The Panola weekly star. (Sardis, Miss.) 1882-18??, 1885-10-17
A HERMIT'S STORY.
A Romance Of the Flush Days OF
tho Whale OIL City.

tho Whale Oh City.
Old Fred Pnrker's fame as the Hermit
Of Nantucket has attained additional
interest this senson IN the minds Of Wis.
itors. This has come about by tho un.
earthlDg Of The romance connected with
the old mans early days. Up TO 1880
every tourist 10 Nantucket took n three
hours ride In a s~prlngless, joltlng. fish
wagon out TO Quidnit to see old Parker,
the leading curiosity Of the island, TO
whom, however. Billy Clarke, the his.
toric town crler, was svcr a close sec.
ond. Quldnit consists Of three houses
and = various assortment Of sand dunes
on the eastern edge Of the island. II Ia
two miles north Of Saukhti Lighthouse.
and lie people live mainly by sharklng
and blue fishing In summer, chang.
Ing 10 codding and claiming In the
colder months. Down under the sand
hills, sheltered from the shore, and
partially obscured by waves Of rank
gray.green sedge and tho purple bloom
Of the shore pea, still stands the famous
hermitage OF QuldnIt, ono-story high.
Everything about Il Is the same rs when
old Parker died, and n plain marble
slab In lis rear marks the old mans last
resting spot, for, according To his last
request, he was buried by the sounding
sea. His little property has passed into
the hands OF n thrifty descendant, who
reaps n summer harvest from the curl.
Gus In search Of mementoes.
In the hAlcyon days OF the whale oil
CITY Fred Parker was q tall, ambitious,
but rather gawky youth. who served
customers from behind the counters Of
Mays busy grocery. He had n very
moderate salary for those flush times.
but his slender earnings were snugly in-
vested In common with all here who had
money, In ships which were. chasing the
whale. His ventures were successful,
and he labored diligently at the desk,
and scrimped and scraped to gather
enough to buy n sixteenth share In the
bark Cynthia, which Nnntucketcrs were
then fitting away for the oil fields Of the
ocean. The oil excitement was at It's
height Money was pouring rapidly
into the strong boxes Of the rich, and
business Of nil kinds was In a booming
state. Everybody In this now dead and
deserted old hamlet was on the lookout
Tor fresh ventures. In an ill.advised
moment the youth mortgaged the Parker
homestead. at the back Of the town. 10
enable him 10 command q still larger in
terest IN inc new DARK. IL she madea any
SORT OF . voyage she would repay him
his investment In A twelyep,onth. and bs
-..iI r.. --.I..ii.. u,t.l
wouia DO y capitaiist WIN n score OF
shs rvn,his nn,o,d has 49," "ua
eSy"""' sn'o'" ",' sno". wings "h,
spring morning outside the bar, and sal
away 10 Greenland seas. Then he wen,
oAck 70 MS desk n his work.
lime sped on Meanwhile Fred
Parker q met and loved blue-eyed
mollie Coiin, a laughing rosy.checkcd
lass IRON Edgartown, on he neighbour
ng. vineyard, who spent tho summer
WIN nor cousin ~ Nantucket The,
met AZ one OF the features oil the ISLAND
s"pound party and she was escorted
some tnat n,ght oy the enamored grocer
tnumsoy followed, and young Parkel
MADE ner Ms eonndant ne was madl'
y when sne len the island fol
ue vineyard IN ths iaii her hand wa
pledged TO HIM They were to b
married when bis ship came IN.
through the long, cold winter tina
ioiowea me struggling New Bedfort
a packet nisde only now and then
+. UP to the Nantucket shore. But esci
time II came and went II transferred let
ssrs and pledges OF love between youni