"Ah! You Rogue, You're
Caught," Said He, Catching Hold Of Her; "Shall I Throw You In?" She Sprang
Forward From His Arms, One Step Too Far, And Fell Into The Roaring Rapid.
"Oh, Mercy!
Save - she's gone!" the young man cried, and sprang into the
water.
He caught hold of Nettie, and, by one or two vigorous strokes,
aided by an eddy, was brought close to the Island; one instant more, and
his terrified companions would have been able to lay hold of him; but no -
the hour of both was come; the waves of the rapid hurried them past; one
piercing cry came from Mr. Addington's lips, "For Jesus' sake, O save our
souls!" and, locked in each other's arms, both were carried over the fatal
Falls. The dashing torrent rolled onward, unheeding that bitter despairing
cry of human agony, and the bodies of these two, hurried into eternity in
the bloom of youth, were not found for some days. Mrs. De Forest did not
long survive the fate of her child.
The guide related to me another story in which my readers may be
interested, as it is one of the poetical legends of the Indians. It took
place in years now long gone by, when the Indians worshipped the Great
Spirit where they beheld such a manifestation of his power. Here, where
the presence of Deity made the forest ring, and the ground tremble, the
Indians offered a living sacrifice once a year, to be conveyed by the
water spirit to the unknown gulf. Annually, in the month of August, the
sachem gave the word, and fruits and flowers were stowed in a white canoe,
to be paddled by the fairest maiden among the tribes.
The tribe thought itself highly honoured when its turn came to float the
blooming offering to the shrine of the Great Spirit, and still more
honoured was the maid who was a fitting sacrifice.
Oronto, the proudest chief of the Senecas, had an only child named Lena.
This chief was a noted and dreaded warrior; over many a bloody fight his
single eagle plume had waved, and ever in battle he left the red track of
his hatchet and tomahawk. Years rolled by, and every one sent its summer
offering to the thunder god of the then unexplored Niagara. Oronto danced
at many a feast which followed the sacrificial gift, which his tribe had
rejoicingly given in their turn. He felt not for the fathers whose
children were thus taken from their wigwams, and committed to the grave of
the roaring waters. Calma, his wife, had fallen by a foeman's arrow, and
in the blood of his enemies he had terribly avenged his bereavement.
Fifteen years had passed since then, and the infant which Calma left had
matured into a beautiful maiden. The day of sacrifice came; it was the
year of the Senecas, and Lena was acknowledged to be the fairest maiden of
the tribe. The moonlit hour has come, the rejoicing dance goes on; Oronto
has, without a tear, parted from his child, to meet her in the happy
hunting-grounds where the Great Spirit reigns.
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