, and rodo on. 1|(J ;
As lio galloped forward, it was still tire and
?firo everywhere, lie felt convinced that and
he conflagration?fanned by llio strong vis;L
vind, and acting upon fires in a hundred hoaj
punters?extcudod over the wholo sun- The
iiied colony. di?pl
It was still caily noon, when, with strain- iiio.
ng eyes, and a heart which seemed almost T1
0 stand still with a tciriblo anxiety, drea
io cauio near his own home, lio daited mo t
>ver the biow of a hill?there It lay safe! j 'II
1 he circle within his cleared boundary was his
intoticliod by tlm tire. I hero wore hix with
Ktddocka, his. cattle, his hut*, and home. 'T
iVith a lightning thought his thanks flow up UJ
o J leaven, anil ho was the next moment at "I
lis door, in his house, in his mother's arms. I "l
Hubert's anxiety had been great for the said
afoty of hi* mother?her anxiety was tiip- "I
ud for him. Terror occasioned by a for- ing 1
ncr conflagration had paralyzed her lower earn
xtreiuities; and now, the idea of her only fatht
on, her only remaining relative in rhecolo j laid
iy, being met by this unexampled tire in the rrstf'
lenae defile* of the Otway Forest, kept her i the*.
stale of tlio most fearful tension of
Mrs, Patterson, though confined lo
wheeled chair, was a woman of pre*
ent eneigy and ability. Left with her
i more infant, she bad managed all
Hairs with a skill nnd discretion tlmi
produced great prosperity. Though
icart was kind, her word was law; and
was no man on her run who dared
o slightest to disobey bur, nor olio
n thu whole country round who did
espcct and revere her. She had been
mnrkably handsome woman. 'Ihc*
e of tbe floors of tho station being
upon one level, in her wheeled chair
onld be nt any moment in any part of
ouso or promises.
0 moment tho Aral joy of mother and
1 as ever, what a scene presented ilsulf!
stnlion was like a fair. From the
e country round people had tied from
the, and had instinctively tied thoie.
c was a feeling that tho Patterson preons,
which they themselves had nog*
1, were tho guarantee* of safety.
ior shepherds had driven their lloeks,
men tlieir herds, and whole families,
telled to tleofiom their burning houses,
tiurriod thither with tho fe.v ctlect* that
could snatch up and bear with them,
srson's paddocks were crowded with
is and cattle; the bush round his stawas
literally hidden beneath his own
lis neighbors* lloeks. Stockmen, aliep
substantial squatters, now housclos
were in the throng. Families, with
is of children, had encamped in the
ground near his house, beneath tcmy
ton tn of sheets and blanket*. 11 is
wa- crammed with fugitives; nt.d was
iccno of crowding, confusion and sor
Luckily l!io l'atteison store room
well-stocked with flour, ami there
I be no want of meat with all tho*e
s and herds about thorn. Hut for tin*
j themselves there must soon bo a f.unaud
the luoinout that the lite abated,
s must be sent oft' in all directions?
especially to the high plains around
Corangnuiitu?in search of temporary
ire. Meantime, tiros were lighted in a
II places, and frying-pans and kettles
employed?for, spite of flight, and
and grief, hunger, as Homer thousands
ais ago asserted, is itnpu lent, and will
d.
ic stories that the people had to loll
roost melancholy?house- burnt down,
s dostioyed, children suffocated in tho
;o or lost in the rapid flight, shepherds
l u'.! h- Itivtrs consumed with their
Numbers had fled to crocks an t
., mid y t Ii.nl been severely burnt -tinj-.
dtiving over the surface of the water
devouring force. Some had laid in
ow l?iook?, turning ?<\>-r and ?>v>t, till
v forced to get tip and fir. Still, as
ay wore on, numbers came poiuingiti
fre-h talcs of horror and devastation,
whole eounlri npp aied lol>e the prey
e flame*; n:t 1 en who were, a few
bef ro, out of tho reach of poverty or
i< '.v. were to w hotnehs, pauper*,
he M i\woI ?, mother," i'altorsuu a-k
"i- there any new* of litem;"
< no, my dear Robert, none, ' replied
author. "I hope and believe that they
; lite safe. I hey have long ag ? adopt
our own plan of a clearance ring, ?nd
ibl not areju- t now as much a centre
fligo as wft ate."
Jut 1 should iiko to be sure," said Kol>
cri >u?ly. "1 inn?t ride or or an ! ?ee."
lu t you? 1 think you must not,'' said
l'atterson. "Hut if you cannot be
hd let some of the men g >?there arc
ly at band, and you aie already worn
ivi'.h fatigue and excitement."
su, I am tpiilu Well Rlid bosh- I had
ir go myself," said Uobeit; "it is not
And he strode out, his mother .*ayf
you find all right, don't come hark
giit."
'boit 1'alter-on was soon mounted on
,1. ...1 . ..... .?..! i.? . 1 - ' -1
ti f?UU I'VMKII.i: liui>t, iiw<l C.'lIIlcrCU i?U
rds Mount Hosmj. It was only seven
s off. 'I ho hut north wind had cea?ed
o\v; the air was cooler, and the lins i:i
orc?t wore burning inoro tamely. Vol
\il to lide over a track width shotted
thy ravages which the llames ha.l ma le
is pleasant woods. The whole of the
? was annihilated; thy dead timber ly
jn thy ground was still burning, and
j hollow trees stood like great chimney s,
(lainoa issuing from the'.r tops as from
mice, and r. re 1, intense fire burning
in their trunks below, and from litem
ing earthy matter came tumbling out
king and i dling on the ground, lie
about crossing a small creek, when lit
an Irishman?a shepherd of thy Max
> Si.niig Oil >Ui bal.KS. il,i i iwlllCt
i nearly all consumed from his back?
tat was the merest remaining fragment,
rhed and shrivelled. The man whs
ing himself to and fro and groan ing.
than!" exclaimed l'attersorj. "What
happened to yoni"
iu man turned upon him a visago that
ltd liint with terror. It was, indeed,
tiger a human visage, but a scorched
sw ollen mass of deformity. The beard
hair were burnt away?eyes were not
'e the whole face being a confused
> of red flesh and hanging blisters,
poor fellow iniscd a pair of bands that
y. d equally the dreadful works of lh?
10 young squatter exclaimed?"I! >w
dful! I,it me help you, Feh.ui?let
ako you lioine."
ic man groaned again, and, opening
distorted month w 1? difliouhy, and
ag?>ny, said ?
lia\o no homo?it i.-> burnt.''
^ml your famih 1"
lead - all dead."
hit are vou sure?arc you quite sure?'
Rubort, excitedly.
saw ono- -my oldest boy; ho was lymint
near tho house. 1 lifted him, to
i him away, hut he said, 'Lay mo down,
ir?lay mo down, I caunot bear it.' I
him Clown, nnd asked, 'Where aro the
' VII (led into tho bush,' ho said, and
he died. 1hay aro all burnt."
I Hubert Patterson flung tire wretched b
man a linen handkerchiof, bidding hiin dij> S
it in tbo creek and lay it on bis face to ll
keep the air from it and turned bis horse, tl
saying ho would look for the family, j si
1 lie noon found the placo when, tbo hut o
1 bad stood. It was burnt to ashes. On the ' lj
' ground, not far from it, lay the body of the j
dead little boy. Patterson hastened along | o
1 the liaek of the old road to tbo Maxwells' e
station, tracing it as well as he could in j e
the tire and the flaming branches, lie fell , h
! suro that the flying family would take tha. a
> way. In a few minutes it brought him li
: agaain upon the creek by which the poor li
man sat, but lower down. j l<
There stood a but in a damp spot, which . v
had been used years ago for tbo sheep ' ii
I washing, but bad long been deseiled. li C
was surrounded by thick wattles,still burn- s
I ing. The but was on lire, but its rotten ! n
limbers fotciug out far more smoke than ' d
flame. As be approached, lie heard low l<
! cries and lamentations. "Tbo family is ti
fled thither," lie said to himself, "and two ' t
perishing of suffocation." He sprang to t!
1 the ground, and dashed forward tlirough t?
i columns of heavy smoke. It was bop-less a
to breatbo in it, for its pungent and sting- <
ing strength seemed to close his lungs, and j e
; vvatci rushed from his eyes in torrents. \ L
Hut pushing in. he seized the fiiat living 1
thing that be laid bis bauds on, and bore ' v
it away. It was a child. Again Lo made ! 1:
the desperate essay, and succeeded in bring | v
out no less than four children and the |
mother, who was sunk on the floor as dead, a
! but who soon g ive signs of life and return- , f<
I ing consciousness. t
The young man was now in tbo utmost a
perplexity with his charge, ft was a heart d
rending sight. The whole group wcio | s
more or less hurt, but, ac it-.coined to him, li
| not so much buit as lo aflecl their li\es. a
j I heir station was three milts distant, and , e
lie bad no alternative but to leave ilium i s
! there till he rode and rent a curl for j
{ them. With much labor, carrying the j h
1 children one after another in his arms, be 1
I conveyed the weful group to the father. i r
, A- tho young man stood bew ildered by ' d
: the cries and lamentations of the family on j f
: meeting the father, a horse, ridden by a 1 c
bnly, approached at n gallop. This appari- i
lion contrasted strangely with the luiuonta-1 t
bio "IO'ITi of slltlnr< r< T!m ' t
I O I \ J"""*.
; wits tall and of a most beautiful figure. and o
was mounted on a fine bay hone. A Ii^lit a
: skit m il broad Kit lint were ull ll?o devia- v
I lions from her homo costume that haste a
| had I d Iicr to asiumo. IKr face, fresh I
and roseate, full of youth, loveliness and i
f -? lb g, w.i% at the sumo time grave and
anxi ;i , as she ga? d in -prcJdess wonder I
! On the group. I
"Mb. Maxwell'." Patterson exclaimed, <
''in the n unc t>! lle.awn, what lunvd How t
i ". all at the Mount? Yet, on this dreadful t
d iy, what l-ut ill can happen T*
"Nothing is ami-s, that I know of," said |
the \olli 4 lady. "We arc all safe at home, c
The the has not cmne near us." s
" l b.f . ii <!I" said lbrheit. "I was 14a. 's
:n4 to your home. when I fell in with this
| unfortunate family. Will you rido hack I
and send us a cart." :
"But I h??er sou will come with nic,for I. a
too, was going to you." r
4 To uiel" cried tho young man, in the I
utmost astonishment "Thou all is not 1
, right. Is Lieorgo welll" j ?.
"1 hope so," replied Mi?s Maxwell; but ' \
the tears started into her eyes at the same j 1
moment, and Hubert Patterson g ive a . i
groan of apprehension,
j "1 hope so," added the young laJ^, re ' i
covering her self possession; "but that is 1 ;
the point I want to ascertain. Yesterday,
' he went with Tureen into the hills to bring *
in the cattle, and this morning the the sin , ,
pi bed them when they had taken two dif i
ft rent sweeps along the sides of a range. |
: Tureen could not find Ooorge again, but ' .
111 ado his way home, hoping his master ' j
i iiau uoue ino same. <?eorge lias not yet ,
come, and the lire is raging so fiercely in (
the hills, that I could think of nothing (
but coining to you for your advice and as j
! sLtanee." j ,
''Thauk you, Kilou!" said Robert with a ?
sad emotion. "I will find hiin if lie be ,
alive.1' lie sprang upon bis ! use; and, j
telling the unhappy family that ho would : (
send immediate assistance, bv/tlj he and ,
Miss Maxwell gallopped away. j
Wo will not attempt to divulge their i
. conversation 0:1 the way; but will let the i
reader a little into the mutual relations of i
, i th- so two families and these young people. !
Miss Ellen Maxwell and her brother George j
, were the sole remaining members of the >
j family. As ih?? nearest neighbors of the <
' I'attersons, they had grown into intimate j .
, friends. George and P. bert had Ken . ,
playfellows in Van Dieman** Land; and |
lure, where they had come in their boy- \
,! hood, they wore schoolfellows. Siuce then
they had gradually grown, from a similari- t
ty of tastes and modes of life, tho most in- | j
tiintitu friend*. It was not likely that Uob- ,
ert Patterson and Kllen Maxwell could <
avoid liking one another. They possessed i
everything in mind, p.-rson, and estate, |
which made ouch an attachment lire most ?
natural in the world. Kllen wa-> extremely
attached to Mrs. Patterson, for whom sire ,
had lit" highest veneration, Ellon had !
' received an excellent education in Kdin* 1 .
i burg, whither she had been sent to her ' |
friend-. In her nature she was fiank, joy- | |
, oris and affectionate, but not without a ,
k> on sense of womanly pride, wl? ch gave ' |
, a certain dignity to her manner and a repn- j (
lation for high spirits. ,
All had gone well betwrocn herself and 1
Kobeil till Mtuie-ix inonthi ago. Put since 1
then there sprung up a misunderstanding i
Nobody could loll how it had arisen?no- t
body except Kllen knew, anil whatever was i
the secret cau-e, she locked it impenetrably <
within her own bosom. All at one* she i
had assumed a distant and haughty man- |
' ner towards Robert Patterson. From him I
, she did not conceal that she full she had i
cause for her dissatisfaction, but she refuser! r
i to explain. Whoo, confounded at the cir*! 1
1 cumstance, be sought for an explanation, I
i Pre baJe him serrch hit own memory and ' i
is heart, and they would instruct him. | ?
lie insisted that they should cease to regard | t
jCinselves as aflianccd, and only consented 1
int nothing as yet should be said on the I
abject to her brother or Mrs. Patterson,
n the ground that it would most painful- 1
f afllict them. . I
Ellen, who used to bo continually riding I
ver to see Mrs. Patterson with her broth- ' a
r, now rarely appeared, and proudly do- i a
lined to give her reason foi the change in I
er?adding that she must absent herself ^ I
'icgc-thci' if the subject WefO letiev.vd lo I
er brother she was equally reserved, and i
o attributed it to caprice, bidding Robert i
j tako no notice of it. Fllei) was not
, ithout other admirers, but llial was noth- i
ig new. Ono young man who had lately i
otne into the neighborhood paid her a9 j s
idiious attention, and gossip did nqt fail t
o attribute the cause of Robert Patterson's ! i
celine of favor to his influence. Lint El- : <
in gave no countenance to sueli a supposi ; i
ion. She was evidently under no desire I i
r> pique her old lover by any marked pro I
iilection for a new one. Her nature was ;
do noble for tho pettiness of coquetry, and |
uy desire to add poignancy to coldness, i
hi the other baud, it was clear to the qrii- I
tly watchful eye of her brother that she was i
icraelf even more unhappy than Robert. : l
ler oyes often betrayed the effuets of secret
roeping, and tho paleness of her cheek to
ied the assumed air of cheerfulness -l^p ' '
rorc.
Things were in this uncomfortable stale >
,t the outbreak of the lire. It was llieie- I
uru a most cheeiiug thought to Patterson*
hat, iu her distress, she had !l mi fit at, and
t onco, to him. This demonstrated conli- i
eucc iu liis friendship. True, on all occa- (
ions she had protested that her souse ??fl i
lis high moral character was nut nr. ioln
bated; but, iu this spoutum oi*s act, Hobrl'a
heart persuaded himself that there lay ij
omething nt'-re.
No-souiier did he toaeh the Mount, than,!
caving Ellen to send off assistance to the
'ehnns, he took Tureen, the stockman, and
ode into the forest hills. It was soon
lark, and they had to halt; but not fur
rom the spot where Tureen had lost sight
f his muster. They tethered their horses
u a space clear of trees and fire, and gave
hern corn that they had brought with
hem. When the moon to-e, they went
m to some distance uttering lottd coooea to
ttract the ear of the lost man; but all in
ain. The lite had left tho ground hot
u>J covered with ashen, and here nml there
tugo trees burning like columns of red-hot
ron.
Finding all their efforts for tho night fruit
ess, they llung themselves down beside
heir horses; and with the earliest peep of
lawn ti#e\ were up and off higher into
Ire hills. Their way presented at every step
he shocking effects of tho tire. Kver and
iron they came upon bullock* which had
icrished in it. llcro and there, too, they
IvsorioU the remains ?>T kangaroos, oposurns,
and hundreds of birds, scared and
hovelled into sable masses of cinder.
They came at length to tho spot where
lurecti ami George Maxwell had parted;
tud tiio experienced bush than carefully
mught out the tracks of the horses' feel,
md followed them. These wcro either ob
iterated by tho lite, ur failed (rum the
ocky hat Incss of tho ground; but, by in
lefaligable search, they regained them, and
voro led at 1eng*h to the c<lge of a deep
md precipitous ravine. In the ravine
tself tlie trees and grass remained nneathed;
the torrent of tire had leaped over
t, swo-ping away, liuwcver, every sliruh
md blade of herb from the height*.
4,l?od defend us!" exclaimed Hubert; "the
,mok.; mu*l have Minded him, ai d concealjd
this ftighlftil place. Mail and horse ar?loublle-s
dashed to pieces.'
lie raised n loud and clear cooce, instantly
uiswered by tho wild and clamorous bark ;
ng of a dog, which, iu llie next iii-laui,
iVhs seen leaping and springing about hi
.ho bottom of tha do!!, as if frantic with
lolight.
"That* is Snimip!" exclaimed Tureen;
unl iho two men began to descend the
deep side of the ruviue. Robert (V.terson
nitstripped his older and heavier com pan
on. Ho sovinod to fly down the ahoer and !
:raggy descent. Hero he seized a bough. '
.hero a point of the ruck, and, in the next j
hstant, was a-1 rapidly traversing the lot- j
;oin of the glen. Snirrup, the cattle dog. '
tislio 1 barking and whining upon Vnn, ?s j
n a tit of madness, and then nounded on |
jefuro him. Robert followed in breathless ;
inxiely, stoppod the next mwttent by the '
light of George Maxwell's horse lyin?r (
rrushed and dead. Hubert cast a rapid
{lance around, expecting every moment h> ;
1* C ' s. II . I " **" '
tv ! *"? IiiCiUi C'jtJdiiV liloiC'^. I ?ilt |?i v60il t?T j
ic heard the faint sound of A human
mice.
There lay (reorgo, stretched in the mid?t ,
>f a grassy thicket, with a lace expressing j
ig >uy and exhaustion. Robert seized his '
ilVre 1 hand, and Geoigc called first fur j
valor. His friend started tip and ran dow n j
ho valley ht full ep?. M- 'die w as soon i
t?aok w illi i\ pannikin ??f wnt^r, Which tlx; !
(UtlVrer drank unh avidity.
lie now learned that, as In 1 bocn sup
posed, in tlx) thick smoke, the horse had
gone over the precipice, and \wa* killed in
in instant, lloorgo ha 1 escajKjd.' his fall
!??ing broken b v It is stood; nn?V J?e whs
ilung back into tlie thicket, Hgain j
iofteiied the shock of Ids do ho
tad a broken leg, and was, Ircutely
bruised and torn. Life, IWWHkr '
?r:\% strong within him*, and Turecrr%Ji?'
II >hcrt lost no time in having a litter ot j
polos bound together with string}- bark, j
made soft with grass and leaves, laid in a
dieet of lite same bark. They had three!
miles to bear the shattered patient, to w hom j
ivory movement proJuoed excruciating
igonios. It was nut long l>eforo they heard
people in different parts of the wood fondly
cooeeing; and their answers soon brought
not only a number of mon w ho had been
lent out in que?t of them, but also Miss;
Maxwell herself
We shall not attempt to describe the
m land i at T.-j<v.cing intei view of the broth i
r ! 11 "1
tr and sister, nor ilia rapidity with which
lie different men were sent off upon the
iorses tied in tiiohills for tlio surgeon, who
ived two miles off.
In A few days (Jcorge Maxwell?his leg
laving been set and bis wounds dressed?
tad become easy enough to relate all that
jtid happened to him; the dreadful night
which ho had passed in extreme agony in
he glen, and the excitement which the
oud < ooco3 of Robert, which bad reached
tint, but to which he was unable to reply,
ind ycoasiooed both him and ihe faiuifui
ind sympathizing dog, who barked vehemently;
bnt, as it proved, in vain.
From the moment of this tragic occurpence,
Robert Patterson was constautly iu
ittendence at the Mount on his friend. He
dept in tho same room with him, and aiended
by EUoti in the day-time. From
his*tnoment the oloud which so long hung
>vcr tho spirit of Ellen Maxwell had van
abed. She was herself again; always kind
ind open, yet with a mournful tone iu her
bearing with Robert, which surprised and
yet pleased him. It looked like regret for
past utikiiidiiess. As they sat one evening
over their tea, while Oeorge was in a profound
sleep in the next room, Ellen looking
with emotion at him, said, iu a low,
tremulous voire, "Robert, 1 owe much to
yon.*'
' To rue?" said Robert, hastily. '*Isu*t
George as much a brother to tue as to you."
"It is uot that which I mean,1* added
Ellen, coloring deeply, yet speaking more
(irmly; "it is that i have done you a great
iv rong. I believed that you had said a
in<?t ungenerous thing, and J acted upon
my belief with too much pride and resentment.
I was told that you had jested at
me as the daughter of a convict."
Robert sprang up. "It is false! I nevev
said it," he <-rcluib)cd. "Who could tell vob
stu-h a malicious falsehood?''
"Calm yourself," added Ellen, shall
icll you all. J 'car mo patiently; for I must
impress first on you tho strange likelihood
of what was reported to me. You were
driven to n stockmen's hut, it was said, by
h stflrni?you and a youog friend. Yofc
wero very merry, and this friend congratulated
you in a sportive style on having
won what lie was pleased to call the richest
young woman in the colony. And with
h merry laugh you wero made to add. 'and
the daughter of the most illustrious of lags!*w
Robert Patterson, with a calmness of
concentrated wrath, asked in a low rueas- .
ured tone: "Who said that!"
"The woman whom you lately saved
with all her family. It was Nelly Fehan."
"Nolly Fehan!" said Robert in amassment:
"what have I ever done to her that
deserved such a stahf
"You threatened to soud Fehan to prison
for hush ranging. You reminded him of
his former life and unexpired sentence."
"That is true," said Robert, after a pause
of astonishment. "And litis was the deadly
revenge?tho serpents! Rut, O Ellen!
why could you not speak! One word,and
all would have been explained."
"I could not speak, Roi eii. Wounded
pride silenced mo. Rut I have suffered severed);
have beeu fearfully punished. I
cau only say?forgivO ine!"
One long embrace obliterated the past.
The lato Mr. Maxwell had beeu trans)><>iLed
for the expression of his liberal political
principles in hard and bigoted times.
There was not a man in a penal settlement
who did not honor his political iutcgritj and
(brc-ight, and who did not reverence his
character. Rut the convicts as n body
were proud to claim him as of their claw.
I.'>.1^1, sent limber on!v for the crime of a
ll:?TU|KJcn or a Sidney. Whenever reproach
as thrown On the convict section of society,
the insulted party pointed to the venerahlo
exile, and triumphantly bailed biru as
their chief. No endeavors, though ibey
were tunny, and conducted by |>owerful
bunds, hnd over hec-tt aide t t procure a reversal
ot his scutenco. 'J'ho injuries of a man of
his high talents and noble nature might be
comparatively buried at the antipodes: at
homo, they would be h present, a perpetual,
and a damaging reproach. He had lit ed and
died a banished, but a highly honored, matt.
Still, as iio n>se to a higher estimation and
an manual affluence, there were little mini's
who delighted occasion ally to whisper?
"After all, he is but a lag." And it wxa
on this tender point that the minds of hia
children, who o ears such remarks had
reached and wounded, had become morbid*
ly' sensitive.
Amid the general calamity, this recoil*
cilhtion was like a song of thanksgiving in
the generous heart of Robert Patterson*
and quickened it to tenfold exertions in alleviating
the sufJctiugs of his neighbors.
IT is joy was made boundless and overflowing
by a circumstance which appeared |>
he little short of a miracle. AVlien R<b*rt
rode up to his own at: ; io i, he beheld h 3
in oil < ;, not seated in her wheeled chiir?
but on f-?ot, light, active, nnd ftkrt, going
lo hiiJ fro amongst the people whose destitution
sti'l kept them near hi*home. The
mass of misery die still saw around her, and
the exertions which it stimulated, bnrsfthe
[laratylic bonds which had enchained her
for years. The same cause which had disabled
her limb* had restored ibcni.
The conflagration bad extended over a
spaco of three hundred miles by a hundred
and fifty; nnd far away beyond the Gouburn,
the Broken liivcr. and the Ovens, wo
hnvo witnessed the remaiuing traces of its
desolation. Over all this space, flocks and
herds in thousands had perished. Houses,
ricks, fences, and bridges had lxen annihilated.
W*ietefanniifs had been destroyed.
Solitary u!tl?'i?^lying through the
Loundiess woods before the surging flame,
had fallen and perished. For weeks and
months, till the kindly rains of autumn had
renewed the grass pc-t-ple journeying
through tho bush beheld lean and famishing
cattle, unable to rise from the ground,
and which by faint bellowing* seemed to
claim the pity and wd of man. Perhaps
no such vast devastation ever fell on soy
nation; and ths msmoryrf Black Thursday
is an indelible retrospect to Victoria,