The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1914-05-14

IuSlOu u II. lie Iluu uIIIOSt du Tue
foreign papers that came into the ship
sooner or later. only somebody must
10 over them first and cut out any ad-
vertisement or stray paragraph that
alluded to America. Phillips told me a
story Of something which happened at
the Cape of Good Hope on Nolan's first
voyage, and it is the only thing ever
knew of that voyage. Phillips had
borrowed lot of English books from
IN officer, which in those days. as in-
Among them, as the devil would order
was the Lay of the Last MINSTREL
which they had all of them heard Of.
but which most of them had never
seen. think it could not have been
published long. Well. nobody thought
there could he any risk of anything ma
tional in that, SO Nolan was permit
ted to join the circle one afternoon
when a lot Of them sat on deck smok.
ing and reading aloud. Nolan took the
book and read to the others. and he
read very we'll. as know. Nobody in
the >ircIe knew a line of the poem,
only = was all magic and border chiv-
airy and was 10000 years ago. Poor
Nolan read steadily through the fifth
canto. stopped minute and drank
something and then began. without
thought Of what was coming:
"Breathes there the man with soul SO
dead
Who never to himself hath said.
This is my own. my native tand?'"
Then they all saw something was to
pay, but he expected to get through.
suppose. turned little pale. but
plunged on:
Whose heart hath FER within him burned
AS home his footsteps he hath turned
From wandering on foreign strand?
II such there breathe, go. mark him we'll"
By this time the men were all beside
themselves. wishing there was any
way to make him turn over two pages.
but he had not quite presence Of mind
for that. He gagged little, colored
crimson and staggered on:
For him no minstrel raptures swell.
High though his titles. proud his name.
Boundless his wealth as wish can claim.
Despite these titles. power and pelf.
The wretch, concentrated all in self
And here the poor fellow choked. could
not so on, but started up, swung the
book into the sea, vanished into bis
stateroom. land. by Jove," said Phil
lips. I'VE did not see him for two
months again. And l had to make up
some beggarly story to that English
surgeon why did not return bis Wal
ter Scott to him."
That story shows about the time
when Nolan's braggadocio must have
broken down. At first they said be
took a very high tone, considered bis
Imprisonment u mere farce. affected to
enjoy the voyage. and all that, but
Phillips said that after he came out Of
his stateroom he never was the same
man again. He never read aloud
ngain unless it was the Bible or Shake
speare or something else be was sure
Of. He was always shy afterward
when l knew hi,n-very seldom spoke
unless he was spoken to. except to
very few friends. He lighted up occa-
sionally, but generally be had the nerv-
Gus, tired look of a heart wounded
man.
Nolan's transfer at sea to the War
rem was the first Of some twenty such
transfers, which brought him sooner
or later into half our best vessels. but
which kept him all his life at least
some hundred miles from the country
he had hoped he might never hear of
again.
1t may have been on that second
cruise-it was once when he was up
the Mediterranean-that Mrs. Graft,
the celebrated southern beauty of those
days. danced with him. They had
been long time in the bay Of Naples.
and the officers were very intimate
in the English fleet. and there had been
great festivities. and our men thought
they must give great ball on board
the ship. They wanted to use N0lan's
stateroom for something, and they hat
ed to do it without asking him to the
ball, so the captain said they might
ask him if they would be responsible
that be did not talk with the wrong
people, WHO would give him intelli-
gence." For ladies they had the fam
lily Of the American consul. one or two
travellers who had ventured so far and
q nice bevy Of English girls and ma
irons, perhaps Lady Hamilton herself.
As the dancing went on, Nolan and
our fellows all got at ease, as said
SO much SO that it seemed quite natu-
raj for him to bow to that splendid
Mrs. Graf and say:
Il hope you have not forgotten me.
Miss Rutledge. Shall l have the hon.
or Of dancing?''
He did it so quickly that Shubrick.
who was by him, could not hinder
him. She laughed and said:
II am not Miss Rutledge any longer.
Mr.. Nolan, but will dance all the
same" just nodded to Shubrick as If
to say he mast leave Mr.. Nolan to her
and led him OF to the place where the
dance was forming.
Nolan thought he had got his chance.