OCR Text |
Show By ETHEL, HUESTON WNU Service Copyright 1927 by The Eobbs-Mcrrill Co. to have my luL'al; fust, and you shall have coffee wit ) i me." Without moving from her chair. Gay swung up a wide tray thai hung to the wall, and connected the eleolric toaster. As she gave him a cup , of coffee their fingers touched, and their eyes met lingeriugly. Kami's speculatively smiling. Gay's a little cloudy. As they drank llieir coffee slowly, she studied him furtively, noted his easy slouch in the comfortable win ilow-seat. marked the brown arm on the window-seat. Rut she avoided meeting the merry gray eyes beneath the dark up-curling lashes. "Do you flirt, Mr. Wallace';" she asked suddenly. "Hope to tell you I do," he answered an-swered warmly. "(Hi! Then you need no warning We have quite a wicked little llirt in the neighborhood, and I was going to warn you. lint since you do. you can take care of yourself." "Oh. 1 thought you meant yourself. 1 thought it was a sort of 'Help Wanted,' Want-ed,' like the newspaper arts. 1 was willing fo apply." Again the friendly, smiling silence. To one like Gay, whose religion was work, whose god accomplishment, it came as a distinct shock to know that this one, with the strong bands, the ready wi' and the smiling eyes. crew, take it to Mi .mi in readiness for f'.umis when he went down fur the winter season later on. He had expected ex-pected to finish the' job on the island, j lie said, ir three days, but now he was ) beginning to feel it would take him a week. He said he had gone with MacMil-lan MacMil-lan on one of his trips to the Arctic, had been to the Arctic circle twice, in fact, lint he didn'l like it. Said it was loo cold. Wished somebody would plant the next pole in Florida or Mexico, Mex-ico, nice warn, place to look for things, lie had been in the World war. and served overseas seven j months. He said he did not like that ! either. "Why not?' Gay was a little bitter. J "Were you afraid? Or are you a ; pacifist? Or perhaps you had to get j up loo eatly in the morning?" "N-o. 1 didn't mind those things. It j was the uniform. I couldn't stand the uniform. The collar made my neck ileh. My nok itched for lifleen mouths without stopping, line gels tired of it. that's all." Gay's eyes were dark. She felt sad dened. This aimless, planless, hopeless, hope-less, dear young mat. violated her highest ideals, outraged her finest feelings. He was utterly impossible, she told herself furiously. Hut when her eyes met his, involuntarily she smiled. Impossible, but how pleasant pleas-ant to have him ther in the window-seat window-seat at her side, drinking her colTee. smiling at her with the dark gray eyes beneath those softly curling lashes. Ridiculous, she said to herself, that a man should have gray eyes and curly lashes. Ridi'-u'nius. but something very disturbing, dis-turbing, rather sweet, about it when one. caught the full bright friendly glance of them.. CHAPTER V Randolph Wallace indeed stood for everything in the world of which Guy Delane professedly disapproved. It was not merely (hat he did not work, but he disapproved of it on principle. He objected vigorously to the enthronement en-thronement of Piling, which was Gay's god. He declared stoutly that labor in itself was a childish, ineffective ineffec-tive thing, that the need for if was n confession of inferiority, that joy In accomplishment was not merely the Itftst word in selfishness, but was also the sure mark of a narrow nature, lacking vision. He asked Gay why she had never married. "Recnuse there is so much to do." she cried intensely. "Because 1 want to accomplish something In the world, get something done. Been use I want to work, work bard, and work well. Why don't you?" she ended mildly. "Because life Is too rare and hue a thing to be devoted to the me.e grimy physical effort of doing tins or doing that. Soul is too frail and ton deli cote to he enslaved In the chains of daily toil for board and keep" Half the time, she realized that he was only laughing at her. making fun Rut always slip felt an undertone of serious conviction in what he said vhvays she felt in him the inherent learning ol pure spirit for freedom more freedom, always more. Work, he declared, was confining, success was pinioning, ambition the sternest slave driver in the universe. Only in thought, desire, the soul was fi-ee. Gay !!; fed restlessly at his eus indolence, his serene and ipparein ly imperturhable calm. She knew tb:;t he could work. that, on occasion, be did work, desperately, both hard and well, with mind, with soul, with body And more than that, he liked It. It was only the compulsion to work that he decried (TO BE CUNT I VtlED ) iBfffi SM STORY FROM THE START On the verge of nervous collapse, col-lapse, due to overwork. Cay De-lane, De-lane, successful New York artist, seeks rest at Idle island She rents a cottppre, the "Lone Pine." from an island character, th "Captain," and hi$ sister, Alice ' Andover, "administrator." Gny finds the cottage is tenanted by an elderly lady, "A untalmiry," who consents t move to another an-other abode, the "Apple Tree" Awaking from sltep, Gay imag ines she se the face of a China- i'- man peering in the vinow O1 an exploration of the island (lay. standing on the seashore, is horrified hor-rified by the appearance of the drifting body of a drowned man which she nerves herself to bring to the shore. A bullet wound in the temple shows the man to have been murdered (jay makes her way to the 'Captain' with the story. Returning with him to the shore, they find no body there, and Gay's story of the incident is set down to an attack of "nerves." Gay. unable to convince her neighbors of the truth, draws a picture of the face of the dead man, intending to send it to the authorities. She meets a si ranker, apparently an- " other visitor, to whom she tells the story and shows the picture. He asks her to let him fake it but Gay refuses. Next day, after a night spent with "A un ta 1 miry," Gay finds the picture has been taken from the cottage. CHAPTER IV Continued 6 "There you have me in a nutshell. The island dynamiter, burner and bomber. Got anybody yon want blown up? iiand's home." "Rand who?" she asked. Gay was amazed, that having heard the words a hundred times. "Whet, Rand comes home." she had never felt sufficient interest to inquire, "And who Is Rand?" Many times again would Gay Pelane hear those words, but never again without a thrill of personal In terest. hope and joy. "Rand Wallace." "Oh. you're another Wallace." "I am not only another Wallace, 1 am a whole section of them. The Wallaces Wal-laces run in branches. I'm the third branch. All the other branches dwindle off into uncles and aunts, and nephews, sons and cousins. Hut I'm a whole series all by myself. It's quite a distinclion." Gay laughed as sire pressed the electric button thai turned the heat into her tea kettle. "We'l. have a party," she s.iid. "We're so glad Rand's home. And while we are waiting for the water to boil tell me, where does your series lit into the tout ensemble of House Wallace?" Randolph Wallace's versi in of the family history, a very facetious. Hip pant and slangy version, began witti t lie first Captain Wallace who was hl.-great-grandfather. The present Captain', Cap-tain', he explained carefully, was real- ; ly his great-uncle, although he called ,- ' him Gramp. because.- a:, he explained. y "al' the other Wallaces call him y Gramp. and it avoids confusion" The administrator, Mrs. Alice Andover. was his great-mint. "Your voice, except that It has some expressiveness, is rather state of Maine," Gay said thought fully. "Rut you do ni seem like fir- others. You are different." "My father committed a faux pas.' he confessed. "He married an actress from .N'ew York who was up here with the actors' summer colony ore year I." he said slowly. "1 am the cotnhns lion that results from the union of Manhattan and the state of Maine. It has been a warning to the whole state." be added modestly. "Your parents " Gay prompted, enthralled with his flippant tale, "We were all out li a boat togeth er. I :an sort of remember It. though I .vas a baby. Sudden squ.i.l -boat went over - Strange, isn't It? They were both strong, able-bodied, good swimmers, used to the sea I was a lathy. Rut I floated ashore In my mother's arms. She was dead, my fa ther was dead Rut Hand came home." "Oh. that Is very s:td." Gay's eyes bad darkened with her ready sytnpa thy. her slim hands .wisted tngethei He smiled at her. To bide her sud den emotion. Gay turned quickly to the serving of to," Rut her desire for Information about this surprising person was limitless. lim-itless. She vantod to know hout his education, where be had cone ;o school. The grammar grades in the Island schoolhuuse. if seemed, he had per-s;sled per-s;sled doggedl.i through, and took a great ileal of quiet satisfaction in ex plaining that the three missing bricks beneath the "vlndow on the smitl east corner had been removed by hN own hands at the age ot nine years, to facilitate bis departure from the seat " of learning . hei the teacher reached for the veII-known educational birch branch. lie entire high school course he bad encompassed. If not with honor, in least without serious mis hap. in the city of Cortland. "And then, darned if 1 didn't go to college.' be told her. "Rut don't blame me. I had to go. My late la- i merited Grandfather Wallace put It into his will that I couldn't Inherit until ' went to college. Left me an infant in arms, as you might say, the arms of a guardian. Guess who? The administrator, darn her. That's what got her so stuck on administrating, she did such a good job with me." "It wouldn't hurt you to go to college." col-lege." "Going to college would tie simple enough. I had to go through. 1 did. Rowdoin. I hated to go there, 1 was afraid I'd turn out a poet, 1 thought it was required for gradua tion. Rut Gramp was dead set on Rowdoin. Well, I went. It did me no harm. I've never even written vers libre. Though sometimes I feel it come over me all of a sudden I feel it now when I look at you." Gay frowned at him, but he smiled disarmingly. His was a pleasant smile. His lips were thin, their curve half-cynical, half-humorous, very sensitive. sen-sitive. The vaunted mustache was hut a shadowy outlining fringe. His skin had been fair no doubt, save for the rich coal of tan that covered him. His bands were hard and brown, small for their strength, smaller than her own. she noticed quickly. When lie said at last,- reluctantly, that he must gA and see Auntalmiry she went with him to the door. "Come again," she told him pleasantly; pleas-antly; "come oftfn." "1 feel myself slipping," he said sadly, sad-ly, "slipping. However. I am no coward. cow-ard. I'll come." Rater in the evening. Gay went down to the Pier grocery store. On every lip was the laughing word. "Rand's home." Rut whereas before she had taken no notice, now she experienced ex-perienced acute interest. paused breathless at the name, and drank in every word that fell from native lips on the subject of Randolph Wallace. The combustion of the union between Manhattan and the state of Maine was nol entirely approved on the Island, she gathered, but altogether loved, although al-though the island never openly acknowledges ac-knowledges its loves. As the dusk fell she went out, alone, unafraid info the little whispering forest, for-est, and walked up and down, slowly, deep in thought. The island seemed changed to her, warmer, softer. She felt vaguely troubled, vaguely pleased, strangely stirred. When her thoughts turned to the amazing young man and her surprising encounter with him her lips curved into tremulous smiles and her eyes brightened with pleased expectancy. She shook her head at herself warnlngly. She was not deceived. de-ceived. She knew these symptoms. She liked hut feared them also For the first time, the practical boyishness of her costume was distasteful dis-tasteful to her. and when she g"t up on the morning after Rand's return, for the first time since she came to the Island she discarded her knickers and silken shirt. Half ashamed of the instinct that prompted her. but none the less obedient to its guiding, she took from her trunk a costume that was one of her chief treasures, a studio pajama suit, patterned after on improved Japanese style, all in black and fairy blue, the trousers long and, wide, the coat,.- which was really an over-hlouse reaching to the knees richly embroidered, all soft lines and delicate curves. With dainty btue and gold . slippers and sheer silken hose, it was a delectable studio con rod inn. designed for theatrical effect, ef-fect, inspired for the enravishment of an audience. Cay changed bet easel, considering now not so much the allowance of good light for her work as unobstructed unobstruct-ed view for herself, and sat where by the su'htest turn of her eyes she could command the entire slope to the orchard below, and the lane thai led from the pier to the Captain's house. Whoever ventured forth, must pass that way. At ten minutes to eleven ne came down iaunfily and crossed Into the orchard. Guy leaned forward. TMd he turn left to the Apple Tree? No. straight . toward the I .one I'lne he made his way Once he stopped to pick and taste and toss away a little irrecii apple Again he paused, to answer an-swer the eager calls of the hoys at the pirr IV.it he came on. lie came to a sudden halt o'utslde the window, and stood a moment spellbound. She looked up. then, and smiled "You are blotting out my sun shine." she said. "1 fondly hope. I that 1 was liringinu it." he returned impudently, "pon't get up I always c.-me right in." He suited anion to his words, arid came and sal in the window sea! closi-to closi-to her elbow Gay turned about in her eiiair and regarded him pleas antly, "Is Auntalmiry here?" he asked apologetically. "No. she bu t. ln'i she at the Ap pl Tree?" "Well, I didn't really stop to sec I thought I'd belter inquire here lirst. So she isn't here Hear. dear, all tr.! long walk for nothing." "Not for nothing. 1 a:n J.1--1 goiu;-. . -i The Present Captain He Explainei Carefully, Was Really His Great-Uncle. Great-Uncle. was an idler, a dawdler on I he face of the earth, that he had no profession profes-sion and wanted none, no business and was glad of it. no ambition and delighted in its absence. He called himself a retired gentleman, and said it was a poor island that couldn't support at least one: in fat. he said, the entire state of Maine united to support bim. "Rut don't you do anything? You don't just loaf, do you?" "I.oaf! Certainly not. Rums loaf. Landed gentlemen retire." Gay scrutinized him gravely, re-1 re-1 marked the muscular arms. the straight shoulders, the vigorous tan the deep and understanding eyes. And he wa an idler in this rnggei land) She shook her head regretfully. "A world full of things to be done." she said slowly. "And you do nothing." He explained that fot ten weeks he had been "doing the coast of Canada with a photographer in a fishing schooner, getting pictures. He had returned to the island to finish up h little work he was iloiiv on a motor launch, for Reniis. a lumber man at Rnngor. He was to get the boat ready, ad with a couple of men as |