Show THE NIT WIT by SARAH mccahey B mcclure rac clure newspaper syndicate service OUD never guess that Y among amon the visitors at the ocean view the most important and expensive hotel at rock island 15 miles out from the mainland one of the richest oil men in the united stat states Cs mingled with the other guests entirely unknown to them it was a banner year for the big summer hotel and one might well lose himself in the crowd and that is just what had been prescribed for the oil magnate cut into a new life for the next few weeks and keep away from the business crowd had been his doctors advice and robert stratton had packed his grip for his old home town although no one could ever believe that he was not born and bred in the maelstrom of new yorks commercial life well he remembered the day he had left the island he had held field a sort of reception on the lock dock before he boarded the shinnecock bound for new york arent you going to say goodby good by to arabella teased his chum lon littlefield robert had a very high regard for marabellas Ara bellas intellectual attainments tain ments also the sun had been too partial to her when he was scattering his freckles around moreover she lisped not if I 1 know it ashes a nit wit the potential adventurer had scoffed now it is a well known fact that people say things among themselves about another they would never want the object of their criticism to know about so robert stratton unconscious that his flip remark had been overheard was shaken out of the conceit that his 18 13 years of conquest had engendered by encountering a blaze of anger in the eyes of a 14 year old girl who had come down with the others to see him off ill show you ill show you if I 1 am a fool she had cried and then had become inarticulate with mortification for he had been her hero and now after 15 years robert stratton a rich bachelor from f rom the metropolis was a guest at the finest hotel and was so far practically unknown to the other guests at the ocean view and was also realizing that his strangest and strongest memory in connection with the island was the blaze of fury in the eyes of arabella dodge the day he left there the sunday night following his arrival the hotel management decided to give a concert to equip the little island hospital with radios for the dozen or more soldiers convalescing there the ballroom the finest and biggest on the island was filled with chairs and settees set tees and a small platform covered with beautiful rugs was raised at one end for the musi musical talent the high windows surrounding the ballroom and leading out into the piazza were opened and robert stratton seated himself comfortably in one of the large piazza chairs to listen to the concert unobserved and unnoticed the opening number two tots dressed in pink with gauze wings fluttered in noiselessly and wordlessly on the tips of their pink toes ices circled the platform and then fluttered away again then a woman in simple white muslin with abright blue ribbon around her waist ascended the one step of the platform and began to sing Shu berts beautiful ave maria robert stratton had heard it sung many times in his life but never to the accompaniment of the waves literally breaking beneath the lofty piazza on which he sat he looked toward the sea at the golden path of the moon on the water and felt he had never experienced anything so beautiful and then he looked more intently at the singer at arabella dodge slender of medium height not one in 50 could wear that simple gown so enchantingly the sweet high voice that rose and fell with easy grace and perfect technique filled the immense ballroom and robert hobert stratton threw away his cigar and drew his chair closer that he might not miss any of its sweetness here was the answer to all his wanderings right here in his little home town of new boreham Fore ham that a woman as beautiful as arabella dodge should still live here and be able to sing so gloriously probably some summer visitor had taught her he thought he remembered he her PS to parents stay as with itha quite them old she had had on their little farm no SK most likely and so had had opportunity for meeting the who with must there be was fine no for island her to mate man for this beautiful man fit woman who could sing so divine lyl this island was a beautiful place anyway he thought ly and his wealth could make it w wonderfully 0 popular a summer si resort by advertising ag and making it better known As it was a man take his car down here and ruin it on the roads as they now were but he IL could build new roads he was rich ic enough to finance an electric rai railway ay that could circle the little sea island running along alone with t the e beach each and thus bring peale people to build classy little bungalows for summer homes the place needed d stirring up why eve even now the cattle on the farms inland stampeded when they saw an autom automobile obi 1 e as primitive as that and on only I 1 y 15 miles from one of the richest cities in in the united states he could buy and reconstruct the magnificent bearle mansion built on a peninsula at the north shore where the water slithered over a softly shelving beach for nearly a quarter of a mile ideal for children arabella was the kind of a woman that would have children all the island women had families A voice like hers in a hall with proper acoustics or in in a music room in her own home could bring out its beauties more abundantly there were dramatic possibilities there to be developed new york in in winter and rock kock island in the surn summer merl I 1 robert stratton reached for his pen and signed a large check and slipped it into the basket as it reached him such an introduction must amaze her after all had gone to their rooms for the night he still sat there waiting then a man came toward him waving a slip of paper Is this real and are you real asked a deep rich voice lon littlefield as I 1 livel live and the two men shook hands 1 I did not know but what this check might be a hoax im the chairman laughed littlefield stratton congratulated him it was a fine concert I 1 saw arabella dodge yes here she comes said lon how kind you are exclaimed arabella after greeting him your check will more than cover everything and how I 1 have wanted to see youl you yes laughed stratton happily you see said arabella laughing merrily 1 I always wanted you i to know that you cured my lisp really said stratton blankly something must have happened to me the day you called me a nit wit w it member and she laughed again 1 I never was so angry in r my y life and I 1 have never lisped since she tells that story quite often said lon indulgently she says she is is glad none of the children lisp children echoed the visitor yes smiled arabella the two little tots who introduced my song vv erent they charming if I 1 may say it of my own indeed they were assured stratton we live in new york in the winter but always come here for the summer its good for the wife and children arabella keeps up her voice when she is in new york and lon littlefield smiled proudly 1 I think we have an ideal location here on the island dont you asked arabella glancing toward the ac ocean ean sparkling in the moonlight yes inde indeed edl come out to the hospital tomorrow and see our plans begin to mature invited the Little fields as they departed robert stratton went to his room and packed his bag in m somber si lence I low ilow beautifully full y fate had slipped the skids under his little iridescent dream of conquest the nit witt wit and he had cured her lisp perfect I 1 11 I 1 |