Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1896-08-24
KIDNAP
sE6SG MEMOIRS OF THE ADVENTURES or DAVID
BALFoUR IN THE YEAR 1851.
BY ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.
CHAPTER XIv.-(Continued.)

AShers used to sleep when they came
there upon their business; but the turf
roof Of it had fallen entirely in, so that
the hut was of no use to me, and gave
me less shelter than my rocks. What
was more important, the shellfsh on
which / lived grew there in great plenty
when the tide was out | could gather
a peek at time, and this was doubtless
"a convenience. But the other reason
went deeper. | had become in no way
used to the horrid solitude of the isle,
bat still looked round me on all sides
{hG1e Il man that was hunted) between
fear and hope that [ might see some hui
man creature coming. Now, from a lit
tie mp the hillside over the bay, | could
catch a sight Of the great, ancient church
and Ghe roofs of the peoples houses in
Iona. / saw smoke go up, morning
and evening, as if from a homestead in
n hollow of the land
/ used to watch this smoke, when I
was wet and cold. and had my head half
turned with loneliness, and think of the
tlyeSide and the company, till my heart
burned. 1t was the same with the roofs
of Iona. Altogether, this sight | had Of
mems homes and comfortable lives al
though it put point on my own suffer
+Dgss yet it kept hope alive and helped me
to eat my raw shelIfish (Which had soon
from the sense of horror l had when
ever L was quite alone with dead rocks,
ssad fowls, and the rain, and the cold
sea
] say it kept hope alive; and indeed it
seemed impossible that | should be left
TO die on the shores of my own country
sttRd within view of church tower and
the smoke of mems houses. But the sec
Ond day passed, and though as long as
the light lasted | kept a bright lookout
for boats on the sound or men passing
on the Ross, no help came near me.
aS still rained, and [ turned in to sleep,
as wet as ever, and with a cruel sore
threat, but a little comforted, perhaps.
by having said goodnight to my next
neIghbOrs, the people of Iona.
Charles the Second declared man
o@rlfd stay out doors more days in
the year in the climate of England
than III any other. This was very like
KING with palace at his back and
changes of dry clothes. But he must
have had better luck in his flight from
Worcester than | had on that miserable
isle. 1t was the height of the summer;
yet it rained for more than twenty four
hours, and did not clear until the after
nooa of the third day.
This was the day of Incidents In the
morning L saw red deer, a buck with a
aitFe spread of antlers, standing in the
esin on the top of the island; but he had
scarce seen me rise from under my rock,
t4ef0r2 he trotted off upon the other side.
Il supposed he must have swum the
StAsEits; though what should bring any
creature TO Earraid, was more than 1
ce@4td fancy.
n little after. as | was jumping about
after my iimpets, [ was startled by a
guinea piece, which fell upon a rock in
front of me- and glanced off into the sea-
EaaAVE caiI
agaisa, they kept back not only about a
eaAsrT OF the whole sum, but my fathers
tea Their parse; SO that from that day out,
I carried nay gold loose in pocket with
\ button. L now saw there must be a
Iiete, and clapped my hand to the place
the Stable door after the steed was
stolen [ had left the shore at Queens
EesRy with near on ESQ; now [ found no
nQire shan two guinea pieces and silver
shiIliu,g.
u is true I picked UP third guinea
little after, where it lay shining on a |
pierre of turf. That made a fortune of |
.hree pounds and four shillings, English
aaozaey, for lad, the rightful heir of an
aSfaSe, and now starving on an isle at
lsYe extreme end Of the wild Highlands
This state of my affairs dashed me still |
Farther; and indeed my plight on that
tfalrd morning WAS truly pitiful. My |
.ngs in particular were quite worn
through, so that my shanks went naked;
my hands had grown quite soft with the
Continual soaking; my throat was very
tore, my strength had much abated, and
ny heart so turned against the horrid
,tuf [ was condemned to eat, that the
Tery sight OF it came near to Sicken me-
And yet the worst was not yet come.
There is a pretty high rock on the !
northwest Of Earraid, which because it
lsa fiat top and overlooked the ;ound) /
was much in the habit of frequen1ing;
not that ever | stayed in one place, save
when asleep nay misery giving me no
continual and aimless goings and com
Rgs ia the rain.
As soon, however. as the sun came ont,
lay down on the top of that rock to dry !
nyself The comfort of the sunshine is
/ thing / cannot tell. 1t set me thinking
hopeful of my deliverance, of which [
lad begun to despair; and | scanned the
ss.a and the Ross with a fresh interest.
On the south of my rock, q part of the
island jutted out anG hid the open ocean,
20 that boat could thus come quite near |
Me upon that s;de and | be none the
wiser
We'll, all of sudden, coble with a
brown sail and pair of fishers aboard OF |
d came flying round that corner OF the |
s4er bound for Iona. | shouted out and
tiaen fell on my knees and reached up !
my hands and prayed to them. They
'geFe near enough to hear-I could even
see the color of their hair; and there was
no doubt but they observed me, for they
cried out in the Gaelic tongue and I
laughed But the boat never turned |
aside. and flew on, right before my eyes,
FOR Iona.
[ could NOT believe such wickeduess,
and ran along the shore fromSrock to
rock, crying on them ,piteously; even
after they were out of reach of my voice
I SsiGa cried and waved to them; and
when they were quite gone, | thought |
my heart would have burst. All the
time of my troubles [ wept only twice. |
l4nce, when / could not reach the oar; !
and se0w, the second time, when these
fishers turned a deaf ear to my cries.
Fsut this time l wept and roared like
W licked child, tearing up the turf with
my us.ils and grinding my face in the
earth. If Il wish would kill men, those
two fishers would never have seen morn
ms; and l should likely have died upon
my island.
When [ was little over my anger,