off mighty quick!  Why, how in the nation did they ever git into such a scrape?” “Easy enough.  Miss Hooker was a-visiting up there to the town--” “Yes, Booth's Landing--go on.” “She was a-visiting there at Booth's Landing, and just in the edge of the evening she started over with her nigger woman in the horse-ferry to stay all night at her friend's house, Miss What-you-may-call-her I disremember her name--and they lost their steering-oar, and swung around and went a-floating down, stern first, about two mile, and saddle-baggsed on the wreck, and the ferryman and the nigger woman and the horses was all lost, but Miss Hooker she made a grab and got aboard the wreck.  Well, about an hour after dark we come along down in our trading-scow, and it was so dark we didn't notice the wreck till we was right on it; and so _we_ saddle-baggsed; but all of us was saved but Bill Whipple--and oh, he _was_ the best cretur!--I most wish 't it had been me, I do.” “My George!  It's the beatenest thing I ever struck.  And _then_ what did you all do?” “Well, we hollered and took on, but it's so wide there we couldn't make nobody hear.  So pap said somebody got to get ashore and get help somehow. I was the only one that could swim, so I made a dash for it, and Miss Hooker she said if I didn't strike help sooner, come here and hunt up her uncle, and he'd fix the thing.  I made the land about a mile below, and been fooling along ever since, trying to get people to do something, but they said, 'What, in such a night and such a current? There ain't no sense in it; go for the steam ferry.'  Now if you'll go and--” “By Jackson, I'd _like_ to, and, blame it, I don't know but I will; but who in the dingnation's a-going' to _pay_ for it?  Do you reckon your pap--” “Why _that's_ all right.  Miss Hooker she tole me, _particular_, that her uncle Hornback--” “Great guns! is _he_ her uncle?  Looky here, you break for that light over yonder-way, and turn out west when you git there, and about