“‘Fire!  Peggy,’ says he; and then, sure enough, I looked out, and the grass was on fire, but very far off, and a strong wind blowing it right to the slab huts on the head station with their thatch roofs.  Nothing could save us if it came near, and as I have told you it was a busy time, and the men were all hither and thither, and nobody left on the place but Martha, and Jim, and myself, and the mistress ill, and two infants, as I may say, for Emily was not thirteen months old.  The only thing that could be done was to burn a broad ring round the houses, as I had seen done at Barragong; but that craved wary watching.  By good luck the bairns were both sleeping, and Mrs. Phillips resting quiet, so I called Martha and Jim, and said we must take wet bags and green boughs and beat the fire out as we burned.  Jim was as quick and clever as need be, and set about in earnest; but Martha said she could do nothing for terror, and prayed me to remember her situation.

“‘Your situation,’ says I, ’will be far worse if you don’t bestir yourself for your own safety.  If you won’t lend a hand for the sake of your poor helpless mistress and the innocent bairns, you behove to do it for the sake of your own four quarters.’  So she got more reasonable, and helped us somewhat, but it was close work, for the fire was near.  It was all that poor wretch of a doctor’s doing, too, for he had been trying to smoke, and had dropped his lighted pipe in the dry withered grass, and it blazed up like wild; he got out of it, for he was travelling against the wind, while we were in full waft of it.  I thought the wind and the fire would beat us, and was like to throw up the work in despair, when I saw a man on horseback galloping for dear life.  I thought it was the master at first, but it was Mr. Brandon, and he was nigh hand as good, for he fell to, and worked with all his might, and with his help we saved the house, and all the precious ones in it.  In time the men dropped in, and they set about working to save the run, but if the wind had not providentially changed at night, they would scarcely have been able to save it.  As it was, there was thousands of acres of land laid bare, and a flock of sheep killed; the poor beasts have not the sense to run away out of the fire.

“Oh! the appearance of the place that night was awful to behold; and just before the wind chopped round the master came home, riding like fury.

“‘We are all safe,’ said I, as I ran to meet him, and I saw his face by the light of the blazing fires around us was as pale as death.  ’Mrs. Phillips and the bairns are not a hair the worse.  Thank God for all his mercies!’

“‘Thank God!’ said he, ’thank God!  Now they are preserved, I can bear the loss of anything else!’