The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1868-04-04

| wards the other cottage. The bitter wind helped
| to drive him towards it. 1t looked no less poor
| than the first; and when he had tried the door,
| found it bolted and knocked twice without
| attracting attention. his heart sank within him.
His hand was so numb with cold that he made
scarcely any noise he tried again.
A rush candle was burning within, and a ma.
tronly-looking woman sat before the fire. She
held an infant in her arms, and had dropped
asleep; but his third knock reused her, and
wrapping her apron around her child she opened
the door little way and demanded what he
wanted
''Good woman" the youth began, Il have had
the misfortune to fall in the water this bitter
night, and l am so numbed that l can hardly
walk"
The woman gave him sudden, earnest look.
and then sighed.
''Come in" said she; ''thou art so nigh the
| size of my Jem, l thought at first it was him
come home from sea-"
The youth stepped across the threshold, trem-
bling with wet and cold, and no wonder, for his
clothes were completely incased in wet and mud,
and the water dropped from them with every
step he took on the sanded floor.
Thou art in sorry plight" said the woman,
! "and it be two miles to the highest house; thy
| teeth chatter SO pitifully, can scarce bear to
hear"
! She looked at him more attentively, and saw
that he was a mere boy, not more than sixteen
years of age. Her motherly heart was touched
for him.
cart hungry ~ she asked, turning TO the
table, "thou art wet to the skin. What has
been doing?"
Shooting wild ducks" said the boy
ooh ~ said the hostess. thou art one of the
keepers boys. Them reckon"
He followed the direction of her eyes, and saw
two portions of bread set upon the table, with
email piece of bacon on each.
'Aly master is very late,' she observed, for
charity did not make her use elegant language,
and by her master she meant her husband but
art welcome to my bit and sup, for I'm waiting
for him; may be it will put little warmth in
thee to eat and drink" so saying she took up
mug of beer from the hearth and pushed it to-
wards him, with her share of the supper
THANK YOU" said the boy, fbut am so wet
/ am making quite pool before your fire with
the drippngs from my clothes"
GAY, thou art wet, indeed" said the woman,
and rising again, she began to search and pre-
sently came to the fire with perfectly clean
check shirt in her hand, and a tolersbiy good
suit of clothes
"Thore,' said She showing them with no small
pride, these be my masters Sunday clothes,
and II thou wilt be very careful of them. I'll let
thee wear them till thine be dry She then OK
planned that she was going to put her "bairn" to
bed, and proceeded up ladder into tho room
above. leaving the boy to array himself in these
respectable and desirable garments.
When she came down her guest had dressed
himself in the laborers clothes he had time to
warm himself, and he was eating and drinking
with much relish He had thrown his muddy
clothes in heap upon the floor and as she pro-
ceeded to lit them up she said:
"Ah, lad lad doubt thy head has been I'M
der water; thy mother would have been soyeiy
frightened if she could have seen thee while
ago"
Yes" said the boy, and in imagination the
cottage dame saw this said mother a eareworn,
Woodworking creature like herself while the
youthful guest in imagination beautiful
and courtly lady and both the same love, the
same anxiety, the same terror at ght OF a lone
ly boy struggling in the moonlight through
breaking ice, with no one to help him, catching
at the frozen reeds, and creeping up, shIvsring
and benumbed, to a cottage door.
But even az she stopped the woman forgot her
imagination, for she had taken waistcoat into
her hands, such as had never passed between
them before: gold pencil.case dropped from
the pocket, and on the floor among a heap of
mud thatcOvered the outer garments, lay a white
shirt sleeve, so white indeed, and fine that she
thought it could hardly be worn by squire.
She glanced from the clothes to the owner
He had thrown down his cap, and his fair curly
hair and broad forehead convinced her that he
was of gentle birth, but while she hesitated to
sit down, he set "A chair for her, and said with
boyish frankness Il say, what lonely place
thisis ii You had not let me in, the water
would have all frozen on me before | reached
home Catch me a duck-shooting again by
myself
Its very cold sport that, SIR" said the woman
+al l.
and asked if he might stir the fire.
"And welcome, sir" said the woman. She
felt a curiosity to know who he was and he
partly satisfied her by remarking that he was
staying at Dean Hall, a house about five miles
OFT. adding that in the morning he had broken a
hole III TIE ice very near the decoy, bat it had
iced over so very fast that in the dusk he had
missed it and fallen in, for it would not bear him.
He had made some landmarks and taken every
precaution, but he supposed the sport had ex-
cited him so much that in the moonlight he had
passed them by.
He then told her of his attempt to get shelter
in the other cottage.
"Sir" said the woman, "if you had said you
We're gentleman'
The boy laughed II don't think knew it,
my good woman, my senses were so benumbed
for was sometime struggling in the waters edge
among the broken ice and tleu | believe was
nearly an hour creeping to your cottage door. l
remember it all rather indistinctly, but as felt
the fire and drank the warm beer, was n differ
ent creature"
While they still talked the husband came in
and while he was eating his supper, they agreed
that he would walk to Dean Hall, and let its In.
mates know of the gentleman's safety, and when
he was gone they made up the fire with the coal
that remained to that poor household, and the
woman crept up to bed and left her guest to lie
down and rest before it,
In the grey of dawn the laborer returned with
a servant leading horse, and bringing fresh