The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1892-10-15

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and saw the tears shining on her
brown cyelashes as she gathered to-
gether Mark Conway's letters and
sent them in little box to the post
Office. He did not see the single scar
let geranium that was placed on the
top OF the pile.
Bells rang out merry chime across
the restless waters OF the lake from
the churches of Tuscololo one We'd
nesday night in August. The sun had
just set and the glow OF the clouds
was again reflected upon the polished
glass OF the lighthouse at the entrance
OF the harbor. In this limited haven,
bounded on three sides with double
rows OF piling and on the other by
huge stacks OF lumber, rode q couple
OF barges and n schooner with her
sails furled. Over the side OF the boats
the red-shirted 'lumber-shovers"
crawled back and forth with their
white pine boards like ants with
grains of wheat. In the middle of the
towering piles was the dock where the
steamboat tied up once ~ day with
way & Co. were located.
just outside the harbor littlerow-
boat tossed solitary occupant-a
woman-Lissie Dean. When the bells
ceased ringing and the yellow beacon
flashed out to guide and warn the be-
lated mariner, the strains OF hymn
came floating in from the boat. Lis
sic was singing. Her sad, sweet voice
rose and fell, was waited in or carried
away by tickle breeze that hesitated
between the land and the water, to n
little knot OF loungeIs around the
door OF the wharf Office. The gulls
flew in hocks beside her, their gray
wings whistling near her head. The
wind sprung up cool from of the
shore, and the girl pulled a heavy
wooden shawl about her shout
ders and turned her boat
across the rifles that began
to lap audibly against the breakwat-
er. The stars came out in myriads,
spanning in o specified arch the land
and the water.
Fire! Fire! Fire. Fire"
The cry came from man near the
dock, was caught up by another and
another, and swept to the uttermost
limits of the town swifter than the
fastest swallow could fly. The long
shoremen, silently working by the
light OF lanterns, dropped their boards
and started toward the office near
which a red glare could be seen in the
sky-a glow that stood for a moment
over the dim and towering piles whose
dark shadows were reflected in the
waters below. The church bells that
had so musically called the worship
ers to prayer when the sun went down
were seized with the fever OF fear and
changed their warnings out with
suffering tongues. A flame like Ar
arm reached up from behind the pile
and disappeared. The glow grew
redder. The flames leaped upon the
very top OF one of the central piles.
Kissed and danced the length OF the
resinous planks, chung to the edge
moment, crept inch at u time
down the side to the ground, caught
in the sawdust and loitered across the
narrow roadway to climb up the side
of the opposite pile and to be met
halfway by the fiend that had
spanned the space with it's fiery ten
drills. The wind that had hesitated
over the yellow sands OF the beach
when the beacon was lighted whirled
the sheets OF flame skyward. The crew
of the sooner hosted sail and stood
out OF the harbor to the open lake
where, at n safe distance, anchor was
cast. The helpless barges were loosed
and pushed away from their moor
ings.
From her seat in the boat Lissie
witnessed the sight, saw the burning
shingles carried up into the sky to
fall back into the water with n hiss.
The girl stood up and with lips apart
watched the fight. A bucket brigade
had been quickly formed, and lines of
men sent the water up from the lake
in O broken stream. The hoarse
commands OF the extemporized cap
tain echoed out across the harbor,
mingling with the cracking flames and
the sputtering OF the burning wood.
Then pile OF lumber fell. Great
sheets OF flame shot up, waved fierce
defiance as the demon grasped n blaz-
ing banner and flourished it half way
between earth and sky; burning
boards fell upon the barges and the
crews took to the little boats and es-
capped to the wharf. Still another
pile tottered. A cry OF warning went
out across the blood-red waves. 1t
fell. The Babel OF voices rose for n
moment as the sparks and burning
brands again went up, lighting anew
the whole village. Added to the con-
fused brawling OF the men were the
heartrending screams OF the women
who had crowded up to the lines OF
endurance. With eyes following ta,e
sparks, their hands raised to protect
their faces from the increased heat,
they beat n hasry retreat, but not
before they realized that some OF the
men-perhaps brother, husband,
son, father or weetheart-were in
that fatal line buried under the burn
ing planks.
Part of the bucket brigade had been
cut off. The wharf was a blaze from
end to end: The black smoke settled
upon the water and rolled out toward
the girl in the boat. She heard the
cries and knew the meaning. Lizzie
Dean dipped her shawl into the water