Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1913-12-05

| the cold waters of the lower bay?
Can there be seated upon the various
islands passed by the ferry steamers
Loreleis whose witching songs lure the
Respondent to doom?
NO" resumed the captain, lit is the
romance hidden in every human soul
which asserts itself in persons who
are temperamentally weak and forces
them to the performance of this last
despairing act in circumstances which
might be deemed theatrical, but which
are, in fact, extremely natural. There
is the clouded sky, dense darkness,
myriads of white caps flying swiftly
by, resembling a shroud whose color
and form are ever changing; the
steamer blowing its way through the
black night, broken only by the
rhythmical hum of the machinery and
the dreary sobs escaping from the ex-
haust pipes
Pretty soon there is a hubbub,
scream or two, some shouts, and a
smothered cry as a woman springs
over the rail, to be swallowed up by
the waves, leaving no trace behind.
The romance Of life, begun perhaps
under happy auspices, has found its
fulfillment in plunge and the word
FINS is written when the body after
having lain on a slab in the morgue
for many days without being identified
is deposited in Mother Earth. The
and then comes-oblivion.
The captain was reminded of the
incident of a young couple W., one
day several years ago went aboard a
Staten island ferry steamer in the
greatest haste. At their heels came
clerical looking man, evidently min
lister. Just as the boat pulled out of
the slip a carriage was driven wildly
into the ferry house and an elderly
man, springing therefrom, ran to the
end of the slip, shouting for the ferry
to return.
"Of course we kept right on"
laughed the captain. Il was wonder
ing what had occasioned the chase
when the clerical looking gentleman
came to me and asked if | would be a
witness to marriage. | couldn't re-
fuse, and he led me to the women's
cabin, where stood as fine a looking
| couple as ever were spliced. A wom-
| an passenger consented to act as
! bridesmaid while served as best man.
Il later heard that the young bride
was the daughter of a wealthy man
who had refused his consent to her
marriage with clerk in his employ.
But love laughs at locksmiths, they
say, and in this instance the laugh
was on the old man, who was shaking
his fists at us in rage as he stood at
the end of the ferry slip. | met the
couple several times after that event
and I'm happy to say that the old man
had become reconciled to his son-in
law and that all turned out happily for
all concerned, as the novelists say
Il could tell you a score of similar
occurrences, but you might weary Of
the telling OF them In detail. You see
and hear all sorts of queer things. One
of the oldest animals in the worlt
is the fresh air crank, who persists il
walking about on the upper deck in al
sorts of weather in the belief that the
air is doing him good, One of these
chaps used to take his air in this way
and the colder and foggier 1t was the
better he was pleased He would
stand out bareheaded in the mist will
his coat open, his head thrown up
ward as if he really enjoyed 1t all
Meanwhile others shivered under shell
ter and fancied they were watching ;
lunatic. One day this chap failed t.
show up and | learned he had diet
of pneumonia. Some how hadn't thu
slightest sympathy for him"