Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1879-07-31

L turned to my boatman, who now
stood waiting for me to depart.
=" Well, Shawn, is it a mermaid?' I
asked, smiling. Pgse- $50
He gravely shook his head.
"No, yer honor; It's only a poor col
leen wild broken heart !''a7sE
[ turned and looked ouestioningly at
him, but he was gazing at the spot
whence the figure of the girl disap-
peared. 70
"God Almighty, risht the dead!n he
said, reverently raising his hat, {" but
him that brought such luck to Norah
O'Connell deserved His curse, God
knows"
This incident, coupled with the
strange manner of my man, interested
me- and began to question him as to
the story of the girl whose lovely face
was still yividly before me. But for
some reason or other he seemed to
shun the subject, and SO for time
100 held my peace. But as soon as
found myself comfortably seated in the
coy parlor of the lodge, with a bright
turf fire blazing before me and hot
punch steaming on the table at my
side, [ summoned my henchman to
my presence. rg-
"Now, Shawn" said. holding forth
a steaming goblet that made his eyes
sparkle like two stars, "close the door,
draw your chair up to the fire, drink OF
this, and tell me the story of the
lovely colleen that we saw tonight"
Would yer honor really like to
hear"
II would; it will give me something
to dream about, and prevent me from
thinking too much of her beautiful
face"
Shawn smiled gravely.
eyer honor thinks her pretty? Well,
then, yen believe me when [ tell We
| that IT We was to search the country
at the present moment We couldn't find
a colleen to match Norah OConnell.
When she was born the neighbors
thought she must be fairy child, she
was so pretty and small and white; and
when she got older, there wasn't boy
In Storport but would lay down his life
for her. Boys wild fortunes and BOYS
widout fortunes tried to get her; and,
begging yer honor's pardon, went my
self IN wild the rest. But it went one
way wild us all: Norah just smiled and
SAID she did not want to marry. But
one day, two years ago now come this
| Serapht, that lazy shaugraun, Miles
Doughty God rest his soulD, came over
from Ballygally, and going straight to
| Norah, wldout making up any match
at all, asked her to marry him."
Well?"
Well, yer honor, this time Norah
frightened up, and though she knew
well enough that Miles was a dirty black
guard widout penny in the world
| though the old people said no, and there
were plenty fortunes in Storport waitin
on her-she just went against every one
of them and said she must marry Miles
The old people pulled against her at
first, but at last Norah, with her smiles
and pretty ways, won over Father Tom
who won over the old people, till at
last they said that if Miles would 90 for
awhile to the black pits of Pennsylvania
and earn the money to buy house and
| a bit of land, he should marry her."
He paused, and for a time there was
silence. Shawn looked thoughtfully into
the fire; l lay back in my easy chair
and carelessly watched the smoke which
curled from my cigar, and as did so /
seemed to hear again the wildly plain
tive voice Of the girl as I had heard it
before that night;
. have called my love, but he still sleeps on,
And his Fps are as cold as clay
And as the words of the song passed
through my mind, they seemed to tell
me the sequel of the story.
another case of disastrous true love"
said, turning to Shawn; and when he
looked puzzled, | added, 'he died, and
she is mourning him ?" %
Yes, yer honor, he died; but if that
was all he did we would forgive him.
What broke the poor colleen's heart was
that he should forget her when he go
to the strange land, and marry another
colleen at the time he should have mar
ried her; after that it was but right
that he should die" .4.
odd he write and tell her he was
married."
Write? devil the bit, nor TO tell he
was dead neither. Here was the poor
colleen watching and waiting for him
for two years, and wondering what
could keep him; but few months age
Owen MacgratIb a boy who had gone
away from the village long ago on ac-
count of Norah refusing to marry him
came back again and told Norah that
Miles was dead, and asked her to marry
him. He had made lots of money, and
was ready to take house and a bit O.
land and to. take up cattle if she would
but say the word to him." f
] '"WeH?" -s-.s ~ s-.za., 5r-f .
! -"Well, yer honor, Norah. first shook
] her head and said that now Miles was
dead twas as well for her to die, too
! At this Owen spok> Sout and asked where
was the use of agrieving so, since fol
many months before his death Miles
had been a married man! Well, when
Owen said this Norah never spoke s
/ single word, but her teeth set and hel
! lips and face went white and cold as
clay, and ever since that day she has
been so strange IN her ways that some
think she's not right at all. On moon
! light nights she creeps out of the house
end walks by the sea singing them
strange old songs; then she looks ou
as if expecting him to come to her
and right or wrong she'll never look a.
another mani"
| As Shawn finished, the hall clock
chimed five; the last spark faded from
my cigar, the turf fell low in the CRATE
solvent to bed to think over the story
!. alone. .ssss5
During the three days which followed
| this midnight adventure, Storport wa:
visited by deluge of rain, but on the
fourth morning looked from my win
dow to find the earth basking in sum
| OF. cI1,,c Eino -1Iha Sl-xr ,1-oc