Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1895-11-18
HER ONE ERROR.
OR
THE FISHERMAN'S BRIDE.
CHAPTER XII.
PLAYING THE GAME.

Time as it passed over the lonely
dwelling on the cliff brought no allie
Walton of the bitter draught which
those two had doomed themselves to
share
Since the death Of his child, Saul
Meghorn decreased hourly in the fu
tile attempts to win the love or
awaken the interest Of his wife.
He could not spare her from his
sight, to spare her from pain and dam
ger he would have faced death itself;
yet deliberately he visited on her the
cruelest torture, in taunts, in tyran-
my, in curses often-worst Of all, In
treatment of little Ida.
'EYou did not want the trouble OF
my child" he would say, tauntingly;
mol he was let die, that you might
fondle, and pet, and spoil that brat.
All! it shall be little the better. Did
you hear me, girl? Go fetch some logs
TO the fire."
600, Ida, dear child, the mothers
unvarying sad voice would say-for
she trained her daughter to the same
steady, unvarying obedience as she
herself displayed.
Far more welcome to him had been
the angry retort, or weeping excuse or
supplication-the fire of his OVID pas
sion had then met with some other
fuel than his own heart, on which to
prey with devouring fury.
The haDless wife shrank more from
his carasses than his abuse; but only
the more would he urge them upon
her
1t shall be the old time, Nelly, the
young days again." he boisterously
exclaimed. "Sit you on my knee,
my sweet lass, my own Nelly Lay
your head on my shoulder, SO. All.
[ have seen youmany time when you
little thought [ was near. All. you'll
not! But you could once, and knelt
to me and kissed the hand-ah there
are marks still-you bound it up.
What, you won't? Come, young one,
come with me and Humid, we'll have a
round among the cliffs. So, mistress,
you'll come to, Them sooner than the
child should go! Ay, then you do love
me-oh so well! as well as you did
him-better is it? ha! ha!-better the
diving than the dead, hal hail.
SO he terrified the miserable mother
TO submission, and triumphed over
her shudder at his approach, which,
for her child's sake, she would have
concealed.
Fine silks, or rich cloths, too, he
Brought, with ornaments, at times;
and affected to think, in his mad way,
that she really thanked him for the
gifts.
"The fisherman, couldn't bring such
to his wife, eh, mistress? eh, Nelly?
And she will kiss me twenty times for
these Why, this is like the one was
pitched over the cliff long ago-dost
mind that, Nelly? Oh! oh! it was no
use-no use, was it, my girl?-was 1t?
She's mine at last, ha! ha! and she
does love her husband-of course she
does!" 962sA
For her child's sake she bore even
with this. The fierce, strong will held
the weaker in subsection. She felt her
self powerless for revenge, even had it
been possible. The past usurped all
there was little perception Of the
soresent-no thought for the future.
One sole consolation still remained.
The cottage had continued, as [
have said, in her possession, untouch-
ed in all it's arrangements, unentered
by any foot, unvisited by any eyes
but her own and her child's.
To her satisfaction she had been left
more alone of late, and, when he did
return, Saul was more preoccupled,
and less inclined to acknowledge the
fact of her existence. This was the
best boon the wife could desire.
In one of his tyrannical moments he
dismissed the maid. saying the girl was
now getting big enough to make her
self useful; and mother and child were
thus alone in the house.
But Nelly took no offence at this;
rather she was glad to be quit OF any
witness to her sorrowful repinings,
and free to indulge her self-commun-
ings as she pleased.
CHAPTER XIII.
SATAN WINNING.
"Ir's as good, ay, as a sack o. gold
TO my eyes, it is, capt'n, for to hail IN
sight of We agin. Sick O. land lifen |
should say We was, and the wonder is,
as l said, how We ha' stood it.
sShore' l say to that lubberly jack
ass Simeon Foulkes, the capt'n'll tire
of it in six months, says, and tho
we've held out longer'n Idha' thought
was in ye--ay, it took ten years OF
nae, it did that, when you hailed from
the old place, and bid Mat Yawmans
hold up his head and be man again. "
'|What became of Foulkes?" asked
Meghorn of his grim servitor.
went to the bad, yer honor,
swamped for good and all; not like a
zaan neither, cutlass in hand, and his
feet to the enemy, nor took in fair
sight, but like a weasel sneaked in a
Gen-roost, nabbed by the rascally
sand sharks, and clapped. in a country
Jail, for a pettifogging, dirty JOB, as
was not worth the risk of A.
''WellF'
at always is the way with them
fellows as can't take their liquor IN
times and seasons like a man" con
finued Yawmans with an oath. q
never did put no more faith in hin.
than in leaky old punt; though it
warn't for me to speak agin a mate as
yer honor seemed to fancy"