The Madisonian. (Virginia City, Mont.) 1873-1915, 1895-08-10
"Naturallv while the WidOWer was at

49, - Wv
sea it was I, his comrade, I. the old
bachelor, who cared for the little one.
She was u good and pretty child, non
s;eur; courageous and sweet tempered.
We very often went to the rocks at low
tide to gather turtles, shrimps, prawn,
and sometimes we were fortunate enough
to find a lobster. All, but we were good
friends!
"This went ON for about two years.
Mona had made her first communion,
grown and shot up like a thistle in the
sand. But one day the Amelia, LIE
Magnet S boat, was overtaken i'll a storm
and wrecked. The skipper did not haul
in his sail soon enough, and the boat
struck on that reef you can see over
there-Just ii Little more to the star
board. There were four men in the crew
the skipper, two sailors and my poor
Pierre. But the sea only gave up three
Of the drowned men and retained my
comrade. Mona became an orphan. It
goes without saying that I did my best
to replace her father. But the child,
even after the first sorrow passed away.
did not seem to console herself. And do
you know why, monsieur? Because Of
IN idea all the women around here have.
They believe that q soul must remain in
pain unto tho judgment day unless it re-
poses in consecrated ground. We men
do not believe in all this nonsense when
we know what happens when there is a
death on board ship. But Mona could
not be forced to believe other than the
women had taught her and continued to
burn candles at all the pardons in the
reighboring towns for the repose Of her
fathers soul.
However, in spite Of everything.
time is a famous merchant Of forgetful-
ness, and Mona after o few years ap-
peared to me to become somewhat REQ
on0led. Besides, her grief had o pre-
vented her from growing handsomer and
taking a pride in herself, and it is not
because I loved her like a father, but,
upon my honor, she was the freshest
and prettiest young girl in the parish.
We lived 50 happily together. We were
not rich, to be sure, but we lived, and
we enjoyed ourselves all the same. l
had my pension and my medal, and
then we used to go together to hunt for
Holsters in the rocks. The trade is a
paying one, and there is only one danger,
that of being overtaken by the tide.
All, unfortunately that was how she
met her death, poor little one!
"ONe day when my rheumatism con-
fined me to the house she went fishing
alone. 1t was just such q day as today,
the SKY clear, the wind high. When the
rock searchers gathered together with
full baskets, they perceived that Mona
failed to respond to their calls. There
was 10 possible doubt. Great God, she
had been delayed and surrounded by the
All, what a night I passed, monsieur
At my age, yes, q hard hearted man
like ne, 1 sobbed like a woman. And
the remembrance came to me Of the
poor child's belief that to go to heaven
she must be inferred in consecrated
ground. Therefore as soon as the tide
went down l went to the shore, and.
with the others, searched for the body.
And we found poor Nona," con
tinued the old sailor in q trembling
voice. "We found her on a rock covered
with seaweed, where, knowing that she
was going to die, the poor little Il hak
prepared herself for death. Yes, mon
sieur, she had tied her skirts below thu
knees with her fichu, through modesty
and with her old idea uppermost ha<
attached herself to the seaweed by he
hair. her beautiful black hair, certail
that she would thus I've found and in
tered in conseorated ground. And l Cal
say, /, who know what bravery is, tina
there is perhaps not a man brave enougl
to do likewise"
The old man was silent. BY the las
CLEAN of the twilight l saw two grea
} tears rolling down his weather beate
, cheeks. We descended to the village sid
by side in silence. ! was p%rofoundl
l touched by this simple girls courage
| who, even in the agonies of death, ha
q retained the modesty Of her sex and tn
= piety Of her race, and before me in tn
distant immensely, in the solitudes
t the heavens and the sea-, cleaned OF
d the beacon lights and the stars
a Oh, brave men of the seal Oh, mob
: Brittany From the French of Franco
Coppee For Romance.
r Dickens C~haracters.
- Mo- orou D:o1,o~o <biu1 F0ur