The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-12-08
| A HOUSE BUILT |
! UPON THE SAND |

& UPON The SAND I
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
# HE haze of a lovely day in October
/ lay on Jamaica bay. A gentle
southwest wind stirred the water into
shining ripples.
Altar on the horizon the salt mead
ows resembled the islands of the Blest,
The wind, blowing over q thousand
leagues of heavjng sea, was redolent OF
salt and freighted with stimulation.
Crayfish Bill is a bayman. He lives
en- Ruffie bar, four miles away from
shore as the crow flies, in the cabin
of an old canalboat drawn up on bar
and surrounded by piles driven into
the sand TO protect it from the ice.
"say, Jim," said Bill, as his visitor
came down the cabin stairs, this
ere cabin amt no Astor hotel, with
a French cook, but can give you some
oysters right out of the bay" :
Fifteen minutes later the visitor
drew cracker box to the table. The
menu consisted of oysters on the half
5 shell, eoft clans. roasted in the oven
with a slice Of bacon over each, milk
toast made Of bread four days old and
condensed milk, and tea brewed in q
pot black as the stovepipe that pro-
jected from the top of the cabin.
After this meal was finished and the
cats were fed, Bill lit his pipe and his
tongue began to wag. Said he: a.=s
"You amt been here since / lost my
house last March 2''.
"Where did you get money enough
to buy house?" said the visitor in
playful irony.
Il saved it, said Bill. cit cost me
about $35. s'pose I'll never have so
much money again at one time. I'm
over so and amt so strong as used to
be.
This ere is the oyster season and
I'm watchin' the oyster beds to keep
the thieves away. I watch nights and
tong oysters in the daytime. s'pose
you never tonged for oysters with
tongs IL feet long in a strong tideway?
Well, it amt no child's play. A
days work is boatful of oysters, and
you have to Gull 'em after you've dug
'em up. You don't do much dreamin'
nights after you have been tongin' oys-
tiers all day-yGu're too tired. y
ut took me.two years to save that
money to build my house. got per-
mission from an oyster planter to
build house on one of his bars. l
had kind of feelin' that I'd like to
own house that was all my own. and
that didn't cost me nothin' for rent,
and when shut. the door could look
aroun' at the stove and the cupboard
and the hunks and the dollar clock and
say to myself:
This ere house is all my own. /
built it with my own hands, paid for
1t with my own money Laid every
timber in it and drove every nail, from
the cellar to the tarred roof. 'sa"~s-sssse'sa
"Of course, you understand, I'm only
jokin' about drivin' nails in the Gel
lar, cause there wasn't no cellar. At
g high tide there was two -feeteo' water
where the cellar ought to be.
Il had that there house all planned
out in my mind for year before l
started to build it. even to the vinegar
barrel was goin' to have settin' out
side the door to catch the rain water
from the roof, cause you can't get
Crotch water in the middle Of Jamaica
bay"
Bill laid his knotty, brown hand up.
on his knee and looked with unseeing
eyes UP through the, companionway.
He was aroused from his reverie by
6 his visitor, who said, with e. grin: a.e~a,3
did you build your foundation OF
stone or Of brick?"
mo, SIR" said Bill. .'My founda-
ton was built of eight-inch piles, ten
feet long. There was a contractor
drfvih' piles over the Canarsie side Of
the bay, and he had dozen piles toe
short, for his use. bought 'em fol
half what he paid for EN-
'+sT-s How did you get the piles over to
Ruffte bar?' said the inquisitor.
Made raft of 'em and towed ZEN
over behind my skiff. Took, me sever
hours to do it on account Of the tide
which carried me and the raft dowr
to Barren island. There were blisterf
on my hands as big as walnuts awher
I got over to Ruffle bar"
How did you sink your founda.
tion?" said the visitor. seeking to dis
turbs Bills serenity. ~ sssis.n .. =.
It's queer about chat . said Bill
ron them IT, :1sStha middle of thf