TALES Of EARLY TIMES, No.—A WEDDING ANNIVERSARY PARTY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2661, 15 March 1905, Page 73

TALES Of EARLY TIMES, No.— A WEDDING ANNIVERSARY PARTY.

By T. E. Maxsard.

[All Rights Reserved.] John Angus had just finished a nard ■week's work. He had come in from grubtoiag a field of bush land, which was little more than a network of roots of all sizes and of all sorts. The stumps of the trees •were still there and still fresh, for it was not yet a year since he laid woodman's axe on the first tree that fell to the earth as the result of his efforts to clear away the primeval growth from the face of the rich piece of soil he had chosen for his operations. John Angus was an industrious man, thrifty in his ways, and' much respected for the integrity of Ms moral behaviour. When be landed amongst the pioneers of Otago he trcd on the untilled soil with a heart as resolute as that of a conquerer going into battle. And, to encourage him, there accompanied him his wife, who was a woman of dauntless courage, and possessed a happy, inspiring natuie that was proud to second the resolves and efforts of her strong-limbed husband 1 . During the year the two of them had made an opening in the virgin forest — I say the two of them, for she as well as he worked early and late to make a home for themselves " and their three children in the new town o* a new country. To look at Mrs Angus no one would have suggested she was strong. Nor was she, but she possessed that virtue that sometimes commands the power to do the deeds that will desires to have accomplished. She had hope, confidence, patience, and determination, while with it ali she regarded her husband as her general, from whom she neither needed nor got commands. There always seemed, to those who knew them, to be a genial spirit of confiding affection animating both of them, and they proceeded in all tilings so far at leapt as others knew — as if one spirit guided both, and yet with it all there was no effervescing show of any sentiment beyond a deep-seated conjugal respect. They lived thsir own lives ; and while- being in every wise way neighbourly, they kept their o^n counsel, and attended to their own affairs. Well, they had finished a week's toil, and were resting, as they seldom took time to do. The children had received the regular Saturday night bath, and were now comfortably bedded and sound a?leep, and the couple^were sitting in front of a cheery fire, and chatting on various items of interest, when Mrs Angus remarked : "Do you remember, John, what next Thursdtry is?" "How strange, Annie, that you should just get the 'coopar word of me there. I have been thinking of it most of the day." "We'll be £vrven years married that day, John. Ate you going to stand treat?" "What would ye like, Annie':" asked John Angus, with a twinkle in his eye. "Something out of the common — some kind of an outing. We can lock up the bouse and have a ramble, or go over and see the Todds across the bay." "That just reminds me, Annie : not long ago I met Mr Todd down at the waterside, and after a while's talk he was kind enough to offer to take, us for a sail In his, fine big life-boat some day. That would be something 'out of the common,' would it not?" "But would it not be imposing on their kindness? I would like nothing better than a nice sail, for we have never been on the water since we left the- ship. It "would indeed be a pleasant change ; but we must try not to presume on our friends." "He would not have said it if he hadi not meant it, wife. I'm sure Mr Todd ■was in earnest," replied John Angus, and it was arranged that he should see Mr Todd next Monday and accept the kind offer. The two men met, however, in the town on Monday, <when Mr Ajigus took advantage of the opportunity to remind Mr Todd of his proposal, and of his own desire. if now convenient for his friend, to accept the generosity, at the same time naming the day, andstating the reason for selecting it. "I shall be right glad, John," answered Todd. "Will ye .vant it all to yersel's. j for if no', it micht be possible to make j a bigger company ; but jist suit yer am wishes. I assure ye, ye're welcome." "Would you care to come wi' us, Mr Tod'i?" "INo' if ye think ye can dae better without us." "Nothing wad 1 mak' us sac prood as tae have your company," answered the grateful j Angus. : "I'll jist tell ye hoo it is. Angus. Kejnember, ye'r© welcome tae the boat wi' a , my hert/ but maybe we Jan kill twa dusrs wi' ac stane. It's this way. W« j bed settled oia that day for a sail oorsel's, , gin the weather sud be fire ; but we can pit that aff till anither time, unless the ' twa families can eang thegither. an' hae j a rale quid time o"t among oor am folk." | "Nothing could be better. Mr Todd. In- ' cteed, it's the heart of kindness in you ' that can make such a proposal." "Ye're lookin' at it through ros-v spec- . taeles, my dear man," replied Todd with , a little laugh. "Perhaps if ye fcen't me asw-eel's I ken mysel'. ye'd pee mair selfishness than kindness in what T say. D'ye no' see hoo ye'd heln me an' the bit laddies ■fcae manage the boat?" "And I scv> how sailing wi' you and ye'r laddies I'd "have pa^Est naething but plea- _ suvs .'*

j And) so the arrangements were com- ' pleted. But just as tliey wtre taking leave of eacli other there caiae past Jim Miller and his fost friend) Alec Cr.imond. to whom Angus, in the fulness of his gratitude, told what was to take place on the coming Thursday. "Have you not room for one or two more?" said Miller. "I could do nicely with such a day myself, and I believe so could Alec."' "Room? — lots o' room for five or six mair. Com,?, Jim, by all means, and you, too, ! Cramond'. The mair the merrier." ' And these two added other two to the number, so that in all th-e pleasure party j was made up to 16 persons, old and young. That evening the two women hvjld a conj ference to con&ider the ariangements for ! their share in the programme of event*;, ' for, as Mrs Todd remarked : j "There must be bread and butter, tea ' and 1 sugar, a kettle, cups and saucers, ', spoons, and knives and: forks. There would j need to be some meat — perhaps a bit roast of beef and a chicken or two — or a good big pie, and some cakes and scones." j The conclusion come to was that while Mrs ToJd. >vho had a reputation for bak- , ing, undertook the cakes, pies, and scones and the chickens, Mrs Angus would) see to ! the roast of beef, the tea and sugar, tho ', bread and butter ; and each family would provide their own cups, knives, spoons, i etc., and for two extra, as the young men were not supposed to do anything in that ; way. This simple division of labour, as you may suppose, caused a keen spirit of . rivalry. Although there could be no such j thing as a competition between them, each | wife, was on her mettle to produce the 1 very best she could. It was rivalry of the ! right kind, for such efforts bring out the i best points of both character and art. The- intervening days were a time of high expectancy for the children, through j whom the whole of the community came • to learn how the Anguses were going to ; have "Tod'd"s life-boat" for a day on the water tc celebrate the anniveisary of their wedding, for to the young people of both families there was something novel, somei thing even unique, in &uch a combinal tion and such an outing ; they spoke of it in a demonstrative way to all their chums at school, and all these chums told! it to their other chums, and all andi sundry of them related it in their homes. This was one method of spreading news in primitive times before the daily newspaper came into vogue as tfee general enlightener on all subjects, grave or frivolous. j Mr Todd had become quite enthusaistic in his department, and had devoted much time to making Iris boat comfortable for his guests. He had given it a new coat of paint inside and outside, had seen that eveiy part of her sail gear was in good order, and had placed several bars of pig , iron in the lower extremities as ballast, ! and satisfied himself that nothing was wanti ing on his part to provide against any emergency that might occur, although he had no apprehension that there w ould be anything but the most commonplace . weather. Ind-eed, ii had been his fortune ! never to ■experience anything out of the | common calm weather or steady breeze on any occasion, so far, when he had' besn out with his fine life-boat Ibft he h.ul ■ rigged up with an easily-managed suit of sails. When he left her floating at her moorings on Wednesday night, just as the j , gloaming was deepening into darkness, it j was with a feeling of pioud satisfaction that he looked forward to the pleasures of I the coming day. The morning of the day broke with a ] calm sea and a still sky. There was a i little and short -lived! redness of a dark j j hue just before sunrise, but, generally { j speaking, the indications of the morning , gave promise of ordinary weather for the j succeeding hours of that day. We liacl j ' then no Captain Edwin at Hie head of J a weather bureau in Wellington, who gave ; i notice to all important centres of what I 1 sort of weather might be expected during I the following 48 hours ; nor had we a ! local Paulin who might be appealed to in j such cases. Every man had' to be his j own weather guide, and 1 study the appear1 ances of things fiom. his own experience of local conditions and atmospheric changes. Hence, in our early days, we were not , without some sad and melancholy boating ! I catastrophes, when parties went out on ! j the treacherous water for pleasure trips. J I However, there was nothing in all the j [ surroundings of this auspicious morning to , , warrant the suspicion of anything but most favourable weather and a real good time, and all hearts were elate with the pros- | , pect of perfect enjoyment. About 8 ! o'clock a gentle breeze sprang up from , the north-east, and this gave further con- { firmation to the hopes and expectations ; j and 1 by 9 all the Toddls were aboard, with the exception of Archie, who usually acted { as captain, being a smart lad of about I 14, and quite a man in his knowledge of ! how to manage a boat under sail, having grown to it for the pa&t few years. He, however, from some reason, could not join the party, but all the rest were there, and ( the boat was soon under way, heading for ''Monson's Point," where the Anguses were to be picked up. On arrival, this part of the contingent was found waiting on the | bank of the Water of Leith, just where tlie I wire bridge now spans it. The boat was ; carefully navigated through the serpentine channel" which was intersected with nnin- , berless snags, and at last lay safely, broad- j side to the bank, receiving the second batch j of her passengeis. with all the baskets of j food, crockery, etc.. for the refreshments of the day that fell to Mrs Angus' s lot to provide. J Getting out of the entrance to the Water of Leith was more difficult, as the wind was blowing straight in. and losing hr>d to be resorted to. But in a little while this was accomplished ; then sail was once again hoisted, and tracks were made for the little pier, roughly built of stones, near the bite of the present Police Station,

v. here the four young m>n joined tl)3 parry, and then rlic outing in earnest began, as they unmoor, d and headed for Ar.dCiSO.Vs Bay. while quite a little croud of well-wishers bade them '"bon voyage," and waved their handkerchiefs r,.<- the lestive company departed to beat d'.nvn the harbour with a beautiful light bicc j .:<i against them. The day grew even more enjoyable as it became old'-r ; the sun shone out with & brilliant lustre, -while the sky was just flecked with light, sihery clouds that seemed to gather and' dissolve in a manner almost imperceptible and slow, but never for five minutes presenting just the same aspect to the watchful eye. It was wh;>t might be called a lazy dny, during which even the wavelets of the haibour chafed eimh other with a listless movement, and the leaves on the trees seemed to be too weary to flicker in the sunshine. Such a day could not be- improved upon for an enjoyable sail for women and children in an open boat. By neon the spot determined on as the landing plao-e was reached. It was a cosy little nook, long ago obliterated by the hand of civilisation in the construction of roads and railways, not far below the town of Raven&b-ourne. The water was d'-'cp enough to float the boat up alongside ths rocks, over which the brushwood and tree branches dipped into the tide wher it was high, and the waves laved the roots of th.? forest where the limpid stream came dancinc: down its sleep descent to the music of birds, and lost itself • in the gieat waters of the sea, after having rushedi clown its sylvan course from near the summit of Signal Hill. Xot far from the beach there was a beautiful little glade on one side of the stream, -while on the other side was the dv-mse bush of black pines, broadleaves, kahi-katoas, maple, ferntrees, supplejacks, briars, and hunch^ds of other trees and plants, such as the pigeon, kaka. tui, and others of our native biids, now no longer even sought for in this part of the country, delighted to disport in. On this pleasant spot, where one hadi all the charms of undefaced Nature to excite ths happiest sentiments, wps the campfire lit, the cloth spread, and"-a delightful, select, and secluded picnic was held. Here were displayed and tested the handilwork of the two matrons of the day, when both vision and appetite were thoroughly satisfied by the show of taste, the ample supply, ! and the excellency of the productions, j Botli women were gratened by the un- j stinted awords of certificates of special men- j tion unanimously granted. "After having spent about two bmirs ashore, all things were packed up and again placed on board the boat, into which the happy picnickers re-entered. The moorings, which were merely the painter | tied round a pine tree, were undone, and j in a few minutes the whole company found j themselves over on the opposite bank of . the channel, where the anchor was dropped j and the boat ran up, stern on, to the cockle bank. -Shoes and stockings were then pulled off. and men, women, and children were enjoying themselves wading auout on th* 1 sand, and filling baskets with cockles. When the tide began to flow things were got ready for a return home, and <rood progress was made tip as far as Black Jack's Point, the wind having gone round to Ibe south-east, but here it went furtner round to south, for a little while, but still a very light breez?, until this almost went down to a calm, and the boat did little more than answer her helm. Hall an hour or so of this weatlvr was whiled away by some membeis of the party relating their own personal experiences on the water, in boats or in ships. It was interesting to sit there in a becalmed state, while the flood tide was moving them forwaid, and) listen to what some had endured from the wildness of the tempest, the raging of mountainous billows, the terror of "white squalls," and | perilous escapes from the dangers of the j deep. It was just when John Neil was calling up ?I1 the horrors ot a dreadful storm of three days" duration experienced by him in an "old hulk" while crossing the "Bay of Biscay," that young Willie Todiu, who, in the absence of his elder brother, was always steersman, suggested quietly to his father that there was a had breeze coming down from the south-west . For this watchfulness he was severely reprimanded, and the story went on as before without any heed being taken ot the "officious" warning. The young steersman's eves were full of anxious watchfulness as he kept looking up Mornington way, and observed a dark, hairy c'oud playing fantastic apers not far from the horizon, with still darker and' more angry clouds in the rear of the signalling one. He grew still more serious as he contemplated the wind coming over Look-out Point and raising a cloud of dust fiom amongst the grass and scrubb, and the whole careering down on the harbour. But the snub just received made him afraid to speak for a little while, until he beheld the effect of the- wind) on the water at "the jetty."' He. then ventured once more to warn his father that they should be jjrepared for what was coming, only to be more severely censured, and told to "mind his own work." In less than two minutes his feelings were worked up to the daring point when he said, "Fi'ther, may I put her head up to the wind?" "You will do as I tell you, and wait fo>- mv oid'ars, "or I'll duck you in the water,'' was the answer he received. The squall was now less than 300 yaids off, and, indeed, the boat was alivaciv j feeling ths influence of the atmospheric | pressure, and was moving faster, but the story of the Bay of Biscay continued. Down came the spiav-liftino v, md usht on the broad side of the boat, and all sail was set. It had rome within a hundred) ! yards, when "Willie could endure it no , longer. He dare not disobey his fath. r, j for lie was net yet 10 years old, hut one

' thing he conkl cio. white fpray "was riLiny in mabsfcb irom tne water nov clo i .c to the w outlier s cL-, ■wh.'ii Willie, without a void, let go t he shoots of the main and mizzen sails; that of the mainsail fiew ln a niomer.t fiom his control : that of ihe linz;. n lv lieid on :iie cleat .tfter cay ni^, it civ ay fir euoujh to 1-et it flip in the v incTi Ho had no sooner done tins i than tlie fury of the squall struck the boat, and in a nioinent her itL 1 - gunwul.. 1 was submerged, bur just as it went under the ' water the mainmast went by the thwart, 1 falling head fir-t oveiboaid, on which the boat righted 1. -Tself, but biinging m ith ivi a larg^ quantity of Wdter. Thus, just by , the nairowest pos&ible chance, tlie safety of that living fright was assured. j Then iheic vreie blanched faces and . anxious Icoks of consternation, if not of ul. solute tenor. he heroes of the Bay of Biscay three days' storm, of aie "white squall in the Indian Ocean, and various diverse and marvellous perils of the sea sprang like m.on suddenly piesented in the face with a muzzle end of a sixchambered revolver, to tlie weather side of the Eliza, and, in their panic, seized j th." gunwale as if it could save their prej ckms lives. Of course this action was only j the S2oasmodic impul.se of a weak selfishness ' to put in force some plan of individual preservation. For the time being all r.pI peared to bo deprived th.; power ot speech, and of prompt, reasonable action, except the young 'steersman, who in a moment, realising the state of afi'aiis, haukd in the m zzen sh. -et as tight as his boyish strength would! enable him to do, and called out, "Will someon.o get out the anchor !"' The salt spray was by this time drifting ovei them in drenching torrents, and the wind was a high-pressure gale, in which it was impossible to a?e more than two or, at the most, three boat lengths, and confusion ie>igned in the erstwhile happy j)leasure party, that had so closely escaped a "death by drowning," and no one responded to th.? steersman's appeal, even when made a second) time. By this time he had succeeded, through his use of the mizsen and the sea-anchor efi'ect of the mast and sails that went overboard, in bringing her head into the wind, and seeing that no one would risk himself in the bow of the boat to drop the anchor, he belayed his niizzen sheet and sprang to the fore sheets himself, and, in th-e face of severe buffeting from wind and water, dropped the ' anchor, and cautiously paid out the cable | until all was in, good' order. His next act I was to leap aft and lower the mizzen. This accomplished, lie felt that all tlie rest could be left for a more favourable time, so he sat again af his post, tiller in hand, to watch the effects of the storm | on his frail craft. ; The women folk and the children had behaved with oiiiet good sense, and) were like persons prepared to meet whatever should befall them with calmness nd fortitude, or else they were so overcome with the sudden onset' of the squall that they liad lost all power of action. However, when the anchor held hex h.~ad to the wind, and things seemed a lit!I? more ordorly, the blood returned to redden the ( cheeks and dash the aspect of terror from the countenances. But still the squall raged' on, and the cpiay rose fiom tf:e ■« atei in j clouds, to fall hk° salt lain in deluges, ! drenching all on whom it came, rendering i it impossible for to. 1 ey«? to penetrate more than a cable's length in any direction. The first effects of the fright having pa&sed away, Mr Todd called on all hands to aici him in hauling tlie most and sails out of the water. This took a few minutes, but was ultimately accomplished, and then the task of "baling out"' -was undertaken at which all the six men worked with good will, but Willie remained at his station. Tli-jy had got on well v. ith the baling, when Willie divew iittentioii to a towering daik object, evidantly coming dbwn upon them from Avirdwai'd. "Slip the chain!" he ciied, in the voice and inn liner of a young commander. But instead of ''slipping the chain " all the men wanted to know what th-e big black object could be, and. by shading their eyes with their hands, they tried to d-escry what was so x'udely bearing down on them. With a bound *orwardi and p. scieam of disgust, Willie informed them : 'it's the Gil Bias J We'll be crushed !" In a. second bis knife was out, and the small rope that bound the chain to the ringbolt was cut, and the Eliza began to drift in time to avoid a fatal collision. The brig Gil Bias had been lying at her moorings, off Grant's Braes, when the squall struck her. Her iable had parted with the force of the jerk, and the unmanageable vessel, being at the mercy of the wind, came drifting down as described, and continued to do so until she took the ground a little below where the Eliza had to slip her anchor to clear her. In less than half an hour the squall was over, to be followed by a heavy downpour of rain, in which the miserable pleasure party, betaking themselves to the oars, after hard labour succeeded l in regaining the starting point of the morning, never, dur- . ing the terms of their natural lives, to forget ths Anguses' wedding anniversary.