Omaha daily bee., 1899-12-17

there was not ray over all the wide welter
of the water, through all the dim veil of
the snow. He felt as IL he had gone blind.
He listened for the dull blare OF the whist
ling buoy. but the snow muffled every sound
and one wave tossed him still to another.
1t had grown cold. The snow stung now
like sleet. Rope and sail were stiff with ice.
by George! It'll be my winding -sheet'
he exclaimed And he fell back in the boat
and the thought of his wife's terror and
grief struck him to the heart like a knife.
1t was Christmas eve; and the children
would be capering and carrying on, opening
oysters on top of the stove roasting chest
nuts and apples and looking their
shoulders for him to be coming in the door.
And he would never be coming in the door
again. What would become of them! o
Cod what would become of them! He
gave a great Sob sob of pity for them and
for himself-and in the next moment he
caught his breath in an irrepressible alarm.
For here was music Certainly, then, he
would soon be dying, dying of the cold and
storm. They heard music when they died.
Here it came again-bells! All, what a great
wide surge of sound, one moment resonant
on the black air, then repeating itself in a
whisper, sign. Again it came, shower Of
tones, skimmering over the water like a
flight of gray and silver gulls; and now one
strong clash and ring and roll rose above
them all-the Old South bell And with
that came the steely flash of the North
church bell, the hum of the old town bell
the quaver Of st. Pauls! And then the wind
sung in, blowing the sweet alarm all back
to shore and closing the lanes of the mist
and snow through which they had sifted.
And only faint exquisite echo sighed and
died away
But what matter? Now he knew where
he was-Salisbury Sands to the left of him,
old Newbury to the right About ship, and
up sail, up sail for the channel across the
bar! Slowly he brought the boat round;
here was old Newbury now on the left; here
was the North Breaker singing like nest
of eagles, off Plum island; yonder, on the
right, rose the screams of the great South
Breaker, sucking down the Salisbury shore;
here was the roar of the waves tumbling
on the bar. spark CLEANS with wide,
haZy halo through the snow. Plum island
light! Another-the Bug light the harbor
lights! He knows every inch OF the way
now. The channel grows clearer-the Pleas
ant is good for it. He steers through foam
and fury, he sweeps by the Humpsands and
Black rocks into stiller water, be rushes
straight to the moorng.
The children were just knocking the snow
off their feet at the door, as he ran up from
the wharf Good was the touch OF solid
earth, and sweeter than any strain of music
in his ears was his wifes shrek of joy.
Didn't say | allus come homer" he cried
joyously catching her in his arms.
80, joel" she sobbed. IF we live hun
dred years, we shan't ever have such a
Christmas eve as this agin Come children,
come right in out of the snow. / guess you've
had frolic enough tonight, | s'pose it was
you rung the BELLS"
"You bet it vast" said Jimmy unwind
ing his comforter.
Wal" said Joe. slamming the door be-
hind them, "'tant often work an play
does the same thing, But your frolic did
lot of work tonight Fer ef hadn't heard
them bells, there'd a ben no father an no
Christmas in this house! Got a bowl of
coffee, wife? George! could eat the hull
bean pot"