The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-07-07
/ BIG Ben ! BECKETT, HERO !.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
By Elliott Flower.

DIG BEN BECKETT stood in the
II crowd at Elk Rapids, looking out
over the frozen waters of Grand
Traverse bay. Far away, in the direc-
ton of the long, narrow peninsula
that splits the great bay into what
are known as the East and West BAYS.
was moving speck.
Big Ben Beckett and the other watch
ers knew that this speck was Pete
Kline and his homemade sled. They
also knew that Pete's chance of reach
Ing home was so slight as to be hardly
worth considering. 1t was because of
this that they were lined up along
the shore.
Pete was almost the exact opposite
of Big Ben in both spirit and physique.
He was small, he lacked strength and
endurance, and he was as weak of
heart as of body. If he saw his danger
1t would be like him to sink YEARLY
down and resign himself to his fate:
for he was weary and discouraged, and
the watchers knew it. And the danger
was great, as they also knew. It was
time for the ice to break. Already
there was an inch or more of slush
over much of it, and a strong, warm
wind had sprung up from the south.
A wiser man never would have at
tempted to cross to the peninsula
when Pete started, but Pete was not
gifted with great amount of fore
sight. He had made the nine-mile trip
over when the conditions were GER
tainly bad enough, and he was on his
way back when the conditions were in
fnitely worse. The ice was only watt
Ing for that warm, strong south wind.
He ought to turn back comment
cd one of the watchers.
Gle doesn't know enough" asserted
another
why doesn't he hurry" was the
question of man who had been using
a field-glass. HE seems to be hardly
moving"
Such a trip on that ice. would use
up even a strong man." remarked Big
Ben by way of explanation. "He must
be close to his limit"
Probably doesn't realize his dan
ger, anyway"
Probably not" admitted Big Ben.
The people Of Elk Rapids did not
have high opinion of Pete. He was
. stolid Neutrality-suspicious. but slow.
and far from resourceful. Even a man
Of no experience in that region should
have known enough to stay at Old Mis-
sion on the peninsula when the wind
began to rise. OF course, Pete wanted
to get back to his wife and child, and.
even 1t he appreciated the danger.
which the watchers believed doubtful.
his only chance for some time would
be to cross before the ice broke. But.
from every point of view,. he would
be better off at Old Mission than he
would at the bottom of Grand Traverse
bay or floating out to Lake Michigan
on an ice foe. II he failed TO con
slider that, it was. his own fault; he
alone was responsible for his present
predicament, and
The ice has broken on the other
shore!" cried the man with the field
glass. 'ts /
There was no chance for him to turn
back now. II the ice broke from the
east shore, as it had from the west, he
vas lost; And, whatever they might
think of the ignorance or folly Of q
man who would do as he had done, he
was human being nevertheless, and
he was facing fearful death. Then.
TOO. his wife was back a little from
the crowd of men, looking out over
the ice with bewildered, frightened
eyes. while several other women tried
to assure her that he would reach
land in safety. She knew that he was
in danger, but she did not know, how
little of hope there was. She did not
weep, but her piteous, pleading, ques-
tioning eyes. as she turned them from
the figure far out on the ice to the Ag-
ures on the shore. were enough to in