Mary T. Waggaman

“ Wirt at last, as if he had been having thoughts of his own, “I am a derelict, my boy.”
“What’s that?” asked Dan, who had never heard the word before.
“A ship adrift, abandoned by captain and crew,—a wreck that tosses on the sea, a peril to all that come near it. There is nothing a good sailor dreads more than a derelict, and he makes it his business to sink it promptly whenever he can.” ”

“ And Freddy sobbed outright as he was clasped in those dear, strong arms, held tight to the loving heart. “How did God tell you where to come for me, dear Uncle Tom?—Daddy, daddy look up,—look up! It’s Uncle Tom!”
And what daddy felt as he looked up into that old friend’s face, what Uncle Tom felt as he looked down on the “derelict” that had drifted so far from him, no one can say; for there was no time for words or wonderment. Life-savers can not stop to think, much less to talk. Daddy was caught up by two or three big fellows, without any question, while Uncle Tom looked out for Freddy. ”

“ Dan had never seen such a midnight sky. He lay, with his head pillowed in his clasped hands, looking up at the starry splendor above him with a wonder akin to awe. The great, blue vault arching above him blazed with light from a myriad stars, that his books had told him were worlds greater than this on whose wide waters he was tossing now,—worlds whose history the wisest of men could never know,—worlds, thousands and millions of them, moving in shining order by “rule and law.” ”

“ And, as Brother Bart had no fear of danger on the “Lady Jane,” Dan entered on all the privileges of his position. While Freddy and Dud and Jim took possession of the sheltered cabin, and the dignity of the Padre (so it seemed to Captain Jeb) demanded the state and privacy of the Captain’s room, Dan swung his hammock up on deck, where it swayed delightfully in the wind, while the stout awnings close-reefed in fair weather gave full view of the sea and the stars. ”

“ He ought to be out in his own rough world, working his own rough way. All those fancies of 37 his for better, higher things had been only “pipe dreams.”
But jing, it would be hard to give up! Dan looked out at the quadrangle where he had led so many a merry game; at the ball field, scene of battle and victory that even Dud Fielding could not dispute; at the long stretch of the study hall windows opposite; at the oriel of the chapel beyond. All spoke to him of a life that had been like air and sunshine to a plant stretching its roots and tendrils in the dark. ”

“ They were out on the smooth stretch of beach, where daddy, growing strong and well fast, spent most of his time, stretched out in one of Great-uncle Joe’s cushiony chairs; while Roy and Rex crouched contentedly at his feet, or broke into wild frolic with Freddy on the rocks or in the sea. “I hope so; though I’m afraid I don’t know much about making a home, my little Boy Blue!” ”

“ They went far out beyond shoal and reef; beyond Numskull Nob (whose light was still blinking faintly in the glow of the sunrise) , into deep waters, where the fishing fleet could be seen already at work in the blue distance hauling up big catches of cod, halibut, and other game.
“That ain’t fishing!” growled old Neb. “It’s durned mean killing.”
“And isn’t all fishing killing?” asked Dan, as they flung out their own lines.
“No,” said Neb. “When you cast a line, or a harpoon even, you give critters a chance; but them durned pirates thar don’t give a fish no chance at all.” ”

“ He has been lost so long, but now he has come back. Oh, try to say it with me, 253 daddy: you have come back to be good,—to live good and live right forever!”
And then, even while Freddy prayed, the storm burst upon Last Island. And such a storm! It seemed as if the derelict lying there had roused wind and wave into destructive fury against the friendly outpost that sheltered him. Last Island had been abandoned on account of its perilous exposure; and its beacon light, shattered again and again by fierce ocean gales, was transferred to a safer shore. ”

“ But it’s a lonely time laddie’s poor father will be having, after all his wild wanderings; and it will be hard for him to keep house and home. But the Lord is good. Maybe it was His hand that led Miss Stella here.”
“Oh, what will we do when she is gone, daddy?” mourned Freddy. “Of course you are getting well now, and Dan and I can wait on you and get you broth and jelly; but it won’t be like having dear Miss Stella. Oh, I just love her! Don’t you, daddy? She is almost as good as a real mother.” ”

“ Rex!—He’ll starve to death if we leave him here.”
“Oh, he will,—he will!” said Freddy, wofully. “Come back, Rex, old fellow, nice dog,—come back!”
Freddy whistled and called in vain: Rex had vanished into the thick undergrowth.
“Oh, let’s go for him,—let’s go for him, Dan!” pleaded Freddy. “Maybe he is after a wild duck or something. We ought not to let a fine dog like that get lost and starve to death. One of the deck hands on the steamboat told me those dogs were worth a hundred dollars a piece, and that they had more sense than some humans.” ”

“ Most of the Saint Andrew’s boys were manly youngsters, with whom jackets and shoes did not count against brain and brawn; and strong, clever, quick-witted Dan had held his place in schoolroom and playground unquestioned. But there were exceptions, and Dud Fielding was one of them. He had disliked the “poor scholar” from the first. Dud was a tall, handsome fellow, filled with ideas of his own importance; and Dan had downed him more than once in field and class-room, to his great disgust. ”

“ The beans and peas and corn,—all things that had lifted their green growth too proudly, were crushed to the earth. But far worse than this was the havoc wrought on the beach. One half of the wharf was down. The small boats, torn from their moorings, had disappeared entirely. The motor boat Jim and Dud had hired for the season was stove in upon the rocks. The “Sary Ann,” stranded upon the shoals of Numskull Nob, to which she had been swept by the gale, lay without mast or rudder, leaking at every joint. ”

“ Some of these islands, more sheltered than Killykinick, were fringed with a thick growth of hardy evergreens, hollowed into coves and inlets, where the waves, broken in their wild, free sweep, lapped low-shelving shores and invited gentle adventure.
On one of these pleasant outposts was the college camp; and half a dozen pretty girl graduates, in “middies” and khaki skirts, came down to meet Dan. One of them led a big, tawny dog, who made a sudden break for the boat, nearly overturning Freddy in his leap, and crouching by Dan’s side, whining and shivering. ”

“ And the voice—the song of the sea—that had been a very lullaby to Dan as he swung every night in his hammock beneath the stars, had a hoarse, fierce tone, like a sob of passion or pain. Altogether, Dan and his boat had a very hard pull over the three miles to Killykinick.
“Thar they come!” said Captain Jeb, who, with Brother Bart, was watching from the beach. “I told you you could count on Mate Dan, Padre. Thar the lads come, safe and sound; though they hed a pull against the wind, I bet. But here they come all right.” ”

“ IV.—Aunt Winnie.
It was a delighted Dan that bounded down the broad staircase and took a flying leap from the stone portico of the great hall door.
“Hello!” said Jim Norris, who was lazily stretched on the grass, reading. “Is that a jump or a kick out?”
“A jump,” answered Dan, grinning: “though I was primed for the other, sure. How is Dudey’s nose?”
“Coming down,” said Jim, who was an easy-going mixer, whom everybody liked. “About the size and shape of a spring radish to-day. My, but he’s hot against you, Dan! Look out for him! Snake in the grass is nothing to Dud Fielding on the boil. ”

“ But you can’t sail the boat alone, kid.” 243
“No, I can’t,” faltered Freddy,—“I can’t sail the boat, Dan; but—but” (the young voice steadied bravely) “I can stay here with him.”
“You can!” echoed Dan, staring at his little chum in amazement. “You’d scare to death, kid, here all alone with a dying man. He is likely to go off any minute.”
“Maybe,” faltered Freddy. “But—but I’d stay by him all the same, Dan. I can bathe his head and his hands, and give him water to drink, and say prayers like Brother Bart says we must when people are dying. O Dan, we can’t leave him here to die alone!” ”

“ How long he slept, Freddy did not know; but it was long enough for the wind to lull, the skies to brighten, the black clouds to break and scatter before the golden glory of the summer sun. The wide lookout window had been thrown open, and showed a glorious rainbow spanning the western sky. ”

“ The day was bright and beautiful, sky and sea seemed smiling on each other most amicably. The “Sary Ann” was in the best of spirits, and the wind in the friendliest of moods.
“Sit steady, boys, and don’t be philandering!” warned Brother Bart, anxiously. “It looks fair and aisy enough, but you can drown in sun as well as 158 storm. Keep still there, laddie, or ye’ll be over the edge of the boat. Sure it’s an awful thing to think that there’s only a board between ye and the judgment-seat of God.” ”

“ Is it still standing?” she said, turning to Dan.
“I—I don’t know, ma’am,” stammered Dan, who found the gleam of the gold lorgnettes most confusing.
“What does he say?” asked the old lady sharply.
“That he does not know, mother dear!” answered dad.
“He should know,” said the old lady, severely. “The young people are growing up in these careless days without any proper sentiment to the past. A home like Dolan Hall, with its memories and traditions, should be a pride to all of the Dolan blood. ”

“ If old Jack were here, I’d pension him, as you say, and fling in a little extra for his grog and his pipe. Old Jack could have counted on me for four or five hundred a year. But a sturdy, strapping young chap like yours is worth a dozen groggy old salts. So name your figure, my lady. I have money to burn, as you say. Name your figure, dear lady, and I’ll invest in your boy.”
“Old Jack’s pension, then, Captain Carleton,—old Jack’s pension for Aunt Winnie and Dan,—old Jack’s pension, and nothing more.” ”

“ And as they sailed or rowed or loitered by beach and shore, Miss Stella drew from Aunt Winnie’s boy the hopes and fears he could not altogether hide. 302 She learned how Aunt Winnie was “pining” for her home and her boy; she read the letters, with their untold love and longing; she saw the look on the boyish face when Dan, too mindful of his promise to Father Mack to speak plainly, said he ‘reckoned she wouldn’t be here long if he didn’t get her somehow home.’ She learned, too, all Dan could tell about poor old Nutty’s medal. ”

“ Numbskull Nob, jutting up from a hidden reef, over which a line of white-capped breakers was booming thunderously, seemed to justify the presence of the modern light that warned off closer approach to the island; for the stretch of water that lay between was a treacherous shoal where many a good ship had stranded in years gone by, when Killykinick was only a jagged ledge of rock where the sea birds nested and man had no place. But things had changed now. A rude but sturdy breakwater made a miniature harbor in which several small boats floated at their moorings ”

“ And, chatting on pleasantly of the Captain’s last winter in the hospital, they glanced over old Jonah’s stock until something of interest caught the sailor’s eye.
“By George! How in thunder did this get here?”
“A find,—a real find, Captain?” asked Miss Stella. “What is it?”
“A medal,” he answered,—“a medal awarded for ‘Brave and faithful service on the “Reina Maria” sixty years ago.’” (He was scanning the bronze disc as he spoke) ,—“‘Juan Farley.’ Good Lord! Yes, poor old Jack! I wonder how he lived and died? And what in Heaven’s name is his medal doing here?” ”

“ Aunt Winnie sank her voice to a whisper, and nodded cautiously towards the nearest old lady. “She do be listening, lad. I’ve told them all of the grand, great college ye’re at, and the fine, bright lad ye are, but I’ve told them nothing more. 49 Ye’re not to play the poor scholar here.”
“Oh, I see!” said Dan, grinning. “Go on with your game then, Aunt Win.”
“I’m not looking to be remembered,” Aunt Winnie continued dolefully. “What with all the French and Latin ye have to study, and the ball playing that you’re doing. I can’t look for you to think of a poor lone lame woman like me.” ”

“ With the strange sense of treading in an unreal world, Dan passed on with the rest of the chattering, laughing crowd to the pretty, rustic wharf jutting out into the waters, and up to 211 the steep, narrow street where carriages were waiting to take them to the Forester home. The wide grounds and gardens were already gay with the gathering guests. Pretty, flower-decked tables were set in the maze. The trees were hung with Japanese lanterns, that a little later would glow into jewelled lights. There was a group of “grown-ups” on the porch,—mamma, beautiful in cloudy white ”

“ Dan looked up and saw the big grizzled stranger in corduroy gazing at the splendor of the western sky. 90
“Yes, sir,” answered Dan. “It’s great! Are we out at sea now?”
“Almost,” was the reply. “Not in the full swell yet, but this is our last sight of land.” He nodded to a promontory where the delicate lines of a lighthouse were faintly pencilled against the sunset.
“Jing!” said Dan, drawing a long breath, “it feels queer to be leaving earth and sun and everything behind us.” ”

“ So Father Tom had gone in search of a nurse, leaving Freddy and Brother Bart watching by the sick bed; while Dan, who as second mate was assisting his chief officers to right and repair the “Sary Ann,” listened with a heavy heart to the old salt’s prognostications.
“He won’t last the day out,” declared Captain Jeb. “Blue about the gills already! But, Lord, what could you expect, doused and drenched and shaken up like he was yesterday? It will be hard on the little chap, who was so glad to get his father back. ”

“ VI.—Father Mack.
“Give up Saint Andrew’s!” repeated Father Mack in a low, startled voice. “You, Dan! Give up! Oh, no, my boy,—no!”
“Aunt Winnie will die if I don’t,” blurted out Dan, despairingly. “Pete Patterson says so. And I can take her home and give her back her little rooms over Mulligans’, and the blue teapot and Tabby, and everything she loves. And Pete says I can work up to be his partner.”
“His partner,—his partner! In what?” asked Father Mack, anxiously.
“Meat business,” answered Dan. “He’s made money, and he’s going in for it big,—corning, smoking, sausage, everything. ”

“ Poor old Neb was too dull-witted for business; but customers far from markets watched eagerly for the merry blue-eyed boy who brought fish, “still kicking,” for their early breakfast,—clams, chaps, and lobsters, whose freshness 228 was beyond dispute. Neb’s old leather wallet began to fill up as it had never been filled before. And the dinners that were served on the “Lady Jane,” the broiled, the baked, the fried fish dished up in rich plenty every day, shook Brother Bart’s allegiance to Irish stews, and, as he declared, “would make it aisy for a heretic to keep the Friday fast forever.” ”

“ But, though the storm blew over, as such springtime storms will, Dan had learned a lesson, and felt that he never again wished to venture on the dizzy heights where wise heads turn and strong feet falter. Though Dud and Jim, who both had pocket money in plenty, made arrangements at the Boat Club for the use of a little motor boat several times a week, Dan held his own line as second mate at Killykinick, and was contented to share old Neb’s voyaging. They went out often now; for, under the old sailor’s guidance, Dan was becoming an expert fisherman. ”

“ Dan looked up from his hammering on the “Sary Ann” in quick protest against such false doctrine. “A man isn’t like a ship: he has a soul. And that’s the main thing, after all. If you save your soul, it doesn’t make much difference about your body. And drifting ashore right here has saved the soul of Mr. Wirt (or Mr. Neville, as we must call him now) ; for he was lying over on Last Island, feeling that there was no hope for him in heaven or on earth. And then Freddy came to him, and Father Tom, and he turned to God for pardon and mercy ”

“ And then a big Japanese gong sounded the call to the flower-decked tables, where busy waiters were soon serving a veritable fairy feast. There were cakes of table-size and shape and color; little baskets and boxes full of wonderful bonbons; nuts sugared and glazed until they did not seem nuts at all; ice-cream birds in nests of spun sugar; “kisses” that snapped into hats and wreaths and caps. And all the while the band played, and the jewelled lights twinkled, and the stars shone far away above the arching trees. ”

“ In all his experience as second mate, Dan had never before met so trying a breeze; and it was growing fresher and stronger and more trying every minute. To beat back to Beach Cliff against its vagaries, our young navigator felt would be beyond his skill. The only thing he could do was to take the shorter course of about three miles to Killykinick, and send off Jim and Dud in their rented boat (which had a motor) for a doctor. Then he could explain Freddy’s absence to Brother Bart, and hurry back to his little chum. ”