Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1881-09-07


On a cold October afternoon many
years ago, two women were sitting ID a
cottage which looked on the small of st.
Adams. One, a remarkably pretty but
pale and delicate looking girl of eighteen,
was gazing intently on the sea; the
other, her aged grandmother, was spin
ming, or rather was sitting by her spin
ning-wheel, but she was doing no work,
and it was very easy to see that the
minds of both were so full of some one
subject of absorbing interest that every
thing else was as nothing to it. Within
the house was dull; without it all was
cherries to the last degree of cherries
ness. An easy wind was making itself
felt, as it so frequently does in the
north, by wiping out all color from the
landscape. The sky was leaden, the sea
nky, every trace of green was expunged
from leaf and shrub and heritage, and in
its place the eve rested only on dull and
7irty sandy grays. The wind was blow
G briskly and driving before it along
me surface of the road long swirling
wreaths of dust, or making them dance
over the bare tracts of ground where the
life of all vegetation had long ago been
stamped out by the children of st.
Adams, who made their nursery out of
doors. St. Adams was not large place.
Two or three rows of red brick, red-tiled
houses were huddled together on the
side of the steep hills which closed in
the bay and harDor. These houses for
the most part were occupied by patient
and much enduring race of fishermen,
but during the herring season they were
crowded by other fishermen. who came
from almost every seaport from John
O'Groat's house to the Lands End to
struggle to possess themselves of some
portion of this harvest of the sea. A
fine and cheering sight it often was to
see the boats sail in with their silvery
loads, and then to watch the hustle of
unloading and packing. But to-day no
boats were there, nor was there any sight
of life or movement anywhere. How
dreary the sea looked For miles and
miles there was no other motion on its
surface than an unbroken series of harsh
wrinkles. The girl inside the cottage
was looking fxedly at this, with eyes
smarting and heavy with much weeping.
Her heart, too, was as heavy as lead. 1t
is doubtful whether the sternness and
harshness of all she saw outside added
to the pain which she wasI already feel
ing. It may have done SO, for she sigh
ed and shlvered, and for the first
time for two hours and more,
turned her eyes into the room
where she was sitting. If during
this time she had ever thought of her
grandmother at all, she had believed her
to be entirely occupied with her spin
nlng-she had never missed the sound of
the wheel. Now, when she turned away
from the p1tiless sea to seek respite
from its tormentlng power, her eyes met
those of the old woman fixed on her with
a gaze so earnest that they seemed to be
trying to look down to the very bottom
of her heart In search of an answer to the
question they were Enthusiastically put
ting. The girl had not known that the
old woman was looking at her, or she
would not have fed from the sight of the
sea to encounter one more distressful
still. Now she could not take her eyes
away from those which were watching
her SO narrowly. They fascinated her by
their implor1ng eagerness. They were
putting a question which would shortly
be put plainly In word, and when that
time came Phoebe well knew that her
grandmother would not stir from the
place where she was till she got an an
swer, even If she had to wait for it for
hours. By a great effort she detached
her eyes from her grandmother's, to the
extent Of escaping from their direct gaze.
She looked at the face, so puckered with
age, with the veins so prominent and
the strange spots of purply violet color
SO often seen In the faces of old people.
Her grandmother aspect was strong
ard commanding, her eyes hawk-like,
her mouth, nose, and chin were all hand
some and well formed, her hair was white
as snow. She wore large frilled cap.
tied down by the broad black ribbon, a
neat shepherds plaid shawl over her
shoulders, scanty brown merino dress,
and a spotless clean apron. But she
looked SO severe--so unloving! and last
week she had never spoken to the anx-
ious girl who was watching her without
calling her "my bonnie birdie, or "my
sweet lamd;;" and last week, if she had
been idle herself, or seen Phoebe idle,
she would have thought, "The Lord had
40 good right to take the clash the roof of
her cottage in with one OF his big thun-
derbolts just for a punishment for such
laziness p and now she had been sitting
for more than an hour doing nothing but
watch Phoebe looking orr of the window,
and Phoebe herself had been doing that
for two hours undisturbed by one word
of reproof.
The grandmother still kept silence.
The strain on the girl became too great,
and at last helooked in the old woman s
face with helpless entreaty for pity.
"Wen, girly?" said the grandmother,
sternly.
ssNay, there's no well about it % said
Phoebe, beginning to cry.
'sNow, dinnot thou waste no time in
lishness p cried the grandmother.
let me know, once for all, does that
/ mean to wed you or not Just
yer that y