The Press., 1889-08-29
IN THE STORM.

If you had been near Lake Caillou, in the southern portion of Louisiana on that 10th of August, you would have been struck by the ivid, greenish hue of the sky where 1t met the horizon. During the day previous 8 stiff breeze had been blowing from the north east, and the sun went down 8 round, red ball. Strange clouds barred with black and purple, which frightened into crimson lines where the ominous red light touched them, made phantasrnagoria of strange and mon- strous shapes, the precursors of that fearful storm which desolated the gulf parishes of Louisiana At the Bayou Caillou the chil- dren of Pierre VincenH, Bassne fisherman, had called to thelr mother to see the strange sunset
 .ssVla, maman, see the bloody fingers in the sky! As if they were pointing at usl"
 stYes, yes," their mother had answered, looking anxiously at the sky, for was not her husband, Pierre Vincenti, out at Last Island on fishing expedition9 "But see, your bloody fingers, as you call them, are gone! Go in, the wind is blowing up cold, and the rain Is beginningw
 The wind changed during the night, and blew in sharp gusts from the east-southeast, and when Adele Vincenti opened her shutters in the early morning the rain was falling in sheets, and the wind, as it tore through the high marsh grasses, brought with 1t the thunderous voice of the gulf as 1t swept over the low lying beach.
 s'Etienne,n Adele said to her eldest child, fine, handsome little fellow who stood beside her, 'sdost thou not hear the storm crane croaking in the marsh when the wind lullss It is dreadful weather, and, O Etienne, thy papa exposed to it alll And we are not safe here"
 "Ah, but, petite maman," and the boy, who was only 10 years old, strengthened himself up and tried to look brave and fearless, lam I not here to take care of theea and papa will be back tomorrow. He knows the marsh, papa doesl He knows the coast, and he snaps his finger at storms, for he knows just where to run his fine boat, L'Eclair. And Uncle Baptiste is with him, and papa and Uncle Baptiste fear nothingl nothingl"
 "No, they have no fear, but have for them," and the fisherman's wife, signing deeply, entered the little cottage It was poor dwelling, but very neat. There was some attempt at adornment in large, hand some shells on the mantel, sprays of coral, and some strange specimens of seaweed. Wrecks on the gulf coast, numerous enough at some seasons, had furnished the cottage with two rocking chairs and some other arti- cles. There were two beds, snowy white, in the front room, and spinning wheel and loom filled up the rest of the space. An old woman, the mother of Vincenti, sat near one of the beds lingering her praying beads at in- tervals and talking to two beautiful little twin girls, who sat at her feet playing with ball of colored worsted A baby lay asleep in cradle.
 "It is @ fearful storm, bonne maman," Adele said to the old woman, land it is get ting worse every minute Suppose Pierre should be blown in the marsh like Jean Eloi in the storm of LIsle Derniere. An, 1t was ten years before even his bones were foundr'
 The old woman's eyes gazed absently be- fore her, and she shook her head. "Thou shouldst not borrow trouble before it comes Adele, she said in a patois even more marked than her daughter-in-law's. Ut is bad lucki The sea will work its will, whether you laugh or cry. An, yes, 1t swallowed my husband and my son Matthieu, and it is hungry yet l for Pierre. Perhaps it will take us all {; who | mowsa' And she mumbled her prayers, while her beads slipped rapidly through her trembling fingers.
 Do not be frightened, maman," whispered | Etienne; "you know 'bonne maman' does not know what she is saying sometimes, she Is so | old. See, Lise and Marie are frightened and crying, and they will not let the baby sleep." 1" Adele took the two little girls in her arms, and soothed and quieted them, though her ! own u6drb GUrODDS0 Wlbu U<1IIOTs G9u0 went about her usual duties mechanically, | pausing now and then when the thunder of l the waves beyond the marsh grew louder, and the little cottage quivered and rocked with the fury of the blast To her ears the voices of the sea and wind bowling, shriek- ! ing, laundering, were clamoring for victims l Her husband, where was hee Could his light craft ride in safety through thisstorma There was no safe harbor on that low lying coast; l no trees, no elevation to break the fury of the gale. An, they had been so happy in the lit tie cottagel Her Pierre was so industrious and sober, and though they lived far from neighbors, her life was too busy one to need any one outside her own domestic circle. AS the day wore on the fury of the tempest seemed to gather fresh strength. Looking | out of her window Adele saw, that one un- l broken expanse of tossing waves lay between | the cottage and the gulf, only checked by the | ridge upon which the house was situated. l The lake at the back was over Its banks. The | gray, greenish sky, the gray waters churned here and there into foam by some obstacle, the gray marsh grasses, the waving tops of which were visible above the dark waters, made up such scene of desolation and de- spair that the poor woman, checking the cry which rose to her lips, turned from its survey to the faces of her children.
 
 grew darker, occasionally broken by vivid flashes of lightning and loud thunder rolls. The rain still poured, and at intervals the cottage rocked as the screaming blast grap- pied with 1t.
 Harki was that thunder, that deafening roar which rose above all the noises of the tempesta Was it thunder with that steady, increasing roll louder, loudera
 With an awful cry of "La meer' the old I grandmother fell on the floor, and laid her poor old face to the blanks, as If she would hide her eyes from the coming horror. Adele snatched her babe from the cradle, and with her children clinging to her crouched down, painting, breathless, waiting.
 | Louder and louder, and the heavy surgee dashed against the frail cottage. The house shook to its center, tottered and seemed to melt away, but the part of the flooring ou which Adele stood with her family held strangely together like raft, and half un-
 conscious she felt it rise on the flood, and float away The old woman, crazed with terror, raised herself on her knees.
 "Dost thou not hear them calling mei' she
 cried "See there," as a flash of lightning lighted the dreadful scene. "Christophel
 Matthieu! behold run to meet you.n With a sudden movement she threw herself in the water, and was swept away.
 "Are you all herea" screamed Adele, reused
 to consciousness by this tragic incident. "Ah,
 poor bonne mamani but in little time we
 shall be with you. Etienne, my boy, Lise,
 Marie, my darlings, are you all herep'
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