Catholics hadn't much use for
him. Well, we sat out in the gulf in the broiling sun till noon, and
not a bite did we get. When we went ashore old Father Chiniquy had to
go, so he said in that polite way of his, 'I'm very sorry I cannot go
out with you dis afternoon, Mr. MacAllister, but I leave you my
blessing. You will catch a t'ousand dis afternoon. 'Well, we did not
catch a thousand, but we caught exactly nine hundred and
ninety-nine--the biggest catch for a small boat on the whole north
shore that summer. Curious, wasn't it? Alexander MacAllister, he says
to Andrew Peters, 'Well, and what do you think of Father Chiniquy now?'
'Vell,' growled Andrew, 'I t'ink de old devil has got a blessing left
yet.' Laws, how Henry did laugh over that today!"

"Do you know who Mr. Ford is, Captain Jim?" asked Anne, seeing that
Captain Jim's fountain of reminiscence had run out for the present. "I
want you to guess."

Captain Jim shook his head.

"I never was any hand at guessing, Mistress Blythe, and yet somehow
when I come in I thought, 'Where have I seen them eyes before?'--for I
HAVE seen 'em."

"Think of a September morning many years ago," said Anne, softly.
"Think of a ship sailing up the harbor--a ship long waited for and
despaired of. Think of the day the Royal William came in and the first
look you had at the schoolmaster's bride."

Captain Jim sprang up.

"They're Persis Selwyn's eyes," he almost shouted. "You can't be her
son--you must be her--"

"Grandson; yes, I am Alice Selwyn's son."

Captain Jim swooped down on Owen Ford and shook his hand over again.

"Alice Selwyn's son! Lord, but you're welcome! Many's the time I've
wondered where the descendants of the schoolmaster were living. I knew
there was none on the Island. Alice--Alice--the first baby ever born
in that little house. No baby ever brought more joy! I've dandled her
a hundred times. It was from my knee she took her first steps alone.
Can't I see her mother's face watching her--and it was near sixty years
ago. Is she living yet?"

"No, she died when I was only a boy."

"Oh, it doesn't seem right that I should be living to hear that,"
sighed Captain Jim. "But I'm heart-glad to see you. It's brought back
my youth for a little while. You don't know yet what a boon THAT is.
Mistress Blythe here has the trick--she does it quite often for me."

Captain Jim was still more excited when he discovered that Owen Ford
was what he cal