St. Landry democrat., 1883-04-21

plea DruShWOOG ana StIckS-a1 ready
for the match.
/" It's fifteen years since that fire was
built,'' said the old man, throwing
open the blinds. and then seating him
self in one OF the chairs and rocking
softly. Yes, sir, eighteen hundred and
sixty three. How time does fy.''
IS And is it waiting for the owner?' |
asked.
Well,n said the old man, whose
name, by the way, found to be Nehe-
miah, or Ne'miah, as he called it
Cap'n Ne'miah Blossom set down,
and III begin the story and tell it right
through, and then you can answer your
own question as well as [ can. s
'sYou see this house is quite old now.
Cap'n Peleg's father lived here, and
then Cap'n Peleg, and it's good now for
three or four generations more. That's
what the old man said when he built it.
He was young man then, but he said:
I'm building this house for my grand
son as well as myself. So he picked
out this spot, just sheltered by the hill,
and yet so't you can look down across
the harbor and see the vessels going in
and out, and he brought all the lumber
from down South somewhere Southern
pine in his vessel, and had the best
work put in. And sure enough, when
he died Peleg brought his wife here,
and counted on leaving it the same to
his boy. Now, if [ only had a daguer-.
reotype Of Cap'n peleg, that \ raw.
once, ito show you, and one of his boy,
you might guess the whole story, all by.
yourself. The old Cap'n had black
eyes and heavy. eyebrows, and heavy
jaw, and closest mouth, and Hi---tfat
was the boys name-he gave promise
to take after hissfather 9 sEsss
But they got on together frst-rate.
Cap'n Peleg's wife died while Hi was
only a boy, and so Cap Il Peleg and Hi
had to make much of each other, and
they were always together, and Cap'n
Poleg was forever making q willow
whsle, or rigging rabbit-trap, or do
ing something else for Hi. He'd mar
ried late, and was getting along in
years, and so he give up going to sea
and staid at home and took to farming
a little, SOS to look after his boy; and
almost any day you could see them GO
ing across the flats for CLANS, or setting
off on a days fishing cruise in their
boat, OF carting up. a load of seaWeed
for the garden, and wherever you see
Hi you was pretty sure to see Cap'n
Peleg, too. Hi was d nice-looking boy,
full of life and fun, and a great favor
lite all over the village. Twas a pity
things couldn't have staid so right
along. But when Hi got a little older
there began to be trouble.
He wanted first to go to sea, but the
old man said No, and he meant it, So
after a while Hi gave In. He had to.
There was no peace to be had with
Cap'n Peleg unless you'd do just as he
said. But the trouble was that Hi was
much the same way, and they'd dis
agree on one thing and then on anoth-
er, though it always ended by His Civ
ing in. Y.
Z s.But at last it came to point where
he couldn't give in. They had a great
dispute, and it hung on week in and
week out, and they didn't go round
together SO much as usual. Theynever
told any one what it was, but this I
know, that there was one family in the
village, Cap'n Cyrenus Baxter s family,
and that Capt. Peleg had always had a
grudge against them-no matter about
the reason now, but he distrusted them
all, root and branch. Now Cap'n Cy-
renus had a family of nice smart girls,
and as things would turn out, Hi hadto
take to going there to call evenings,
and twas about the time the old man
found out which way the wind lay that
he began to make trouble. But he'd
got his hands more Il full that time.
And the more they disagreed, the more
Hi seemed to look like him, with his /
black eyes and eyebrows and set mouth.
And he knew only too well that his
father never would yield on that point.
Twas no use thinking Of such q thing.
And Isguess for several days they hard-
" spoke to each other.
Well, things couldn't last so long,
and one morning when Cap'n Peleg got
up, Hi was nowhere to- be found. First,
the Cap'n thought he'd gone off to be
married, and he was terribly angry,
Cap'n Peleg was, and said he'd never
speak to his boy again. But after a
while he met a man from the wharYes
that told him he'd seen Hi.
Whereabouts? p says the Cap'n.
"tSetting sail with Cap'n Norris on
the Leading Breeze, says he.
Cap'n Norris?' says the old man;
why, he's going off whalin', on three
years. cruise. Why. Il know Hi too well |
to believe he'd go off that way, without |
saying q word to his father
80 But he has, says the man, I was
down on the wharf when the wind
sprung up, towards morning, and they
was getting ready to start, and I see Hi
come along through the fog and 60
aboard. I guess he'd talked with the
Cap'n before, for he went right to work.
They got up their sails and weighed an
Choir. and he came onto the wharf tnI