"'The de'il when sick, a saint would be,
But when he got well, the de'il a saint was he.'"
"Don't, husband," said Mrs. Middleton; "perhaps she will never come back
alive, and then you will be sorry."
Uncle Joshua readily guessed his wife's meaning, and turning to Luce,
said, "Rout out the whole gang and set 'em to huntin'."
In less than two hours scores of men on horseback were seen hunting in all
directions, looking, as Bob expressed it, "for all the world like they was
huntin' a runaway."
Ere long the news reached Frankfort, causing Mrs. Carrington to sneeringly
advise Dr. Lacey "by all means to join in the hunt." He deigned her no
reply, but mounting his horse took the road to Mr. Middleton's, where he
was welcomed with tears by Mrs. Middleton and Fanny, whose fears he strove
to allay.
Meanwhile the search went on, headed by Uncle Joshua, who, late in the
afternoon, unconsciously led a part of the company to the banks of the
river, not far from a point called Woodford Landing. Dismounting, he
strolled along the shore for several rods, when suddenly a loud cry turned
toward him the attention of the party. Near the water's edge he had
discovered a shawl, which he knew belonged to Julia, and near by lay a
pair of slippers, on the inside of which her name was marked. Instantly
the conviction flashed upon all--Julia was drowned!
Upon a large flat rock Uncle Joshua sat down, while his long gray locks
were tossed by the November wind which swept mournfully by, bearing on its
wing the bitter tones with which the stricken father bewailed his loss.
"Everything goes ag'in me," said he, "everything--she's dead and, worse
than all, died by her own hand." Then, as if void of reason, he arose, and
over the craggy hillside and down the dark, rolling river echoed the loud,
shrill cry of, "Julia, Julia, oh, my child! Come back, come back! Why was
you left to break your old father's heart?" And to that wail of sorrow
only the moaning wind replied, and faster the waters of the Kentucky
rolled on.
They took the old man home, and long weary days went by, during which the
river near the landing was dragged again and again, and still no trace of
the missing girl was found. Then, as hope began to whisper that possibly
she was not dead, the papers far and near contained advertisements for
her, and by the side of that appeared another for a lunatic girl, who had
escaped from the asylum at Lexington.