The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1925-01-28

wqsls him hs am meshs in th use dried %
sea grass of the higher
beaches while she worked at the torn
nets and watched the blue strip OF
water beyond the point for the sweep
81 home-spread sail. Even when
Caleb's boat had just cleared the mar
Dor and her hands still twitched as
she tried to weave the threads, her
eyes would dream around the spot
where she knew the masts would nrst
loom above the dunes on Long point.
Maybe II was In those long waiting
months that Jedediah's eyes began 10
look like his mothers, misty reverle
about them, but seeing every dot that
fecked the sea. And with the Octo-
ber's coming, when the cranberrles
were red drops in the brown boys,
Lucia would take him across the strip
of land that held the sea from the
little town, and while she cleaned the
bogs he kept on the upper dunes where
he could see the ships standing well
out past the bars off Peaked HIS.
And once as he watched there, glad,
he did not know why, that the wind
was strong over him, he saw a man
In the high rigging of a ship, small,
dark. swaying thing against the taut
white sails.
"Where are your" Lucia cried out,
starting suddenly. And when she
turned about he pointed out to sea
and laughed down to her:
'T'm in that riggin'. reehn' the top
sail -
"You shan'tl Never-never" she
cried to herself, as she bent to the
cleaning again. But II your baby has
slept In the dried sea grass and rolled
among the nets and comes at last to
watch, always, the ships go up and
down and Is glad when the wind flies
strong, and does not know why, there
is no use trying to hold him when
his time comes And Jedediah's time
came soon enough. for when they
came TO tell Lucia that Caleb would
never come back, she just said: yes,
/ know" and in few weeks she died
and left Jedediah to watch the ships
alone. ne went uSiooS tic uuhNc, p''e
the bogs where his mother had
cleaned, and when he came to the sea
his eyes saw nothing but far white
sail, no greater than his hand. He
watched until II grew big. beating
close inshore, and he could hear the
scrape of the wind on her canvas.
"She's rugged outward bound, but
she's making harbor,' he said aloud
"She's coming for mel" And he
turned to run all the way to the vii
lage to wait by the wharf until the
boat came In. But when he asked to
ship on her the captain Of the whaler
looked him over slowly with a careful
noting of the 1.-the, boyish figure, and
then long stare into Jedediah's eyes.
Can you keep your head and eyes
by your"
yes"
'sDon't look III"
II can"
"Sign In, then. I put in here for an
other hand. One didn't show up at
sailing Didn't want a boy, but sign
in" And Jedediah signed for two
years cruise.
While the ship beat up the coast
toward Davis strait there was little
work to do. and Jedediah could dream
and grow solemn In the great new
marvel of 1t all, and then laugh aloud
because he was glad. and drag his
bed up from below to lie under this
new sky and take the swish of the
sea and the purr Of the wind on the
sails into his sleep with him. But |
when they had entered the straits and |
serious work to be dreaming. There |
were the long cold days at the mast |
head that grew suddenly pulsing hot
at sight of a spouting whale. Then
the great swing of the boats pull to
meet IT.: the craft and cunning of
stealth, and the stifled JOY in the dan
ger of fight and capture. Seattle was
a rapturous life to Jededlah, and not
even the heavy work could take away
the spell of 1t all that made him glad
-glad-he did not know why. And so
when the ship swept out from the bay
again, flying before the ice that al
ready stiffened the waves Off the head
lands, Jedediah climbed into the fore
sail and said his farewell to Rowe's
Welcome with promise Of return.
The ice had come early that year,
or, maybe, the whales were shy, for
the ship could not get her full cargo
and ran down by the Azores to COM
plete 1t, and made Amsterdam her
market close to the ending Of her first
year. But Jedediah was afraid of that
great strange thing at the end Of the
quays that was a city. where the
sailors rioted at night. and the very
children spoke a language he did not
know, and he stayed by the ship when |
the work Of the day was over, climb
Ing the rigging to watch the lights
that pricked the blackness into life,
and to wonder about the people who
drifted up and down the quays. And
there he was even the last night be-
fore the ship dropped down the harbor
on her return voyage. The mist was