Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1904-03-09
CHAPTER XVII.
TIE DOOR OF TIE WEST


Nearly a l-agge f1,taer. Dl lic.1c
and the SIN bu- az Go,r high. Como.
let us hcslen,"
You axe riait. Monsieur Las" re-
piied the one addIosseG, rs the fir.
speaser seated h.E-elf "a tae thwar
u the boat in whose how lie had been
standing. Lend 70 it, mes amis,''
John Law turned about on tae seat.
going hack over the length of the
lit;.e hip which had brought him ana
his comrades thus far On the widest
.ouney he hc1 ever undcltalcn. Six
pldd-ecs there were fer his great canof
du %Cri, and steadily enough they sent
the thin -shel.ed craft aions over the
curling blue waves Of the great inland
sea. And no" their Voices in one ac-
ord fell into the Cadcnces of an an
Cent 5c3t-aons OF New France:
En- rOui2nt ma bOlie roulant.
EUIiHnt rouler. ma bOule roulant."
Tie ictrs of The measure marked
lime fer the sweeping paddles ana
Under tie Hdded Impetus the paper
he'll. reinforced as il was d. close
sid spi.n.s OF CEDAR, ana brace b,
Tho hbcT-fGstened thwarts. fairl,
ielieG TO the rush Cf the wa : AZ
mo -talwart paddlers sent it wine
forward y tiny blur OF white s:.owc,i
Il bout the bows. and now and taan -
splash OF spray came inhoard. or some
little curling white cap was di.idea
~ the rush of the swiftly mo;in.
lrow.
We shall not arrive too soon. III,
friend. reiOined the captain of tha
'oyaSeurs, casting an eye bac,. across
the great lake. which lay black ana
ominoIs against n threatening Sky.
the sweep and swirl of it's white CAPS
ever racing hard after the frail craft
as though eager to break through its
rGrer sides and tear away the human
beings who thus fed on so lightly.
This boat, mysteriously appearing as
though it were some spirit Graf.
called from the ancient deeps. was far
from the beginning of its wild journey.
Wide rs the eye might reach. in nrr
arose no flecli of snowy canvas no,
showed the dark line of any similar
craft propelled by oar or paddle.
They were alone these travellers. Be
Tore them. at the entrance OF the wide
arm of the great lake Michiganon. Law
the point even at that early day known
as the Door OF the West. the beginning
oil the winding waterway which led
on into the interior of that West then
so allurins and so unknown The
eyes of all were fxt ! on the low. white
ironted bluffs. crowned by dark for
cst growth. which guarded the bay al
either hand. This spot. so wild. So
f4 ID 90.
'he5e voyayeurH as much as any az
much. too, for Law and the woman who
lay back. pale-faced and wild-eycd
among the bales in the great canoe.
In time the graceful craft approached
The beach on which the long waves
rolled and curled now gently. now with
imposing force. with the water YET
haIt-Ieg deep On Mesne and two OF
me paddlers sprang bodily overheard
ana held The boat back from the peb-
PIES so mat its tender sh ell might not
D' damaged. Law himself was as soon
as they In the water, and he waded
pack along the gunwale until he
reached the stern, the water nearly up
10 his hips. Reaching out his arms
he picked up Mary Connynge from her
bending down TO catch some wbispered
word. Not 30 gallant was Du Mesne.
me leader Of the voyageurs He Mt
tered a few sharp words OF semi-com-
mand TO the Indian woman. who had
been seated on the floor of the canoe
ana she, without protest crawled for
ward over the thwarts and the heaped
bundles until she reached the bow. and
lhen went ankle deep into the Dreaming
Food The great canoe left empty and
anchored safe from the pebbles of the
beach tossed light as cork on the
incoming waves.
a little open space was quickly
found at the edge OF the cove in which
the decentralization was made. and
here Du Mosne and his followers soon