The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-03-27

wheeling swiftly around. But 1T Is
human voice, think you? If so, where
in mercy's name can it come from? /
say, my lads" calling to the men star
ing over the bulwsrks, "dye see any
thing?" Nothing at all, sir, though
the sounds plain enough" was the an
swer, delivered in tone of awe. Sud-
denly dim, luminous gray haze float
ed up into the eastern sky; it bright
ened into yellow and then into kind of
sullen red; and in a few moments the
upper limb of the moon jutted up, q
pale crimson, with light that made an
indigo line of the horizon under her,
and as she scared one saw the wake she
left trembling in dull gold along the
whitening ebony of the swell, till,
shooting clear of the deep, with broad
ening luster around her that quenched
the stars there, she shot her level Grim
son beam at the ship, whose sails took
the tinge of feverish radiance, and
stood out in phantasmal spaces of mys-
tical light against the darkness and the
stars. But speedily transmitting her
copper into silver, the luminary threw
out fairy radiance that, flowing to the
westermost sea-line, showed the circle
dark and clear all round. and scarcely
was her bland and beautiful illumi-
nation fairly kindled when a dozen
voices shouted: There's boat out
there on the starboard bowl" Hush! I"
cried the captain; and amid the silence
there stole down yet again to the awed
and astonished listeners the wild, mys-
terious singing of mans voice, fol-
lowed by a peal of laughter. We'll,
whatever it may prove, it must be over
hauled" said the captain. "Mr. Bur-
ton, call some hands aft to lower away
one of the quarter boats, and go you
and see who it is that is singing and
laughing away out here in the middle
of the ocean," In few minutes the
boat was pulling away for the dark OBJ
ject to the left of the moons rehec-
ton.
The watch below had turned out and
q crowd of seamen awaited with burning
curiosity the issue of this singular en-
counter It'll be no mans voice as
raised that there chantey," said one of
the oldest, and presumably one of the
most ignorant among them, as they
overhung the rail. "If Ia been in the
old mans place we might ha' turned to
and boiled me afore you'd ha' got me
to send boat to it.. "Why, what dye
think it is, Bill" inquired another.
"Think l don't think at all. 'Taint
my business to think. But dye s'pose,"
replied the old man, that any mortal
being with hintellects inside him, such
as you and mes got, nd tarn to and
sing songs-and dessay comic songs,
for what should set him larfn' Pin a
hopen boat at this here hour of the
night, 1000 or 5000 miles away from
land? You bet old Bill knows what he's
a talkin' about when he says that if
what's come across in that there boat
turns out mortal he'll swaller the big
gest pair o sea-boots that's knockin'
about the forecastle." Awed by the
old sailors prophetic croaking, to which
years of rum and hard weathS
had communicated forbidding,
sepulchral note, the others fell into
deep silence, straining their eyes in the
direction of the boats. A half-hour
passed before they approached the ship.
during which the seamen had been
startled by many hoarse and dreadful
cries proceeding from the advancing
boats, intermixed with shrill and savage
laughter, and wild shouts delivered In
accents the mariners could not make
head or tail of. well" cried the
captain, VIII en- the boats were
within hail, "what is it you have
come across, Mr.. Burton?" "A raw
ing lunatic, SIR" answered the mate.
He's Spaniard, / think. There's a
dead boy in the bottom of his boat that
/ reckon to be his son. He's been ship
wrecked apparently, and there's moth
ing to eat or drink along with him that
we can find" 1t was now seen that
two of the crew were on the madman's
boat holding him. AS they drew along
side the wretched maniac began to
rave fearfully, sometimes breaking off
to sing some weird, tuneless song, then
bursting into accents full of heart
breaking entreaty, and afterward
wrestling furiously with the two mem
who had hold of him, making the boat
sway to her gunwales, and uttering
shrek after shrek. 1t was as terrible
a scene as ever the mooon shone down
upon. They had'to bind him turn up
on turn with ropes in order to drag him
aboard, and mad as he was, yet it was
evident he knew he was to be separated
from the dead boy under the thwarts of
his boat, for his struggles were frantic
when he saw what they meant to do,
every posture was a passionate, delir-
ious yearning toward the corpse, and
when finally he was lifted over the
rails, his screams and rawlings in Span
ish sent the hardest among those who
had no hand in getting him inboard re-
coiling with horror. He was little
more than q skeleton. When they
brought lantern and examined him,
they found the remains of what had
clearly been a tall, handsome man..
but famine had done its work-famine
and thirst. A boy might have
lifted the emaciated frame, though
madness furnished it yet with horri-
bic vitality, and degree of life, fearful
to behold in So shrunken conforma-
ton, blazed in his dark eyes, cruelty
sunk, and showing like flames in the
hollows, whose shocking depth was ac-
centuated by his bushy brows. The
corpse of the lad was reverently
dropped over the side, and the boat
sent adrift, after the ships name she