Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-02-16
WILL O. THE MILL.
BY ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.

The mill where win lived with his adopted
parents stood in falling valley between
pine woods and great mountains. Above,
hill after hill SCARED upwards until they
scared out Of the depth of the hardest tim
Der. and stood naked against the sky. Some
way up. a long gray village lay like a seam
or a rag Of vapor on wooded hillside, and
when the wind was favorable, the sound of
the church bells would drop down, thin and
silvery, to Will Below, the valley grew
ever sleeper and sleeper, and al the same
time widened out on either hand, and from
an eminence beside the mill it was possible
To see its whole length and away beyond it
over wide plain, where the river turned
and s.lcne, and moved on from city to city
On its voyage toward the sea. II CHANGED
that over this valley there lay pass into
neighboring Kingdom, that, quiet and
rural as it was, the road that ran along
beside the river was high thorough
fare between two splendid and powerful
societies. All throurh the summer,
travelling, carriages catas crawling up, or
went pIanging briskly downward past the
mill; and a. it happened that the other side
was very much easier Of ascent. the path was
not much frequent.-d except by people going
in one direction: and of all the carriages that
WIN sew 20 by fiye-sixths were plunging
briskly downward and only one-sixth crawl
ing up. Much more was this the case with
foot passengers. All the lightfooted tour
ists. all the psddlers laden with strange
wares, we're tending downward like the river
that accompanied their path. Nor was this
all; for when Will was yet child disas-
trous war arose over a great part Of the
world. The new sp1pers were full Of defeats
and victories, the earth rang with cavalry
hoofs and often for DAYS together and for
miles around the coil of battle terrified good
people from their lahoi-s in the field. OF all
this, nothing was heard for long time in
the valley; but at last one OF the command
ers pushed army over the pass by forced
marches, and for three days horse and foot
cannon and tnmbrl, drum and standard.
kept pouring downward past the mill. All
day the child stood and watched them on
their pnssage-tbe rhythmical stride, the
pale un>laven faces tanned about the eyes the
discolored reginlentals and the tattered flags.
filled him with sense Of WEAKNESS pity and
wonder; and all night long. after he was in
bed, he could hear the cannon pounding and
the feet tramping, and the great armament
sweeping onward and downward past the
mill. No one in the valley ever heard the
fate of the expedition, for they lay out Of the
way Of gossip IN those troublous times; but
VIII saw one thing plainly, that not a man
returned Whittier had they all gone;
Whittier went all the tourists and
peddlers with strange wares. whittier all the
brisk barouches with servants in the dicky:
whittier the water of the stream, ever cours-
ing downward and ever renewed from abovef
Even the wind blew oftener down the valley,
"a ,oI+ n, y,it in,
the fall 1t seemed like IA great conspiracy
of things animate and inanimate they all
went downward, feejly and gayly down
ward, and only he, 1t seemed, remained be-
hind, like stock upon the wavside 1t some
times made HIM glad when he noticed how
the fishes kept their heads up stream, They,
at least, stood faithfully by him, while all
else were posting downward to the unknown
world
One evening he askettthe miller where the
river went.
at goes down the valley answered he,
''and turns power of mills-six score mills,
they say, from here to nter.cck-and it
none the wearer after ali. And then it goes
out into the lowldnds, and waters the great
corn country and runs through sight of
fine cities $50 they say where kings live all
alone in great palaces, with sentry walking
up and down before the door. And it goes
under bridges with stone men upon them,
booking down and smiling curious at the
wat. T. and living folks leaning their elbows
ou the wall and looking over too. And then
it goes on and on, and down through marshes
and sands. until at last 1t falls INTO the sea,
where the ships are that bring parrots and
tobacco frota the Indies Ay, it has a long
trot before it as 1t goes singing over our weir,