The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-02-21
"cest les avirons qui nous mont en-

Cest les avirons qui nous mont en-
haut,'
Due' fecollecting herself, she said:
leil me the story of the grave on
Caiumette Island we have Just left.
you promised me to do SO on our re-
turn"
l would rather talk to you or watch
you or hear you Or"
on, PAUL" she raised her hand dep
recatingly.
We'll, ma femmelette. here 1t is:
Long years ago when the voyageurs
were first exploring Canada the In
dams had been aroused and were hos
tile and the explorers made a practice
OF camping on islands to escape the
saVages just as the geese and ducks
do to escape the wolves and foxes
Near where the grave stands a canoe
load OF men were camped. They had
spent the night, breakfasted, and were
preparing to leave. when half a mile
away was seen a dozen canoe loads
OF painted Indians making for them
WOO ~ OCdIus ~ IACX
abandoned everything and made q
rush for their canoe, leaving one o.
their number, who had strayed short
distance from the camp, behind them
Each man grasped his paddle, and
aided by the swift current, the cano(
flew; but the Indians followed in closl
pursuit and were gaining on the fugi
tives. To stop meant death. To LAND
was impossible because they would ba
caught and m%assacred. Presently ths
roar Of the falls was heard sounding
like a score of angry lions, and a pillar
Of spray was seen to rise. Death was
certain, but death by being dashed
over the falls was preferable to death
by torture at the stake, so they all lay
down in the bottom of the
commended their souls to God, and
invoking the intercession of the Virgin
Mother, by a fervent-
'Sainte Marie, plein de grace,
they awaited the end. The curreni
hurled them along and when the roal
of the cataract had become deafening,
the terror-stricken occupants Of tbs
canoe saw u woman in white seat her,
self in the stern of the craft and take
a paddle in her hand. Almost in.
stantly the canoe shot over the preci.
pice. Down, down, down! A splash
and the heaving OF the told them
that they had passed the falls and
were now in the whirlpools and rap.
ids below. Still the m in white
sat in her chosen position and in less
time than it takes to tell it the canoi
was moored in a quiet eddy below,
The woman in white cast a look OF
ineffable tenderness upon the recum,
bent voyageurs and vanished. They
arose and discovered that they were
safe. Not a drop Of water was In ths
canoe. Not a thing disturbed. Ths
miracle dumfounded them because
they knew a saw log or a "stick" Of
timber could not pass the falls with;
out being riven and splintered. Re,
gaining speech, they devoutly knelt
upon the rocks and returned thanks
TO God; then, lifting their canoe, they
proceeded over the weary portage de.
termined to see what had become o.
their comrade.
THE ransomed reached their camp.
ing place on the island, but their COM
panion, thinking them Indians, had
concealed himself. AS soon as he rec.
ognized the voices he came forth and
in an ecstasy Of joy his emotions over
came him and he dropped dead. We
would call it heart disease nowadays.
lie de en- est jete.' said the foreman,
and they buried the dead man, plac7
ing a rude slab to mark the spot, and
the grave has been the Mecca of voy-
ageurs ever since. And" said Paul,
looking into the dark and wondering
eyes Of the maiden before him, "C'est
un vrais conte."
Louise said nothing. A pallor spread
over her face and she visibly trembled.
Paul, needless Of the fast increasing
current, laid his paddle across the
gunwales of his canoe and, taking her
hand, said earnestly:
Louise, I am like the voyageurs in
the story. Since meeting you, since
first hearing your voice, since first in
haling the odor of your presence, ]
have loved you, and unless you can be
mine I must perish in the turbulent
stream Of life. Be my woman in
white and save me-"
The unheeded growlings of the cat
aract broke into a roar and the young
girl instinctively grasped the paddle.
"Donnez-le-moi!" Paul grasped the
paddle almost rudely from her hand.
Danger was all around him, but he
was strong and fearless. He knew he
could reach a place Of safety at the
very brink Of the falls where there
was a fiat rock on the shore on the
island side. Many a time he had stood
upon it and watched the driftwood and
debaclage tumble over when the ice
parted on the lakes above and the
foes followed each other in Indian
file down the current. With herculean
strength he urged forward the canoe.
Many miles below, where the waters
again became placid, jewellers neal the
river, while gathering slabs from the
up-river saw mills for the winters
fuel, discovered a crushed birchen
canoe in some driftwood. They gladly
rescued it as it made excellent kim
ding and rejoiced in their good for
tune. They all had heard the story;
they knew nothing of the story Of the
story.
Long afterwards and far toward the