Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-09-01
THE COAST churchman's TALE.
From Dickens Ooca a Week. i

From Dickens UOc2 w eek
Good evening, sir"
"Good evening. fine night, this"
Eyes, SRA niceish sort of night. Pity
for us We don't have more of them"
The scene was on the south coast OF Corn
wall, where l had retired few days before
the commencement of the long vacation, to
seek short repOse from the turmoil and
worry of the law; leaving behind me the old
time worn buildings of Lincolns Inn, where
the old sun-dial with its quaint motto,% sell
dom looked at and still schooner needed, so
perpetually reminded US of the frail tenure
by which we hold our lives leaving the bar
rlsters, in their gowns and wigs, hurriedly
passing from courts to consultations, Tor, III
other words, from fee to fee;) the lawyers, in
their black dress, and with their bundles of
papers under their arms; and the office boys,
with big bags, stuffed full of-what it would
be hard TO enumerate-brefs, eases, opin-
ions, aud all the other multifariouS paripher.
MALTA of the profession, evidently looking up
on themselves as no mean part of their res
pcctive establishments; leaving all this busy
scene land only too glad to do so,) to seek IA
little rest and quiet i'll about the quietest
part of England | had taken rooms in a
little village about half a mile from the sea
and the short walks, gradually extended, the
regular hours and the quietness of every
thing internally and externally was fast bring
ing me round again, when the circumstances
| am about to relate took place.
1t was fine moonlight yenng, and stood
gazing out of my window at the few strang-
ers still passing up and down the village
street, when sudden wish came into my
head to take walk along the cliffs by moon
light. | had often thought of doing this,
wondering what sort of life the Coast guards
men had of it-thosc men by whom every
inch of England, so they say, is walked round
every night, as they pace up and down, night
after night, and year after year; and so re-
solved, at last, to put my long iancied scheme
into execution.
had been sauntering along for about half
mile, looking at the blue waves, and che
quered here and there by the sail of some
fishing boat, cleaning silver in the moonlight,
and at the long golden track, reaching from
far away up to the base of the clhs-the
tootpath OF the fairies, as | had been told
long ago-and peopling it, i'll my fancy, with
the light spirits OF the air, tripping along in
many fantastic maze, on the glitterng sur
face, and calling to their sister spirits III the
waters below, when | was startled by an ap-
preaching footstep and, looking up, saw a
man close to me, while the inviting smell of
a short pipe quickly recalled me from my
tancies to the sense of ordinary existence
All that | noticed OF his dress was that he
had on rough pilot coat, with Il low hat,
while thick walking stick formed his only
apparent weapon of offence and defence. In
short, it was with him that the sentences
first above written" were exchanged
| soon found that my new acquaintance
was one of that very body of men that had
SO often pondered about; and so, having
fallen into conversation, | walked on "A bit
with him.
81 suppose you don't have much to do now
besides walking up and down, do you?"
why, no, sir. There's not so much doing
as there used to be, once on time, though
have seen some goings on i'll my tme-Mind
where you are treading, STRIP he exclaimed.
The cliff is not very safe along the edge,
and if it gave way you would be smashed on
the rocks below, like a poor fellow knew
was some time ago. God rest hissoul"
what of him." | said. did anv one
fall over here?"
"Why, no, sir. He didn't exactly fall
over, and it wasn't over this cliff, neither,
but the one we shall come to next. NV beat
ends there, and, as | am bit before my
time, expect my mate won't be up for ten
minutes or so; and if you like to hear the
tale, though it's not so much after all, l will
tell YOU on the spot where it all happened.
Indeed, to say the truth, | shall be very glad
of your company, for its a whishtt spot, and
often as have waited there, l am always
glad TO turn my back on 1t again"
We soon reached the bay by the light OF
the moon After looking along the cliff, to
see if there were any signs of his companion,
and not finding any, he sat down on a stone,
and / lighted cigar, and, taking my place
beside him, began
1t is not so many years ago, sir, eight or
nine, maybe, when young gentleman came
down here, as it might be you, to spend a
month or Sour town being a quiet sort of
place. like. He wasn't bad-looking sort of
fellow, and had small and white hands. In
deed, most people would have called him
handsome, though there was always kind of
look about his mouth | didn't like to see
He was staying up at the Miners Arms, and
there soon got tales about the town, of the
way in which he and two or three other wild
Young fellows about here, as there are every
where, used to go on; the sitting up at
nights, the drinking and card playing, and
the wild freaks they used to he at. But as
he always had plenty of money, and paid his
bill every week, lit was by his own WISH
p0IlldrtlSn, the ldlluloFu, SIT, never CdTpu TO
say anything to him. He was close man,
was Polmarthen and no doubt he made plen-
tv of money out of his customer; but it would
have been better for him if he had never let
Mr. Henden under his roof His daughter,
pretty Kate Polmarthen as she Was Arrays
called, was the prettiest girl for miles about,
Il see you guess what's coming) and many
was the glass that he had emptied in her
honor, and many young man would have
given much to have stood well in her good
graces but though she was bit of fiirt,
there was none that had ever found favor in
her eyes but Ralph Tregarva-a likely young
fellow as ever was seen. Folks often won
dered how it was that old Polmarthen ever
allowed his daughter to engage herself to
Young Tregarva, who was only fisherman
but although the old man loved money much,
he loved his daughter more; and though l
hear there was some trouble about it, vet, in
the end, he gave way to her in this 1t was
not long, however, after Mr.. Hendon came
down here, that a change seemed to come ever
moor Kate. She would sit silent for hours,
and if Ralph came to try and cheer her up,
she would speak sharply and harshly to him,
and then sometimes burst into flood OF
tears, and beg his pardon, and kiss him, and
tell lin that he was the dearest and best OF
men. and that she was not worthy of him.
was a great friend of his, and l gathered
most of this from him at the time, poor TEL