ed around. Once
the squirrels barking in near-by trees awakened the man's dim
consciousness, but a few minutes later he was in mid-stream, making a
crossing where the river was miles wide.

He passed Hickman just before dawn, and toward noon he dropped by New
Madrid, and the slumping of high, caving banks pounded in his ears down
three miles of changing channel. Then the boat crossed to the other side
and he lay there with eyes seared and staring. He discovered a grave
stone poised upon the river bank, but he could not tell whether it was
fancy or fact that the ominous thing bent toward him and fell with a
splash into the river, while a wave tossed his boat on its way. He heard
a quavering whine that grew louder until it became a shriek, and then
fell away into silence, but his senses were slow in connecting it with
one of the Tiptonville cotton gins. He heard a voice, curiously human,
and having forgotten the old hay-burner river ferry, worried to think
that he should imagine someone was driving a mule team on the
Mississippi. For a long time he was in acute terror, because he thought
he was blind, and could not see, but to his amazed relief he saw a river
light and knew that another night had fallen upon him, so he went to
sleep once more.

Voices awakened him. He opened his eyes, and the surroundings were
familiar. He smelled iodine, and saw a man looking over a doctor's case.
Leaning against the wall of the cabin-boat was a tall, slender young man
with arms folded.

"How's he comin' Doc'?" the young man was saying.

"He'll be all right. How long has he been this way?"

"Don't know, Doc; he come down the riveh an' drifted into this eddy. I
see his lips movin', so I jes' towed 'im in an' sent fo' yo'!"

"Just as well, for that wound sure needed dressing. I 'low a horse
doctor fixed hit first time," the physician declared. "He'll need some
care now, but he's comin' along."

"Oh, we'll look afteh him, Doc! Friend of ourn."

"I'll come in to-morrow. It's written down what to do, and about that
medicine. You can read?"

"Howdy," Prebol muttered, feebly.

"He's a comin' back, Doc!" the young man cried, starting up with
interest.

"Well, old sport, looks like you'd got mussed up some?" the doctor
inquired.

"Yas, suh," Prebol grinned, feebly, his senses curiously clear. "Hit
don't pay none to mind a lady's business fo' her, no suh!"

"A lady shot you, eh?"

"Yas, suh," Prebol grinned. "'Peahs like I be'n