Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1873-01-23

come with them. They are a noisy,
reckless set of men, but they had not
landed long before they begin to walk
silently, and look ut one another; the Y
watch their footsteps with care, for. at
intervals not very vide apart, a piece
OF fur raiment, or lock of woman's
hair, stands out from the snow. The
sailors press up into the country, first
setting mp flagstaff on the hill to guide
them back, and then telling the little
cabin boy to play noar it, while they
hunt and shoot ptarmigans.
He is afraid to be alone, and does
not care to play !; he wanders about
and climbs among the cliffs, taking
care to keep the ship in view. At last
he finds erevice in snow wall +; he
knows it must be the wall of q hut,
and he widens it and creeps in. A red
sunbeam follows him, and lies along
the floor; there are white ashes on the
cold hearth, and scattered around it
lie weapons and garments, rude har-
ness, and cooking utensils.
Everything is frozen he
looks round-there is raised
place in one corner covered
with skins of animals; something lies
upon them, it is carefully folded, all
but the face and the small dimpled
hands, for, alas! he sees that it is \
little dead child frozen to death among
its furs; it had fallen to sleep when
the fire was bright-when it went out,
the baby died. The little plump
cheek looks just, the boy thinks, as it
must have done in life; quiet smile
seems to hover about its lips, and in
the half-light he thinks, as he moves,
the baby.features change. The little
cabin boy turns away; he feels the
tears rise into his eyes but suddenly
he starts and looks quickly round
can it be that he has heard the child
move9 No, he sees that it is
certainly dead, but something begins
to sing; he looks nearer, and nesting
among the thick folds of fur, which
cover the baby's breast, sits little bird
yes, a living bird. She sits and
broods over her snow-white eggs, for
she has built her nest and made it
warm and soft, she has sung the lula
by Of the sleeping child, and her little
cnes will chirp and dutter close to
those Needless ears and silent lips.
The Snowflake is wise she is not
afraid lest the baby.hand should he
lifted up to disturb her callow young.
and she sits and watches with her
bright eyes, while the little cabin.boy
stands near her. She turns her head
with restless, uneasy movement; but
she does not rise from her nest, though
he strokes her with his finger, and
when he turns away he hears again her
soft low song. A sad fate for this little
two-years old child but these are the
miseries of war.
The little cabin-boy came home to
England, and one day I met him as
walked about mile from home. He
was come to see his grandmother. and
carried bundle, tied in q red hand
kerchief, in one hand; little tame
white bird sat on his shoulder, he was
whistling to it as he ran along, and
when he stopped, full of joy at seeing
US, it hoped down on to his hand.
He pulled out clasp-knife. "You.
see, I've took care of it, " he said, smil-
ing; "you said when You gave it to
me that should lose 1t directly, but I
haven't"
"And what have you got in your
handkerchief" 1 inquired
''Oh, miss, it's nest and some cur
osities )" and so saying, he united it,
and I saw some shells, some beautiful
pieces of spar, and the nest he had
spoken of. "This is my bird" he con-
tinued II used to feed her, and she
flew aboard and followed me home.
can make her sing when 1 choose"
Make her sing now, then" said I {;
and he stroked the bird and whistled
to it, whereupon it futtered its wings,
and few round and FOUND him, utter
ri. : = succession of clear thrilling notes;
!|ssSi:r.s- TT-r:.-led it back to his hand, took
1eaye of us; and ran on to his grand
mothers cottage.
A few days afterwards he told me
this story. He was asweet little gentle
boy, and it had surprised us all that he
ehould be SO bent on going to sea he
was scarcely thirteen years old.
When he had told me how tho little
child lay with her pretty hands folded
on her breast, he said
Il reckon, miss, they were all heath
ens."
Yes, certainly they were."
II did not know what her name was,
of course, 7" he continued, $50 Invented
one-I mean I chose one for her, and
cut it on a piece of wood that I got GU:
of the brig-and I made her a little
grave"
asked him what name he chose for
her, and he said
Zone that I like. because of q pic
ture in my Pilgrims Progress, my ia
vorite picture of Mercy knocking at the
door. She thinks, you know, in the
story, that they won't open it for her,
"And what did you mean by giving
her that name?"
81 can't tell yuu exactly, Icut the
words as we'll as could, and put up
the wood at her head to be like little
grave stone:
"And what we've the worIs9"
"The very words, Mercy. He
things scattered about in the hut that
I thought, perhaps, were idols; most
likely no one had taught those people
the things that we know. And, beside,
this was little young; it never could
have said any prayers to them. I often
went and fed the bird after had NOV
ed her nest. and she got quite tame, SO
I brought her on board; her young
ones flew away when they were aedged;
but she stops with me-"
I walked towards home, and at the
edge of the common passed near the
open door OF q cottage. A man, the
owner who waa we'll known m a arnnL
ard and q reprobate, sat on a bench
before it in the sun; his wife sat close
to him. I stopped, for there was some
thing strange in the fixed, foolish smile
which cleaned on the woman's face
was sure she was intoxicated. but
should have passed on had not the
sight OF their little child, their only
one, made me pause. This child was
the idol of their hearts. Savage Of
the man was, and profane as the wo
man was, they never il.treated it. The
little creature was about three years
old. I saw it standing between the
drunken father and mother, the darl
eyes looking unnaturally right, and
the cheeks flushed and heated
thought the reflection of It's mothers
smile looked strangely amiss upon those
dimpled features; the child seemed
neither observant nor playful. Present
~ ii tried to run forward, staggered
and fell. The father, upon this
laughed immoderately, and called to it.
"Come thou here, my pretty ono
have some MORE"
Ul>o 1:kA1. 5