Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1909-04-16
CHAPTER L.

CHAPTER L.
You know AIastair? No-how should
you? Very few people know it, and [
have done my best to keep the secret to
myself The place lies, however, not so
very far from great cities on the Allan
lie coast. You take a train northward
nom Boston, and when you reach the
proper station you alight and climb into
sNlntryman's wagon, and he drives you
through the pines by a twisting, sand
built road to Alastair. You will know it
because you can go no farther, unless you
+ choose to drive into the waves.
Few people come to Alastair. Most
Of the travellers in this part Of the world
turn off about a mile inland from the
beach and 20 on for another mile and a
BALI to the Penguin Club. The latter is
3 NIL Of New Workers who come to the
pines and the sea to hunt and fish and
forget Wall Street and Fifth Avenue.
They forget it by keeping close together.
md dressing for dinner, and dancing
EeFy other night.
Aa8tair itself is only beach between
. NO great headlands. From the end
where my cottage stands, snugly hid IN
NE pines on the edge of the dunes, the
oacl stretches smooth and white to
little land-locked harbor at the farther
md, Sit on my porch and look down
Song the sands TO the east and you
Will see reef of rocks shaped like the
letter I that closes in a little salt water
ale with the aid Of a distant cliff. 1t
not quite a lake, rather a small IN
land sea, for the tides have room to ebb
and flow A ship is settled into the
sands Of this sea, settled upright, so
12t one may walk the decks, and L
@ten go there of an afternoon when the
0e is low and climb on board. 1t is a
good place to sketch, and | can leave
NY paints and canvas in the cabin.
stumbled across Alastair when l was
"oking for a quiet place in which to
''te, | found the dilapidated cottage,
"Mped in 1t for week, and fell so much
III love with the beach that | went to
""n' bought tie house and part of the
woods, and moved in. Charles, the man
1oo had served my father before me, de-
INJURED at first, but finally gave In, and
'~ned himself into cook, housemaid, and
Valet for my sake.
from my balcony I can see the distant
IO'hS Of the little inland sea and, stand
.IE up above them, the high sides OF the
supp and its single remaining broken
CaSF pointing straight to the heavens
%netimes the stars seem to outline
DDeFe the missing spars and sails should
w. and on bright night [ can half close
-! eyes aud fancy that see the rigging
~s1.ed and lanterns burning on the quar-
'er-deck.
There is history hidden in that bat
S'ed hulk. She Is no ordinary vessel,
s-a may once, for all know, have been
pirate craft. She has the long clipper
-usS OF swiftness, and her high, bulging
fSs Of a type long past. When l
s.St came to Alastair / made inquiries
40 70 her history, but the oldest farmer
S.uu tell me only that she had always
n there so far as he knew, and DIS
NJ Used the subject as of no Importance.
-. ue people of the nearby country ap-
JARED never to have boarded the casta-
sa!' felt the joys of Crusoe when l
49, climbed on her deck. The name
"a gone, long ago washed out by the
"a The deck was bare, and the top OF
b,' torecastle choked with sand.
,.Uusht shovel and dug away the ram
tt ~, drltted against the matches. Al
~ l could open the door and, clearing
d. steps Of what little sand had siIteu
'0ugh, descended into the cabin. IL