St. Landry democrat., 1883-04-21

was some reasonable hope of their COM
ing home-if the whalers have good
| luck they often make shorter trip than
they expected--he began to get nervous
and irritable, and he spent a good deal
of time on the hill just above the
| house here. And very early. mornings.
! before he got there, I used to see some
| one else there, too My house is the
only one where you can sec folks up
there where they look off, and I never
told any one about her being there. It
was easy watching then, because there
| was no reason to be anxious if they
| didn't come. But when the third year
went by,,zand then the months began to
creep along, and creep along, one after
| another, it was trying times. By and
by it was four years. The old mans
hair was fast getting white then, and he
had to take a cane when he went up on
the hill, but he kept his spirits, and he
was dreadful hard to get along with.
Aunt Nabby kept house for him then,
and she said he couldn't sit still min
ute, or think or talk about anything but
Hi and the Leading Breeze.
=" Then it got to be four years and
half, and then five years. Most of the
crew on the whaler had been from other
parts, so there weren't many others on
the lookout, and what there was lost
all heart-all but two; and they never
met.
e But the old man was failing fast.
| One day, after he came down from the
hill, he took to his bed, and he sent in
for me and got me to keep a lookout
fn,s ha 1, i
hear the Leading Breeze was coming
into the harbor, he, knew he could get
rightiup and go down to the wharves to
meet his boy. But it didn't come, and
he got weaker and weaker ~ ,tfE
s One evening he sent for me to come
in. And when got there, he couldn't
seem to make up his mind to tell me
what he wanted. But at last guessed
what it was, and went to Cap'n eyre
nus and told Abby what thought the
old man wanted. She was real sensi-
bic. nice girl, and she put on her things
and come right down. And she and
the old man had a long talk. don't
know what he said, but when she came
out, saw she'd been crying, but she
tried to smile, and told me she was
coming down the next morning, and
she guessed p'raps she'd better stay
awhile and look after him, and try to
cheer him up some. M
81 took her home. and when came
back Cap'n Peleg seemed a good deal
softened down, and he told me he was
feeling considerable better, and said he
had more confidence in seeing Hi soon
than he'd felt for long time, and he 4
meant to have His clothes brought down
from his room the next morning, and
laid out in the sun, to be ready for him.
But he said he'd tell me then, while he
was feeling like it, that, if he shouldn't
live to see Hi, he wanted the house to
stand just so, with the fire all ready to
light, and the chair drawn up in front,
and his room upstairs all waiting, and
everything just so, so't when Hi come
he didn't say If he come, butcher he
come he'd find it all waiting for him,
and know that his father had left it so
for a sort of welcome home. and
come to think, he says. III just write
it down now So he wrote it down just
how he wanted it left, and signed it.
And Aunt Nabby laid down herknit-
ting and came in,l and got, my wife in,
and we signed it. for witnesses.
Then he lay back satisfied, and that
night he died. .
Cap'n Ne'miah. who, for the last few
moments, had been sitting motionless,
began to rock again. ga We. ,gtss,4
/ waited for him to 90 on with the |
story, but at last, as he did not speak,
] said:. s.That was a long time ago.
How did it all come out in the end?" Il
That is the end.' he said; that's
the whole story, and here the house |
stands and waits, and waits; and will |
wait, too. Cap'n sPeleg' boy never
came back, nor any$of the crew. And i
this old house3is waiting for some one
that will come. Never viii come. The
old Cap'n left soft she can come and
live here if she wants. he added.
But she's no need for that. And some /
day the house'll belong to her. That's
all. Quite different from these stories
you read, isn't itp''
We rose and went out again, and |
passed among the tall weeds and
through the creaking gate. As we
passed there moment we saw the |
harbor spread out below us peaceful in
the quiet glow of the setting sun. In
some such bright harbor, perhaps, old !
Cap'n Peleg had long since met his boy.
Cap'n Ne miah shut the gate with q
sharp click.
ITS getting rather chilly" he sale, as
he turned toward his own cottage.
!" Goodnight. y Steaoart Chaplin, IN
N. 7. Examiner.
If baby catches cold and itsettles
in his head and makes his nose into
rattle-box, or, as grandmother says,
..giVes him the snuffies,'' you may ease
the little sufferer and enable him To [