Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1907-09-14
IN A STRANGE PORT.

city OF Boston, and marveied much ut
what he saw. In the afternoon. whcu
| lie cooled his head in the pon6 on the
/ common. he maWelcd again AT the pc
| llcemen, who told him to move on. OLAF
! did not understand English. but he knew
| lhat the water was cool and that his
/ Hrad was hot and lastly. that sumner
SION was good; he did not move on. bur
he hurled into the pond the officer who
| lad clutched his wrist. Three other po-
hcemen came to the rescue. aud Olaf
spent the night in the station house on
Hancock street.
An interpreter explained the situation
TO him in the morning and Olaf paid his
hne. OF many of the couventionalities lie
was still ignorant. but he had learned not
to cool his head in that way again. and
the officer whom he had cooled had
learned to ignore men of Olafs build.
After leaving the court. Olaf walked
down to the wharveS and looked longing
~ seward. ban sailor man" he said
to the men around him; but no one I'M
| dcrsto0d this or his other signals for
work. and at night nc climbed the mar
row stairs at Kate Smiths, weary and
alone.
A brisk little man was saying to tho
proprictress. I'm looking for men 20
work on Water street Who's this cham"
as Olaf lowered before him.
Newcomer. Swede, | guess. Better
.}:y him ----'"--'--------s=a
The little man addressed Olaf in a Sved-
| ISL patois, presenting a paper which
Olaf covered with his mark. and Olaf
day.
Olaf had made but one observation.
Ban sailor man." and the little man
had done the rest.
At O'Clock the next morning Olaf
followed his guide down the already
Sweitering street, turning umconsci0usly
toward the water front, his eyes already
seeking the ship; but his companion
laughed. Not there, towhead it's q
Wheelharrow, not 4 rope, that you'll work
with now and 10 laughed again AZ
Olaf $ surprised disappointment when he
was presented with a whcplbarrow and
pushed into a line of men who Were
wheeling cracked stone up narrow
plank
lie watched the men whose example
he was to follow. 1t seemed not very
difficult The man ahead of him ad.
vanceG until he came to trough. into
which he dumped his load; simultaneous
ly, a man on the other side of the trough
threw in wet cement; then the first man
wheeled his barrow away. past the
wheeling engine which, with its iron
hands, mixed the stones with the cement.
That was the process, and to Olaf il
seemed chiid's play; he had seen the first
man give heaye of his back as he shot
his load into the trough. and Olaf care
fully initiated him. His intentions were
most praiseworthy, but he had not taken
INTO consideration the strength of his
back. The contents of his barrow en-
veloped the barrow opposite him. and the
barrow leaped like a mountain goat into
the trough itself-a series of snaps. the
rending of wood and iron wild shout
OF unintelligible commands, and the ma
chinery stopped with an angry snort.
Olaf sprang over the trough. picked M
the fallen man, and sm0othed him tend
orly with ar enormous hand. The Irish
boss then kicked Olaf, swearing violently
the while and Olaf touched the boss once
only with his other hand, and they picked
up the boss and carried him into an
apothecary shop, the boss Offering neither
assistance nor resistance of any sort
whatever
Had the city of Boston been less in
need of men to lay the asphalt on Water
street, Olaf. the son Of Olaf would have
spent another night in the station on
Hancock street. As it was he slept
serenely Mt Kate Smiths and appeared
punctually at his place in the morning,
And now nothing came to break the
monotonv of the life which Olaf led
BY day he worked with his barrow; each
evening he smoked his short pipe upon
There. i'll his solitude, his ears wei
coming the ripple and lift of the tide,
he pondered the situation. II was ten
days since the Helga had settled into
the deep wafer beyond the light, and Of
the crew and the captain he had heard
nothing; he. the mate, alone had sur
vived the tragedy.
Gregarious. domestic. fond Of quiet
companionshih and of rumhling softly
10 those around him in his big, simple.
friendly way. this forced and continued
isolation wore upon him. His present
occupation. too he hated bitterly. His
50 years he had spent upon"~~t if~--sca,
where the big ships passed smoothly
along their bu0yant course: his mind
and heart We're sick with the memory Of
sunny. cool-breeZcd days upon the Bal
tic where the wind tore the surf n The
foot of roaring cliffs, or idle weeks 10
the northward. where the porpoisc play
ed in the cool. deep fJords, of drow>y
watches as tile ship swan lazlly on the
gulf stream. or leaned comfortably be
fore tire steady push of the trades.
And. in the reality of his dream, be
would start to his feet, striving 10 feel
the planking Of the deck, and, far
above 10 see the towering sparS If The
Helca. No, She was gone. and with
her the life that he loved SO well.
4 month had passed and he had re-
durpd to a few cents the lUtle money
left him from the wreck; it was .mper-
alive that he should have more: lie sig
nailed 10 the boss when the whistles blew
at noon the next day. hut the man.
though well comprchending the pathetic
gestures Of the mute giant di>rogarded
them. There was, however. among the
men. German who volunteered some
knowledge of Olafs tongue. and through
his INTERPRETATION Olaf could ask direct
" for the money that was due to him,
Thus confronted. the boss listened
.71tmfv- and then said that Olaf had been
psid al the end Of each week. and he
supported his statement by showing re-
CENTS which bore Olafs mark. Olaf
thcn recalled that from time 70 time.
slip Of paper had been given fim Fl"
SIGN. hut be said again thar he had n"t
received his pay At this the boss smiled
s,;rbtIv. and then tn" other know. 1'
had struck This man. and. is revenge, De-
was being cheated of his pay.
For moment he looked quietly ST. me
scoundrel before him-quietly. bur with
7 <. olrinous a CLINT in his blue eyes THAT
+ the man stepped well beyond hlS rene.
Yes. he knew. but his brain suggested
b nj ba resumed ifg~ work