Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1903-04-09

Through Jack the gravc.digser
heard more rumors of Easter For
the boys schooling So ovcrh)led him
With knowledge that it spilled itself
cut upon Ben, who absorbed many new
idcas, aud among them those dear old
aualogies of the esq and the chrNsalis,
The last was particularly important
and satisfactory to Ben, for he and
Jack had watched radiant thing
como out Of himself" Ms Jack said,
a@d araujlrn a will, mount and float
ranurously. leaving behind something
dead
uuu had some imagination, and the
y.r .s,"e was that he got to think
IT 81" as a human caterpillar, and
tc count it no great bitterness, after
all. to sleep the chrysalid sleep in or,
der to wake up something better; tn
change his crawling for soaring; his
lownosS for the liberty of all the up
per air He used, finally, to waken
With glad surprise, to find the dread
quite gonc, and to hll the night with
brilliant visions of his own fancy each
having its motive in the glorifed grub,
No more Nightmares Of death.
l|ut, to tell the truth, Ben had SO
much Young life 10 think of that he
chiefly forgot death.
As fog Jack, he only delighted in
daring death. At IL he wished TO try
his chances with it on roaring salt
water. So he became a sailor. lust
the kind of a sailor lad that one would
wish to see. wide-awakc and a)lalive,
nimble aud blthe and gay. He sailed
out on the Sarah Ann triumphant, lcav.
ing ReN, apparently in the same desc
late plight in which he had found him
Yet not the same Years Of hope and
comfort must work into something
They got into the expression of Ben's
face. ana people used TO say that II
was almost as reassuring, at burial.
rs the parsons prayer
AS spring approached this phase of
him expanded, for spring, besides
bringing that promise of new life,
brought also the Sarah Ann
Ben celebrated Rising day, not only
because il was the day when Jack had
risen into his life, but because of its
Joyous meaning And Jack was sure
TO be there, a part OF the celebration.
A little too boisterous, perhaps, but
that is a trait of the sea which sailors
viii catch
II was at the end of the third
voyage The Sarah Ann was daily eX.
pectcd From morning until night Ben
might have been heard as he threw up
the earth. or carefully kept II In trim.
singing in low tones, which came out
strong and audible enough upon the
words
no longer now
Can thy terrors, Death, appall us,
and
Thou, O grave Canst not enthral us.
Several days Ben's tune continued Ga
very queer one), lapsng fainter and
fainter as no Jack appeared. Then 1t
stopped altogether. Something was
very decidedly wrong.
TO ease his anxiety, Ben tramped
over to the port to ask after the Sarah
Ann. She had arrived nearly week
before. But where was Jack? He
had landed safe and well And had
not come to his home! What did that
mean? Had he deserted his odd father
Ben would not think such bad
thought as that for a minute. No,
some misfortune must have happened.
Ben hardly knew how he got back to
the cottage. The thought which
helped him on WIS that he might find
the boy there. But no.
Easter morning dawned without
him. The old father, In restless
agony Of suspense, wandered up and
down. inside and outside OF the GENE.
terry. getting more and more distracted,
until. as he was returning by the east
gate, he came upon young man SIT
ting upon the turf there, with his face
covered by his hands, and bowed upon
his knees, in AFFECT fashion Ben
looked at the bright curly locks that
showed under his hat.brim with as
much amazement as though he had
seen the morning star roll down and lie
dark and extinguished at his feet.
jack" It seemed a wild venture
to apply that name 10 such mournful
figure.
But the bowed head lifted, and
showed, indeed the haggard and dis.
tOrted face OF Jack"
why my son; you sick?"
4 wish / was sick enough to die. :
Jack groaned
Bens eyes quickened with terror
but he stood dumb.
I'm a bad fellow, father That's the
amount Of IL
Bad" Ben murmured family
u wouldn't dare to tell you how bad
I've been"
Bad" Ben repeated az though
struggling with foreign word.
Every cent got from the voyage
is gone. and--worse. worse Q God, ]