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His suffering would be worse than that of the field ence to know that it was useless to struggle, that there was no hope for him unless sory he was at only an hour past his dinner time; ould his sensations be at an hour past his supper tiroaning in a rain barrel as he thought of the ha dry in the cabin

Itof his prison and the patch of blue sky, froht descend to rescue hiainst the side of the well, his knees to his chin, and his head bowed, to await the inevitable

When three o'clock caer doubt but that soiven up hope and endeavoured to resign his of hunger and the cold fear of dying which was upon himent sent upon hiot out--if the Lord saw fit to save hihty had his word for it Still sitting with his back against the wall and his cras extended in front of him, Rufus rolled his eyes in supplication to the circular blue space above hiistered this voith all the fervour and sincerity of which he was capable

He uely conscious of a dampness He felt mechanically of that section of his overalls upon which he was sitting He sprang to his feet with an exclamation and looked at the spot he had occupied Moisture! A seepage! Water! His eyes grew big with horror Even as he looked with dilating pupils he could see the earth darken with the spreading moisture He had sunk too many wells not to knohat it portended Not only his days but his hours perhaps were nu his agony, if it were not, it would coing

He sat down again because his shaking legs refused to support hiainst the side for the same reason Rufus was no hero and there was no need to pretend to be, drowning by himself like a rat in a bucket