STANDARD VI.

THE RISING TIDE.

HOPE and Cross remained some time quite absorbed in examining the form of the rock and the creatures within it. Hope was in the act of breaking off some small bits to carry home with him, when Cross suddenly gave a loud shout, calling out: 'The Lord have mercy on us! I forgot the tide, and here it comes !'

Hope turned towards the sea, and saw a stream of water running at a rapid pace, and covering the sandy creek, where the eels had been found. Not aware of the danger, he said quite quietly: 'Oh, so it does; I suppose we had better be off !'

'If we can,' said Cross. 'By crossing the rock, we may yet be in time.' He looked rather pale as he spoke ; and Hope, seeing his alarm, hastened to follow him. For the moment, Cross ceased speaking; he scrambled up the rocks, and began walking as rapidly as he could across them, towards the nearest shore; but the pace was necessarily slow, for the roughness in some parts, and the slipperiness in others, obliged them to pick their steps. The numberless crevices, which had been a source of amusement an hour before, now served still further to retard their progress, for they were forced to make many a detour

to get past them. At last they reached the highest point, and could see before them.

'Thank God!' said Cross, 'the land is not yet covered! But we must run for it.'

The sand was, in fact, still visible; but small lines of blue water could be seen marking and breaking the surface.

They hastened on, Hope looking at these lines, which seemed rapidly to increase in breadth; but he was soon obliged to keep his eyes on the ground, for, in looking up, he had placed his foot on a bunch of weed, slipped, fell, and got a severe shake, besides cutting his hands.

In three minutes more, however, they were at the edge of the sand; but when they reached it, they saw that the sand was now in stripes, the water in sheets.

'We shall do yet,' said Cross, 'for here is a girl before

He began to run rapidly, and Hope followed. They proceeded thus for about two hundred yards, when they saw the little girl, who turned out to be the same from whom Hope had bought the crabs, coming hastily towards them. She reached them before they had advanced many more paces; and as she ran she called out something, which they could not at first understand, for she was so much out of breath.

When she was close to them, they could distinguish that she said: "The wave! the wave! it is coming! Turn! turn! and run, or we are lost!'

far out to sea, a large Blown as they were,

They did turn; and they saw, wave rolling towards the shore. they yet increased their speed as they retraced their steps towards the rocks they had just left.

The little girl passed them, and led the way; the two friends strained every nerve to keep pace with her, for, as

they neared the rock, the wave still rolled on the sand became gradually covered, and their last ten steps were up to their knees in water, but they were on the rock.

'Quick! quick!' said the girl; 'there is the passage to cross; and if the second wave comes, we shall be too late.'

She ran on for a hundred yards, till she came to a crack in the rock, six or seven feet wide, along which the water was rushing like a mill-sluice.

'We are lost!' said the girl, 'I cannot cross it; it will carry me away!'

'Is it deep?' asked Cross.

'Not very,' she said; but it is too strong!'

Cross lifted the girl in his arms, he was a strong, big man; he plunged into the stream, which was up to his waist. With a few strides he was across, and set the girl down. He then held on by the rock, and stretched out his hand to Hope, who was following, like an experienced wader, taking very short steps, and with his legs well stretched out, to prevent his being swept away by the force of the water. Hope grasped the hand thus held out to him, and in another second, the two friends were standing by the girl.

'That is tremendous !' said Hope. If I had not seen it, I never would have believed it!'

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'It is indeed,' said Cross; and in winter, or in blowing weather, the tide-wave comes in with far greater force than this we have just seen.'

'Come on! come on!' cried the girl, as she again led the way to the higher point of light-coloured rock, which Hope had remarked in the morning. When they had reached it, she said: 'We are safe now!' and kneeling down, she returned thanks for the deliverance.

After a few minutes thus spent, the girl looked up, and smiled to Cross. Thank you,' said she, 'for lifting me over! I could not have crossed myself. And,' she continued, 'the second wave has come, and it is all water now!'

The friends looked; all around them was the wide sea. They were on an island, which each moment became less; and this island was three quarters of a mile from the shore.

'I am afraid, sir, you will be cold!' said the little girl. 'We are quite safe here, for this point is always above water, except in a storm; but we shall have to remain here three or four hours before we can go to the

shore.'

'Cold or hot,' said Cross, 'we may be thankful we are here! But what made you forget the tide, for you must know the coast so well?'

'I did not forget it,' she said; 'but I feared you would be drowned, as you are strangers, and I thought I should be in time to tell you; but I was too late, and the wave came!'

'And did you risk your own life to save ours?' said Hope, the tears starting into his eyes.

'I thought that at anyrate I should get here,' she replied. 'As you are strangers, I knew you would not know that it is always dry here; and on the strand you would be lost: so I came to help you, for the gentleman was kind, and gave me a good price for my crabs. So I hoped I should be in time to warn you, but I was very nearly too late!'

Hope took the little girl in his arms, and kissed her. 'We owe you our lives, brave little creature!' he said. 'I thank you in the meantime, and hope to do more for

you hereafter! I wonder what she would most like in the world?'

'Ask her,' said Cross. Hope did so.

'To have a dress,' she said, 'to wear when I go to mass, just like the one Angela's sister had on last Sunday, with a beautiful silver crucifix like hers !'

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'You must bring Angela to see us to-morrow, and she will help us to get the dress we have promised.'

'Oh, happy, happy day!' she said. 'Angela will be so pleased.'

'If ever we get ashore,' said Hope; for a wave at that moment rolled past, and the waters began to run along the little platform they were sitting on. They all rose, and mounted on the rocky points, where they clustered, supporting each other. Another wave came, it appeared only like a ripple; but when they looked down, the water was a foot deep, where they had previously been seated. There was silence for awhile. Another wave came the water was within six inches of their feet.

'It is a terrible high tide,' said the girl; 'but if we hold together, we shall not be washed away.'

Hope's face was towards the shore. 'There are a great many people clustering on the point,' he said. 'It is always a comfort to know that our fellow-beings take. an interest in us; and I suppose those people are watching us.'

A faint sound of a

The little girl turned to look. cheer was heard, and they could see the people on shore wave their hats and handkerchiefs.

"They think the tide has turned,' she said; and they are shouting to cheer us.'

She was right; the tide had turned. Another wave