The San Juan County index. (Aztec, N.M.) 1890-19??, 1899-06-30


A girl In an open boat bound from
Seattle to Skaguay, Alaska-that Is the
sight which will shortly astonish the
natives OF northwest and north. Miss
Carrie Hope, pretty. plucky. youthful
and perverse, Is soon to set sail-n
funny little three-cOrnered sail Il Is,
toO-upon the black coast oceanway
in search OF fortune. II she fail OK
fortune she will certainly gain notorL
ETY. and experience. One can promise
her that beforehand. AS to the making
Of the journey In safety, without fr0ez-
ing the tip of her saucy nose or losing
at least n ear by the same process.
that is something which old Neptune
may have an idea or two about. L.
isn't every day In the century that -
pretty mermaid comes sailing her way
abreast OF the salt, salt pillows, and
Miss Hope is more than likely to be
gathered greedily into his green M
brace before she has time to say her
prayers and wish she had never, never
left home. Twill be a wildly ventur
voyage. this one Of Miss Hopes
planning. If she should ask any insus-
ance man, near or far. to write her
out a policy beforehand, he would
doubtless shake his head and say: No
on your life!" II he didn't decline to
insure her he ought to be examined
by the commissioners of lunacy. We're
Miss Hope a scrawny spinster, grabbed
and otherwise uninteresting. nobody
would be particularly concerned at the
announcement that she intended to
tempt Providence by sach a prank as
going to sea in an open boat. But
Miss Hope is young-and youth is al
ways more or less engaging. She is
not attenuated-but then her rounded
figure will not be in tailor-made evil
dence on that trip. She isn't grabbed;
she is merry and light-hearted and
ready for all the fun there is to be had
in being buffeted about by the ele-
ments. She is perverse, because she
will not pay the least bit of attention
to the "Don'ts!" that are buzzing
about her head. Her friends know
she'll drown-there isn't a ghost Of a
chance, in their opinion, that she will
ever see Skaguay. But Miss Carrie
goes right on preparing for the peril
Gus journey just the same. She says:
"Tve made up my mind to CO." And
when a woman makes up her mind
what does It mean? It means gang
way" fer her. 1t means that everybody
must stand aside while she passes.
Miss Hopes home on the water will
be a catboat. She Is looking about
for somebody to help her keep house
in the small craft that is to carry her
to Skaguay. She wants a girl COM
panion. But volunteer sailors among
girls are scarce-so scarce, indeed, that
it looks as though Miss Hope would
have none but her own company en-
route. Sailing is by no mean a now
city with the petticodted mariner. She
was born on Long Island and has had
practical experience with nautical mat
ters. But that does not lessen the dan
ger OF the trip cossfmplatod by the
young woman To sail placid lakes
and bays and rivers is one thing. To
brave the fury Of rolling sees and
ocean gales is quite another. II Miss
Hope lives to tell tho tale, it ought to
be an interesting one. Girls have
queer notions of things. anyhow. And
never before did they enjoy so much
liberty in the carrying out Of their
ideas. People will say that Miss Hope
is foOlhardy in attempting such ma