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TO SUCCOR SAILORS BATTLING ON RAGINQ- DEE.
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7Vj Shrine en Star Island Off New
Hampshire Coast Is Scene of Striking
Simple Ceremony by Women Felk of
Mariners
CHURCH W AS TORN DOWN
TO PROVIDE NEEDED FUEL
FOR FREEZING RESIDENTS
Wave-Battered and Wind-Lashed Land
Has Been Scene of Inspiration for Ce
cilia Thaxter, Mrs. Burnett and Other
Peets and Novelists
TRAYEUS for loved ones at sea
They rise from the hopeful hearts of mothers, sisters and sweethearts
In the little shrine en Star Island, ten miles off the coast of New Hamp
shire.
dreary, dangerous night, joy will
come and peace in the morning. And
they will seen be home, clasped close
te their loved ones.
They knew all this, for don't they
remember that at this hour theic is
prayer and solemn hymning at the
church en the hill ? Can't they even
hear in the depths of them some
thing of the very singing itself?
After the hymns there Is another
prayer, nnil the columns wind s'ewiy
nwny from the shrine. The simplicity
of (he ceremony nml the stark grandeur
of the setting are themselves an in- '
splrntlen, which the worshipers must
feel nlen-; with the Jey of their spiritual
communion.
fKncli night Is this ceremony repented.
And eneh night Its power Is realized.
One ship mny go down, ninny men may
lie lest it's the way the pen hns with
Its people. Hut all the ships de net go
down nml nil the men nre net lest
nml there I profound thanksgiving in
the hearts of the faithful for that.
Leng before the Mayflower sailed Inte
Plymouth harbor fishing fleets innde
regular trips te the Isles of Hhenls.
The-e fWhermcn named the islands.
And in Kill, fifteen jenrs before Ilns Ilns
ten was settled, Captain Jehn Smith
and bis men went ashore en the island
1 of strnnge new caves and crags, the
visitor Is poignantly attracted. Ne-
where else en the const is there n better
i place te study the vary Ins moods of the
neenn, its gentleness during dnys of
I ralm and its majesty when the tempest
Htlrs the blaqk water and shatters great
mountains of white foam against the
bulil rocky headlands.
During the seventeenth century Star
Island wns used by the French ns a
fishing station, mid in the eighteenth
century the industry grew se three or
four vessels were leaded nnnuully for
Spain. Hut after the Revolution the
Industry died.
Timbers from a wrecked Spnnlsh
galleon were used for the construction
of the first Stnr Island church en the
peak. This church, ironically enough,
(he old mnn who walked the Ions plank
mid whose body was washed up by the
waves.
Ghost of Blachbeard
Seeks Buried Treasure
It is even said that sometimes at
midnight Blnekbenrd himself walks up
and down the tortuous ceastland, hunt
ing, bunting because be forget
where his buried treasure lies.
In 17-0 the old church was rebuilt.
It was again built of drifted timber
from ships men bad forgotten. Fer
cnrs the pnster of the little shrine min
istered te his fleck. JIc prenched, he
married, he burled among these hard
working fisher-folk; lie went out and
helped them man their craft; he built
A Sailor's Mether's Eternal QuesHdji
why should I tpeak (ew, tttiip
ut my dim boy Johnt '
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f0, BAILOR of the, teal
JTI irote' my hey my beyf
"What't your bey't name, geed wife,
And (n what thip tailed het
'tXr Aam Jehn
lie that went te tea
What care I for the thip, tailor?
My bey't my boy te me.
"Yeu come bach from the tea,
And net knew my Johnt
I might well have atked tome landt-
man,
Yonder down in town.
There't net an att in all the parith
But he knows mjpJehn.
"Hew't my boy my beyf
And unless you let me knote
I'll twear you arc no tailor,
Blue jacket or no,
Bratt buttons or no, tailor,
Ancher and crown or net
Sure his thip wat the 'Jelly
Briten' "
"Speak low, woman, speak- low I'
They rise te mingle with the gales
that sweep ever the bleak nnd
reekv shores, in the dark of the
nighttime, bearing courage and love
te the lonely fishermen fathers, and
brothers and levers, somewhere out j
en the black deep.
On calm nights, flickering candles
Of the procesMon of faithful women (
wind like slew stars up the dark
slopes of the rocky island te the
shrine en the peak and prayers and
hymns of hope sound te the very
gates of the sky, down the long lanes
of the sea.
Whatever one's creed, one under
stands the sorrow of long waiting,
the ram n tne heart of a mother or
a sister or a sweetheart for her man
gene out upon the treacherous
waters.
Whatever one's creed, the abiding
faith, the fervent prayer of any
woman heart must become a noble
thing.
Tiny Shrine Is Symbol
of Faith in Prayer
Star Island, one of the Isles of
Sheals, is the only island in America
dedicated te worship and te the
prayers of women for their s-ailing
fishermen-folk.
Fer 120 years this drear island has
been illuminated by the hope and the
prayers of the faithful; for 120 years en m church
a httle shrine has steed en its peak ig evcn dnrker than tne night. There
it has been tern by the elements, ' are no lights there.
t&"
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"And
About
If I wat loud as I am proud
I'd ting him ever the tewnt
Why iheuld I ipeak low, taihrf
"That geed thip went down,"
"Hew't my boy my beyf ,
What care I for the thip, toflerf
I wat never aboard her.
Be the afloat or be the aground.
Sinking or twimming, I'll be lentf!
iter owners can ajjera net I
r ..... !... .. r.i.m
"Every man en beard went 4ewlJ
"Ilew't my boy my beyf
What care I for the men, tailert
v I'm net their mother
Hew't my be my beyf
Tell me of him and no ether!
Ilew't my boy my beyf" ,
Sydney DebeU,
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Line of worshipers wending Ita
way te the little Star Island
churcli te pray for the welfare
of their relatives and friends at
sea
razed by fire but something of it
has always lemained and with brave
hearts the faithful have always built
it up again.
Fer it stands a symbol of their
trust; it is their rock of ages te
which they cling; it is the beacon
that shines in the hearts of the
storm-tossed seamen, giving them
the will and the fortitude te fight
stanchly against the driving winds,
In the dim light of the many
candles the women go into the
church, as many as can for it is a
very small church, smaller than the
usual country mqeting house and
the ethers wait outside. i
There is a long interval when
heads are bowed in prayer. Old
heads, white and bent heads which
have bowed submissively under the
unutterable tragedies of death and
life heads, weather-beaten like the
ancient island itself; young heads,
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"Unde Oscar" Thaxter, brother of the poetess and patriarch of
the island
I i Services at the church are simple 'but are marked by deepest reverence and consist of a few prayers nnd one or two hymns
Ike heaving waters, the instinctive
fear of the thunder, of the blinding
lightning.
Fer the last twenty-six years the
Uttle gray stone church, with its
niaint pine pews, its cracked and
Wimusical bell, its metnl codfish en
the belfry, has been in the care of
the Unitarian and Congrcgutienalist
Churches.
At 10 o'clock each night, when all
It hushed but the winds and the
pounding breakers, worshipers as
semble in the hollows below the
church. tThey all bear lighted can
dles, encased in glass shades and
swung from handles like lanterns.
They form into columns, speaking
te word, and the columns wind
tewly up -the slepiv tetha. sturdy.
cheerful, hopeful of life, unfamiliar
with all the bitterness it can held.
And they all bow their heads with a
quiet faith.
Prayers Wafted Out te Sea
te Aid Ships in Storm
Somewhere, a small ship is tum
bling in the troughs of great seas;
nnd men scurry ever the rolling deck.
They work like harried creatures.
They haven't much time te think of
womenfolk back in the shelter of
shore but when they de think of
thorn they see their lovely faces,
they see their lips moving in soft
low pleading. And they take heart
again for their grueling tasks; there
is a safe harbor in the nosem of the
known as Smuttynese. Captain Smith
built a calm of rocks there te com
memorate his landing nnd it is still
there.
Today the islands nre the fnverite
Idling places for artists nnd writers.
Pilgrlmnges are mnde yenrly te the
Islnndn especially te Star Island te
these "heaps of tumbling granite In the
wide and lonely sen."
Barrenness of Island
Has Its Own Poignancy
The nen is everything at the Isles of
Hheals, for no trees nor green vnlleys
are there. "Wave-cradled nnd wind-
caressed," the Islands nt first repel
world for them, and their hearts and ! the visitor with their barrenness. Hut
lips fight for them as they are fight- i " days spent In scrambling nmeng
inar with tneir own tnicK, weary
backs and arms. Whatever; the
the rocks en Star Island or Appledore,
ftex.dayi-sliniflcant for the dlscerery
built of the demolished vessel which
unce ran with the bleed of uiany vic
tims, upon uhesc decks pattered the
feet of hard, cruel men with rings in
their enrs und blndes between their
teeth, steed until 1720 for thirty-five
years ministering te the troubled souls
nf Its little congregation. Pirates and
smugglers used the convenient caet of
the islund te stere their treasure; a
Spanish ship with its geld nnd jewels
lies sunken boiuewhcre pn its craggy
roast. Ghosts, It is whispered by thu
hlmpler folk en the island, stalk in the
middle e' night some of them dragging
Mlent chains ghost of the woman who
defied the bluck-benrded plrnte when
he snatched nwny her bnby, ghost of
the innldcn with the htrenmlng hnlr
nnd the long thin dagger who fought
side by side with her lever against the
overwhelming robber-seamen, ghostve
wooden coffins; he was the neaiest ap
proach te n phjslclau thu Island hud.
Years passed, with Its heasens of
summer warmth and lilting cold. In the
winter driftwood wa.s senice It mennt
tlmt children bhiveied und suffeieil, nnd
fend mothers saw them slowly wasting
away. It happened almost every win
ter und thu Uttle Heck looked with joy
te sue the spring come nguin and the
few flowers which colored thelr barren
bheres. In the winter of 1700, how
ever, the weather was werse than ever.
Ne one hud weed, and children and
old people fell 111, and seme were djlng.
They needed their driftwood homes. Al
though there were no fires, the lenky
walls of their roughly patched houses
kept the most unjiuiiablu chill of the
wind out, nnd the mothers and their
children could huddle clese together with
soine protection. Some of the mothers
used pieces of furnlture for fireweed
but there is a limit te furniture in peer
homes.
In the end there wes nothing else te
de but tear down the church. It was
the only building they 'could Bpare
though thejterp Jtdewn.withachlag
heaits. They premised themselves te
worship out of doers, no mutter hew the
ley winds cut them, no mutter hew the
sleety snows whirled.
The weed of the church wes appor
tioned among the inhabitants. It seemed
somehow, after all, a gift from their
(Joil blessing their prujers brought
them.
In October, 1800, Jedcdlah Merse, of
Chuilestewn, Mass,, and Dudley A.
Tjng, of Nowhurypert, rebuilt th
meeting house. This tlme it was built
of Hve. Flre destroyed pert of the
Interior in '1820, but four yenrs later the
church was restored te its original etete.
and hns se remained te this dny. Thu
eoiigrcgutlen in 1820 contributed the
wcathvr vaic ami a star, which Mill rise
from the stunted tower.
The shrine stunds today, as solid and
Mibbtniittal ns the mighty ledges that
encircle it unique nnd historic. Its
well -proportioned solid stone walls.
time senrred nnd mess grown; Its tower J
surmounted with double cupola, spire
und weather enej Us mitlijue pine
pews, adorned with frescoes. of vessels
Uades.fuU sail and-tha-"Jack-(nlfe'a
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Cecilia Thaxter, the poetess, who
did some of her best-known
works en the island, where many
noted in the field of letters
visited her
carved initial" ; its quaint little choirs
nnd pulpit; its nnclent bell, cracked nnd
fire scorched ; the silent though eloquent
spiritual presence of reverent and sol
emn worshipers, long t-lnce burled be
neath sea and sod nil convey a hal
lowed Influence, once felt, never forgotten.
One of the best-known characters of
tha Island is the late Cecilia Thaxter,
author of many books of poems und mnny
novels. She is best known by "Good "Goed "Geed
by, Sweet Dny" n poem still sung by
Unitarian congregations. Her cottage,
en Appledore, is new a pile of black
ened beards. Years nge the gardens
In front of the present ruins were
known the world ever te botanists and
levers of flowers.
She was a friend of James ltusscll
Lewell and Jehn Grecnlenf Whittler,
the poets; Jehn ICnewies Paine and Ar
thur Whiting, musicians, and the paint
ers J. Appleton Ilrewn, William Mor Mer
ris Hunt, Rese Turner nnd Chllde Has
sam. They eftea visited her in her
beautiful retreat, sea-bound.
Browning Wrete Epitaph
for Poetess' Husband
She married T.cvl Lincoln Thaxter,
of Watertown, Mass., in 18.12. It was
her funilly which wns responsible for
pepularising the Islands ns the gather
ing place for Unitarians and Congrega Cengrega Congrega
tienalistB. Mrs. Thaxter was a friend
of Rebert Ilrewnlng, though neither of
them had ever seen each ether. And
when her husband died in 1884 she
asked Mr. Ilrewnlng te write an epitaph
for her husband.
He wrete the following inscription,
which Is hewn in the side of a great
rock ever Mr. Thuxter's grave:
Theu whom theae eyes taw never; toy
friend true
Who toy my teul, helped onward by
my song,
Though all unwittingly, has helped thee
tee,
I gave hut the little that I knew:
Hew were the gift requited, while along
Life's path I pace, ceuldst thou make
weakness streiiy;
Help me with knowledge for
OldUeath'i A'cic.
It. II. te L. L. T., April, J88S.
Mrs. Thoxter's brother, new eighty
four years old, who never saw a horse
or a trce until he wns sixteen years
old, still lives en the island. He is
affectionately called "Unde Oscar,"
nnd for years carried the sobriquet
"King of the lules of Sheals."
"Cecilia's husband," says the old
manr "was a grcat.Jever of Browning's
Life'i
peeiry. x recall odeuc twenty n
age when Browning wes en every jl
Ing table of the mere or less cultlul
folk.
"I remember once trying te readUsI)
myself, but he was ever my head n.
tlrely, as he is today. I'm sorry l
have te say that. I envy pceple.wliM
can read nnd lore poetry. Thejr hj
my sister wrete very well." The oil
mnn raised a gaunt hand toward Ap
plcdere. "She lies burled ever thert,
be said.
"Uncle Oscar" used te keep a hew
en Appledore for visitors, but it buriiei
down several years age. He loves' th
little children of the islands, and it It
rumored that when any one of tfcd
wants the opportunity for ndvanei
schooling he is among the first te help.
He Is a very old mnn, who within tli
limited theatre of his life hns IN
deeply. Sorrow hangs heavy about him,
as it does about all persons who llti
-with the pea ; and It is only his m
censtnnt devotion te his religion, Mi
ardent, unquenchable faith, that bcun
him up.
Island Was Birthplace
of "Little Lord Fauntleretfl
It was en Appledore Island that fcrBj
a time lived Tliemus Hnlley Aiarlct,
Lewell, Hawthorne und Frances Hedf'
son Burnett. Mrs. Burnett began w
book "Little Lord Fnuntlerey" thew,
picturing her titular character afttr i
small brother of Mrs. Thaxter. Henrj
Ward Beecher and his sister, Harriet
Bcccher Stewe, were numbered iliefl
among the many celebrities who hinj
visited the isles.
The first Unitarian meeting there wu
held in 1807. The meetings have bea
continued regularly. Pilgrims of tetl
the Unitarian and the Congrcgntlenaliit
churches who come te the island )A
summer for inspiration have joined tlw
natives In their solemn watch-nil's
services. '
And new the activity of the summB
visitors centers about the little shrla
en the hill, tee. Since it is en the hlji
est point of the island, it can be imi
net only from far out at sea but from
nil the ether islands in the group.
It Is an interesting contrast te net
that this island of religion was mcntlend
In a little pamphlet prcparcU by fhtM
English mariners in 1011. And It wil
called, along with its group, "The IsIm
of Devils." And it is believed by an
therltics thnt the strnnge Island d
bcrlbed in Shakespeare's "The Ternf
est" is none ether than Star Island.1
Without any question about it, thli U
land never seemed prepossessing te mnj
of its earliest visitors. An ncceunl
written by Christopher Levett in 102
has this te say about it :
"The first place I set feet upon
New Kngland was the Isles of SheslJ
being Inlands in the sea about rtrifl
leagues from the mainland. Upen th
Islands 1 neither could i-ee one geel
timber tree nor se much geed ground it
te make a garden."
Of course, the Islnnd's chief beset
lies in its fclmnle ceremony, which 1
ene sense transcends physical hcautr
Its beauty transcends the fierce beautj
of the sterma which beat ever the. island.
In 1851 a storm came up se IeIeat
thnt waves swept ever Appledore snd
cut the lslnnd into three. And Undl
Oscar insists he hns never seen any
thing se "beautiful as that tearlnl
tempest."
The beauty of the service transcend!
the beauty of calm days. As a mattt
of fact, the ceremony holds something et
tlmt quiet nobility which adorns a cilfc
dear day, mere cbiicclally nt sunBtt.
Though the storms are slashing about,
here in this little shriije is a peace till
passeth understanding, n peace that H
given out of the very bund of the Ged
et these reverent pleading women.
Farewell te Tinu Shrine
Has Many Solemn Aspecti
As the shadows of an afternoon ft"
and the visitor steams out of the harbe
with a sad farewell for 8tar Island, W
Annlednre. for Dm lmlrl rnil nf LOfl
deners, for Smuttynese, for the drel
little lighthouse tower which standi
against the roughened sen like a mint
lure Den Qulxote ngainst a ery or
in truth for the little shrine ehlnlsl
en the hill, he carries with him haunt
ing memories of, n haunting peace.
The rolling sea pours softly in ametl
the crags, the vast wnste of ocean tk
incleses the tiny circle of islands wl
a sense of Infinite might tosses ceaH
lessly. The islunds thmbelves begin M
lese their fnmlllnr outline, merW
slowly Intn one nml n Hint one daw
lined Island fades eventually . Intef
distance, "bunset purple comes te sW
tpt WSBtt." ,
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