The Light on the Big Dipper

"The Light on the Big Dipper" is a lesser-known work by Lucy Maud Montgomery, the beloved author of "Anne of Green Gables." This enchanting story weaves themes of adventure, friendship, and self-discovery through the experiences of its young protagonists. Set against a backdrop of natural beauty, the narrative captures the essence of childhood curiosity and the journey toward understanding one's place in the world. Montgomery's lyrical prose and vivid imagery invite readers to explore the magic found in everyday life and the bonds that unite us.

• Short story

								
"Don't let Nellie run out of doors, Mary Margaret, and be careful of
the fire, Mary Margaret. I expect we'll be back pretty soon after
dark, so don't be lonesome, Mary Margaret."

Mary Margaret laughed and switched her long, thick braid of black hair
from one shoulder to the other.

"No fear of my being lonesome, Mother Campbell. I'll be just as
careful as can be and there are so many things to be done that I'll be
as busy and happy as a bee all day long. Nellie and I will have just
the nicest kind of a time. I won't get lonesome, but if I should feel
just tempted to, I'll think, Father is on his way home. He will soon
be here.' And that would drive the lonesomeness away before it dared
to show its face. Don't you worry, Mother Campbell."

Mother Campbell smiled. She knew she could trust Mary
Margaret--careful, steady, prudent little Mary Margaret. Little! Ah,
that was just the trouble. Careful and steady and prudent as Mary
Margaret might be, she was only twelve years old, after all, and there
would not be another soul besides her and Nellie on the Little Dipper
that whole day. Mrs. Campbell felt that she hardly dared to go away
under such circumstances. And yet she must dare it. Oscar Bryan had
sailed over from the mainland the evening before with word that her
sister Nan--her only sister, who lived in Cartonville--was ill and
about to undergo a serious operation. She must go to see her, and
Uncle Martin was waiting with his boat to take her over to the
mainland to catch the morning train for Cartonville.

If five-year-old Nellie had been quite well Mrs. Campbell would have
taken both her and Mary Margaret and locked up the house. But Nellie
had a very bad cold and was quite unfit to go sailing across the
harbour on a raw, chilly November day. So there was nothing to do but
leave Mary Margaret in charge, and Mary Margaret was quite pleased at
the prospect.

"You know, Mother Campbell, I'm not afraid of anything except tramps.
And no tramps ever come to the Dippers. You see what an advantage it
is to live on an island! There, Uncle Martin is waving. Run along,
little mother."

Mary Margaret watched the boat out of sight from the window and then
betook herself to the doing of her tasks, singing blithely all the
while. It was rather nice to be left in sole charge like this--it made
you feel so important and grown-up. She would do everything very
nicely and Mother would see when she came back what a good housekeeper
her daughter was.

Mary Margaret and Nellie and Mrs. Campbell had been living on the
Little Dipper ever since the preceding April. Before that they had
always lived in their own cosy home at the Harbour Head. But in April
Captain Campbell had sailed in the Two Sisters for a long voyage
and, before he went, Mrs. Campbell's brother, Martin Clowe, had come
to them with a proposition. He ran a lobster cannery on the Little
Dipper, and he wanted his sister to go and keep house for him while
her husband was away. After some discussion it was so arranged, and
Mrs. Campbell and her two girls moved to the Little Dipper. It was not
a lonesome place then, for the lobstermen and their families lived on
it, and boats were constantly sailing to and fro between it and the
mainland. Mary Margaret enjoyed her summer greatly; she bathed and
sailed and roamed over the rocks, and on fine days her Uncle George,
who kept the lighthouse on the Big Dipper, and lived there all alone,
often came over and took her across to the Big Dipper. Mary Margaret
thought the lighthouse was a wonderful place. Uncle George taught her
how to light the lamps and manage the light.

When the lobster season dosed, the men took up codfishing and carried
this on till October, when they all moved back to the mainland. But
Uncle Martin was building a house for himself at Harbour Head and did
not wish to move until the ice formed over the bay because it would
then be so much easier to transport his goods and chattels; so the
Campbells stayed with him until the Captain should return.

Mary Margaret found plenty to do that day and wasn't a bit lonesome.
But when evening came she didn't feel quite so cheerful. Nellie had
fallen asleep, and there wasn't another living creature except the cat
on the Little Dipper. Besides, it looked like a storm. The harbour was
glassy calm, but the sky was very black and dour in the
northeast--like snow, thought weather-wise Mary Margaret. She hoped
her mother would get home before it began, and she wished the
lighthouse star would gleam out on the Big Dipper. It would seem like
the bright eye of a steady old friend. Mary Margaret always watched
for it every night; just as soon as the sun went down the big
lighthouse star would flash goldenly out in the northeastern sky.

"I'll sit down by the window and watch for it," said Mary Margaret to
herself. "Then, when it is lighted, I'll get up a nice warm supper for
Mother and Uncle Martin."

Mary Margaret sat down by the kitchen window to watch. Minute after
minute passed, but no light flashed out on the Big Dipper. What was
the matter? Mary Margaret began to feel uneasy. It was too cloudy to
tell just when the sun had set, but she was sure it must be down, for
it was quite dark in the house. She lighted a lamp, got the almanac,
and hunted out the exact time of sunsetting. The sun had been down
fifteen minutes!

And there was no light on the Big Dipper!

Mary Margaret felt alarmed and anxious. What was wrong at the Big
Dipper? Was Uncle George away? Or had something happened to him? Mary
Margaret was sure he had never forgotten!

Fifteen minutes longer did Mary Margaret watch restlessly at the
window. Then she concluded that something was desperately wrong
somewhere. It was half an hour after sunset and the Big Dipper light,
the most important one along the whole coast, was not lighted. What
would she do? What could she do?

The answer came swift and dear into Mary Margaret's steady, sensible
little mind. She must go to the Big Dipper and light the lamps!

But could she? Difficulties came crowding thick and fast into her
thoughts. It was going to snow; the soft broad flakes were falling
already. Could she row the two miles to the Big Dipper in the darkness
and the snow? If she could, dare she leave Nellie all alone in the
house? Oh, she couldn't! Somebody at the Harbour Head would surely
notice that the Big Dipper light was unlighted and would go over to
investigate the cause. But suppose they shouldn't? If the snow came
thicker they might never notice the absence of the light. And suppose
there was a ship away out there, as there nearly always was, with the
dangerous rocks and shoals of the outer harbour to pass, with precious
lives on board and no guiding beacon on the Big Dipper.

Mary Margaret hesitated no longer. She must go.

Bravely, briskly and thoughtfully she made her preparations. First,
the fire was banked and the draughts dosed; then she wrote a little
note for her mother and laid it on the table. Finally she wakened

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