Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-09-20
THE ICR.vOYAGR.

shouted chubby, blue-eyed boy, Of, it may
be, twelve years, clad in the humble garb
of poverty, hinging wide open the door and
bounding into a small, comfortless apart
ment, on the third floor of dingy looking
old wooden building, near the canal, in the
then village of Cleveland, Ohio. "Come,
hurrah, mother, put away that slave work
and 60 and get you nice good dinner right
of" continued the little fellow, approaching
q pale, delicate woman, scantily clad in o
thin dress, her face pinched with hunger,
and her hands even then blue with cold.
"Why, what do you mean, my child W said
the woman, looking wOnderingly up from
her work. 'Do you know have no money
to buy any thing to eat, and l must finish
this vest before l can get even a stick of
wood for our fire, which is almost out? 2"
"Nonsense, mother let the old vest go to
some poor woman that has no stout boy like
me to earn money for her. You shan't work
this way any longer, mother. Look hereW
And the little fellow flung down on the table
his two hands full of half dollars, while
roguish smile lit up his handsome face as
he beheld his mothers look of wonder.
"Why, Frank Frank, my son, where
haye-did you
GAN right motherW interrupted the boy.
And down went another handful of bright
silver. "I'll tell you all about it, mother.
You seeiI went to get my pay of Mr.. Deni-
son to-day, for two months cooking on board
the Aurora Well, he paid me twenty dol
lars in all these pieces, and then he asked
me if / would go for o month, in his new
schooner, for fifteen dollars. l told him |
Hould-and then when he heard me tell
how hard you have to work, and how poor
and almost sick you are, he gave me ten
dollars more, and said you must get another
room and stop working so hard; besides, he
says if I'll stay all Winter in the schooner,
and take care of her. l shall have twelve
dollars every month, to be paid weekly to
you So, hurrah, mother; we'll have big
fire and q nice dinner, and-well, Mr. Deni-
son is good man, after all, if he is rich
old batch, as that crab-apple old maid, Aunt
Hetty johnson, calls him."
"Heaven bless you, my noble boyl" sob
bed out the widow, as she clasped her arms
about her childs neck, bowed her head upon
his shoulders, and wept like very child
herself, for joy-joy, not so much for the
timely aid her son had brought her, although
her heart was full Of thankfulness for that,
as for the noble qualities displayed by the
brave little fellow in remembering her and
bringing home every shilling of his hard
earned wages, instead of spending it fool
ishly, as too many boys Of his age would
have done.
A month passed away, and again the
handsome sailor boy, Frank Merrill, stood
beside his mother, in q comfortably fur
nished room, in most respectable part of
the town, while the widow, as she gazed
proudly on her boy, looked full ten years
younger and much happier than she had
done only four short weeks previously.
A cheerful blaze was in the crate, every
thing about the room was neat and eloquent
of comfort, and the widow Merrill was really
beautiful in her brown merino dress and
black CATERS, with her dark brown hair, so
like that of Carol Dolce's st. Cecilia, parted
on her classic brow, and falling in wavy
masses upon her shoulders.
Frank thought his mother very beautiful,
and so did another person present. That
person was Mr.. Joseph Denison, the boys
employer, bluff, good-natured, money
making bachelor Of forty-hve, who, at the
boys request, accompanied him home.
'Airs. Merrill" said Mr.. Denison, 'your
son has been in my employ for the last
three months, and 1 am so well pleased with
his prudence and general good qualities,
that with your permission, should be
pleased to keep him all winter on board one
Of my vessels, which sails tomorrow for Buff
talo. 1t is so late in the season that she may
not be able to return this winter, in which
case you can have Franks wages paid
monthly or weekly, in advance, for such is
his wish, and, should you need any thing
further, your order on me will be honored
always"
The widow could only murmur her thanks,
and invoke Gods blessing on the kind
hearted stranger whom she had never seen
before, and who, bidding her good night,
left her alone with her darling boy. On
the following day the schooner Western
Trader left Cleveland with full cargo Of
oats and corn, bound for Buffalo. That
very night there came on a cold northeast
snowstorm, which finally closed the nayi-
cation of Lady Erie for the Winter.
A whole month passed without any news
from the schooner; and that when every
body had given her up for lost, her captain
and crew came back TO Cleveland, with the
report that she was frozen fast in the ice,
some thirty miles to the eastward, and full
half that distance from the land. They had
left her and escaped to the shore on the ice;
but all they could say, to induce the boy
Frank Merrill to abandon her, was of no
avail.
"No, will never leave her." he said. ~
promised Mr.. Denison TO stand by and take
care of her through the Winter, and will il
live"
''God bless the noble boy !" exclaimed Mr..
Denison, as the captain told of the little
fellows fidelity. And the exclamation was
echoed back by dozen men at Cleveland,
who happened to be in the office at the
time
Within two hours a more efficient COM
mander, with eight fearless fellows, who
agreed to stay by the vessel till they got
her into port somewhere, set out from CleVe-
land to board her; but when they arrived
abreast of where she had been frozen in,
the ice was broken up to within five miles
of the land, end the schooner was gone.
Three weeks passed. and all remained un-
certain with regard to the fate Of the Vest
ern Trader or her brave boy commander,
when she was heard from again on the
Canada side, some fifty miles TO the west
ward of her former position. But before
relief could be sent TO her, there came on a
violent gale from the westward, which broke
Up The ice, and she was borne away down