Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1910-09-27
DAILY SHORT SHORES


lent form had left something behind. a
lost In the darkness. Then the waves
came again and again, sucking up the
sand and piling II over and about the
dark object until II was entirely hid
den from Wow.
With appalling suddenness the storm
vanished as II 1t had never been Over.
head the stars shone gently. and the
waves softly Tapped the quiet beach.
Jarvis found his motive power as II
magically restored. With leap he
was OF the cot and dashing down the
stairs to the sand. There he stood
dumfouuded.
To the touch OF his stockingcd feet
the sand was warm aud dry. His
cropping fingers confirmed that fact.
Tho tide was rising. and almost TO its
verge the sand showed no truce of
dampness. The sea stretched level
expaUc, broken here and there by dim
pling wavclets.
"I'n De hanged IL know what to
make Of It." muttered Jarvis dazcdly.
'I couldn't have been dreaming. and
yeti He looked at his watch. ITS
certainly up to me or the tobacco I've
been smoking. Nine o'clock when
turned In, and now it's 0:3o. Even
In these swift times they don't turn
storms or and on at that gait
Chagrined. he walked over to the
place under his balcony where the
waves had tossed the dead man for a
brief instant before they reclaimed
him. Jarvis had watched It with his
own eyes. and he had seen the follow
ing waves heap sand about n small.
dark object the man had left behind,
There should DO little sand mound
here-and there wasl
The painter was too excited to re.
turn to his bed; therefore he went in;o
the cottage, found an old fashioned
lantern, I'm which he stuck a candle
end, took up coal shovel and went
back to the beach.
Here by the candles dim light he
| grimly dug into the shallow heap OF
sand. 1t was FOOLS business, he told
himself as he delved downward TO
where the sand was soaking wet and
the water oozed up into little wells and
impeded his labor.
At last came rags and shreds OF
something that might have been mn oil
skin coat, and afterward, deeply en-
bedded In the sand, Jarvis found n
small water soaked box bound with
iron bands. This was treasure trove.
jarvis FASTENED TO the cottage and
with hammer and chisel pounded
away at the little box until its rotted
sides fell inward aud the iron bands
crumbled to rusty flakes.
Piuful indeed was the little treasure
contained I'm the tiny chest--a sailors
keepsakes. Bits OF coral and pretty
shells and stones. woman's lovely
face smiling from furnished frame.
a baby's first photograph. the mothers
loving inscription pcnned on the bnck
few letters, intimately tender. from
wife to husband; copy OF will. n
few months wages tied in little oil
skin sacks, the owners nar6c on the
inside OF memorandum book-James
Petrol master OF the freigbter Sea
! Nymph-that was all.
so the man who had been thrown on
the beach as revealed 10 Jarvis I'm the
vision-for such the painter believed
his strange adventure TO be-must have
been the captain OF the III fated vessel.
On the morrow he would inquire con.
corning the wreck OF the Sea Nympb
and try to find the relatives OF James
Petrol
After that Jarvis tumbled into bed
and went to sleep, wondering why he
oh
light the long buried box. He dreamed
about the curly headed baby. whose
charming smile pursued him through
his dreams
Yes" said the oldest cottagcr when
Jarvis guardedly made inquiries con.
corning wrecks on the coast ut was
ns far back as 1885 that the Sea
Nymph went ashore off here She got
on the shoals. but fhe sens were riding
so high she didn't stick. Back she
went. md they simply swallowed her
up. 80 the story goes Bits OF cargo
fontcd ashore long afterwartl-one or
two bodies OF seamen. That was nil
Divers never found trace OF her. It
was the worst storm ever known on
the coast After that they built the
breakwatcr and the lighthouse. At
that time there was an old fsherman's
hut on The spot where your cottage
now stands. Tradition has 81 that the
old man lurcd the steamer 10 her ruin.
IL he did it was small prof, to him.
fer the storm washed his hut into the
sca aud he went with IT, The nan
Who owns your cottage once found
copper canister filled with cbolce
smoking tobacco buried in the sand
near by il pleased him TO resurrcct
II and smoke It, lie quit using It Mt
err awhile because. he claimed. It give
hlm the nightmare said the Sea
Nymph went ashore every night in his
dreams. II there's my Of st LETT YOU
better not smoke st." added tho Oldest
cCttagcr WhimSicallv