The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-11-14
HE FOUND IT.

Bang, Dang. IN heaven name, mas
she gone deaf then, or has she gone to
the -?"
And the good man gave several sharp
blows from a fist as solid as a ships mall
let on the wooden shutter of his cabin.
"Opcn, say Can you be sleeping yet
at this hour of the day?" he exclaimed,
pressing his ear against the window, which
organ was little deafened by age and
the cutting winds of the ocean.
But he could hear only the tick, tick, of
the tall, old fashioned clock, and the flap
ping of the magpie's wing, which, fright
ened by the noise, struck the furniture as
she hoped across the room.
Soon, after, behind the hedge, Drowned
by the frosts which SO often lay like fine
covering of lace over the little garden, he
heard a sharp, broken voice cry:s
Here am, my man; here | am y's'
A ruddy faced woman in short skirts
and a high white cap which closely fitted
her tanned temples, quickly ran with
bare feet across the rough pebbles and,
almost out of breath, stood by him. He
turned like whirl of rude wind, angrily
threw down his cap and thundered out:
"Heaven and earth! This is the way,
then, that you keep the house while am
shaving on the rough seasp os
II did not expect you SO soon, my man,
elsen-.
81 cannot return when like. Have
you not noticed the ocean black and rag
ing like fury?" Then snatching from the
good womans hand great rusty key,
with which she had been trying vainly to
open the door, with one wrench of his
powerful fingers he turned the lock and
entered his domicile. In seeing the fire
less hearth the good man Mesle crossed
his arms, and shaking with anger, buried
his purple nose in his thick, gray beard,
mutte1ing:
ssThis is fnel This is comforting! Fire
out No means to have anything to warm
one when coming in from cold rain and
biting wind. One must get to bed with a
cold stomach and sea-soaked feet. All this
because the one whose duty it is to keep
your home ready for you likes better to
run the streets and idle it with her neigh
bors''
The good wife bent over the cinders,
blowing with all the strength of her in
fated cheeks, but never answered a word
II am sure you were about to start
off on another chattering tour. What
tongue you have, to be sure! Ever wag-
ging like the tail of fish in full swim.
You'll lose it Or wear it out some day, /
hope"
He followed her to the fire so as to show
her by the working of the index and mid
die fingers the movement of the forked
tail OF certain fishes hastily darting
through the water.
Soon the kettle was singing and the
wife set the blue figured plates on the ia
BILE. Still grumbling the fisherman sat
down, drew forth his pocketknife, cut
thick slice of dark bread and drank off,
one after another, two good mugs of cider.
This repast of the morning after his re-
turn from the sea still shivering with the
cold and fatigue of his work was the
best hour of his home life. He prolonged
it as much as possible, spreading slowly
some crumbs of butter as thin as might
be ON his slices of bread.
1t was the moment when the chatting of
his wife amused him most. After the
long quiet of the night the light gossiping
was to his mind what the fire was to his
body. She recounted the street and
market news, the practical jokes among
the neighbors and the various reports,
scandalous or otherwise, that she picked
up in her daily sale of fish when hating
at different stations for a moments rest
from her heavy burdens.
The good man listened silently to all
this chat without movement of his
tanned features. When she had finished
he would say in calm voice, while pour
ing for her glass of cider:
Come, now. that's enough for this
Vnt1;I1 hysincr ho nj, ond
lose your tongue if you don't give it
rest''
That did not vex her, for she knew
he really liked to listen as much as she
liked to talk and even admired her for it.
But this morning she was aggravated
by his digital comparison to the perpetual
motions of flsh's tail. So, instead of
sitting down to the table with him, she
sat by the fire with her bowl of soup on
her knee, giving him only the pleasure of
back view.
The warmth of the fire and repast hav-
ing chased away the bad humor from the
good man, he thought, in his masculine
egotism, that he had only to speak in Or
der to set the current of speech in its nor
NAL direction and activity.
We'll, We'll, my woman, GOMEZ WHaG
has been the gossip of this morning?"
Without a movement of her chair or a
turn of her head she replied:
Greatly? You seem as curious about
neighboring affairs as I am. Go, then,
and find out for yourself"
Then anglily he replied:
"Have you got the pip, or Rave you
tired your tongue? Say?"
eff have, am going to bequiet in Or
der to be cured or rested"
''That will need Is minutes or a half
hour" he added, half mischievously, half
angrily.
sit will last until you take back what
you said or talk yourself"
Good You have said your last word
for long tir.e then!'
And throwing the bread across the
room into the Or,e,l hoy ba want into tbo