GINGER

Otago Witness, Issue 2894, 25 August 1909, Page 83

GINGER

By T. J. P. Ginger v.-as 12 years old. The responsibility which attached to s> head of flaming red hair was only just beginning t< d-awn upon him. Hitherto he had accepted the cams of Ginger -»i+h quiet resignation, but something had toappened which had impressed him with the desirability of possessing hair of any other colour than red. That there were two other boys ir his class at school TOi;h a similar shade of hair was no con-E-jiation. Tne vanity of human grief was strong m him at the present time, and noihintg would shake his oonviction that he c.nd he alone was Feitime's' fool, especially sst apart by Providence for the purpose of ill-treating. He may not have put it exa«ily in those words. fcrill, he was fee.ing especially sorry ior himself. - And to think that ne had u> go on until the, end of his life with this burden of hair. He would dy« it. He wculd cut it eff and weair a wig. It hal been a playfui remark made by his schooimaster that had gone to his heart, and be lay that night awake until he heard the clock etrilse 2 thinking of the insult, aad how he could avenge it. His thoughts bunrt into his bnain, and it was a blessing' when at 1-ast 'he fell asleep and left all vmipleasamt thii-gs behind him. But when the nsornaag came Ginger began to court his evil thoughts once more, and as tjie week went by- they scarcely lessened in intensity. "Mother," he asked a few days after his insurt. "why have I got red hair?" His mother, who had felt in*tin.ctively that Eomelkins had been -hroubling him, realised in a. moment that this was the secret of h.3 ill-humour. She was a wise woman, and she told Ginger a story. "Once upon a time," she began in the old, old way, "'thero were two miners who lived on the We&t Coast. The one vr»s an old) man and the other one was young. They had been mates for several years in. Australia, and then they baA ccnie out to New Zealand to seek their fonur.es. For a year they worked on the West Coast, but then news came of a gold rush in Otago. Now, their claim on the Coast was too good to abandon for a mere chance, so the elder man agreed to go and see how things were. If tho place was rich he would peg out a -claim and £.and word to his friend to oMn-e, too. Now, the eldar man had an old copper kettle which he prized very much, though he used it but little. " 'If I w.rite to you to come to Otago,' he told his mate, 'you can sell all our belongings, we cai? buy in afresh in the south, but I want yo\i above all to bring my copper kettle with you ' "News travelled slowly in those days, and it was p. month later that the young miner receive! a letter to strike camp and make hia way to the south. 'But above all,' wrote frha old fellow, 'bring my copper ke'.ile."Now, th« kettle was black and heavy, and travelling had to be done on foot. A small I>illy' «-as a much more convenient thing to carry, and the young rriner many times resented the old' man's fad. Bui he loved his an&te. and continued to iarry the clumsy keiile day after day. "It was a great nuisance though, for the rivers very often had to be crossed on foot. When he came to Lyttelton, having walked across the island, he found no boat was br>und for Dunedin- for a number of days, bo, being impatient of del-ay, he started south on. foou. hoping to find a conveyance going hi* way. It was a tedic-U3 journey, "for tne great rivers that sweep across .the Canterbury Plains were then unbridged, and he . could not always find a horseman to put him across. On one occasion he was swept off his feet, and the copper kettlo was washed away on tfce swiftly-running stream. He gained dry land, and, throwing off his swag, tip ran along the bank of the stream some distance, and plunged into the wai«r to intercept the kettle as it floated past. He was too late. Once moro he gained the bank, a.nd for a moment he was tempted to let the old thing float out to sea*, 'or else fill and sink. But his love for his friend was greater than his con-tempt for the kettle, and once moro he ran forward to intercept it as it floated down. The water was deep where he plunged in this time, and though he was well down stream he had to swim to rescue tho truant. "As the days went by and the country became more mountainous the copper kettle seemed to goow heavier, and the travellers he walked with from time to time ridiculed him for carrying it when he x>uld get a n.ic« light 'billy' at almost any of the settlements they came to. Though annoyed inwardly he smiled pleasantly, and continued to carry the kettle. "At last he vas nearing his destination after many days of travelling. His hopes were high, and he was expecting to garip hie mete by the- hand i-nat night. He was fortunate to get assistance from, a friendly carter who wa"s going to the diggings. He threw his srwag in the back of the ca.rt and mounted the eeat beside the driver. - In. the evening they reached the valley, where thou- : ponds of miners were already camped, but j the kettle was gone. It had slipped out at \ the back of the caort as they had rattled «nd ! jolfc-Hl over tbe rough and uneven road. The ! poor young fellow was ssd at heart, birt though it was Jate he rtetermin.e<l to start back UDon the r^ad they had come. There was enough light to follow the wheel tracks where the road was unformed, and just enough to see an object of the size of a kettle. All nie;ht lontj he retraced his steps, his hopes of finding it growing smaller and smaller as he left the miles behind him. Then tho morning broke, and he was still walking with his eyes bent upon the ground. "At a.-out 8 o'clock he saw a horseman aporoachinp-. Rnrt when they met lie inquired if lie had by r'tance fouryi a copper kettle. The, horseman's reply brought joy to the youns: miner's heart. " 'Yes ; it is on the saddle of that pack-ho'-sa iti front. Is it yours?' Ho m« ft. kindly horseman, and the yourg miner had no difficulty in recovering the ket.'e. "That flight he was with his o'd mate once irore, and .hey both sat beside tbe camp fire smoking ■'■heir pipes and speaking of the mouth that had cess?-.'. As they rolled themselves in their blank«ti a little later ths old miner said : 'Yes. I'm clad ye get the old kittle through .ill right, me boy.' Then he leaned close to the ear of his young friend «nd whispered t^ese words: " 'That kittle, me boy, is a little insurance for you and me if we should evar strike bad !uck. There's only a thin outside covering of copper; the rest is all 'pure ° "The youns ' laaii gasped: 'But— but — what if I hadn't -brought it, or what if I had lc*t it en *be r?ad?' '"Ah, me boy!' said the old wn. 'I knew ye too well for that. I trusted ye.' " ' The "toother's story was ended. She had rot made it ur> on tbe spur of the n»ment : =iie had hzard j+ many "months before, ard _ iictl kept it ready ''o i«ll Ginsrer when this n oment cair.e. ni she kr«w it would. Ginger grr.spcd stmslhing of the meaning. ' - |

"And me, mother, me with my copper knob, am I carrying a kettle "that's all gold?" "You may be, dear, the mother said. "And if foolish people sometimes laugh at you, remember the golden kettle. E-eraember the old man trusted his young friend." fTo be continued.)