Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-04-22

AOOO' LHc Olu pCOplcs IAOu6A CAOS'
and selfish, had allowed her to OBJ
tain an education, with the hope O
her becoming independent, which sht
did. And SO, after fifteen years O.
separation, the sailor boy brother, fol
whom the little girl had prayed every
night, came back. And then he, too
discovered that he had changed-he
was a man, a rough skinned seaman
but he had the softest heart in the
world. And when he found that hit
sister was engaged to marry a fine
young man, a lawyer In the town
where she was employed as school
teacher, he was glad, for he had be
come attached to the sea that he fell
he could not live on the land, although
he had come home for the purpose
of remaining with his sister, thinking
that she would be in need Of him"
and the young lawyer was papa u
one of the boys would say.
YES, young, clever Donald Ora
ham," the mother would smile.
And now Uncle Jack Gordon,
skipper of the Marie Gray" was COM
ing to pay visit to the Grahams, his
sister and her family.
It was happy day that Skipper
Gordon arrived. All that day his sis
ter and he talked and talked, the boys
hardly getting q word In edgeways.
It had been such time since brother
and sister had seen each other-not
since the day on which the handsome
lawyer. Donald Graham, had taken to
himself the pretty bride, Lucy Cor
DON And now there were the two
ouo1
II. (The boys were SO near OF a
size that they were often taken for
twins)
In the evening after supper, David
whispered to his mother. She
laughed and patted him on the head.
Then to her brother: Jack, my boys
are jealous of me. They want you to
themselves this evening. Shall I run
off to my own room? Well have to-
morrow alone, with the boys at school
and Donald at his office"
CALI right, Sissy" laughed the jolly
old seaman "And-say, you Don, go
long with Sissy. Let the youngsters
be together-the boys an me. We're
Just of an age-the three twins, eh?"
Mr.. Graham laughed and &C.
his wife to their room up
stairs. Alone, David took seat at one
side of Uncle Jack and Leon took a
seat directly in front of him. "Now,
Uncle" said David, Eve want to
Know how you managed to run away
rom the place where you and mamma
we're staying-with those mean old
PEOPLE"
"Well, we'll, my lads" grinned
mole Jack, 1T wasn't very funny
hing to do-leaving that dear little
sissy. But had to go-the life with
hose relatives was too hard. 1t
would not be so bad for the little
girl, felt. And l didn't mean to
;tay away so long. But-that's an.
,ther story-or hundred OF EN- all
in together.
"Now, on the night that l run away
Lord Of love, 1t was bad one! But
we was livin' close to seaport city,
an made tracks for that burg. | got
here about 4 o'clock in the mornin'
and went at once to the wharf ask
ed everywhere for Job on some boat
what was sailin' that day. But, nixey!
Nobody wanted me. was a good
sized chunk OF boy, too. But rec
kon I looked too green. Well, | hung
around the docks till late in the ev-
enin'. then come my chance. | slip
ped aboard ship of some sort-1 had
no idea what kind she was. An l
slowed away in the hold. I'd heard
tell of stowaways, an how hungry
an thirsty they got sometimes before
they either had to come out or were
fished out. So I run some errands for
shopkeeper near the docks, earlier
in the day, and he gave me 10 cents
for it. 1 then found an empty bottle,
which filed with water at drinkin'
fountain. With my dime bought two
loaves of bread. 1 cut the bread in
chunks an stuck it away in every
roomy place in my clothes. Also hid
the bottle of water in my shirt.
"Well, for three whole days | lay IN
the hold of that boat, rollin' an pitch
in. l didn't eat, you can be certain
Once in a while I'd sip some water
from my bottle. But the bread" And
Uncle Jack shook his head and made 9
wry face. ugh, but was seasick!
Well, just as l hoped to die and end 1t
all, was found. And maybe you
think l was treated like nice young
gentleman caller! Nixey! I was
about half killed. But nothing could
have made me regret getting far from
the place l had just left, and, when
after I'd been beaten, kicked, hall
starved, made to do every dirty JOB
that could be found to do, said to
myself: Let 'em get 1t all over at
once. Then I'll be fully initiated.
1t was ridin' the stoaway's goat, you
might call it. But 1t was the toughest
ride ever took, an no stretchen' the
tale.
well, as you see, they didn't Kill
me. But 1 believe they tried to. They
made me wish several times during
that voyage Of three years-aboard an
old half-crazy tramp-that the old tub
would go to the bottom Of the sea-
And the only thing that made me hope
my rash wish wouldn't come true was
that little Sissy who was prayin
z.,.,1, ,;p,f for tha hip hr0tho re