The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-04-06

Inc next evening he went again to
loiter on the Battery, but this time it
was with a purpose-tO catch another
view of the old lady and the lovely girl.
1t was not long before the former came
out and stood shading her eyes with her
hand, looking for the lost Esperance.
The young man spoke to her in kindly
way
"She's not in yet, you see; the prevail
ing winds at this season Of the year are
westerly, and that would keep her back,
you know"
But the old lady either did not hear or
her mind was too clouded to understand.
''Then, after a vessel has been out a
long while barnacles and sea grass or
such matter accumulate on the bottom,
and that keeps her back, too"
DO you think she will be in by Easter
Sunday" asked the lady.
"Oh, yes, by Easter Sunday. Let's
see. This is the last Saturday in March.
Easter comes this year on the second
Sunday in April. She'll surely be in by
that time. That is, unless the winds are
too much in the west or she gets be-
Gained"
Il want Tom with me this Easter. I
may rot see another" the old lady said
sadly. He promised to come before
Easter"
ooh, there's no doubt about it for
Easter. There's lots of time for that
Just then there came to Ben Mary
weather an impression that eyes were
upon him. He turned, and directly be-
hind him stood the young girl with the
worsted shawl on her arm. 1t seemed
from her expression that for some rea-
son, unknown to him, her heart was GO
ing out to him through her eyes. He
took off his cap deferentially and stood
without speaking. He had not scrupled
to address the elder person, but refrained
from taking the same liberty with the
younger But the girl spoke to him, and
kindly, too, and leading him aside ex-
planned to him that the old lady was her
mother, and that her brother, Tom Van
Arden, had sailed so long ago that she
herself didn't remember him, as she was
then little girl. When hope Of the Es-
perance had been abandoned, Mrs. Van
Arden's mind had given way, and every
day for ten years, summer and winter,
she was used to going out to the edge
of the Battery to look for one who,
doubtless. would never come. Ben also
learned that before Tom Van Arden had
sailed on his return trip he had written
his mother thai his ship would be due in
New York about the 1st of April, and he
hoped to dine at home on Easter Sunday.
Caroline had heard Ben's excuses to
her mother for the non-arrival of the ES-
peranCe, and they had gone straight to
her heart. There were frequent meet
ings afterwards on the Battery, and
many an hour was passed happily by the
two young people while Caroline was at
tending her mother. Being of a hopeful
disposition, Ben stoutly averred thatthey
would hear from the son and brother in
time; that he had been wrecked in an
out of the way place and sold into slave
", or in some other way detained. Then
he kept up a series of yarns to the moth
er about the different ways vessels might
be delayed, which if they were consider
ed punishable lies would sink his soul
into perditiOn.
As Easter approached Mrs, Van Arden
grew more restless and difficult to con-
troll. Caroline told Ben that this had al
ways been the case since Tom had failed
to return as he had promised. but this
wear her mother seemed more excited
than ever before.
At last Easter Sunday came. They'll
be out on the Battery in the morning to-
day, thought Ben, and I'll just go out
myself and help Miss Caroline console
her mother, for she'll probably be pretty
bad It's lucky I'm good at yarns.
And out he went very early. and seat
ing himself on a bench, waited.
1t was beautiful April morning. The
waters in New York bay were then much
purer than they are now, when the refuse
of several great cities are poured into
them. and on this Easter morning were
very beautiful The sky, too, was Sc
rene, and the islands rested peacefully on
the smooth bosom of the bay. There was
Bedloe's Island TO the right and Cover
nor's Island to the left, with round old
Castle William looming up, and further
down Staten Island.
True enough, Mrs. Van Arden soon
came OCT, followed by her daughter, who
was endeavoring to quiet her, for she
was moaning and talking wildly. Ben
met them and led them TO a bench. and,
seating himself between them, began to
help Caroline to quiet her mother. He
chartered like a maybe: Now there
comes a ship" he said, fright up the
Narrows, sailing as gayly as a chambered
Nautilus. How do we know but that's
the Esperance? At any rate, Toms
aboard of her; l know it. You see,
Mrs. Van Arden, / once froze my left
ear on a cold night while l was reefng
aloft, and ever since then, when I'm
going to meet any one in particular, 1t
burns like a coal
Thus Ben ratified on while the ship
was slowly coming up the harbor. After
while she came in between Governors
and Bedloe's islands. and cast anchor of
the Battery. At last, noticing that a
boat was coming ashore ana about to
land at the foot Of Battery place, the
street on which the Van ArdeDs lived. the
party got up from the bench and strolled
70 the landing place 70 meet II. They
reached there FaT' ora tha far,r and xr-haf,