Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1882-07-26
THE LAST ELM OF THE AVENUE.

three oil lamps flickered feeble in the
gloom on struggling crowd Of damp
passengers, in q chaotic mass OF luggage
and-no porters.
Such were my earliest impressions on
train at Westwood, the station for Cinq-
haven, whittier L and some half dozen
other officers were bound, TO complete
our education by course of musketry
instruction.
where's Cinqhaven," was my first
very natural inquiry " And how am l
to get therep"
Cinqhaven was "across there" civil
official replied, pointing over an expapse
of plowed field in the direction of the
South Pole. The one omnibus had, il
appeared, departed with q small selec-
ton from the impatient crowd of belated
travellers, but would be back again di-
rectly.
How soonP" | asked.
Well, in about an hour or 500
thanked him, committed my belong
ings to his care, and with a benediction
on my luck and the Colonel who had
sent me there, plunged into the night.
Outside the station found an officer
with his party, sergeant and some pri-
Yates, about to march to Cinqhaven, and
gladly joined them.
took for granted some one knew the
way. l didn't. Such night! Rain
pelting us viciously, wind blowing our
fragmentary attempts at conversation
away into space. Finally, at a point
where five roads met, and the WIND and
rain did their wickedness, we halted.
Fire and candle-light streamed invit-
ingly out of the unshuttered window of
a low white house; sign creaked over
our heads in the darkness, and after a
brief debate, in we all turned TO the coy
kitchen of the Green Lion.
We were not unwilling TO accept the
landlady's assurances that the storm
would b" blow itself out" in half an hour
or less. She invited us into her own
snug parlor, and here, for the first time,
/ got look at my companion.
The landlady's prediction was verified
storm blew over, the clouds parted, and
a clear white moon shone out.
Half an hours quick walking brought
us to the top of the hill, under which
lay the little town of Cinqhaven. Its
red roofs looked pretty and picturesque
in the moonlight beyond, and to west
ward the sea and the marshes stretching
away gray and mysterious; below us a
row of lighted windows showed where
the barracks stood.
That's welcome sight," said Mac
Leish.
"Werc you ever here before?" !
asked.
Never. only heard of the place
last week-ahr' he stopped short.
/ looked round in amazement. He
was standing upright and rigid, his eyes
fixed on some point in the road before us,
his forefinger extended.
"Why, what's the matterp' asked,
looking down the road-white and lonely
and seeing only milestone standing
out distinctly from the dark hedge.
"Therer' His eyes dilatcd with a
fixed stare of horror, his breath came
short and quick, and at last, with sharp
cry, he swayed forward and fell insensi-
BILE on the path. l thought he tried TO
say something, but failed to understand
him. The soldiers had halted, and two
came rushing up vociferating wildly in
some unknown tongue. They knelt be-
side him and raised him all stark and
white, in the moonshine. gave few
directions; to which they vouchsafed not
The smallest attention; but somehow they
contrived to support him between them,
and we proceeded to the barracks; no
great distance, fortunately.
l questioned the sergeant, who had
looked on meanwhile with undisturbed
composure. He declined to commit him.
self to any opinion whatever. The pri-
Yates were Caolchairn's" own people,
puir ignorant Hieland bodies, who could
hardly speak English. Could he under
stand Gaelicp Wecl, word, or may be
twa. What had MacLeish said as he
fellP 1t sounded like ''into my grave"
but he culdna be positeeve. And here
Sergeant Tulloch's communications came
to an abrupt stop, and l could only ex-
tract, in addition, that the Highlanders
knew best what to do with their chief,
and that she's be a. right the morn"
So he was. He appeared on parade
right enough. l found that he and
were in the same section also that of all
the sixty officers composing the
"course," he was the only one with
whom had the slightest acquaintance
He was in the same position, fancy
so we fraternizcd to q certain extent
walked over to Boatstown together-the
popular amusement of the period, and
worked at the red book i'm company. He
was an odd young fellow as starchily re-
pellant as Spanish Don one moment,
and the next boyishly expansive and
communicative. 1 think he was really
desperately shy-the result of home
breeding. He gave me description of
his Highland home one day, with his
mountain and moor, loch and forest,
where the MacLeishs lived in feudal
state, naught appertaining to the true
dignity of real Highland chieftain be-
ing lacking, from the pipers to the
deadly feud. The MacLeishs of Tucho-
ran had killed, burned, betrayed, mas
sacred and generally made themselves
mutually unpleasant from time immemo-
rial. The two branches of this amiable
family sprang from twin brothers, and,
according TO tradition, were to carry on
the same bloodthirsty relations till thew
became simultaneously extinct
"And may ask how you and the
representative of the other line conduct
yourselves when you happen to meet in
society nowadavsP' / inquired. Mac
Lish laughed.
I'VE don't meet. Tuchoran was sold
generations ago and the MacLeish of
that date died abroad We have often
tried TO trace out his descendants, but
with only partial success. Perhaps IL
is as well" he continued with an en-
barrassed laugh, for they say that
though we don't slay and plumber now
adays, the-the curse is on us yet
When one of each line shall meet, there
follows calamity"
| looked as profoundly impressed as
he could desire.
Ten years ago y clergyman in the
south-chsplain to hospital wrote to