The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1881-01-01

crowd rushed toward IL ana as suddenly
fell back, while the awful whisper
passed from one to another, "It's the
Merry Bell and every one on board
stark dead, frozen to the rigging"
The schooner was only a charnelhouse
and the people had been expanding
their sympathy upon creatures who had
been for hours beyond it. Among the
crowd waiting on the shore Rose Bell
had stood closely yelled. There had
been tears and screams from waiting
wives and mothers, but she turned
quietly away, as one in dream, and,
walking blindly. made her way home.
She rang the bell, said nothing to the
servant who opened the door, but
passed quickly to her own room. utter
ing no cry, shedding no tears and threw
herself into chair before the fire.
Mrs. Bell so found her when she came
in few moments later and her own
shrek for help failed to rouse her daugh-
ter. Inconsistencies is blessing Oft
entimes and so it proved now.
With the return of consciousness came
memory. 90 mamma, the schooner
was the Merry Bell, and all aboard
dead. frozen! He was to come home on
it! o, what shall l do?' The blessed
tears came now and caused the shrewd
doctor to nod his head wisely and whis-
per to Mrs. Bell, "She'll be all right
now" and quietly made his exit. When
in his buggy he contided to it or his
horse, "Humph! A lover at the bottom
of this; young Culbertson, too, sup.
pose; he is part owner of the schooner.
Good fellow; sorry if he is gone; miser-
able way of dying. too; and that pretty
girl! Well, well! Get up, there, Dolly;
what are you aboutr' Then the good
doctor logged on to another patient and
forgot all about it.
That morning, soon after breakfast,
little Jack Bell, an ubiquitous youngster
that would some day make his fortune
as reporter for a Chicago daily, ran in
briskly, skates in hand, nose and cheeks
red with cold and absolutely bullying
with news:
"Say, Sis, schooner out there stuck
in the ice; men sticking to the masts.
Folks say it's the Merry Ben and, by
George, Sis, shouldn't wonder if Mr.
Culbertson was one of 'em. Hope he
amt, though, for he promised me a new
sled If would say nothing about the
day caught him kissing you"
"Jack!" sternly interposed his moth
er'S voice
"Where is it, Jack; quick, tell meP"
said Rose in q voice of trembling anx-
iety.
"Out there; from behind Dick Matt
| lands house YOU can see her."
Then she had slipped away to see the
schooner and hear from others what
ground there was for her fears.
All day she moaned ana grieved and
would not be comforted, for handsome
Fred Culbertson was her promised hus-
band, and she had given all her heart
into his keeping. When he babe her
goodbye few weeks before he had
called back at the last, ''Pn be home
for Christmas!'' He was part owner of
1.-THE Merry Bel" and had intended
coming back on this her last trip for the
season. ~-s
The cold continued to increase. The
sky wore duh, leaden look-nature
itself seemed dead. Rose lay looking
out, and thought of other hearts sad
dened as hers was; other homes where
the light had gone out and made them
dreary and dark.
Mrs. Bell remained during the night
with her daughter, petting, soothing,
and comforting, and as the sleepless
hours wore away mother and daughter
grew nearer together than they had
ever been before. Mrs. Bell talked of
the early days of her married life; then
of the day when her husband had left
her bright and well in the morning, and
at evening had been brought to her
still and dead. Rose realized as she
had never done before what her mother
had suffered. ''Poor mamma, how sad
and lonely you have been," she MUIR
INJURED as she dropped into tired sleep.
The next day was Thursday, the day
before Christmas. Rose opened her
eyes to find the maid setting her break
fast on q table at her bedside.
"Look, look, Miss Rose. see on the
window. Sure it's the cars intirely!
Sure it's the witches, it is, and Miss
Rose, dear, sure it's good luck it'll
bring. Mr.. Calbertson III COON yet, or
we'll know it!''
Frightened by the girls words and
forgetting 10 be offended at the freely
expressed opinion, Rose jumped up to
see the wonder of frost work. ''Sure
enough, it's veritable train, locomo-
tive and all. How stranger'
II don't know what kind that is,
Miss Rose, but it's cars, it is"
''Get my wrapper, Ann, and bring
my breakfast to the fire, I'll get up, !"
said Rose, cheered she scarcely knew
why.
"Will your ma have the tree, Miss
Rose. It's the childers is on their heads
about it."
81 forgot it," answered Rose, her
face clouding. Ask mamma to come
up as soon as she is through her break
fast"
It's been over this hour! I'll 90
tell her, and shall / bring up some more
coffeer'
mo, just tell mammar'