The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1915-06-04
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: Capturing
) a Bride
!, Failure Meant Her
, Death.
, By ESTHER VANDEVEER 6
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very proud Of their ancestry. tracing
II to the Aztecs, who were semi-ciy
ilized people. They trade with othe
races, but marry only among them
selves. Nature IN tropical climates
supplies food In such superabundanct
that the natives may exchange what
they don't need for what will provide
other necessaries than food.
The principal food produced amons
this tribe Of Central America Is cocoa
nuts. The Indians do not need Il
climb the trees TO gather them. fol
when they are ripe they fall to the
ground. All day at the harvest season
there Is a constant dropping. and at
night one who Is unaccustomed to the
sound will be kept awake by>it.
There seems to be natural law that
those who don't have to work for
living consider themselves better thar
those who do. Whether 1t was this i'm
munity from labor or the fact OF the
blue Aztec blood In their veins, these
Indians would admit Of no union
among their people with any other
Their cocoanuts brought ships to their
shores, and the sailors necessarily came
ashore to load them. This was always
done by daylight. but when night came
syery man on the island must leave.
The Aztecs described by the Spanish
conQuerors were delicately made
race, and some of their women I'm their
dusky way were beautiful. SO 1t was
with these Indians Of Central Amer
lea. They would go to the shore In
groups while the sailors were loading
their boats with cOcoanuts, and doubt
less there were glances between them
and the Jack tars. But the girls knew
that there must be no further counting.
for should there be the life of one or
both would be forfeited.
Ono day ship was loading cocoa
nuts on the shore Of these proud
people. Several girls stood on the
bank watching the yawls come to the
beach, take on load Of cocoanuts and
start back for the ship. This getting
a boat over the breakers Is always an
entertaining sight. Several men walk
Ing In the shallow water would pull
the boat out to where the oars might
take hold; then the oarsmen. watching
an opportunity between waves. would
pull Justify In order to pass the next
wave before It broke. Unless the boat
was skillfully handled 1t was liable to
be capsized.
The morning when the girls were
watching the sailors the breakers were
quite high. The rudder Of a boat COM
Ing from the ship was unshipped by
striking bar short distance from
the shore. and. the coxswaln not being
able to keep her straight for the shore
her side was turned to the incoming
waves, and she was capsized. Some
Of the men In her got ashore, and
some were drowned One was washed
ashore some distance below where the
boat was to have landed. There he
lay, rolled hlther and thlther by each
succeeding line of foam that slid high
up on the beach.
Tho men who succeeded in getting
ashore alive were helped by the girls,
who waded into the water for the pur
pose. One girl. seeing the body that
had been washed ashore some distance
from the others, ran to him.
Lying unconscious on the sands, his
light curly hair stirred by the ever
moving water, he was picture OF
manly beauty. He was Ned Phillips,
considered by his mates the dsredevil
Of their number. He never went
ashore that he did not get into scrape
and on several occasions had been
saved by some of them from getting
killed.
The girl kneeled by him and lifted
bis head In her arms. Whether IL was
their warmth or the change Of posi-
tion or that he had been revived by
the air. he opened his eyes and looked
into a dusky face with sympathetic
eyes, all Of which seemed very beau
tiful to him. He had become exhaust
ed shortly before being thrown up oh
the beach and was therefore not very
far gone. He returned the look Of
sympathy with one OF gratitude. admi-
ration, love. Then. staggering to his
feet. he pulled himself together. and
the two rejoined the others.
But Ned was not I'm condition for
anything but rest. He lay down on
the sand. and the girl who had raised
him from the water sat by him and
famed him with tropical leaf. For
a time the other girls stood about them
looking down at Ned's pale face and
limp figure. But young people soon
detest the mating OF those about them.
and one by one the girls stole away
and left them together. Presently one
Of the other girls came and whispered
something In the ear OF Ned's mate.
and with q frightened look she rejoin-
ed the others. Some native men were
soming.
In due time. the sea having gone
down. the process OF loading was re-
sumed. Phillips. with two other men
who had s~gered by the spill. was left
on shore to recuperate. This was bad
policy so far as he was concerned. for