Sedgwick High School - Comet Yearbook (Sedgwick, ME)

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'mm comm' 11 as the eye could see there was no sign of life. Altogether the Valley was a desolate and lonesome scene, as im- plied by its name. Although nothing stirred on the plain, if one looked closer, in the thioket at the side of the valley, a dark object was visible. It was Old One Eye, the lord of Lonesome Val- ley. The huge moose had lived here for two years, and during that time had fought many a battle in protect- ing his stronghold. It was in one of these battles he gained his name. Lately, there had come into the valley a new enemy, different from any before. A giant mountain lion had invaded the domain in search of food. On this particular morning One Eye was on the lookout for the lion. It had been his policy to drive every animal out of the valley, and up to now he had succeeded. Then it happened. The lion, which had been treading along on noiseless feet, stepped out directly in front of the moose. Old One Eye did not waste time on preliminaries. Witli head down and with a snort of rage, he charged. The lion took a chance on dying by starvation or being killed, and held his ground. Witli the moose only five feet from him, the lion gave a sudden leap and sailed up over the huge sweep of antlers, gave a sudden twist in the air and landed on Old One Eye's back. The moose shook him free, but the claws gouged terribly. Old One Eye saw red and his blood turned the fly- ing snow to crimson. He charged again, and the lion executed the same maneuver, only this time his claws did not slip. His fangs bit into One Eye's throat and closed together. But in reaching, he lost his hold and tumbled to the crimson snow. He was not quick enough to escape the last gasping plunge of the moose. One of the long prongs pierced his brain. The breath of the combatants was no longer visible in the cold air. N ow Lonesome Valley is more lone- some than ever, but when the snow goes, there will come a new monarch to terrorize the Valley. MISTAKEN IDENTITY One day as I was working on my car I found a bolt was missing. I wished to get a new one to take its place. As I did 11ot have time to change my clothes and go down to the hardware shop, I went in my overalls. The hardware building was three blocks from where I lived. I had reached the Five and Ten, which is about half-way there. As I stood on the corner waiting for the light to change, I saw a shabby and tattered old beggar approaching. He came up and said, VVon't you give a nickel to a poor ma11 who has lost his wife? A lady o11 the other side of the street was talking to her little girl. A moment later the girl approached and looked inquisitively at the beg- gar and me. Then she turned and shouted, To which tramp do you want me to give the dime, mother? -R. S., '35. DESERT JUSTICE A speeding automobile tore out of the city of Denver, Colorado, bound south. The two men in the front seat were grim and tight-lipped. Neither spoke until well outside the city limits. Then they seemed to relafi

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10 THE COMET LITER RY Uncle Elieffs Wooden Leg I had been in ill health, and the doctors had advised me to go to the seashore, so I betook myself to my uncle's home. He was a nice old man, and I liked him very much. He lived in a large, grey house on the shores of quiet, restful Duck Cove. His house, in many respects, was built like a ship. You see, Eliza had been the captain of the clipper-ship Fair NVoather, a11d this house was all he had to remind him of the good ole days, as he often told me. While I was at his place, my uncle would pass the long evenings by spin- ning yarns about his life at sea. There is one story he told me, that I shall never forget. It went something like this: I was taking a cargo down to South America, he began, filling and lighting his pipe, and, by thunder! when only two days from port, we run plump into one of them calms NVQ was in it five days before we drifted out. On about the third day, my mate and me decided we would take a bath in the warm water. Well, everything went well with us for about forty-five minutes, when one of the boys on board hollered: 'Look out for the shark! 'tMate and me made a lunge at the accommodation ladder. He was a little nearer than me, so he got up all right. But I was too slow. That old shark grabbed at my leg, and got that one there, and he pointed at the 1 wooden leg he got during the Civil war. Mate saw what a predicament I was in, so he grabs me by the arms. Well, sir, you know, that old leg of mine let go and that shark swal- lowed the blamed thing. The ship's carpenter madg one up, another one. Twan't like the first, but it had to answer the purpose. Three days later, we was in port. I looked across the water. You know what I saw? 'Twas the funniest sight! An old shark was making for us, and he acted like a hen with her head cut off. 'WVhen he came near the ship, one of the boys grabbed up a harpoon a11d harpooned him. We took the shark on deck, and began to dress him. You know what we found in- side that old devil? Well, sir, 'twas my old peg-leg. See them teeth marks there? he asked, pointing to a few scratches on his wooden leg. Themls caused by that shark. Now what do you think of that? he asked me, a twinkle in his eyes. -E. W. B., '32. LORD OF LONESOME VALLEY It was midwinter in Lonesome Valley. The snow was four feet deep on the level plain and twice as deep in the ravines. The great pines and spruce were clothed in glitter- ing ice and snow. The sun was hid- den behind lowering clouds that forc- told more snow or maybe suggested a tragedy that was to come. As far

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12 THE COMET and the driver spoke to his compan- ion. See anybody coming, Al? he asked. Naw, guess we ran away from them, or else they haven't found them guys we croakedf' lVe better clear out of these parts, whatever they are doing, said the driver grimly, and proceeded to speed up the Buick still more. Back i11 Denver a bank had just been robbed and two employees had been murdered. After learning of the murder and robbery, the police had immediately given chase. But the ba11k bandits had so great a start that the police never obtained a glimpse of them. The description of the two men was flashed all over the state and surrounding country. The Buick automobile was found on the outskirts of the town of Birkley, fif- ty miles from Denver, but of the bandits, there was no trace. One day, a week after fthe bank robbery, a message was received from Yuma, Arizona, to the effect that two men answering to the description of the murderers had been seen in town. Before word had been given to have them arrested, they had dis- appeared. Where they had gone, no one knew. Some said that probably the killers had gone into the desert until the trouble blew over. Three months after their disap- pearance, when the police had given up the search, an old desert prospec-- tor came into Yuma with a strange story. In his travels through desert sands he had come upon the bodies of two men, half buried in the sand. About them were scattered bills and coins of all denominations. The vultures had partly defaced the bodies, but enough was left to posi- tively identify them as the bank bandits of Denver. The murderers had escaped the law, but it takes more than a murderer to escape desert justice. THE APPAn1'r1oN or nnvnrs LEDGE Along the coasts of England there are many legends which have been handed down from the ancient sea- faring folk to the present day sailors. One of these has to do with the three ghosts of Devil's Ledge. Ten years ago, I was told this old legend by an Irish sea captain. In 1835, -.so the story ran, the Gir- con, a sailing vessel bound .from Liverpool to Paris, had sunk on Devil's Ledge. There had been a terrible storm which had driven the vessel on the rocks, and she had gone down immediately. The entire crew and passengers had been lost. Among the passengers had been three eminent clergymen of the time. These three had come back from the unknown to warn and protect future mariners. Whenever a great storm came out of the Atlantic and a vessel was in peril at Devil's Ledge, the three wraiths of the departed minis- ters of God would appear to direct the ship away from danger. ,In later years a lighthouse had been built, and as the services of the ghostly trio had no longer been needed, they had gradually been for- gotten. Such was the story of Devil's Ledge. Of course, I did not accept the story as anything but a wild tale. Later, I was to acknowledge its truth by my own eyes.