The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1874-04-02

flash, and put my shawl over my
head, and went home with her. And
/ never came home, ma'am, for seven
weeks. Awesome weeks they were,
ma'am. The nights were worst. l
used to feel as il we two were fightin'
death hand to hand for that boy, and
be a tossin' on the pillow, his round
red cheeks sunk away. all his curly
hair shaved close to his head, and in
/ all that time never giyin' us one reas-
onabIe word or look. It was the
/ fourth week, when i minded, one
mornin', AZ Mis-. WiilistOn sat by the
bed, that her hair was turnin', but by
the seventh, ma'am, when the fever
left him, it was as white as mine is
now.
"All but the least breath of life was
burnt out of him, and when he did
once begin to mend, it was SO slow
that it took US great while to find
out that anything was wrong. 1t come
to me, first, when went into the bed.
room, one afternoon, of sudden. He
didn't see me for q minute, and laid
there a playin' with his fingers
then, all to once, be looked up and
laughed! That laughi o, ma'am !
all the rest was as nothin' to that l
just sunk down into 6 chair, and
groaned, 20 Lord haye mercy on his
mother y Not that!
'VThe Lord did have mercy on her,
but not in my way. He took her
home that next winter, and Pve
thought many q time that I'd like to
"a been by when he explained to her
as Pm certain he would-some things
that we down hG re waited years and
years for, aud many more, belikes,
that we've never found out at all.
"Poor little Jock got well again-in
big bcdy<tisa all. His miHd vas
clean gone. He used to go about
gentle and harmless as a lamb.
Whilst his mother lived, he'd follow
her every step she took, but more like
a dog than q human child. II she sat
down, he'd Just drop down at her feet,
and rub his head on her knee, like a
dumb thing. Not but that he talked
yet-a good deal sOmetimes-but all
in weak, senseless fashion, that'd
half-break your heart. He didn't
seem TO know the reason Of any thing
-he might be half-starved and yet
never think of eatin' unless you put
the victuals before him.
"There was a while after Mis-. Will
liston died that had a little hopes of
him. He used to wander around as II
be was searchin' for something, and
sometimes, all to once, an odd look'd
come into his face for half second
you'd q said, to look at him, that he
was just goin' to find it, whatever
twas. 1t was then he took the haDit
that stuck to him ever after, of clap
PIN both hands to his head and sayin',
It's eomin'p What's comm Jocky?'
/ used to say sometimes, and the poor
boyd stare up into my face with q
dazed, 'wildered look for a minute,
and then break out into one of his
weak, senseless smiles.
"There was little or nOthin' left to
take care of him with; but not q man
or women on the island would ever "a
let child o. Cap'n Williston's come
TO want, let alone his bein' q poor un-
fortunate like Jock. So we all adopt
ed him, as you might say, and he
used to go and come from one house
to another just as suited him. On the
whole, he seemed to stick to me the
most. You'll wonder at il, maybe,
0dN tAC POOA IVY " - ACtNA COAA B0hI lOl
me, after all, bein' alone so much
when Zebedee-that was my man
was gone off on his whalin' voyages.
81 used to be a master hand to read
my Bible in them days, though my
old eyes've been too dim for it this
many year. Thank the Lord. though
that can seq the page amos: as well
as ever in my mindi had habit of
readin' out loud great deal, seemin'
to get the sense better sO-especially
in the Psalms-and queer as you
might think it, there Jock ID lay
stretched on the rug. before the fire.
place, listenin' by the hour. l used
to think twas the sound o. my voice
he liked, for he didn't know enough
to understand q single word rightly.
But howsoever that was, hearkenin'
TO me readin' was one of the two
things he seemed to like to like hest
in the world. The other was to go out
with the men in the boats. or course
he wasn't OF any particular use,s bHts
they all humored him, and dsemetimes.
in the mackerel- season, they'd. keep.
him out for days and weeks to a time.
"But must hurry along, ma'am, or
I'll be firing you out. ALI this while
Jock was growin' up, and at twenty
he was great, strong fellow, standin'
good six foot in his stockin's. He
didn't look that tall, though, Owin' to
his stoopih' some and walkin' with
shufflin', shamblin' sort o. gait, such
as you've minded in others, maybe,
when the brain didn't hold the tiller.
|. at was that same summer when
Mabelle Devereux first came to the
Island. Her father was French gen.
tlemen, who had lived great many
years in this country. Bein' out of
health, he thought to try the sea air
for a while. Pm an old woman, and
I've seen many fresh face IN my
time, but never another that was fit
to set alongside Mabelle Devereux'.
There was a picture in Parson Ellet's
parlOr, over the mantle-piece, that
came from over seas,-a Madonna he
called it,-and rve heard tell that it
was copied after the greatest painter
that ever lived. But that's neither
here nor there,-Only when first set
my eyes on Mabelle, siltin' one Sun
day in Deacon Prices pew,-Mis.
Price was aunt to Mabelle's mother
1 leaned Ovor the forward pew before
thought what was doin', and whis-
pered to 'Bijah Porter's wife, Look
there There's Psrson Ellet's picture
stepped out o. the framep
"Mabelle was as good as she was
pretty. used to tell them that all
the young men on the coast just stood
afar of and worshiped her. The girls
dotted on her, too,-she seemed too
different from all the rest to be the
least bit jealous of. Old Mr.. Dever-
eux was mastery pleased with the
Island, and heard him talkin' with
Parson Ellet once, at q clam-bake,
about the hospitality of the inhabi-
tants, and their remarkable sympathy
with an invalid's sufferin's, and it's
bein' really rare, my dear sir, to find
such delicate feelin' among the COM
mon people, Common people, in.
deed! 1 ached to speak up right
there, and say You fool so you think
it's for yOu that twenty boats are
ready mornin', noon, or night, with
two or three stout young fellows to
each one, to row or sail you where you
like% But bit my lips, and held
still, which was better for us both.
"All little children and brute beasts
loved Mabelle at first sight, and it
was no wonder that poor Jock took
to her, too. She used to spend most
all the pleasant days outdoors with
her father, for Mr.. Devereux, when
he didn't choose to go out on the wa
ter, would have great chair carried
down to the shore, and sit there in
the SUM- Mabelle would ramble up
and down the beach, or climb about
among the rocks, coming around
every little while to see if her father
wanted any thing. Jock got by de-
grees to followin' her for all the
world as he used to his mother, be-
fore she died. Some girls wouldn'
have wanted the great foolish fellow
around, or would even have been
afraid of him, maybe, but it wasn't
so with Mabelle. She used to speak
to him in her quiet, gentle way, and
he minded her voice like little child.
1t was wonderful how many things
she made him do for her that nobody
elsa would "a thought of trying. to
TO make him understand. / used to
wonder sometimes if he'd had some
body like her when he was a little
fellow and first lost his mind, if he
mightnit partly have got il back