Milford chronicle., 1883-01-12
A YOUNG VIKING.


For several hundred years previous to
the conquest of England by Duke Will
liam Of Normandy, IN the year 1865, he
Northman vikings were the terror Of the
entire European sea-coast. The dwell
ers along the English coast were perhaI s
the greatest sufferers at the hands of
these sea-marauders, and hardly q year
pass d that did net witness the lying
waste of one or more peaceful ccmmuni-
ties. Near the mouth of the river Hum
Der, on the eastern coast, was such a
hamlet, where the people lived their
quiet life as fishermen farmers; and in
the spring prayed that their crops might
be unmolested by the Mortimer, and in
the autumn that the coming storms Of
winter might blow the dreadedsails away
from their coast
Rut one cold December day the fierce
invaders came. 1t was on the afternoon
of the oath day of the month; the end of
that day which, ever since the second
century, has been the great church fes-
tival Of the Christian year Two small
but well armed vessels bore down on the
defenseless village Mailed men leap-d
ashore; and the affrighted people fleeing
to save their lives, left their slender pos
sessions to the mereiless freebooters.
But some alteration arose among the
chiefs of the No thmen, and a sudden
departure was made before they had
completed their plundering and burning.
Several of the buildings were left unin-
iured; and the villagers, who had been
lowering on the outskirts of their little
settlement, hurried back as soon as the
vessels had left the beach, each hoping
to find that his own house had been
spared.
One of these was quiet, industrious
man, who had been named by his COM
panions Silent Andrew. When he, with
his wife and his little boy entered the
low doorway of their humble cabin,
somewhat apart from the rest, they were
astonished to see a boy about the age Of
their own little Andrew, fast asleep Oh
the rude bed in a corner Of the room.
One glance showed them that the child
was not Of their own race; and the richly
embroidered, close-ftting garments that
he wore, exactly resembling the dress Of
the sea-kings, left no doubt that he was
a child Of that fierce northern race from
whom they had suffered much. His
costly garments indicated that the boy
was Of noble birth; and it was supposed
that he had by chance strayed into this
solitary cabin, where he had fallen
asleep, and been left behind in the
hurried, quareling departure. Silen
Andrew grasped his own child's hand
little more tightly as he gazed at the /
sleeping form, with look that BODIED no
good to the young stranger. "He is /
only a child, but he is Of VOLTS brood,
he said. THE old ones have taken the
whelp with them on their savage hunt.
that he may kill and tear well when he
is Older"
But the mothers heart warmed toward I
the unprotected child, despite the fierce
race from which he came; and she said:--
He is young, husband; his hands are /
not yet red with blood; and his friendli-
ness touches me.
Then she looked at her own boy, and /
added: " Perhaps he has mother; and
even the wolf loves her young. What if
# were little Andrew. here y
why, woman, exclaimed the man,
catching at his wife's hidden purpose,
sthinkest thou to keep the whelp with
us ?"
She put her finger to her lips to 81
gest quiet, for the sleeping b"~
slightly, and whispered