Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1912-05-07
@-O
FRECkLES
BY
Gene SnraGG@me
Porter
COPYRIGHT. 1904. BY DOUBLEDAY. PAGE
n g
COPYRIGHT. 1904. BY DOUBLEDAY. PAC
q co.

oak beams. The young man entered
these mighty forests. parts OF which
still lay untouched since the dawn OF
the morning Of time. The intense ST.
lence. like that Of great empty cathe-
dral. fascinated him. He gradually
learned that to the shy wood crea-
lures that darted across his path or
peeped inquiringly from leafy ambush
he was brother. He found himself
approaching. with feeling of rever-
ence, those majestic trees that had
stood through ages Of sun. wind and
| snow. Soon it became a difficult
thing to fell them. When he had ILL
ed his order and returned home he
was amazed to find that in the swamps
and forests he had lost his heart, and
1t was calling. forever calling him.
When he Inherited his fathers prop
erty he promptly disposed Of 1t and,
with his mother, founded home In a
splendid residence In the outskirts OF
Grand Rapids. With three partners
he organized lumber company. His
work was to purchase, fell and ship
the timber to the mills. Marshall
managed the milling process and pass
ed the lumber on to the factory. From
the lumber BarthOl made beautiful
and useful furniture. which Uptegrove
scattered all over the world from "A
big wholesale house.
f,ood a youno man stilI nm.
der twenty. tall. spare. heavily framed.
thickly freckled and red haired. with
| a homely Irish face. but In the steady
gray eyes. straightly meeting his
searching ones of blue. there were un-
swerving candor and a look Of long
ing not to be ignored.
"YOu are looking for work" ques'
toned Mclean.
"Yis," answered Freckles.
81 am very sorry" said the boss.
"but there is only one man l want at
present-a good. big fellow with a
stout heart and strong body. 1 hopea
that you would do, but am afraid
you are too young and hardly strong
enough"
"And what was 1t you thought l
might be doingY asked Freckles.
The boss could scarcely repress a
start. Somewhere back Of accident
and poverty had been an ancestor who
used cultivated English. even with an
accent. The boy spoke in a mellow
Irish voice. sweet and pure. 1t was
scarcely definite enough to be called
brogue. yet there was trick IN the
turning Of the sentence. the wrong
sound of a letter here and there. that
was almost irresistible to Mclean.
He was Of foreign birth, and. despite
years of alienation, in times Of strong
| feeling he fell into inherited sins OF
accent and construction.
"Its no child's job" answered Nc
Lean. 81 am the field manager or q
| lumber company. We have just leased
1000 acres Of the Limberlost. Many
of these trees are Of great value. We
rant leave our camp, six miles south,
for almost year yet, so we have
blazed a trail and strung barbed wires
securely about the extent Of this lease
Before we return to our work l must
put this Limberlost lease in the hands
of q reliable. brave. strong man who
will guard 1t every hour Of the day
and sleep with one eye open at night.
I should require the entire length OF
| the trail to be walked at least twice
! every day, to make sure that our lines
1 were up and no one had been tres
passing"
"But why wouldn't that be the finest
lob In the world for me?" pleaded
rreckles. "I am never sick. l could
walk the trail twice. three times every
day, and I'd be watching sharp all the
while"
"It's beceuse you are little more than
a boy. and this will be q trying job
for a work hardened man." answered
Mclean. 'You would be afraid. In
stretching our lines we killed six rat
tiesnnkes almost as long as your body
and as thick as your arm. You would
| always be alone. and the Limberlost
Is alive with sounds and voices. l
don't pretend to say what all OF them
come from, but from few sinking
forms I've seen and hair raising yells
I've heard Id rather not confront
their owners myself. and l am neither
weak nor fearful.
worst Of all. any man who will
enter the swamp to mark and steal
timber is desperate fellow. One OF
my employees ut the south camp, John
! Carter, compelled me to discharge him
for a number of serious reasons. DE
entered the swamp alone and marked
number Of valuable trees that he
was endeavoring to sell to our rival
company when we secured the lease
He has sworn tO have these trees II
he has to die or to kill others to gel
them"
"But If he came to steal trees
wouldn't he bring teams and mer
enough, that all any man could dc
would be to watch and be after your
queried the boy.
EYES," replied Mclean.
..Then why couldn't be watching
Just US closely and coming as fast al
an older, stronger manT
"Why. by George. you couId!' ex
claimed Mclean. II don't know thai
the size of man would be half q
important as his grit and faithfulness
What is your nameT
Freckles grew a shade whittier. bu'
his eyes never faltered.
"Freckles," he said.
Good enough for every day." laugh
ed Mclean, but l can scarcely pu
Freckles on the company's books"
i 81 haven't any name" replied th'
boy.
i ~ don't understand" said Mclean.
II was thinking from the voice AMI
the face of you that you wouldn't
said Freckles slowly.
Il docs It seem to you that any on
would take a newborn baby and rov
over It until It was bruised black. Gu
OF its hand and leave It out In DIT
ter night on the steps OF q cnarit!
homo IN tho caro- of atran9erHi That