Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1891-11-11

4
holder from the island
| "Syria," he said, 81 have lands and
money; l can give you all the luxuries
of life; and more, can give YOU
strong, true heart. Come with me,
Syria; gi We me the right to make you
forget this sorrow"
| But Syria shook her head mourn
fully.
"No," she said, 81 won't forget;
he'll come by and by; my little charm
will bring him will wait"
Month after month, year after year,
rolled on. The Headland lads and
lasses grew up, and married, and en-
circled their firesides with broods of
white-haired children; but beautiful
Syria Melville, the peerless ''belle of
the ocean," still led an isolated life,
still kept her fruitless lookout from
the top of the boulder.
At last there came an afternoon
black with portentous omens. The
clouds wore dull, brassy hue, and
hung in low line all along the hori-
zon, and the thunder of the surf was
| deep and incessant. Flocks of sea birds
whirled about in startled confusion;
and at intervals dull lurid flash
blazed up in the south.
Il never see sich signs as these ut
tn" Headlands only once afore, and
til ii we had gale that just shivered
things-and we are going to have it
again"
The old fisherman was correct
about sunset it came, with a thunder
ing crack and crash, as if the very
heavens were being rolled together.
All night long it continued, and Syria
sat at the window, straining her eyes
in the darkness, and listening with a
strange thrill at her heart TO the inces-
SAINT boom of the signal gun. There
was vessel on the bar; and the beach
was lined with fishermen and wreckers,
/ AnxiOnsly awaiting her doom. AT day
! dawn the captain rose and put down
his pipe.
"The guns have ceased" he said put
ting on his oil cloth coat. "The poor
ships gone L am going down to the
Sh, to see what the boys are doing.
Syria arose quickly and drew a shawl
about her head.
I'm going, tDo, father, she said.
''You, child, through this storm?
Nonsense! Stay where you are"
Il must go, father" che urged, fol-
lowing him out with strange light in
her eyes.
The dim brightness of dawn was
slowly struggling through the gray
! mists, and the fury of the gale had
K spent itself. The wreckers sat i'll groups
around their smoulderiBg fires, and the
mad sea moaned. Is if in remorse, over
as pitilessness.
"a bad night, cap'n," one of them
said, as he and Syria approached. II
was born and bred down at Gatenall, 4,
and I've never seen the beat O. this.
Wasn't the gale rusher?"
E.Ay, she was-but what luck have
We had?'
Poor hck, captain-poor luckl We
tried putting ont the boats, but it was
no go-the gale was too hard. We
picked up only that chap, and he's
dome for"
| Syria's eyes followed his pointing
finger, and befseld stretched upon the
wet sand the figure of man. AT first
the sight sickened hee, and then sud
den energy thrilled through every fibre
of her being. Approaching the spot
where he lay, she knelt down beside
him. A powerful figure, dressed in
dark blue, wearing the mark of some
rank upon his shoulders; white, still
face, the curling brown hair lying in
tangled masses over the icy brow
Syria smoothed it back, and then she
put her hand resolutely to his heart.
| @-He's not dead, father!" she cried.
s@There's warmth here-indeed there
lis! Let's take him up to the house
and try to save him."
..Do as she bids you," said the old
man; and the men obeyed.
They laid him ON litter and carried
him into the old sitting room, and then
\ Aunt Sarah and Syria set TO work.
They understood their task, had their
remedies all ready, and went at the
work vigorously.
"Poor feliow!" Aunt Sarah said at
last, tears streaming over her fur
rowed cheeks. "Fm afraid he's done
fca He makes me think of my own
dear lad; and he's leaving a poor
mother, mebbe, or wife, heart-broken
like me. Poor fellow Poor fellow ~
| Syria said nothing; she only worked.
She had been chatting his feet, and now
she unbuttoned his woolen shirt, in
order to reach his breast; in doing so,
her fingers became entangled in gold
chain, from which hung little ioeket
blazing with jewels, and engraved with
one word, "Syria." Aunt Sarah
caught sight of it, and gave wild
cry; but Syria, with face like death,
and eyes that CLEANED like stars, ST.
fenced her.
"'Tis he-.-our son, Harry! Don't
you see? viii you waste your pre-
cious time? Let US work and save
him" she said.