Rocky Ford enterprise., 1896-06-04

manly exercise, Lorraine was aii out W.
into a small boat, which, 1t appeared,
was gone when he felt a hand on MIS-
collar and was pulled all but insensible
into a small boat. which. 1t apepared'
was the only one lowered, or, at any
rate, was the only one that had sue
ceeded in getting away from the wreck.
The sea, fortunately. was compara-
lively smooth or the tiny boat could not
have outlived the night. When the
morning broke Julian Lorraine saw all
that survived of the ship and her
freight.
Himself, four sailors, three women.
and a baby In arms!
The sailors were pulling. not from
the hope of reaching land, but to Keep
the boats head to the waves. The
mother, with her child clasped to her
breast, and the two other women, were
crouching In the stern sheets.
In the boat were a dozen biscuits and
small keg of water.
With the light all turned to Lorraine
for advice and aid. He was a man OF
commanding presence. to whom people
OF a lower organization would natur-
ally turn in difficulties. He assumed
the responsibility.
He told the men to step the mast and
hoist what sail they thought safe. and
then to steer as close to the wind as
possible. He assured them that land
was not far of. His only reason. he
informed me. for taking this course, was
that he hated the labor Of rowing. Any
hope of their lives being saved he
secuted.
However, before night-fall. they did
reach land-a bare rock, but land.
BY this time one Of The women was
lying in the bottom Of the boat, moan
ing, like one in agony. Her COM
panions of the same sex were exchang-
ing frightened glances. The poor thing
was carried ashore. and the true state
Of affairs communicated to the men. A
tent or screen was by the aid OF the sail
and the oars hastily rigged up, and In
an hours time there were ten human
beings instead OF nine on that barren
rock. But not for long. Before morn
ing the number was the same as when
they landed. only that the place of one
of the women was taken by crying.
prematurely born infant.
The rough men and women did what
they could for the poor little wretch.
The woman with nursing baby gave
1t a portion OF what was rightfully her
own child's.
This, in Julian Loraine's opinion, was
the most rash and misplaced expression
of false sentiment he had ever met
with.
Toward the evening OF that day they
scraped a grave for the mother. They
did not fill 1t up at once, thinking that
bye and bye the child must be laid in
her arms.
At one time 1t seemed that 1t must
be SO. The sailors and the women, no
doubt, thinking that gentleman is
nearer heaven than themselves,
brought the poor little wailing atom
to Lorraine. and asked him to chris
ten 1t.
With death SO close at hand to all.
it was not worth while making any
demur; but l can fancy the mans syn
ical smile, as he sprinkled water from
a large shell on the childs head. He,
Julian Lorraine. doing a priests duty,
and doing 1t for the pleasure of other
people.
However, so far as he knew how, he
baptized the child, and thinking that a
name was indispensable, with a kind
of urtp, hpr nb ri G. fanpl him fnr 4.
was boy, Julian.
After all, no one else died, not even
the strangely born baby. The next day
a sail hove in sight. Such signals as
the shipwrecked party could make were
seen, and men, women and babies were
soon in safety on board 4 homeward-
bound ship.
No one, not even her fellow passen-
gers, knew the name or anything about
the woman who had died. Her clothes,
such as she wore, bore no mark. Her
husband, II on board, had gone down
in the BLACK Swan" What was to be-
come of the child?
Lorraine settled this. Perhaps he
thought the child had a certain ridicu-
lous claim upon him. He was no mig
gard with his money. He told some
one-he would not have taken the
trouble to see about it himself-to find
a comfortable home for the child, and
to apply to him when money was
wanted. Then he went his way, and
lived for years as he chose.
Every now and then, when her pay
master was in town, the woman who
had charge of the child ventured to
bring him to see his benefactor. Some
times the benefactor scowled, some
times smiled his cynical smile and took
notice of the little boy, who was called
by his baptismal name, Master Julian.
When the boy was seven years of age,
Julian Lorraine sent instructions that he
was to be forwarded to Herstal Abbey,
Somersetshire. Having been told by
the good people about him that the
grand gentleman he now and again
saw was his father, he addressed him
by that endearing term. Julian Lo-
raine, no doubt, stared and laughed, but
he said nothing forbidding the appella-
tion being used. So to himself and the
world the boy was Master Julian, only
son of Julian Lorraine, of Herstal Abb
bey.
What strange freak induced the man
to present nameless child, of humble
and unknown parents, to the world as
his son shall never know. have tried
to think 1t was from affection toward