OCR Text |
Show TVLe ptreiagne" lj -con's Christmas "HYimc Coining By ' A. FRAZER (Currli(M, , Sim" ewrr rubllsMns-Ii rubllsMns-Ii was twe ' n'clmk when l.e Hro-taxm- spread'' white sails and crept out toward ffl eastern sky. II was six when lh -ray wall of the sea rose jind blotted oi " the ship as though sho ti&d gone to i he bottom. Then tho lark lluie which had been dulllnotM atslnsi the crimson of. tho lil. red sri Ming sun fumed wearily nnd crept ejl ei the sands towards Arlchat Il w5l x Marfe. returning to her newly wltM iwed home. "Leon saltl.lA" would come at the time or Christ! las. so why should I four?" she kopt cmutterliig. "and I.eon will keep Ills wVind In life or death. Hvon U I'm deljd. Marie.' he said. Joking me, 'I wir' come in thee nt Chrlsi mas." L On the rarthor alL'lc r l.'lsle Madam the sea was tnounliZ'g as Marie reached her oottnga. 7 One month had sjf.uie -one mouth or Ihe loveliest went pier--Idcnl weather for the fishing, tho 4l'l wlvra said, only they used u sltirtnger word than "Idctil" to oxpioxH f 'heir satisfaction. It was Just ill duVx Rlnro the gray wall of water had risen between Millie Mil-lie nml her l.cim. TJhoio was no nils-. nils-. taklnu the day. Tor sfcie had Just drawn a line through the dnrie. the nineteenth of October. Not fiVr 11 moment had Marie slumbered limit night. The sea had gone to lent wlllKu sigh, a sImIi of utter weaiincHB. as tWiough Hie wind hnd called It to baltlS the ilealh; only the sen heard tint challenge, the sea and Marie- sho kiVnv. The enltn lhat leslecv over everything every-thing was awful; It w.'isis though all life had gone out of the World. And so It was when the grejm sky thnl FISHES Yes, Yes; It's Le Bretifjne," an Old, Man Was Saying. I $ I was In tho west chiingedln blood red; still not n breath of nlr.VTnward noon the glasi-y water grew illrk, where little lit-tle puffs or wind ruirieilftts surface. Ily night tho cloiifls had risen like n wall, stretching Jroni the south lo Iho northeast, but still It wart clear overhead; no clouds, iuily a murky, yellow hnzp. 1 FHful' blistH of wlm) eumo tearing through the rjimlut old Jlahlng town of Arlchat. making slgmj and shutters tremble nnd creak for m Instant, and thon silence thai driladful sllcnco-that sllcnco-that seemed lo still tiki very beating of one's heart. That night, Mario payed as though she wero pleading fir her soul: "O, Hoi Mother. plendTfor me. even as Ihou hadbt a Son," iwid then the Inn flood of tears fell fust, blinding and coichlng. and choklijV, tin, f u.a.t Words were vain; ling Hhe knell ho side her humble anil over ami over pleaded In lie mime wnjds. liTl' iuy l,cou7T e promise" of low masses to- bo siiii were made with .scarcely n knoivt-dge ,,r Wln', wns uttering Ihe f, "Save my I.eon " driving all olso IsKoro It. .. And outside, a she knelt, tu- wind moaned at theA-nseniont, . and ' tho gusts were coiuag fabtor and stronger strong-er now. Tho imbn. which had looke.i down llko n baul ball or flro tliiougli the mmky vTllow or iho upper sky had boon sfnllowed up , vm- black as I n l .' With n real sob Mario iohc ami looked Iron her door across thrv,wnslo of heavln waters. Twos Just across thoro thai l.aon had gone, his Jaunty" crart onioning unicefully as tho frosh hreozo sled Jjep on hor way; to night only thtf fltfttl gloam or a phosphor-oscent-clpped wove whs seen ns It roso alAve it8 fellows for n moment, nnd tlfn was lost in that nwful gloom "WBv should 1 fear?" Marie was" Iryln perpuade horself; "l,eon niiislb. far away now; out Of roach of this 'iuming storm" and then a sob woitfl c hoke her, and only "Holy Mothor. Moth-or. sh u t for me and my Leon." would Rlvjf h i ponce. U'llo Madam was shrouded In seoth Inf spray. The breakers were thun drlng at her guarding rocks. Ily nlghr the -world ws spray covered io world of L'Islo Madam. The sky ind the earth and tho eawere one had 8111 from the southeasT the atorm drov and all that nlht" As) In the morning of the seoond day the crash of breaking timber raliujted with tho boom of the might wavjes as they dashed ngalnst thi granite walls. People were hurrying towardb tin aur-beaten 0feorc. Hor Ions hair toss- 1 mg in tho madderrcfi breeze, M.,1. I 'rushed after them, in hor heart tk I cry that had been Ihoro for so m.! hours. "Holy Mother gave my I.eon'"r "Yes. yes; It s J.P Hretagne," o, man wns saying, slowly lowering k , I glass ns Mario came up to the gron: of iveople who wero strnlnlng (j,-. eyes seaward. "Her anchors are out - I ; he continued, "but she cannot Vc in I ! such A galo under thnt strain, and if I she parts her cablo she will Ro ;H pieces on the rocks.'' .B Ills words were scarcely atidib). ' above the shrieking of tho wind, hm I Mnrlo heard, nnd there, nmottif iho,., I roujl. flshermeii, ph Knlt nnd Wycf B over and over ngaln. out of thc chok! H Ing fullness of her heart, "Holy Mother bovo my Leon." Tho nwful solemnity I of tho sceno touched their rough I hearts, mid hats wero doffed, nnd bends bowed, as the) citing wife prajed I (o her God In that living gale. H And then, as If in mockery of things human, n mighty wave, might lor than any of Its follows, and fol- lowing In Ihe wnko of two scarcely I less mighty, bioko over tho llretngne I nnd burled her bencnth Its many tons' I of foam-lashfil wator. Tho vessel I swayed, trembled and disappeared b- fore tholr very eyes. H Two moil wero holding Marie now "I will go to him! Ho Is calling me'" I she shrinked. "O, God! will no one I save hi in?" H The bronzed faces of the llsherfolk I worc'v turned iiwny each from the other The salt spray was cm their beards, M hut in their eyes was lhat of which i hey wore nshamed. H Then they led her back lo the house, I the Utile house lhat Leon had tflkcri I her to only a few weeks ago. And two of Iheni wnlrhed Into the gray of tho hiornlng. for 'nenth oil skins the B Ushers' hearts aie warm. That wiw the third night, and still ' she slept not. Tho storm was dying H now. ami moaning, together they ,H parsed away the fury of grief and Ihe I rago of the storm. And for that day, H and for many days tho great grief had H biokon her mind. H Stonn nnd sunshine, day In nnd I day out, she sa,t down on Ihe beach, , H nnd questioned the pnsserH as to how many dnyn to ClirlstmnH till her Leon il would come home; for had he not snlil that ho would como at Christ H mas, at tho glad tlmo of the year, and I w.-ir not his word nn tho law amnhg I tho llshor-folk, It wns so true' And H did nho not pray every night to the .Holy Mother to Intercede for her. and . H bring her I.eon homo? And the masses that had been said for Leon, wero they not lo bring him home, I l'oor little .Mnrlo, her mind, which H was like unto n child's, could not un- B dcrstand that tho mass which Father fl Dupro hnd Bald, had been to take him B to that other home; for tho good fv B thcr had s:ld mans for tho repose of B tho souls of the men lying out there B In Lo Ilretngnc. . B And then a wonderful thing hap B pened. Many days after, nt Ihe time B of Christmas, again the cry of Le B llrrtnguo rang tliiougli the streets of fl Arlchnt; and again was thero much of B horror In tho cry, for though the 'ca B wns calm now, there was Le Ilretagne B slowly sailing Into port; and was not fl Lo Hretagno nt the bottom of ihe sea, M and nil hnuds drowned? M Small wonder thnt the browned B faces wero blatiqhed now. ns the B llsher-folk lined up on the sand, as V they had ou that day two moons be- fore. . I "What sorcery Is this?" iie asked ench other. II was La Hretagne, they lB know her an they know their own tj houses. Spirit hands were nailing her. for on her decks no ono mot oil. A solemn hush settled down tiKin them; few spoke, and when they did ! It was with bated breath. What evil I was this? for good It could not be. 'Twns Marie who hod llrst seen Ihe ship. Had her prayera worked tills mbgic? j Nearer and nearer the dteail ship cnnio, until but a short way out from the shore sho slopped, and swung to nn anchor. Invisible hnuds had an- . chored hor, for there w'as the cable ( right enough, running out from her , bow, ns sho lifted lazily to tho long ground swull. j "Tako mq to my Leon," Marie plead- ( fd of tho n'wo-slriick fishermen, "he Is ) calling me. Do you nol sea that his boats arc washed away?" Shamed by the presence of tho worn en, four stout llsliermen brought up a i boat, nnd, taking Mnrlo with them. i lowed tiff to tho ship that was like a j phantom , "Stay with ns, ma pet Ho anile," the llsherwoi'ueii pleaded with Marie. As j well had Ihey striven lo check ihe yj' y-xiL.lJjuaJiid, '. How silent tho ship was an tho boat j glided under hor stern! Not a sound. I not n volcu; no movonient. only the j lap. lap, lap of the waters nsalnst her wooden sides. Tlie men crossed themselves as Du- monl, tho bravest fisherman In all Arlchat, rose up, and, with blanched I cheeks, caught his boat hook In J.o ; Hretague's tall. How low sho was In tho water: a they stood up In tholr boat they could f .seo across her deck not ncross did f Ihey see. for half way they saw some j( thing which caused thoni to shudder. i and beg of llttlo Mnrle to stop In Hie , boat. f Hut Mario had risen and seen. too. and with a cry that rang In the ears i of 'thoso four meu until their dying . day, she sprang up tho side of the j ship, and stood'on tho slippery, slim) 1 deck. . j Her Ltipn was thoro, lashed to the j must. She threw hersolf upon his i poor bloated form. 1 Tho four understood. Diimont J looked down nn open hatch: "Her j salt Is gone!" ho exclaimed. ' That brief sentenco explained It all ( Sho had gone lo the ttshnrles loaded 1 "rfHTTlTir" THumT" "T!uT,IvilTeTTui,"j washed all tho salt oufof her hold, being a wooden ship, nho had floated. i ' dragging her oiip remaining anchor ( until It had caught In the good hold- , Ing ground near tho shore. Gently they llftou Mario away from her dead lover. , Christmas had come to Marie. The j Holy Mother had heard h'qr prayer. ' and she was with Leon. 11 And every Christmas since. In Arlchnt, u mass is said for tho reposo of the soul of llttlo Mnrle, and tho lover who rose from the sea to como to ser, even In death. |