The suburban citizen., 1901-05-04
= HERE had always been Pete.
At least so the people down

Government nau DullL lue lighthouse
on Presque Isle, Pete's fishing hut had
been there, and every night he hung
out his lantern on the end of pole,
so that the boats, rounding the point
mile or two below, would see its
flicker, and steer clear of the long sand
bar that ran out like an ant eaters
nose from the northern corner of
Presque Isle.
Everybody along the straits knew
the quaint old figure, but no one knew
Of Babette, until they saw her one
morning futtering along behind Pete,
her red calico dress the one bright spot
of color among the grays and browns
of PresQue Isle. The day before Pete
had been seen rowing over to the
Mackinac shore, but no one knew Of
his return except Mere Mrie, and she
was so old and deaf that all she could
do was cook Pete's fish, and sit out in
the sunshine all day, smoking in the
kitchen doorway.
When Landry Dubois, from Algonac
Island asked the question direct, Pete
smiled and shook his head, his dark
eyes, deep-set in the small brown face,
watching Babette build houses with
the red bark chips around the light
| house steps.
"She has no one but me-" he said,
with a dubious shrug Of his thin,
stopped shoulders. "Babette, who art
thou, petite?"
Babette stopped playing long enough
to fash a merry glance at him under
the shelter of her thick brown hair.
"Pete's Babette," she laughed.
And so all through the isles Of the
straits, as far as st. Ignace, and even
down to Mackinac she was known as
Pete's Babette. Pete taught her all
manner Of wonderful things in fish
lore and ship craft, and before long
she knew all the boats that passed by
Presque Isle, from the great iron kings
and grain boats, bound for Buffalo, to
the gay little yachts that futtered like
white butterflies here and there. But
best Of ALL she loved the schooners
the old monarchs of the lake, when
they came sailing up the straits on q
still summer eve like wODdrCus phan
tom ships, with the glory of the sunset
behind, and she called them Babette's
birds
And the years passed by. ten OF
them, slow and sure and steady, one
by one, as the wild geese 6y to the
Southland, and each one left Pete
browner and more wrinliled and small
er, while Babette grew up tall anC
slender and strong as young PIN
tree, with hair and eyes brown as dr..
oak leaves. Then came the terrible
winter Of '04, when boat after boa
went out on the lakes, and no NOR
was heard from them until sprini
waves brought in the wreckage. l
was cold at the little low house bacI
of the lighthouse on Presque ISLE cold
er than even Pete could remember
q and every week it was harder for hin
, to row down to st. Michel for proyi'
ions.
One night he came home half frozer
with a dreadful cough. Babette sen
4 him to bed and said he should go II
] more. They must make what foo
4 they had last until warmer weather
But instead Of sunshine and fair sea'
the clouds swept low and gray lik
0 gulls before a storm, and the wave
a came rolling in. with a deep, heaY
.. swell that sent dull, theatening roa
as they broke, up to the lighthous
u And here and there in the dark gree
J. waters could be seen something else,
It clumsy swaying mass that glinte
.. blue and white.
"The ice has come" Babette thougl
when she saw it from the lghthou:
Il window one morning after she ha
trimmed the lamp, and there was
queer ache in her heart as she locke
!. off down the straits and thought (
10 how her birds would have to bait
with IT, but she did not tell Pete.
20 1t was three days later when Me
J. M'rie showed her the empty meal ba
s She smiled. There was still bacC
p and rice and dried fish. They we
rich. At The end Of the week thc
~ was no bacon, and they had saved Il
y last Of the rice for Pete who lay (
b. the old lounge near the stove, CouG
s. ing coughing all the time.
- The following day Pete was de
rious. Babette stood in the old Kite
IL en-, looking from the flushed, wtinki
ls face on the pillow to where Ne
r M'rie kGelt over by the stove prnyIl
nj The provisions were gone; there W
no medicine.
" Babette took the fur jacket from
5h nail, Before she went out OF the ki.c
Of en- she leaned over the old hali' bre
~. woman's bent form. "To St. Niche
- she said slowly. pointing eastwal
~ and then at the empty meal sack ri
IT, -four bag thrown IN a corner. Me
ch Aprie understood and stopped prayi
Is. long enough to watch the strong, ere
80 u young figure pass down to the shol
the wind blowing the ends OF her sea
CT backward over her shoulders like +
lie wings.
Har hands worked puicklv ovpr I