The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1894-09-01

1872 ~ 49, - 0SAN y GE&AE M~4&0AG W1SA
the captain and his passenger.
In the tent they found some cook
ing utensils, d gun case lettered 20
B." q jointed fishing rod, some tao
kle, an air mattress and two blan
kets soaked with blood.
Ny informant was beginning K
take full notes when the captain III
sisted on hurrying away. 1t wai
none of his business anyhow. IL
said. He couldn't lose time to mir
himself up with any case in court.
So the observant passenger was com.
PEELED to hasten aboard, consolinn
himself that his sagacity had been
vindicated.
The adventure gave him q keen,
unusual sense OF being alive. What
he did on reaching Boston need not
be recorded, because the meaning Of
what he had seen may be best learned
from the narrative Of Skipper Min
cheever OF Beverly.
Almost any day in summer you
may see the white catboat Minnie
Mincheever. at anchor before Bever-
~, unless her skipper, Absalom Min
cheever, has gone forth on some
cruise. ! In summer he hires, boat
and skipper, 10 chance comers Dur
ing fall and spring he uses the Min
nie-named for his young sister-as
a fishing boat. The fishing in stormy
months keeps Absalom In practice
for sudden perils OF that terrible
coast and maintains In him that
nerve which is as remarkable as his
voluhility.
OF his adventures he loves to talk,
though many are scarcely important
enough to warrant the detail in
which he imparts them. But, small
or great, he tumbles them out almost
necessarily as some landmark brings
them to his memory. Thus on my
first trip with him last summer he.
poured forth this tale OF Norman's
Woe:
Now there's Norman's. Vice. he
began, waving his free hand toward
. brown mound of rock that seemed
part OF the north shore near the en-
to Gloucester bay. "Once /
had q tight pinch right there. The
wind was . living gale, andn-
"Norman's Woe7' I interrupted.
Yes, certainly. As / was saying.
there was more than half a gale-
DO You mean to say there's a real
Norman's Woe-the very Norman's
Woe where Longfellow's schooner
Hesperps was wreckedf"
Looks real enough, don't it7 But
of the Longfellows long this
coast lost no schooner, so fur's /
know. Abe's no sailor, nor yet Hiram,
and Pete, him that lives back of
Mingo's beach-why, Pete
And that is really Norman's Woe"
| cried. well, Of the millions who
nave learned the ballad at school.
now few imagine it refers to q real
reefl It's peaceful enough today. III
'ay, skipper, won't you run In and
me o good look at itf'
Certainly, certainly" said Ahsa-
om, and put the Minnie about al
most as easy a q bird turns.
Close past the buoy bearing the
bell we ran in. Now it was 81
emit. And was this the bell that
Inelled in the ears Of the Hesperus
as he looked on his little
laughter bound TO the mast and
'steered for the open scar
Absalom'seyes fell ON the fog bell.
"You were loud enough that dayr
shouted, shaking his fist ait it.
Lord, how that bell did clanki
,ou hain't got no idea of what that
cast is in q gale from q The Woe
Fas all a smother of breakers clear
p, for the tide was high. The roll
70 looked like they'd roar over into
he cove behind.
We'll, SIR, my sister and NETS
er ! named this boat for-had been
ut north yonder fishing, for she was
q her holidays and me engaged with
D party for the day, and shed been
,aching school spring and winter.
. the wind kept rising, we ran for
bay. It was In August, ]
lst about this time, too; but the /,
wasf fit for October-only warm
And as we staggered round the /
pint yonder what should we see but
cancel
"A dory could scarce live In such /.
sea, but there was that young chap !
about here. He was riding free, /.
lddling straight into the face OF the |
aves, flung up till you could see .
liz his keel-then he'd slide out of
ght down the trough 80 you'd think q
I'd never come up again. &
An open cancer saysyou. Great I
.eesicks, do you suppose any open t
noe could a. lived there9 No: she v
as divided into bu1kheadsand deck
tight--so ] learned after all was i
me. No sinking her. He was too I
mart TO let her be rolled over. The b
niger was that she'd be blown ]
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