Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1901-10-03
The Last Cruise of
the Little Mother
BY JOHN II.
RAFFERTY,
o%o%o<o<o%o<%o<o%o<o%o

Tom Clafin was 16 years old when
his family moved from Chicago to San
Diego Cal. His father, consumptVe,
was no longer able to work. His moth
er, a tiny, cheerful, busy woman, with
three small children besides Tom, had
her hands full with nursing her hus-
band, making, mending, cooking and
caring for the family. They had been
In their new home for three months,
living away their small capital and
with no prospect of earning dollar.
The boom was over. The town was
Overrun with easterners, men and Wo-
men in frail health, willing to work for
small pay at anything that would yield
them sustenance. And so Tom, the
hope of his courageous little mother,
had tried everything and failed to get
work.
1t was then that he hit upon the idea
OF becoming Il fisherman. For week
before he broached the subject at home
he had patrolled the shore from Point
Iona to the Coronado beach in search
Of boat. He had only S15, and Of the
scores OF small craft that could be
bought at all there was but one within
his means. A leaky lugger, with fray
ed old sails and an impossible Spanish
name, sinking of fish and with dirty
black hull, lay mOored off the Portu-
gueSe village on the north shore of the
bay. and thither day after day poor
Tom trudged, big with his secret.
One Saturday night he startled the
family with:
We'll, people, I'm q sea captain at
last, and no joke. Mother, behold your
son, Captain Thomas ClafIn Of the
good ship Little Mother"
The little womans blue eyes were
filed with tears when her boy showed
them the bin of sale to the effect that
he had bought a vessel for $3.50, and
thus. like true blue Chicagoan, risked
his all IN the only business venture in
sight.
Il named her for you, mother, and
you must christen her and take d sail
In her tamarraW- !, =. ..4.,. I. pan
and shovel for clans the Clafiin fam
lily. with Tom proudly leading the way,
went down TO the beach in the morn
ing. Sure enough. there lay the Little
Mother, swinging gracefully at her
moorings, no longer dlngy and black,
but radiant In coat of fresh white
paint, her sails mended and shipshape,
the stars and stripes fiuttering from
her peak, and her name In bold blue let
ters across her bows. Toms little
brother and sisters danced with de-
light, new light came into his fathers
eyes, and as for little mother" the
patron saint of that first voyage, she
laughed and cried by turns as she sat
In the stern of the boat and watched
Tom, the captain, and little Charley,
the first mate" both bubbling over
with excitement and nautical terms,
tugging at ropes, running about like
regular Jack tars and making all ready
ito put to sea-" as Tom said.
AS the boat. driven by a cool SOU
east breeze. stood out across the bay
for the Iona lighthouse Tom showed
them all the new handpump he had
rigged into his little ship" he explain
ed the centerboard, pointed out the
imaginary beauties and qualities Of the
Little Mother, boasted OF what he
meant TO accomplish as a professional
fisherman and made everybody so hap
py that 1t seemed no time at all till the
sun was dipping into the sea and the
first cruise Of the Little Mother was
over.
And the boy made good money with
his modest venture. He would rise with
the sun each morning and with his din
ner pail and coarse tackle make for the
boat that had become to him both
sweetheart and provider His greatest
difficulty was his need Of an assistant,
and many were the barracoua and
giant Jewish that escaped him in his
lonely all day cruises up and down
that matchless summer sea. Some
times he would induce some lazy wharf
idler to accompany him; sometimes old
Pedro, the retired Portuguese from
whom he had bought the boat, would
hail him as he stood out to sea and help
him with the work. Sometimes, when
the sea was like a floor Of cleaning
onyx, his father would sit in the stern
sheets, and little Charley would "man
the jib" or troll a line for small fish,
but alone or with a crew Tom never
failed to bring home at night enough
fish so that his earnings at the end of
the week We're almost enough to pay
the running expenses of the frugal lit
tie family.
1t was in the end OF August that the
Monterey, the monster coast defense
She had been In South American wa
tiers for four months, and the crew got
its first shore leave on American soil at
San Diego. The big war vessel was
thrown open to visitors one Sunday
morning, and all that day Tom Clafin
carried sightseers from the Santa Fe
pier to the Monterey. Good seaman
that he was, he was fascinated with
the dazzling spotlessless of the mon
itor, and every night while she lay in
port Tom came aboard to revel In the
ship talk and yarns of officers and men,
He soon knew all the officers by name
and had formed a close friendship With
q seaman named Hansen, who was hall
fellow with every man in the crew.
Hansen was killed the night before
the Monterey sailed for Frisco. He had
gone ashore with a guard to arrest a
half breed Mexican stOGcr who had
overstaid his leave. The guard sep
arated to scour the town for the de