Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1885-06-12
BACK AGAIN.


The sea lashes the coast with its
short and mountainous waves. Little
white cIouds pass very quickly across
The great blue sky, swept on by the
wind, like birds; and the village, in
the wrinkle OF the little valley sloping
towards the ocean, warns in the
sun.
At the very entrance to it stood the
house Of Martin Leyesque, all alone
by the edge Of the road. A humble
lisherman's dwelling it was, with
walls of clay, and matched roof
pIumed with iris flowers. 1t had a
garden not bigger than pocket
handkerchief, in which some onions,
cabbages, parsnips and chervil were
craving A hedge divided il from
the road.
The man was always fishing, and
his wife, seated by the doorway, WAS
busy repairing the meShes of n great
brown. net, spread against the wall
like an immense cobweb. A girl of
fourteen, seated in chair propped
back SD that she could lean her back
against the fence, was occuDIed in
mending underwear, already over
darncd and patched. Another girl,
younger by a year, held in her arms
Il very young child, not yet able TO
speak or gestculate, and two urchins,
whose ages might be two and four
years, sitting Hat upon the ground
face 10 face, were playing nj garden
nag with their clumsy little hands
and throwing dirt into each others
eyes.
Nobody spoke. Only the child
which the young girl was trying to
put to sleep cried continuously IN a
little sharp voice. a cat slept in the
window, and ut the foot Of the wall
extended n verltable cushion of white
gilly flowers, about which buxzed n
whole tribe Of bees.
All Of sudden the girl sewing
near the gate cried out "Mamaw
The mother answered: ''What is it,"
Here he is again.
The whole family had been uneas y
since early morning be cause of n man
who had kept proving about the
house an old man vino looked like
beggar They first saw him while
they were going TO the boat house to
see father Off. He was then sitting
by the ditch, directly in front of the
door. When they came back from
the beach he was still there, looking
at the house
lie seemed sick and very miserable.
lie hal not budged for more than an
hour; thon, finding that he was watch
ed like malefactor, he had risen to
his feet and gone away, dragging his
legs heavily rs he walked.
But after awhile the girls saw HIM
coming back, walking with the same
slow and weary step, and sat down
again this time little further oil -
and kept watching them.
The mother and her girls began to
feel afraid. The mother was particu,
larIy worried because she was natur-
ally timid, and then her husband,
leveSquc, would not return until
nightfall,
Her husbands real name was Lev
eSquc, and hers Martin; and the
neIghbors called them the Martin
leveSque folks. This was because she
had first married a sailor named Mar
tin, who used To go to Newfoundland
every year To engage in the cod fish
cries.
After two years Of married life she
had daughter growing up, and was
shortly to become mother again
when the vessel that her husband had
shipped on-the DeuN, SuurS, n Dicppe
thrce-maStcr disappeared.
No news was ever heard of her;
none of her crew ever returned, so it
was generally believed that she had
gone down.
La Martin, as folks called her, wait
cd for her husband ten long years,
raising her children with the gre attest
difficulty, and then, as she was known
10 be good, Industrious woman,
lIeveSoue, fisherman of the place
and wjdower with one son, asked
her TO marry him. She accepted his
proposal, and had two more children
by him within three years.
They lived wi tn difficulty by the
hardest work. Bread was dear and
meat was almost an unknown luxury
IN their cottage. Sometimes during
the winter i'll the stormy weather they
would get heavily in dent at the baker.
Still the children were wonderfully
healthy. Folks used 10 say; They're
good people-the LevesqueS La Mar
tin she's good worker, and there's
nobody can beat LeveSque fishing"
The girl at the gate continued:
Looks as if he knew us. Perhaps
it's some beggar from Eprevllle or
AuSeboSe.'
But the mother could not be mis-
taken. No, mol il was nobody from
that part of the country, sure,
As he remained motionleSs as p
stake and kept his eyes persistently
on the habitation of the Lsvesaue-
Martin people La Martin became furi-
Gus at last, and her fear giving her
courage, she seized a spade and went
out in front of the gate.
WHAT do you want there9" she
screamed to the tramp.
He replied in a wheezy voice: Pm
lush taking a rest in the shade. Why
l amt doing you any harm-am IL"
She went on: What are you spy
ing around like that before my house
fort"
The man answered.: I'm dong no
harm to anybody. Amt person
allowed to sit ON the edge of public
road?"
As she could not find any answer to
this observation, she went into the
house again.
The day passed by very slowly.