Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1894-05-02


ly he ventured to add:
81 thought, mother, you would enjoy
living in Chicago in little house with
a furnace perhaps and stained glass in
the hall and curtains in the doorways. -
She turned upon him with absolute
terror in her eyes,
"Joep' she cried in a voice of intense
pain. "Surely you won't make me dc
that? Surely there's no law that'd help
you to drag me away from here to a
place like that?''
Mother--aer motherP' said Joe
soothingly. ''I wouldn't for the world
ask you to go il you did not wish to do
so. only wished to offer you a pretty
home, and you know you have never
had 4 homo. -
Never hal a home?" she echoed
scornfully. What do you call The
Wandering Willie then? There's no
woman in America that's prouder of
her home than I be. know every mile
of the 800 an more between Buffalo an
Albany as we'll as most people do their
own miz able little weedy dooryards.
I've come by these fields fur. so year an
seen 'em brown an bare i'll the spring,
an then fain5 light green, an then yal-
Ter as the sunshine, an then hare again,
like they be today. An sometimes I've
come by when the first snow has cover
ed 'em all up warm for the winter. An
know the very birds nests in the trees,
Joe. An there amt town as we go
through but what I've got good true
friends in. How kin you say this amt a
home, Joe? It's been place to love in,
more do you want?''
Forgive me, mother, p" said Joe hum
bly,. He dared not speak again for fear
of unwittingly giving her fresh pain. It
was some time before she spoke.
1--WE told you so often all about The
Wandering Willie that don't s'pose
you'd keer to hear it all over agin, would
you, Joe?" she said wistfully.
Indeed l should like to hear it, :"
said Joe, with SO much apparent inter-
est that his mother was visibly fattered
and without urging plunged into sea
of retrospect
''The very fust thing kin remember
is sittin by my father ON the deck of
a boat like this, tied into my little
cheer My mother was dead, an my IA
ther was all wrapped up in me. He was
as good man as ever lived, though
rough in his ways He did swear dread
fully sometimes, but then all canal men
do mostly. But he was gentle as kit
ten with me an would watch me in my
little cheer an tell me by the hour bout
the places we was passin. Sometimes
he would talk O. sendin me to school,
but he couldn bear to part with me, an
I hated to go Winters we lived in
tavern at Lockport. an there 1 got lit
tie schoolin, So could read, write and
cipher some, an when was only a slip
of gal I und stood all about freight
an managin the boat better than you
ever will, I'm afraid, Joe.
''Now, Joe, bout the name O. this
old boat-you do think it's a pretty
name, don't you?'
81 think it s the sweetest ships name
that ever was invented!' said Joe, with
conviction. for he knew that not all
the mythical ships of song and story
had for him the significance Of this one.
The Wandering Willie would always
represent to his mind the truest love,
the tenderest fidelity.
''Well, your grandfather sot great
deal o store by it. He called four boats
by it, one arter another, and finally
give the name to this one. He'd got it
out O. some play or pome or book-he
never rightly knew where himself-an
it riled him to have any one make fun
of it. One evenin we was lyin to at
Buffalo 1t was about O'Clock, an the
dock was full O. people wallzin up an
down to git the lake breeze, fur it had
been very warm day. was talkin
with some gals forward, an father was
sittin i'll the stern, smokin. He had been
drinl1in some an was that ugly no one
dast speak to him but me. Presently we
see young man starin at the name on
the stern ;tn kinder smilin to himself
He was strong, good lookin young fell
ler, with laughin blue eyes-you never
see such eyes nowadays, Joe! Pretty
soon he speaks up to father, an says he,
very perlite;
could ye give me job O. work
sir?'
" I could if I wanted to, says father,
with a snarl, but amt a-goin to give
no one job that pokes fun at my boat
Why, want a-pokin fun at yer
boat' says the young man very respect
full. Only I see The Wandering Willie
there on the stern, an my names Willie,
an I'm a-wanderin round loOllin fur
job, an it seemed kinder cur Us.
"Well, there's never no relyin on
what a drunken man will do-I'm |
mighty glad you don't keer fur liquor,
Joe. My father got hoppin mad at them
innercent words an began swearin an |
takin on awful. The young feller jest |
turned round an walked off, sorter dis |
couraged. Father kept shoutin to him
that if he didn't come on board an git |
polished off he'd come on shore arter
him. An all O. a sudden, while he was
a-shakin his fists an a-stampin his feet,
he give crazy lurch and went right
over the stern into the water!"
The old woman S voice trembled with |
excitement as she recounted this one
thrilling incident of her life.
'"The canals an awful place to fall |
INTO. It's not so deep, but it, very wide,
III even if you kin swim to the bank.
here's nothin to cling to. You never
see mule drown, did you, Joe? You
wouldn't believe how quick it's over.
There's a little running an shoutin an |
'omethin dark comes slowly up an rolls |
over jest under the water, an there's a |
Kind O. gurglin cry that turns you sick
Ill over, an you feel wild to help the |
poor critter. The somethin dark comes |
slowly up once more an sinks agin. A |
few big bubbles rise, an it s all over, but
5he thought O. it sticks in yer mind fur
lays.
ct was as quick as that with father.
He was a good swimmer, but when he
arose his head struck agin the rudder
an he never took stroke-he jest sank
ike a stun. Everybody screamed an
yelled an called fur ropes an boats, but
none o. all his old cronies standin round
last wet their skins to help him. Would
you believe it, joe, that young feller
he'd jest been abusin SO mean was the
very one to save him? He run back,