Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1879-07-24

I turned to my boatman, who now
stood waiting for me to depart.
swell, Shawn, is it mermaid?"
asked, smiling.
He gravely shook his head.
}" No, yer honor; tits only a poor col
leen wild broken, a broken heart"
turned and looked questioningly al
him, but he was gazing at the spot
whence the figure of the girl had disap
peared.
"God Almighty, risht the dead!" hi
said, reverently raising his hat, "but
him that brought such luck to Nora
OConnell 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
wildly before me. But for some reason
or other he seemed to shun the subject
so for time I too held my peace. But
as soon as l found myself comfortably
seated in the cozy 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.
CHOW, Shawn" I said, holding forth
steaming goblet which 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 whom we saw tonight"
"Would yer honor really like to
hear it,"
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; yell believe me when tell ye
that if ye was to search the country at
the present moment ye couldn't find a
colleen to match Norah O'Connell.
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 a 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, l went
myself in with 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 shaughraun Miles
Doughty (God rest his soul!) came over
from Ballygally, and going straight to
Norah, widout making up any match at
all, asked her to marry him."
Well?"
"Well, yer honor, this time Moral,
frightened up, and though she knew
we'll enough that Miles was dirty
blackguard widout penny in the world
though the old people said no, and
there was 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, wo1
over Father Tom-who won over the ole
people, till at last they said that if Miles
would 90 for awhile to the black pits o.
Pennsylvania and earn the money anc
buy house and bit of land, he shou]e
marry her."
He paused, and for time there wa
silence. Shawn looked thoughttully in
to the fire; l lay back in my easy chair
and carelessly watched the smoke which
curled from my cigar, and as I did 80
seemed to hear again the wildly plaintiff
voice of the girl as l had heard it before
that night
~ have called my love but still he sleeps on,
| And his lips are as cola as clay;''
and as the words of the song passed
through my mind, they seemed to tel
me the sequel Of the story.
"Another case of disastrous true love,
said, turning to Shawn; and when b.
looked puzzled, I added, "He died, anc
she is mourning him?'
Yes, yer honor, he died; but if tina
was all he did we would forgive him
What broke the poor colleen's heart was
that he should forget her when he go1
to a strange land and marry another col
leen at the time he should have married
her; after that it was but right that h@
should die.''
"Did he write and tell her he wa
married?'
Write? devil the bit, nor tell he wa!
dead neither. Here was the poor COLLIER
watching and waiting for him two whole
years and wondering what could keel
him; but few months ago Owen Mac
Grath, boy who had gone away from
the village on account of Norah refusing
to marry him, came back again and tole
Norah that Miles was dead and askee
her to marry him. He had made lots O.
money and was ready to take house ant
bit of land and to buy up cattle i
she would but say the word the word t.
him."
Well?'
"Well, yer honor, Norah first shool
her head and said that now Miles wa
dead twas as well for her to die too
At this Owen spoke out and asked wher
was the use Of grieving so, since 70
many months before his death Miles hat
been a married man! Well, when Over
said this, Nora never spoke single word
but her teeth set and her lips and fac
went white and cold as clay, and eve
since that day she has been SO strange il
her ways that some think she's not RICH
at all. On moonlight nights she creep
out of the house and walks by the sc,
singing them strange old songs; then sh,
looks out as if expecting him to come Il
ber-and right or wrong, she'll neve
look at another mani"
| As Shawn flushed the hall cIoc}
chimed FIVE; the last spark faded from
my cigar; the turf fell low in The CRATE
so went to bed to think over the stor,
alone.
During the three days which followed
this midnight adventure, Storport wa
visited by deluge of rain, but on tn,
fourth morning l looked from my win
dow to find the earth basking in summer
sunshine. The sky was vault of throb
biDg blue, flecked here and there witt
waves of summer cloud, the stretches Of
sand grew golden in the sun.rays, while
the saturated hills were bright as if from
the smiling of the sky. The sight re-
vivi6ed me, and as soon as my breakfast
was over whistled up my dogs and
strolled out into the air.
How bright and beautiful every thing
looked after the heavy rain! The
ground was spongy to the tread; the dew
still lay heavily upon the heather and
long grass; but the sun seemed to be
sucking up the moisture from the bog.