Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1915-02-24
Capturing
a Bride
Failure Meant Her
Death.
}. BY ESTHER vANDEvEER ,
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America Is tribe OF Indians VINO are
very proud Of their ancestry, tracing
It to the Axtecs. who were semi-civ-
flied people. They trade with other
races, but marry only among them
selves. Nature In tropical climates
supplies food In such superabundance
that the natives may exchange what
they don't need for what win provide
other necessaries than food.
The principal food produced among
this tribe OF Central America Is cocoa
nuts. The Indians do not need to
climb the trees to gather them. for
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 lie kept awake by It.
There seems to be a natural law that
those who don't have to work for
living consider themselves better than
those who do. Whether1t 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
every man on the island must leave.
The Aztecs described by the Spanish
coEluerors were delicateiy made
race. and some of their women lie their
dusky way were beautiful. So 1t was
with these indians of Central Amer
lea. They would so TO the shore in
groups while the sailors were loading
their boats with cocoanuts. and doubt
less there were glances between then
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.
One 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 a 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 1t 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 boat COM
ing from the ship was unshipped BY
striking bar q short distance from
the shore. and. the coxswain 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 be
lay. rolled hither and thither by each
succeeding line Of foam that slid high
up On the beach.
The men who succeeded In getting
aSbOtC dhNS WCIC bEiBCu Tic 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 a picture OF
manly beauty. He was Ned Phillips,
cd hi a. l.
Of their number. He never went
| ashore that he did not get into a scrape
and on several occasions had been
saved by some Of them from getting
killed.
The girl kneeled by him and lifted
bis head 10 her arms. Whether it 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 sympa thetic
eyes. all of which seemed very beau
tiful to him. He had become exhaust
ed shortly before being thrown up on
the beach and was therefore not, very
far gone. He returned the look Of
sympathy with one of gratitude. adrni
ratlon, love. Then. staggering to his
feet. he pulled himself together, and
the two rejoined the others.
But Ned was not In condition fol-
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 a tropical leaf. For
time the other girls stood about them
looking down at Ned's pale face and
Hump 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 frightened look she rejoin
ed the others. Some native men were
coming.
In due time. the sea having gone
down. the process Of loading was re
.tslx