Page:Adams - A Child of the Age.djvu/63

51 round earthen basin below. There was a gentle murmur, and by the right side, a tree, with a faint shadow against the earthen wall behind.

We climbed up.

It was a pretty place. Clear streaks of colour, all hues of red, on the earthen wall that was sheeted with the ruffled water: then, from an arched break up above, came the main stream, dividing, to cross and flow down the swaying grass and weeds into the round earthen basin.

Rayne sat down on a thick clump of grass under the tree; and I leant against the wall with the line of water just by me. We were both quite happy, I think. All at once she jumped up, looking along the shore to the brown cliff that ended the bay. I looked also.

'We're caught!' she said.

There was a play of foam, as she spoke, at the foot of the brown cliff behind which was the sun now almost, or altogether, set. She rose: crossed the plateau: jumped down on to the shingle, and started off at a run. I was up and after her in a moment. She ran well, for a girl. But the shingle, giving with each footfall, was tiring to the limbs, and then there were her petticoats. She began to flag a little. We were still quite a hundred yards from the point.

'Will you take my hand?' I said, passing her, 'let me help you. The stones!'

She would not. I fell back.

We ran on as before.

Looking down as we came on to some smooth half-hard sand, I saw the '' which we had written; the rest was washed out.

At last we came to the point. The waves were dashing up foamingly all round. She went straight to a boulder; jumped on to it, and, with her hand against the brown earthen side, was about to step to another, when up had come a large swelled sideward wave, swirled over the first ring of rocks, and the next moment she was in a shower of spray. I stepped to try the boulder on which she was; caught firm hold of her round the hips, and, lifting her up, made straight onward. Up came another wave, but smaller; swept