The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1862-03-20
A RAFT THAT No WAN IEADE.

~~
From TIE Atlantic Monthly,
| am a soldier; but my tale, this time, is no
of war.
! The man Of whom the Muse talked to chs
! blind bard Of old had grown wise in wayfaring
| He had seen such men and cities as the SUI
| shines on, and the great wonders of land anG
sea and he had visited the farther countries
whose indwelIers, having been once at home il
The green fields and under the sky and roofs o.
| he cherry earth, were now gone forth and for
ward into dim and Swallowed land, from which
they found no back ward path to these old hsunts
and their old loves
| Al the Charter House / learned the story Of
| the King of Ithaca. and read it for something
better than task and since, though | have
never seen so many cities as the much wander
ing man, Uor grown so wise. yet have heard
and seen and remembered, for myself. words
! and things from crowded sheets and fairs and
shows and wave washed quays and murmurous
municipalities, in many lands-his people wrapt
/ in clouds and vapor, whom emo glad sun finds
with his beams, have been borne along per
! ilous path thu ongh thick mists, among the crash
ing ice of the Upper AtIantic,as vel swelter.
ed upon a Southern sea, and have learned some
thing Of men and something of God.
was in Newloundland.a lieutenant of Roya
! Eugineers,in Major Cores time, and went about
good deal among the people, in surveying for
IGuvenment. One OF my old friends there was
/ Shipper Beuie w estham, Of Brigus, shoGtish
stou. bald man, with cheerful, honest tace
and kind voice and he, mendng a capiiu
seine one day, told me this story, which | viii
! trg 10 tell after him.
! We were upon the high ground, beyond wheIs
( the church stands now, aud Prudence, the FISH
ernlan's daughter, ard Ralph Bawows, her hus-
J Il bpr, ba
ana | had an hour by the watch to spend. The
! netghborho0d all about, was still; the only men
who were in sight were so far off that we heard
nothing Of them; 10 wind was stirring near US,
! and q slow sail could be seen outside Every
thing was right for listening and telling.
4 can tell ee what l sid = myself, Sir said
/ Skipper Benjie 1t is n like story that's put
down in books; it's on'y like what we plantsrs+
tells of winters night or seeh; buG las teeLua.
mubbe, an zee WON'T expect much Of man as
could n never read, not SO much as Bibls or
Prayer Book, even,'
Skipper Beniie looked just like what he was
thoughti true hearted, healthy man, good
fisherman, aud good seaman. There was NO
need of any ones saying it, So l only waited
till he went on speaking.
Twas one time | coed 10 tn Ice, Sir. /
never coed but once, an twas almost the FIRST
v'yage ever was, ct twas n the Uerg first; an
twas the last for me, an worse agen for the
rest-pRrt o. that crew that never coed no more !!
Twas tarrible sad douns wi they
This preface was accompanied by some pre-
lminary handling of the caplin.seine, also, to
find cut the broken places aud get them about
HIM Ralph and Prudence defrIy helped him
Then, making his story wait after this opening,
he took one hole TO begin at in mendlng, chose
his seat aud drew the sein up to bis knee At
the same time got nearer to the fellowship of
the family by peTsuGding the planter (who yield
ed with pleasant smIle) to let ME try my hand
at the netting. Prudence quietly took to her
self share Of the work, and Ralph alone was
unbuisied.
They calls th' Ice a wicked place, Sundays
an wecin' days all slike an to my seemun is
a cruel bloody place, jes so welI,-but not all
thinks alike, surely. RATE lad, mubbe zee d
Tuther go down coVe-ways, an overhaul the
punt bit
Ralph who perhaps had stood waiting for the
very dismissal that he now got, assented and
lett us three. Prudence, 10 be sure looked sftsr
hlm as if she would good deal rather go with
HIM than stay but she stayed, nevertheless, and
worked st the seine | interpreted to myself
Skipper Benjies sending away OF one of his
hearers by Supposing that mis- son-in-law had Of
ten heard his tales, but the planter explained
himself
Ie sees, Sir, 1 knocked off goun to tn Ice
becAse twas sech a terrible crued place, to my
seemun. They swllest be so knowun like -
as knowun as dog, in manner, an lsvun to
jheIr own like ChtisCens, almost, more than
bastes; aud they m got red blood, for ali they
lives most partly IN water an then l found
EN- so friendly, when was wauntun friends
badly. But | sp0se the swle fishery S needful;
| aa' | knows in course, that even Christens
blood got 10 be taken sometimes, when it s
Dad blood, an would n be childish about they
thing3, on y,-ef it Z me,-when | can live by
| fishun, don want to go en- club an shoot an
cut an slash among poor harmless things that
! 'ould never harm man or oman, an 'ould cry
| great tears down for pity sake, an got sound
! like a Christen; l 'Ould n like to 20 swilun
| for gain, not fter beun among EN-, way l was,
! any ways
This apology made it plain that Skipper Ben
| jio was large hearted enough. or indugent enough
not 10 seek TO train Othels, even his own family,
up to his own way in every thing and 1t might
easily De thought that the young fisherman had
diie ent feelings about sealing from those that
he planters story was meant to bring out All
eng ready be began his tale again -
L stripped with Skipper IsIal Gooden. from
Carbonear the schooner was the Baccaloue,
with forty men, all told Twas of a Sunday,
marn' n e 'ould said, twelt til day o March, wi
another schooner IN company the Sparrow
There was many OF us was u TOO good, but
We thOwt wrong of e's takun the Lords Day
to e'sselt-Wul, Sir afore cond 'ome. | was
IN great desert country, au foated OH sea wi
= a monstrous great raft that no man never made
} creakun an crashun an wastuu an groanun
an tumbin an goun to pieces, an no man or
her but me, au full O. lIyun thin0s-dreadful !
= About five hours out, twas. we first sid the
blink,9 an coined up wi tn Ice about off Cape
Bonavis We fell in wi 1t south. an worked
+ up no!he along but We did n see swiles
for two or three days yet; ony we was workur
along pokun the cakes OF ice away, an haulur
through wi main strength sometimes, holdur
i on wi bights o ropes out o the bow an more
times, sgen, III clear water sometimds mist al
round US ZEE could n see the ships len th. sea &c
an more times snow, jes so thick; On then ,
t gale o. wind, mubbe, would Almost blow all tn
spas out Of her, seemunly.
We KEEP sight o tn other schooner, mos
partly; an when We did n keep it, we d get
it agen. SO one night twas a beautiful moon
light night; think / never sid moon so brigh
as that moon was; an such lovely sights boa,
ould n think could be Little stands an bigger
agen there was, Oh every hand ,skinun so bright
Wi great, awful lookup shadows an then th
Il sea all black between They did look so beau
/ tIiu eff body could go an bide, on EN-, i
a manner; an the sky was jes' so blue an tn
stars all shinun out, an the moon all SO bright
l never looked uUon the like An so l stoo
in the bows; an | don know eff | ihOwt O. Go
o first but l was thiukun o. my girl that | wa
tro1h-piight wi then, an many things, whe
all Of = sudden we canned upon the highest &c
!. saw +Fishermen- +SeaI-
ga dun glare the horizon, from the Immense mas
I Is of ice.
a young seal.
Technical word for the crying Of seals.