The times., 1897-08-15
s9eGa sGe3 599a@
a Private Hffair.
Aaa&aGG 2GGA&

COTS, and SO very gray dHA ." f-s
IroIu The water aEd LlIs.ereu bY Tue sun
anu aecs Fed by bolh that when y1a s''e
it-espeeia2Iy at oEsG--it looks Tor AL
the woFla ike the gnost OF wharf thae
was haGnsia the spot Of It's ale t-.AAe
userGIaeSs, because IL had 10 eternity 10
which dead wood could 90.
= Ilisn.y loaesall4e place - Plney i-ahi
iLg but picturesque whether YoA ooiiie
across IL al iwlIgnt or bloaa Gag lAsts
il The hlue Of the sky ano the green OF THE
pines, with tie yellow sand sioping from
under their shaa0ws down TO tie SURF
ana the surf curing over IL lack into
the shadows again, and there being nolhlnS
tut the sky ana the pines ana the water
ana tne Loneliness. why, there is never
a Thing else 20 see-eNcept at high tide a
black. Shiny humpof wood half siE.otheFediR
the flals-aRa that's all that's lett Of th.
Betsy.
Betsy Was a dilty little pEmgy with a
p.rattcal huh aad rusty sails, and she be-
loageu 70 Captain pobbs before the var.
Nobody Knew where he belonged, for he
settled at the Landing with burr on has
tongue that ne never came by this side
Of the Atlantic. and he's there stlll, very
st.u- somewhere Under the pines
II Captain Dobbs had figured in history
lr,steai of IA the conversation OF his neigh
bors he might POSSIBLY have shared IN the
spectaenlariy wicked reputation of thar
other captain, Kidd. As it was the
farmers and waterman around simply sized
him cp and sat him down as poor white
trash. wsth whom 1t was best TO nave no
dealiaEspn aeeonat Of his un deIlia Rd ways
II was saPPasea ne had lett money, oae
as time passed aad kis widow showed evi-
dcace Of no ether dover than her tMrd
ln his evil iepHiauoR-the rena ainder being
divided with ersel impaFtiality between
his two yoslnS daughters then the neigh-
horhoOd settled ii that If the late Captain
Iobhs. waterman. made no noRey by eYil
traffic. his widow made meme by fair.
Other people follow the water aEa make
a SUCCESS of IL, bHt they paddle along 20
eonanetence stroke by stroke, and there Is
a long nnn snd a :oagh pull before they
can cast anchor in the harbor OF rest
fuI old aga Rut Mrs. Dobbs. Never a
hnrSl.ead Of tobacco lay in the Betsy :
low black huli. no, not 50 much as 4
crate OF fInit ROr a sack OF grasn-for all
this happened way back in ar tiIlles, and
40 Farmer VINO stuck 70 his plow in those
DAYS cared 10 be tarred with the sus-
piclon that iIsc6ened the widow; they said
30 and said it aloud.
Capt Betsy may have heard them, but
she never let on she cared. She had way
pf grounding TO herself IN u hoEr.'e gEttersl
mat as dreadful, and another way or
thuckIing which was worse. Grzmhling or
chgcklng. she went about her business,
Iuch Ar 1t was, and no one knew 50
Httle about IL as the chlldrea she left be-
hind.
The war had grown into floed drink
Ing giant that was draining the heart OF
the country when Mrs. Dobbs TOOK upon
herself her dead husbands trade. Her
pstensitle business, as his had been, was
shipping oysters 10 the Baltimore nEarke Is
but though sire sailed from Piney Landing
with the stars and stripes flying at her
masthead. more than one pair Of eyes had
sighted her on tie southern side Of Mason
and DfNan's ane under cover OF the red
white and red
The crew Of the Hetsy began ard ended
with Chuck. 4 soEap OF a e0iored imp, who
seemed to tear the same rcla tienship tC
the punEy that the black cat did to the
Witch. The Bobhses lived in a cabin near
tue edge of the pines II wasn't nsuch al
cabin to hook at, being built CT sllis
logs chinked with clay, with small, nar
row Sits for windows and big wide sill
for a door. Nor was it much OF eahln 10
ike in. for there " as only one room down
stairs for the family t. live, die anu coos
in, and loft in the peaked roof, where
the two girls spent the happiest part oi
their lives
at Least that was the way of it til
Dobbs died, and then there came d dlf
ference greater than one would srnpos'
SIX feat Of sand could ma ke, for Mrs
Dobbs turned herself into a mariner bold
and though the landing grew more summed
and dreary, still, the foriorn young thin e
Knowing n" better, were as happy a s the
cat birds in the bushes, whenever thei
mother had scgdded off TO where, thel
never questi1ned, nor cared, so long q
she kept on scudding. The vessel har
been off 4 week or more, and the two
girls sat before the fire, Phe4ie lingering
on a doleful accordion she had come by
goodness knows how, and Kit crumplef
up on & candle box, with her big eyea
on the cherry blaze and her head in he
elder sisters lap. 1t was a rough niRhi
outside. with the wind tearing Ike
mad thing in the pines, and the waite
dasntng with deafening boom against tn,
beach. Kit was the first to hear a harsf
voice and unwelcome step, and boltini
up with CONSERVATION, she cried out:
There's mother. However dsd she man
age TO land" That she had landed wa
evidenced by the blow she dealt tn,
door before the girls could unbar il
Landed, too, in worse hunlor than sh
left, for once in the room she paid nt
heed 10 tie man who followed her, othe
than tn Inoiion him stolidly towards III
chimney corner, while she seated hersei
in splint rocker before the fire and light
ing her cob pipe from a coal on I'll
hearth proceeded To perf short, har,
whiffs nj IL " bile she looked around sus
pici0asly for any change that might hay
taken place dnriRg her absence.
We'll. = she said at last, turning Dn th
girls with q seowI that took them in from
head TO hem. anybody been here sine
I've been gone?''
No, ma am they answered togethar
Mind they don't, then Ever / cate
90 much as footprint round this landinl
I'll break every bone in your body an
be glad OF the job, d We hear"
They had heard it SO often that the
knew the threat by heart, and accepte
IL with DO other protest than a painfu
rush a crimson that they sio4ild 10
SO shamed before their guest.
Capt. Betsy then took 10 staring at tn
fire, while the stranger, who was shariR
the warm, dark shadows OF the Gimme
corner along with Chuck. looked out a tn
afFx-f &C .f,sa rrt.