Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-03-12

'TU
"Husu," he SAID, 81 HEAR a VOICE IN
THE TALL PORCH
ncolytc and his mother left the village
Of Pontiac together secretly and the
church Of ST. Joseph IN Montreal never
rang again With the fine voice of Pcre
RAchellc. Nor did his name continue
to appear in the clergy list Of the pro
vince
IVA Courier in the Woods.
The old woodman shifted the knife
with which he WIS meuding his fishing
rod from one hand 90 the other, and
looked at il musingly before hc replied
10 Medallion. "Nps. monsieur, / know
the White Chief as they called him:
this was his. holding up the knife
and this. taking a watch from his
pocket. He gave them 10 me. l was
with him in the circle on the great
journey
Tell us about him, them" Medallion
| urged. FOR there are many tales, and
who knows which is the right ouc|
The right one is mine. Mother Of
heaven, he was 10 me like tathcr-thcn,
/ know the truth He paused u moment,
! looking out on the river where the hot
sun was playing with all It's might, then
| took off his cap with delibTutiou, laid
| II beside him, aud, speaking as IL were
| In the distance, began: He had been
o trader of the Hudson Bay company.
| or his berth some said one thing. some
another. 4 know he was bcaucOup gcntel
and his heart, II was lions! Once
when there was trouble with the Chipp
| way tribe be went alone to their camp
| and said he would fight their strongest
| man, To stop The trouble lie twisted
| the mock of the great lighting man Of
| the tribe 80 thut IL went with "a snap,
! and that ended IL; and he was made a
| clnrf-iOr you soc, in their hearts they
| iul hated che strong man. Well, one
| winter there came down to Fort o God
| two EsquimuuN. and they said that three
! white men were wiutcring by the Cop
| permiuc river-thcy had travelled down
from the frozen seas when their ship
| was locked in the ice. but could get no
| farther They were sick with the evil
| skim and starving, Tie white chief said
10 me, 'Gnlloir, will YOU goy l would
| have gone with him tO the ends of the
| world-Uud ths wac near one end
The old man laughed 10 himself, toss
| ed back his iet-back hair from his wrink-
| cled face, and, after u moment, COntnu-
ed There never was such a winter as
that The air was SO still 10y times that
| YOU could hear the rustic of the stars
and the shifting Of the northern lights
bat the cold az night caught you by the
heart and clamped it-Mou Dicu. how
| 10 clumpcd IL, We crawled under the
| snow and lay i'm our bags OF fur and
wool: and the dogs Rugged close TO rs
| We were sorry FOR the dogs aud one
died aud then the other, and there was
| nothing so dreadful as TO hear the dogs
howl in the long night-it was like the
cries OF ghosts in an empty world, The
| circle of the sun got smaller and smaller
ttn all. Il..
| OF the northwest We gOt 10 the river
at last, and found the camp. There was
| one man deud--only orc; hut there were
| bOues-ah, munsieur, you may guess
what thing Il is to look upon the bones
of men and know that
Medallion put ms hand on the old
| mans arm. wait n minute he said.
Then he poured out coffee for both, and
they drank before the rest was told,
It's creepy story said Medallion,
but 80 on
"W,u. the white chief looked at the
dead man rs he sat there in the snow,
with II book and piece Of paper beside
| face was bent forward 10 the knees.
Tho white chief picked up the book and
pencil. and then knelt down and peered
up In the dead mans face all hard like
stone and Crusted with frost. | thought
he would never stir again he looked SO
| I
turned and said TO me, $50 quiet so
awful, Galloir.' and got up, Well. but
Il was cold there then, and my head
seemed big and running about like "a
bail of air but / lighted a spint-lamp,
and made some coffee, and he opened the
book and began TO read, All az once /
heard n cry, and / saw him drop the
man and jerk his fist as if TO strike
him In the face. But ho did not strike. %
Gallon stopped, and lighted his pipe
and WIS SO long silent that Medallion
had TO jog him into speaking He pulled
the smoke 50 that his face was I'm the
cloud, and he said through it,-'uo, I've die
not strike, lie got TO his feet and spoke
All, Iesu, pardon!-like that ant
came and took mp the book again and
read He ate and drank, and read thl
book again, and l knew by his face
that something more than cold was
clamping his heart,
Shall we bury him In the sn0wg
said, No he spoke, let him sit Their,
tin The judgment. This is wonderful
book GnllOir.' he went on lie was d
brave man, but the rest,-the restl--theI
under his breath almost She was s,
young but child 1 DID not understan,
that. We started away soou, leayul
/ saw that the White Chief would never
get back 10 Fort Pentccost, but he reat
the dead mans book much, ] cannot
forget that one day--he lay looking al
the woodworking but the waves d
snow shining blue and white on anc
on The sun lifted an eye OF blood Ia th,
north. winking like q devil as | tried Z,
drive death away by calling in his ear
no walked an at once, but his eyes seem
ed asleep He told me 90 tako che BIOL
10 great man IN Montreal he gave m'
the naIne. Then he took ont his watch
n was stopped. aud this kn1e' aud pm
them INTO my hands, nnd then pate,
inv shoulder. Ile n,Otioncd 10 have th
lag drawn over his head ! did il. o
Course hat WAS the end
t;ailoir took out the watch aud turn
Ia IL round Ia bis hand. held il u hi'