|
Once,
long, long ago a terrible storm was brewing near the quiet village
of Mortehoe.
Thunderous
waves crashed against the sharp, black rocks; wild winds blasted
from the sky; gloomy clouds darkened the horizon.
Like
a pebble skimming the waves, a tiny boat plunged in and out of view,
carrying a Spanish family to Bristol.
On
the cliff above, a gang of men assembled silently. They were the
wreckers, feared by all sailors.
Rubbing
his hands with glee, the leader sneered, "Come on, lads! Tie the
lanterns to the donkeys' tails and we'll soon be rich!"
Over
the roar of the waves a quiet cry came from the boat.
"Hush,
little one," the mother soothed, hiding tears of worry from her
baby daughter. "Will we survive this dreadful storm?" she appealed
to her husband who was scanning the horizon.
"Wait
a minute!" he cried, "I can see lights in the distance. It must
be a safe harbour!" Little did he know that the wreckers' lanterns
were luring them towards the vicious rocks.
Suddenly
there was a terrifying crash. The boat's mast began to crack and
fell with a thud. "Lord, save us!" cried the mother, "We're lost!"
But
her husband thought quickly. "Wrap the baby in a shawl and put her
in the chest with the treasure," he told her.
Together
they wrestled with the heavy chest until it disappeared overboard.
Minutes
later the little boat sank inch by inch into the wild whirlpool
taking the husband and wife down with it while the violent sea swept
the chest towards the rocky beach.
The
wreckers came like ghosts soundlessly down the winding path to the
beach. "Blow out the lanterns, " snarled their leader, "The donkeys
have done tonight's work.
Let's
search the beach and find ourselves some riches." All along the
shoreline the wreckers searched in the dark and gusty night.
"Look
over there!" The leader had glimpsed something in the moonlight.
All they found was a ruby ring.
"Disappear,
lads! Daylight's coming. There's nothing for us here." As the first
beams of sunlight rose above the hills, the Customs man from West
Down wandered along the cliff top on his horse.
Suddenly
he heard a cry coming from the beach. He tied up his horse and scrambled
down the path as fast as he could.
Following
the strange sound, he came across the treasure chest hidden between
two rocks. "Oh, what's this? Maybe gold? Maybe Silver?"
He
lifted the lid carefully and, to his surprise, he found a tiny baby,
blue from the cold and lying on a bed of treasure.
To
keep the baby warm he wrapped her in his jacket and took her home
to his wife. There the couple brought up the baby as their own in
their cosy cottage in West Down.
What
happened to the "lost treasure" after that? Nobody knows.
|
