St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1892-05-28
THE BRASS KETTLE.

he DNAOO NE L LIZ.
"Leave off spinning, Mercy, and rec
what you've got on the spindle for me.
There'll be enough, guess, to finish this
web, and I'll put it in without securing.
Then run over to Wilson's and borrow
Sarah's brass kettle. Well have some
hulled corn tomorrow, now the leach is
up"
1t was late on May afternoon in
Maine, then an outlying part Of Massa-
chusetts, more than hundred and thirty
five or forty years ago. A pioneer S
wife sat at her loom, plying the shuttle
rapidly, while with sturdy blows of her
foot on the treadle, she beat the wool
yarn into the web.
Her daughter Mercy, pretty, blue
eyed girl Of seventeen, who had been
making the spinning wheel hum merrily
for the last two hours, laid down the
wheel finger with willing Yea,
mother" and piled the less noisy reel,
counting off the threads in low tone.
"Six knots, mother" she said.
cit will make enough" replied Mrs.
Cary, her voice half drowned by the loud
clatter of the high, brown old loom in
which she sat. "NNind it on the quilts. "
The girl did 80, but fingered bit as
she set the quill box in the loom.
Cant take that piece of cherry rib
bon, mother?" she asked, little con-
fusedly.
Yes, yes, child" said the mother,
somewhat impatiently. It was not the
first time Mercy had asked for the ribbon;
and with pleasure in her fresh face, the
girl withdrew quietly to the other room
of the log house, where for some secret
reason she now attempted a few details
of self-adornment, before she set off on
her errand to the Wilson's.
A ruddy boy in homespun, eight years
old, perhaps, ran in barefoot as Mercy
withdrew.
"Murm!' said he, with a mysterious
half shake of his head, II believe there's
an old Indian out by the log pile. Tige's
all brustled up, and keeps looking out
that way"
"There, there, Josh, stop that talk
cried his mother, sharply. "What did
your father tell you this morning? He
babe We not to say Indian again for
month. There's none anywhere about
now. Twas nothing more than bear
that Tige smelt.''
"I'll bet it isn't BEAR" muttered little
Josh to himself, as he went out, rebuffed.
"Tige always barks for bear; but he
never banks, nor growls out loud, if it's
an Indian. Old Jed Haney taught him
that when he was pup
Tige, large white and brindled dog,
with broad head, pink nose and strong,
bony legs, was standing in the dooryard.
The hair along his shoulders and back
showed tendency to rise, and from
moment to moment he turned his glazing
eyes slowly in the direction of the woods
to the southwest Of the stumpy clearing.
Mercy meantime started on her errand
for the kettle Her mother peered out
from the loom frame.
"There, Mercy, you vain girl?" she
cried, laughing a little; for Mercy had
arranged the cherry ribbon in bow at
her throat, and displayed little antique
pin of gold, gift Of her grandmother.
She blushed at her mothers good
humored raillery.
"Don't stay" Mrs. Cary added. it'll
soon be night now. And Mercy" she
called again, stopping the loom moment.
Take Tige with you. Josh may 60,
too, if he wants to-
An interesting legend from the early
folklore Of the colony has descended to
us Of Mercy Carys trip for the brass
kettle. From Casco-now Portland
the settlers had by this time begun to
push forth into the wilderness, in the
direction Of Yarmouth, Brunswick, New
Gloucester and the Saco Valley.
1t was the period Of the French war,
with its many Indian outbreaks, which SO
greatly distressed the people. 1ncited
by the Infamous "scalp bounties' and
"captive bounties' offered in Canada,
the savages not only made attacks in
force upon the garrison houses, but
singly, or in little parties, lay in wait on
the borders of the forest, to cut off the
settlers who were at work in their clear
ings, or going to and fro on their long
trips to mill or to procure supplies.
Many were thus foully murdered, or
captured and hurried away through the
woods to be sold to the French in Canada
Young English captives we're then in
much request among the wealthy French
families at Montreal, Three Rivers, Sorel
and Quebec, as servants, particularly
young women from sixteen to twenty
four years old. Scores Of girls were
dragged away into captivity, only a few
Of whom were ever so fortunate as to
meet their relatives again.
The settlers built block-houses as
places of refuge here and there; and
scouts were sent out to give warning of
Indian parties. But often their utmost
vigilance failed to detect the presence
Of the lurking redskins.
Three miles from the block-houses at
Chepidneck lived the Cary and Wilson
families. Their clearings were on the
opposite banks of a large brook, the out
let Of considerable lake. The rich
land along the stream offered
good farm sites; and with hard-working