Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1875-01-19

in the centre ot one side OF its parallelo
gram. two windows on each side thereof
aud five windows above.
lis exterior, never painted, and worn
by the ocean winds and inland storms ol
almost two hundred and fifty years, is
black and rugged. Bat houses built in
those days were built by the Purtans
VINO came to stay, aud who so wrought
their rugged c0nscieutiousne into every
thing they did, that where one finds, to-
day, the traces OF their presence. he sees
albeit, in wood, mansions that lrown with
great aud stern so!idity upon The toy
houses in brick and stone that their less
sturdy children have built after them.
They loved to build thcm, too, after the
fashion rendered 50 necessary in lhe mar
row streets OF the cities whence they had
come with projecting upper stories
This feature has given rise to i SUPPOSE
ton that this was their plan of keeping
the Indians from scaling their outei
walls, but the explanation i much SIM
pier enc. They followed the quaint rule
OF their mo,herland.
/ In 1903. then, on the evening OF the
l6.h day OF October. in the stout, low
ceiled sitting room.' whose two front
wiadows looked out upon the waves.
opposite from the deep, old fireplace sat
granther and granny Clap; Prudence
I Heard. their only surviving childi her
husband, Ezekiel; and ;wo stout, tow
headed and beach blislered boys. respect.
lively Jonathan and Truthful Heard.
Graniher and Granny Clap were q
doing and doing old couple. who had
lived The hard, practical New England
work day aud week. day lives OF this
people to the best Of their knowledge and
their faith; and having reared house
/ iuii OF boys tor the sea 10 swallow up one
T by one in their fathers trade and theirs.
bad Ioae their duty generally, rs their
ueighbols understood il, and were now
nursing the remnant OF their vitality at
The hearlh,ione around which they sat on
their wedding night, aud which they had
transmitted in due time to their only
daughter.
Prudence ha, beca U,oIgU. up on the
New England Primer. Nhn.r.dlty at mlu
pyiuciplc, aud has lhrived upon it. She
had learned to wash on Mondays. dry on
ruesl,yS. iron on Wednesdays. bake on
Thursdays. brew on fridays. 10 keep
herself composed on Saturdays, 10 oat
cold diuaer aud gn to mec;in' on the
Slbba,ns. Aud 50. Gr,t Tor her fathers
itmiiy. and then ior her own. she had
washed. dried iroued. baked and brewed.
aud gone 10 meeting, Tor tweniy-iour
wears. Ia the intervals Of these duties
she had been courted asked" and mar.
u!ed. rnere had seemed 10 her 10 be bat
yery slight interval between her child
hood and her motherhood. between the
days when she toiIed and spun tor her
brothers, aud when she toiied aaJ spun
lor 1er babies. She had married because
the strong. sturdy. and honest fisherman
had asked her in meetin',' aud because
it was her duty to 60 on Is her mother
and grandmother before her had gone
spinning and going 10 meetin', baking
and bTowing, and replenishing the land.
The society with which she had mingled
like The society that had been her mother s
and her fathers had been and was bound
ed by the four walls OF Governor Win.
throp's storm beaten house on the cliff;
but, ia the absence Of society, she loved
her husband and her children, tenderly
cherished The Two relics at The lireside,
who were her parents, and did her duty.
For all the hard. thorny. dispiriting
lie OF old New England (Which however,
was the life that made eur statesmen.
whose empty places we have scarcely
filed in these days. which she had led,
Prudence was solt-eyed tender hearted
girl, and her hand. for all the labor ol
twenty years. touched very softly her
husbands slalwart arm and her chiidren's
shaggy heads. Ezekiel. her husband,
was a skipper. proud OF his wife, proud
of home. proud OF his boys, and-God.
fearing man that he was-proud OF the
skill and cunning of his hands, which
God had given him, enabling him TO earn
the bread which was theirs and his, out
OF the briny and boisterous sea. that was
his quarry and nearest neighbor.
Prudence had had nine brothers, all
seafaring boys and men, all fishermen
save one, who had been lrelful OF the
smaller service and at last breaking the
commandments OF the Lord and OF his
father after the flesh 50 they told him),
had run away to Boston, and shipped on
huge vessel. which went long voyages
alter the leyiaihan in The northern seas.
Prudence and the "keepiu' room" had
known the late OF eigh. ol her brothers.
From the stiff. starch, and trim, high
backed chairs that still stood in the
keepin' room. she and the neighbors had
seen them. one by one, carried ou., feet
foremost had heard the same remarks
fl ON the parson over each briet and tx.
tincuished candle. and the scarcely less
composed Gods will be done" OF her
father. after all.