Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1901-08-01

A SEA CHANGE.
1t Was Occasioned by a
Small Boy.

4r::i-. :-..-,,-: s-.-..-: :-.-t::-.-
He sat on the lower deck, his black
ened hands clasped about his drawn up
knees and his head dropping upon his
barred and grimy breast. Beneath his
lowering brows he looked out toward
the sea at the purple, white trimmed
rollers, at the innocent blue sky, at the
far horizon forever unreachable. for
ever fair. yet changing in beauty by
day from a clear lavender line to a
gray and misty shore, from mountains
Of gold and red to the alaDaster walls
Of sea girt palaces.
He frowned at the sea and sky, for
the glare of the furnaces was still be-
fore his eyes. Though the spicy sea
wind blew upon his breast. yet the
smell OF the blue figure was in his nos
trils, and the blasts of hot ar still en-
veloped him. Now he turned his head
impatIently and glanced at the upper
deck, where the few passengers the
steamship carried were sitting, talking
and reading at their ease. 1t was SO in
life. Some were always floating easily
on at the expense Of others He felt
dull rage to think that he should be be-
low looking up at them. 1t was his
own fault. Once he might have made
his life different thing, but now his
place was fixed He could never grow
away from 1t.
He lounged 10 the rail and looked
down at the waves climbing coura-
geously upward, only to fall again. as
IL to mock llfe's vain endeavors. How
cool and soothing the water would
seem to his overheated brain and bodyl
There was n sneer upon his hard lined
face as he looked again toward the up
per deck What did any life amount
TO, theirs as well as his? Yet how they
would lament II they thought 1t all
would soon come to an end!
Then his eye was caught by the fig
ure Of small boy with upturned face
and hands in his pockets standing be-
side a man. And suddenly the ship
and sea faded from his eyes, and he
saw another boy in a big, tapping
straw hat and brown overalls, with
bare feet. coming down a still, dusty
road that wound In dull complacency
between blackberry and strawberry
vines, apple trees and wild cherry
bushes. The boy climbed to the bound
ary, half fence, half stone wall Of the
orchard and felt sudden twinge In his
toe.as he pushed his bare feet through
the long bush grass and stumbled on a
red striped apple. He sat again on the
fat stone step without the kitchen
door, and his mother came up behind
him with blue and white cracked cup
full of sweet milk and dropped a warm
doughnut into his upturned hand.
Look out; It's hot1 he could hear her
say, and It aroused him with a start
He looked down at the old trousers and
filthy shirt. They seemed to contain
more than physical, moral, contami-
nation. That country boy had come to
this. From the peaceful sameness OF
that quiet life to the ugly monotony Of
this, earning q mean living by the
meanest Of labor and spending those
earnings for not merely mean, for de-
baslng, objects.
The last time he had been In America
he had gone to n sailors bethel and
had thought that after this voyage he
would go away into some faraway
country place and do better, where
fields were green and living might be
wrested from earth, not fire. But at
Liverpool good resolves went with the
earnings. Evidently this was what he
was born for, ten days OF misery-he
could not get used TO the furnaces-a
week Of what some men called pleas
ure and then the furnaces again. And
30 It would go on until He turned
again and looked down on the waves.
How easy II would bel There would
be one stoker the less. and 1t would
give him distinction for the 6rst-no,
the second-time in his life. The first
time had been when he left his country
home to make his fortune. He had
made 1t well. He sneered again, that
bitterest OF sneers, at oneself. Then he
walked around the wheelhouse at the
stern and leaned against the rail at tho
back and looked down at the water
swirling in n widening, roughened
path from the beating Of the screw. II
was pale blue, with flmy rufIies OF
white and here and there fold Of deli
cate green. Then as he gazed the wake
seemed live thing, rather many
things. and their little lips Of foam met
and whispered, Come" and laughed
at him as fool because he hesltated,
with his hand on the rail. Not that he
was afraid. Oh, mol
"Say7" The man started. He clung
TO the rall as II to steady himself.
"Say-hello! Anything the matterY'
1t was the gmaN boy he had seen on
the upper deck "A few minutes before.
mo" growled the man. leaning again
over the rnil
The boy moved nearer and leaned
over beside him. waters pretty. isn't
itY'
TIN. .r' no answer. After q mo-
"a rr began again. Say. isn't
30 l,,-, 49,.
Again there was silence. Near the
man WIS fastened TO the rnil n small
dial. with tiny revolving wheel, and
from this - twirline sitting led far out
into the water behind.
The boy came around 10 the other
side Of 20 man and near this lnstru-
ment. How many miles have they
made today? Did fine yesterday. the
captain said"
A faint look OF interest passed over
the mans fnce. "Most time to take the
record now" he muttcred.
They both bent over the instrument;
their heads were close together; they
almost touched each other and the rail.
The mas forgot other things for n mo.
mcnt.
Then great foghorn Of voice