River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1899-01-05
ALegend Of the Atlantic
BY Thomas Wentworth Higginson.
TKOsE American t1nvelers WHO lin

THOSE American travellers who lin
ger with delight among the mar
row lanes and picturesque, overhaug-
ing roofs of Honheur, do not know what
a strange tragedy took place on a yoy-
age which began in that quaint old port
three centuries and half ago.
Three tall ships sailed from Honf1eur
on August %, 154l, and on one of them,
La Grande Hermine-so-called to dis
tinguish it from smaller boat of that
name, which had previously sailed with
Cartier-were the Sieur de Roberval,
his niece and her "gouyernante." She
also had with her a Huguenot nurse,
who had been with her from a child,
and cared for her devotedly. Roberval
naturally took with him, for future
needs, the best shipbuilder of St. Malo,
Etienne Gosselin. The voyage was
long, and there is reason to think that
the Sieur de Roberval was not a good
sailor, while as to the 'gouyernante,
she may have been as helpless as the sea
sick chaperon of yachting excursions.
Like them, she suffered the most i'm
portant events to pass unobserved, and
II WIS not I'LL 100 ldlG l4lul SIlG hlsNON
cred, what more censorious old ladies
on board had already seen, that her
young charge fingered too often and
too long on the quarter deck when
Etienne Gosselin was planning ships
for the uncle. When she found it out
she was reused 10 just indignation;
but being, after all, but kindly dowa-
ger, with a heart softened by much
reading of the interminable tales OF
Mime. de Scudery, she only remonstrat-
ed with Marguerite, wept over her little
romance and threatened to break the
sad news to the Sieur de Roberval, yet
never did so. Other ladies were less
considerate; it ali broke suddenly upon
the angry uncle; the youth was put in
irons, and threatened with hOgging,
and forbidden to approach the quarter
deck again. But love laughs at lock-
smiths; Gosselin was relieved of his
irons in a day or two because he could
not be spared from his work in de-
signing the Forthcoming ship, and as
both he and Marguerite were of toll
erably determined nature, they in
voked, through the old nurse, the aid
of a Huguenot minister on board, who
had before sailed with Cartier to take
charge of the souls of some Protestant
vagabonds on the ship and who was
now making second trip for the same
reason That night, after dark, he
Joined the lovers in marriage; within
"a hours Roberval had heard of it, and
had vowed a vengeance quick and sure.
The next morning, under his orders,
the vessel lay to under the lee of a rocky
island, then known to the sailors as
'I'Isle des Demons" from the fierce
winds that ragged round it. There was
no house there, no living person, no
tradition of any; only rocks, sand and
deep forests. With dismay, the ships
company heard that il was the firm
purpose of Roberval TO put the Offend
ing bride on shore, giving her only the
old nurse for company, and there TO
leave her with provisions for three
months, trusting to some other vessel
to take the exiled woman away within
that time The very ladies whose love
of scandal had first revealed to him the
alleged familiarities, now besought
him with many tears to abandon the
thought of a doom so terrible. Nainly
Nine. de Noailles implored mercy for
the young girl from penalty such as
was never imposed in any of Nine. de
Scudery's romances; vainly the Hugue-
not minister and the Catholic chaplain,
who had fought steadily on questions
of doctrine during the whole voyage,
now united in appeals for pardon. AZ
least they implored him TO let the Of
tenders have man servant or two with
them to protect them against wild
beasts or buccaneers. He utterly re-
fused until at last wearied out, his
wild nature yielded TO one of those
sudden impulses which were wont 10
sweep over if. and he exclaimed: rs
IL that they need a man servant then
Let this insolent caitiff, Gosselin, be re-
lieved of his irons and sent on shore.
Let him be my niece's servant, or, since
a Huguenot marriage is as good as any
in the presence of bears and bucca-
neers. let her call the hound her hus-
band. If she likes. | have done with
her. and the race from which she came
disowus her forever"
Thus it was done. Etienne was re-
leased from his chains and sent on
shore. An arquebus and ammunition
were given him. and, resisting the i'm
puIse to send his first shot through the
heart of his tyrant, he landed, and the
last glimpse seen Of the group as the
Grande Hermine sailed away was the
figure of Marguerite sobbing on his
shoulder. and of the unhappy nurse,
now somewhat plethoric, and certainly
not the person TO be selected as pio-
neer. sitting upon rock, weeping pro
fuseIy. The ships sails filed, the an
prv Roberval never looked back on his
deserted niece and the night closed
down upon the lonely Isle of Demons.
now newly occupied by three unexpect-
ed settlers, two of whom a least were
happy in each other.
A few boxes of biscuits. few bottles
of wine had been put on shore with
them. enough TO feed them for few
weeks. They had brought flint and
steel 10 strike fire and some ammuui-
ton. The chief penalty of the crime
did not lie, after all. in the cold and
the starvation and the wild beasts, and
the possible visits of pirates; il lay in
the fact that it was the island OF De-
mons. where they were TO be left; and
in that superstitions age this meant
everything that was terrible. For the
first few nights of their stay they fan
cied that they heard sLperhumar voices
in every wind that blew, every branch
that creaked against another branch;
and they heard, al any rate, more sub
stantial sounds from the mighty wolves
or from the bears which ice-ioes had
fioated to that northern isle. They
watched Roberyal sail away, be re
ioicing, as the old legend of Thevet
says, at having punished them without
Soiling his hands with their blood
("Ioueux de les auior puuiz sans Sc
souiller les mains en- leurs saug'l They
built as best they could hut Of boughs
and strewed beds of leaves until they
had killed wild beasts enough to pre-
mare their skins Their store of hard
bread lasted them but little while, but
there were fruits around them. and
there was fresh water near by. Yet it
was terrible" says Thevet's old mar
rative. ITO hear the frightful sounds
which the evil spirits made around
them, and how they tried to break down
their abode, and showed themselves in