A LITTLE MAID OF OLD MAINE
CHAPTER I
A LIBERTY POLE
Anna and Rebecca Weston, carrying a big basket between them, ran alongthe path that led from their home to the Machias River. It was apleasant May morning in 1775, and the air was filled with the fragranceof the freshly cut pine logs that had been poled down the river in bigrafts to be cut into planks and boards at the big sawmills. The river,unusually full with the spring rains, dashed against its banks as ifinviting the little girls to play a game with it. Usually Anna andRebecca were quite ready to linger at the small coves which crept in sonear to the footpath, and sail boats made of pieces of birch-bark, withalder twigs for masts and broad oak leaves for sails. They named theseboats _Polly_ and _Unity_, after the two fine sloops which carriedlumber from Machias to Boston and returned with cargoes of provisionsfor the little settlement.
But this morning the girls hurried along without a thought for suchpleasant games. They were both anxious to get to the lumber yard as soonas possible, not only to fill their basket with chips, as their motherhad bidden them, but to hear if there were not some news of the _Polly_,the return of which was anxiously awaited; for provisions were gettingscarce in this remote village, and not until the _Polly_ should comesailing into harbor could there be any sugar cakes, or even bread madeof wheat flour.
As they hurried along they heard the cheerful whistle of Mr. WordenFoster, the blacksmith, who was just then taking a moment of well-earnedleisure in the door of his shop, and stood looking out across the quietwaters of the river and harbor. As the girls came near he noddedpleasantly, but did not stop whistling. People in Machias declared thatthe blacksmith woke up in the morning whistling, and never stoppedexcept to eat. And, indeed, his little daughter Luretta said that whenher father wanted a second helping of anything at the table he wouldwhistle and point toward it with his knife; so it might be said thatMr. Foster whistled even at his meals.
"There's Father! There's Father!" Anna called out as they passed a bigpile of pine logs and came to where stacks of smooth boards just fromthe sawmill shut the river from sight.
"Well, Danna, do you and Rebby want your basket filled with goldenoranges from sunny Italy and dates from Egypt? Or shall it be withBrazilian nuts and ripe pineapples from South America?"
"Oh, Father! Say some more!" exclaimed Anna, laughing with delight; forshe never tired of hearing her father tell of the wonderful fruits offar-off lands that he had seen in his sailor days, before he came tolive in the little settlement of Machias, in the Province of Maine, andmanage the big sawmill.
"Father, tell us, is the _Polly_ coming up the bay?" Rebecca askedeagerly. She had a particular reason for wanting the sloop to reachharbor as soon as possible, for her birthday was close at hand, and herfather had told her that the _Polly_ was bringing her a fine gift; butwhat it was Rebecca could not imagine. She had guessed everything from agold ring to a prayer-book; but at every guess her father had onlysmilingly shook his head.
"No sign of the _Polly_ yet, Rebby," Mr. Weston replied.
Rebecca sighed as her father called her "Rebby," and a little frownshowed itself on her forehead. She was nearly fourteen, and she haddecided that neither "Rebecca" nor "Rebby" were names that suited her.Her middle name was "Flora," and only that morning Anna had promised notto call her by any other name save Flora in future.
Mr. Weston smiled down at Rebecca's serious face.
"So 'tis not spices from far Arabia, or strings of pink coral, thismorning," he continued, taking the basket, "but pine chips. Well, comeover here and we will soon fill the basket," and he led the way to wheretwo men were at work with sharp adzes smoothing down a big stick oftimber.
In a few minutes the basket was filled, and the little girls were ontheir way home.
"Would it not be a fine thing, Rebby, if we could really fill our basketwith pineapples and sweet-smelling spices?" said Anna, her brown eyeslooking off into space, as if she fancied she could see the wonderfulthings of which her father spoke; "and do you not wish that we were bothboys, and could go sailing off to see far lands?"
"Anna! Only this morning you promised to call me 'Flora,' and now it is'Rebby,' 'Rebby.' And as for 'far lands'--of course I don't want to seethem. Have you not heard Father say that there were no more beautifulplaces in all the world than the shores of this Province?" respondedRebecca reprovingly. She sometimes thought that it would have been farbetter if Anna had really been a boy instead of a girl; for the youngergirl delighted to be called "Dan," and had persuaded her mother to keepher brown curls cut short "like a boy's"; beside this, Anna cared littlefor dolls, and was completely happy when her father would take her withhim for a day's deep-sea fishing, an excursion which Rebecca could neverbe persuaded to attempt. Anna was also often her father's companion onlong tramps in the woods, where he went to mark trees to be cut fortimber. She wore moccasins on these trips, made by the friendly Indianswho often visited the little settlement, and her mother had made her ashort skirt of tanned deerskin, such as little Indian girls sometimeswear, and with her blue blouse of homespun flannel, and round cap with apartridge wing on one side, Anna looked like a real little daughter ofthe woods as she trotted sturdily along beside her tall father.
As the sisters passed the blacksmith shop they could hear the ringingstroke on the anvil, for Mr. Foster had returned to his work ofhammering out forks for pitching hay and grain; these same forks whichwere fated to be used before many months passed as weapons against theenemies of American liberty.
"To-morrow I am to go with Father to the woods," announced Anna as theycame in sight of the comfortable log cabin which stood high above theriver, and where they could see their mother standing in the doorwaylooking for their return. The girls waved and called to their mother asthey hurried up the path.
"We have fine chips, Mother," called Rebecca, while Anna in a sing-songtone called out: "Pineapples and sweet-smelling spices! Strings of pinkcoral and shells from far lands."
Rebecca sighed to herself as she heard Anna's laughing recital of theirfather's words. She resolved to ask her mother to forbid Anna talkingin future in such a silly way.
"You are good children to go and return so promptly," said Mrs. Weston,"but you are none too soon, for 'twill take a good blow with the bellowsto liven up the coals, and I have a fine venison steak to broil fordinner," and as she spoke Mrs. Weston took the basket and hurried intothe house, followed by the girls.
"Mother, what is a 'liberty pole'?" questioned Anna, kneeling on thehearth to help her mother start the fire with the pine chips.
"What dost thou mean, child? Surely the men are not talking of suchmatters as liberty poles?" responded her mother anxiously.
Anna nodded her head. "Yes, Mother. There is to be a 'liberty pole' setup so it can be well seen from the harbor, for so I heard Mr. O'Briensay; and Father is to go to the woods to-morrow to find it. It is to bethe straightest and handsomest sapling pine to be found in a day'sjourney; that much I know," declared Anna eagerly; "but tell me why isit to be called a 'liberty pole'? And why is it to be set up so it canbe well seen from the harbor?"
"Thou knowest, Anna, that King George of England is no longer the truefriend of American liberty," said Mrs. Weston, "and the liberty pole isset up to show all Tories on land or sea that we mean to defend ourhomes. And if the men are talking of putting up the tree of liberty inMachias I fear that trouble is near at hand. But be that as it may, ourtalking of such matters will not make ready thy father's dinner. Blazeup the fire with these chips, Anna; and thou, Rebby, spread the table."
Both the girls hastened to obey; but Anna's thoughts were pleasantlyoccupied with the morrow's excursion when she would set forth with herfather to discover the "handsome sapling pine tree," which was to beerected as the emblem of the loyalty of the Machias settlement toFreedom's call. Anna knew they would follow one of the Indian trailsthrough the forest, where she would
see many a wild bird, and that theday would be filled with delight.
But Rebecca's thoughts were not so pleasant. Here it was the fifth ofMay, and no sign of the _Polly_, and on the tenth she would be fourteen;and not a birthday gift could she hope for unless the sloop arrived.Beside this, the talk of a liberty pole in Machias made her anxious andunhappy. Only yesterday she had spent the afternoon with her mostparticular friend, Lucia Horton, whose father was captain of the_Polly_; and Lucia had told Rebecca something of such importance, aftervowing her to secrecy, that this talk of a liberty pole reallyfrightened her. And the thought that her own father was to select itbrought the danger very near. She wished that Lucia had kept the secretto herself, and became worried and unhappy.
Rebecca was thinking of these things, and not of spreading the table,when she went to the cupboard to bring out the pewter plates, and shequite forgot her errand until her mother called:
"Rebby! Rebby! What are you about in the cupboard?" Then, bringing onlyone plate instead of four, she came slowly back to the kitchen.
"What ails the child?" questioned Mrs. Weston sharply. "I declare, Ibelieve both of my children are losing their wits. Here is Anna makingrhymes and sing-songing her words in strange fashion; and thou, Rebecca,a girl of nearly fourteen, careless of thy work, and standing before meon one foot like a heron, staring at naught," and Mrs. Weston hurried tothe pantry for the forgotten dishes.
Anna smiled at her mother's sharp words, for she did not mind beingcalled a silly girl for rhyming words. "'Tis no harm," thought Anna,"and my father says 'tis as natural as for the birds to sing;" so sheadded more chips to the fire, and thought no more of it.
But Rebecca, who was used to being praised for her good sense and whowas seldom found fault with, had looked at her mother in surprise, andthe pewter plate fell from her hands and went clattering to the floor.At that moment the door swung open and Mr. Weston entered the kitchen.
"Father! Father!" exclaimed Rebecca, running toward him, "you won't putup a liberty pole, will you? You won't! Promise you won't, Father!" andshe clasped his arm with both hands.