The sun., 1916-09-24
NOTES FROM THE LOG BOOK OF A
SUMMER ISLAND CRUISE.
How . City Man Enjoyed the Hospitality Of an Insu,ar lrt, m.
Learned Some History and Other Things.

The artists in words who compose
that Vacation Literature which Is OF
all literature the loveliest and the
most provoking have coined a golden
phrase: accessible seclusion." And
that il another way Of saying island"
our island.
There are islands and Islands. Man
haitian Island is accessible, but Its Sc
clusion Ia such a paradox as the old
fashioned natural philosophy" books
rest Of infinite motion" The Beau
tiful Isle of Somewhere" Ii reserved
for a distinguished tenancy. to begin
next March. Napoleon found fault
with st. Helena; but then, he had
reached the %querulous age. Black
wells was an almost perfect combina-
ton Of the two d~esirabilities until the
Age OF sympathy began. Our island
which shall be nameless-is perfec.
ton; anchored Just far enough OH
shore and inhabited by a ace geni-
ally submissive to our brief invasion
of their seclusion. In fact. we believe
between our annual visits they must
be lonely. But they bear It bravely.
and perhaps appreciate our presence
more for the intervening periods Of
deprivation.
The clerk Of a certain mid island vii
iage is a man to know. He is retired
from business and divides his time be-
tween the affairs Of the community
and antiquarian researches. in which
the power Of his public office is a help.
His character il reflected in the repu-
tation he brought out Of his mercan-
tile occupations: tom d screw YOU
down to the last cent on n deal. an
then. like as not. he'd hand half Of 1t
right pack to you" He played the
game for its/own sake.
This genial clerk exhibits with pride
the original documents embodying the
history of his bailiwick. There Is. in
particular. a deed OF so early a date
that Y makes America seem older thar
she looks and acts; a deed signed by an
Indian chief. his mark" Written on
parchment if an ink the secret Of
whose virtuous composition has been
lost or thrown away. the documents
appearance Is of a living freshness
that quite bellies its age.
As the clerk shows his treasures the
emergence of n certain paper brings
new light to his lively eye. II Is a let
ter from one OF the towns founders to
the Indian chief about a whale cast
ashore on the island. Placing a stubby
finger under certain words of al I'M
certain chirography, the clerk chal-
lenges his visitor to read them. The
challenge has never been successfully
met. He spells the letters of. "N-o-t
e-a-l-e-s': Not Gales ate present"
why. of course-you see II now:
"Naught else" Says the clerk. with
an air: 1T took me two years to make
that out-and then I only found 1t in a
printed copy" He does not say. and
the courteous visitor cannot ask. II the
successful transcriber took two years
to the job.
That town clerk has had a long life;
no Is as clear in his memory Of the
seventeenth century affairs OF his
town as Of yesterdays. On his head
stone when he Is gone they may fifty
carve as his birth date the date Of that
ancient deed. He Is more than 200
years old. and still hale and hearty.
It's an III wind that blows nobody
good. and it's a good wind that blows
you coal at $3.50 a ton. The wind that
blew a schooner loaded with the
precious mineral ashore on n desolate
stretch OF the mainland. a short sail
away from our island. was a wind kind
to our islanders. Hull and cargo were
bought cheap at auction: so cheap
that the new owner could afford To sell
the fuel. Z. o. b. the stranded vessel. NJ
81. so n ton. Thc fishermen came in
their mower boats to carry II away. a
Tor at n time. And coal was $40 a ton
NJ Buenos Ayres, n aiming at that
mark In New York.
These fsherfolk have special right
To the old phrase the salt of the
earth" Many Of them are veterans of
doep sea voyages, circumnaviga'ors,