The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1888-08-24
&c BOU ND.
BY W. CLARK RUSSELL.
Asthor Of "TAs Wreck of the GrospsmoT, +"
"Jack's CoNTtship,S my Watch Be-
to1, ""Ths Lady Maud Etc
CHAPTER XIV.
THE FRENoHMAN DIES.

CHAPTER XIV.
THE FRENoHMAN DIES.
However, il I expected my Frenchman
to sit very long silent, he soon undeceived
me by beginning TO complain in his tremu-
lous, aged voice of his weakness and aching
limbs.
"'ris the terrible cold that has affected
me-" said he, while his head nodded nery-
ously. ~ feel the rheumatism in every
bone. There is no weakness like the rheu-
matte, / have heard, and tits true, tits truel
1t may lay me along-yes, by the Virgin, tits
rheumatism-what elsef' Here he was inter-
rupted by long fit of coughing, and when
it was ended he turned to address me again,
but looked at the bulkhead ON my right, as if
his vision could not fix me. "But my capers
are not over he cried, setting up his rick
ETY., shrill throat; "no, mol Vive Pamourl
Vive la joiel The sun is coming; the sun is
the fountain of life; ay, mon brave, there
are some shakes in these stout legs yetr' He
shook his head with a fine air OF cunning
and knowingness. grinning very oddly; and
then falling grave with a startling sudden
ness, he began to dribble out piratical love
describing the charms Of the woman with a
horrid leer, his head nodding With the nerv-
Gus affection of age all the time, while he
looked blindly in my direction-a hideous
and yet pitiful objectl
could not say that his mind was gone,
but he talked with many breaks for breath,
and not very coherently, as though the Office
of his tongue was performed by habit rather
than memory, so that he often went far
astray, and babbled into sentences that had
no reference to what had gone before, though
on the whole managed to collect what be
meant. was sure he had not power enough
OF vision to observe me In the dim reddish
light Of the COOK rom and THIS helnS e he
larly as he could not hear me; yet he persisted
in his poor babble, which was behavior in
him that, more than even the matter of his
speech, persuaded me of his hmbecility.
He made no reference to our situation,
and in solemn truth believe his memory
retained no more than q few odds and ends
Of the evil story of his life-like bits of tar
nished lace and a rusty button or two lying
in the bottom Of dark chest that has long
been emptied of the clothes it once held.
But my condition made such heavy de
mands upon my thoughts that had very
much less attention to give to this surprising
phenomenon of senility than its uncommon
merits deserved. 1t has puzzled every mem
Der Of the faculty that have mentioned il
to, the superstition being that, given the case
OF suspended animation, there is no waste,
and the person would quit his stupor with
the same powers and aspect as he possessed
when he entered it, though it lasted thou
sand years. But granting there is no waste,
Time is always present, waiting to settle &C
counts when the sleeper lifts his head. There
may be an artificial interval, during which
the victim might show as my pirate did-but
the poised load Of years is severed on a sud-
den by the scythe and becomes superincum-
bent, and with the weight comes the trans
formation; and this theory, as the only eye
witness Of the marvellous thing, will hold
and maintain while have breath in my body
to support It'll
I left him Cabling to transformations
grinning as if greatly diverted, sometimes
lifting trembling hand to help his ghostly
recital by an equally ghostly dumb show
and went on deck, satisfied that he was too
weak to get to the fire and NEEDLE with it,
but sufficiently invigorated by his long
nights rest to sit up without tumbling of
the bench.
This time carried with me an old per-
spective glass had noticed in the chest in
my cabin-the chest in which were the nauti-
cal instruments, charts and papers-and
leveled it along the coast of the island; but
1t was poor glass, and found could man.
age nearly as well with the naked eye.
There was no change of any kind, only
that there was a sensible diminution in the
blowing Of the wind, and a corresponding
decrease in the height of the seas The ice
stretched in considerable bed ON either
hand the ship and ahead of her; the water
frothed freely over it, and there was a great
jangling and flashing of broken pieces, but
the hull was no longer heavily hit by them.
I got into the main chains to view the
body of the vessel, and noticed with satisfac-
ton that the constant pouring of the sea had
thinned down the frozen snow to the depth
OF at least a foot. This encouraged me to
hope that the restless tides would sap to her
keel at least and put her into posture to be
easily launched by the blow of a surge upon
her bows-that is if fortune continued to
keep her head ON.
To determine the hour and our position, l
fetched a quadrant from my cabin, and was
happily just in time to catch the sun crossing
the meridian. My watch was half an hour
fast, so had been out of my reckoning to
the extent of thirty minutes ever since had
been cast away. I made our latitude to be
"a dogs. % minis. south, and the computation
was perhaps near enough.
This business ended, l went to the cook
house to prepare dinner, and the first object
/ saw was Tassard fiat upon his face near the
door that opened into the cabin. He groaned
when I picked him up-which I managed
without much exertion of strength, for SO
much had he shrunk that dare say more
than half his weight lay in his clothes-and
set him upon his bench with his back to the
dresser. / put my mouth to his ear and
roared, "Are you hurtr' His head nodded
as if he understood me, but question if he
did. He was the completest picture of old
age that you could imagine. l fetched u
couple Of spears from the arms room, and,
cutting them to his height, put one in each
hand, that he might keep himself propped I;
and while my own dinner was broilins. I
made him q mess of broth, with which fed
him, for now that he had the sticks he would
not let go Of them. But in any case doubt
if his trembling hand could have lifted the
spoon to his lips without capsizing the con-
tents down his beard.
With some small idea of rallying the old
villain, mixed him very s1iR bumper of
brandy, which he supped down out of my
hand with the utmost avidity. Tho drau;ht
soon worked in him, and hD bc.~la 10 move
his head about, seeking mo il L;i Lind way,
and then cried, in his broken i.o,c5, II 1--we
lost the use of my LEGS, and L.,-...o. Wiz.
Mother of God, what shall l 10! 90, ioIy
st. Antonio, what is TO bccoa,c u i-.r!o
guessed from this that, iGi.,c.lcil H.! -.
or some small spar Of reason, l.. !ia -. TO
go on deck, and had fallen. L. = cn! e. va
porting pitifully, gazing with IL 1T lead
fastness to let me understand lat LlsNt:cl
received something of my cu,i.-'r, t'o2 i -
would fix his eyes either to the left or rimlt
of me, as though he was not able to see II be
looked straight; and this, and his morrnful
cackle, and his nodding head, bowed form,
propped hands and diminished face, made
him as distressful and melancholy picture
of Time as ever mortal man viewed. He
broke off in his rambling to ask for more
brandy, taking it Tor granted that l was still
in the cook room, for never spoke: and
filed can for him, and as before held it to
his mouth, which he opened wide-a piece of
which went to SHOW that some of
his wits still hung loose upon him. This
was strong dose, and, cooperating with tho
other, soon seized hold on his head. and pres
emily he began to laugh to himself and talk,
and even broke into a stave or two-somo
French song, which he delivered in a voice
like the squeaking of a rat, alternating with
the growing of a terrier.
guess his stumbling upon this old French
catch (which took it to DO frorl seeing him
feebly flourish one of his sticks, 10 if inviting
a chorus) put him upon speaking his own
tongue altogether; for though no continued
to chatter with oil the volubility his breath
would permit during the whole time | sat
eating, not one word of English did hcspcal;,
and not one word, therefore, did under
stand Seeing how IL muSt IN with him ,,cc