Show SHIFTING SANDS AND S SYNOPSIS the tutor of the till still youthful and comely marcia howe recently released by death from her lilling selfish husband Is ft a conversational sat ional tit bit among housewives of the th I 1 little atle hamlet of wilton eligible bachelors bachelor and widowers also are interested te marcia despite her unfortunate matrimonial experience finds pleasure in her life but Is lonely at tim times a and has invited her late hu hua ashe ban fiands ow niece sylvia hayden wh whom am he has haa never seen to visit her the girl arrives and marcia mircea takes to her at once while sylvia expecting to me ato a somewhat elderly runt aunt hilda marcia more like a sister CHAPTER il II continued 3 you bring a trunk ent you are to make a long iong visit child 01 1 I 1 I sure that id want to sylvia replied you see I 1 was a wee bit afraid of you I 1 had no idea what you yon were like if id brought my things id have been obliged to stay youre a cautious young person was wa marcias dry observation atwould serve you right if I 1 sent you home at the end of a fortnight oh please dont do dint begged sylvia ita in the alton city liy courle courier that I 1 have gone east cast to visit relatives for a few weeks if I 1 should come right back everybody would decide rd stolen the family sliver silver or done something disgraceful besides my trunk Is all packed locked str appell 1 and ive brought the key milled she with disarming frankness it can ba pent for in case 1 I seel nodded marcia her lips curving into a smile in spite of her self elf 1 I said bald you were cautious dont you ever watch your own step As an the myriad pros and cons she liar had weighed and eliminated before inviting her guest passed in quick review before marcias Mar clas mind she chuckled sometimes I 1 do the she conceded firl trimly imly CHAPTER III the village store grandiloquently grandl styled by a red sign the wilton emporium was thronged thron ged with the usual noontime crowd it was a still gray day murky with fog and the odors of wet oilskins oil oll skins teaming steaming rubber robber coats damp woolens blended with a mixture of tar coffee and tobacco smoke made its interior thick and stuffy long ago the airtight stove had bad consumed such remnants of oxygen as the room contal contained nid the windows reeked with moisture the floor was gritty with sand these discomforts comforts dis however failed to be of consequence to the knot of men who rain or shine congregated there at mall mail time they were accustomed to them indeed a drizzle far from keeping the away rendered the meeting place unusually popular shuffling over to the counter where his friends were huddled zenas henry unostentatiously joined them yes siree therell be so methin doln in wilton now enoch morton the fishman fish man was saying that sand bars baes coln to be the center of the town if I 1 dont miss my guess therell be moren charlie eldridge fishan la in the channel A laugh greeted the prediction chos seen her captain benjamin todd inquired 1 I have came the piping voice of lemuel gill me and becca roceil over from Bel leport saturday the girls jasons niece all right folks say though she looks no more like him than chalk like cheese A prettier little critter atwould be hard bard to find and ashes head over heels beels in love with the place im almighty aleigh ty glad ashes come too tor for its goin to be grand for marcia who must he be lonely enough out there with only the tetter setter for company its her own fault she could have other companions was she so minded declared captain phineas taylor big oh we all know that phyneas 11 greed agreed the gentle lemuel gill theres there a plenty of folks hankering han kerIn to be comrades to marcia the only trouble Is she want em with this girl at her elbow shell want em cm even less I 1 reckon asaph holmes interposed debbe still I 1 figger that aint a coln to discourage her admirers none why within the week sylvias been here berei 1 happen to know marcias had four buckets of clams a catch of flounders an a couple of cuts of swordfish presented to her Ephr lain wise the mall mail carrier announced that stray bluefish blue fish of charlie Cli arlle eldridges must a swelled the collection some borne too put in Lei lemuel nuel when I 1 asked charlie what he be done with it he be owned he be left it over at the homestead ue lie said he never wanted to see an another otIler fish longs he lived that aint all the gifts the wid ders had neither I 1 volunteered sl silas las nickerson the postmaster who now joined the group moren loren i one lobsters been sneaked to marcia after dusk 1 I blynt so co much mind folks makin marcia friendly donations captain calta in bonab baker declared with guilty haste oin in my opinion lva its right an proper should but when it comes to eleazer bleaker crocker chos head of the fire are department an undertaker as well boid over aver there for the entire epenial with the keys key to the engine house bouse in bla hj pocket I 1 think the town aughter oughter take some ome action bout it spose there was vu to b bo a fire an aa him hemmed in by by sara ware bassett copyright ly by the tb penn pub co service the tide vother side the channell the whole village tillage ml might ht burn to fo the th ground tore ever lie could be fetched I 1 home lull e well anyhow im glad this niece af marceas Mar clas come broke in Lerat lemuel iol gill ashes a pleasant little 11 tile critter an will kinder stir things up oh ob theres no danger hut but shell do that all 11 right lemmy zenas henry drawled you can generally depend on a pretty girl to raise a rumpus give her a month in town an shell most likely have all the mile male population cuttin one throats fortunately both barcla and sylvia were at the moment too far out of earshot for this menacing prediction to reach them cut ot off by curtains of fog and a tide that hat foamed through the channel they were standing in the homestead ad kitchen it was a room hoisting boasting space enough for an old fashioned brick oven an oil stove two sand scrubbed tables snow white and smooth as satin a high backed rocker cushioned in red calico braided rugs and shelves for plants A regal kitchen truly one that bespoke both comfort and hospitality before be fire stretched upon his side lay veince hal his body relaxed his eyes drowsy with sleep while from her vantage ground on tho the rocking chair above the tiger kitten winkle wee gazed watchfully down upon his slumbers it was sylvia however who in a smock of lowered flowered chintz lent the room its supreme touch ot of color she RIM it 00 ashes she a pleasant little critter looked as it if all the blossoms in all the world had suddenly burst into bloom benom and twined themselves about her slender body with her coming a new world had opened to marcia to see sylvia jauntily sweep aside old conventions to behold the differ different elit emphasis she put upon familiar problems to witness her audacious belittling of issues her elders had been wont to grapple with was an experience that continually shocked stimulated challenged and amused marcia found herself halt half reluctantly admiring this splendidly normal outlook this mixture of sophistication and her nieces novel and definitely formed opinions for youthful though sylvia was she had personality character cliar acter stratums stra tums of wisdom far in advance of her years A very intriguing companion marcia admitted one of whose may many sided ness the ehe would not soon tire now what shall our menu be marda dear she was asking remember according to our compact it Is my turn to get the dinner anything but fish P marcia answered with a groan im so tired clr d of saltwater salt sait water products it seems as it if never again could I 1 touch another but my dear if you will have a stag line of nautical admirers what can you expect you must pay the penalty besides I 1 think youre ungrateful sylvia pouted 1 I 1 love clams and other sea foods youve not had su so many of them in your lifetime as I 1 have besides I 1 suspect you are not dot telling the truth come confess arent you a wee bit fed up on clams cam chowder monday night steaben clams tuesday noon clam fritters tuesday night and then that bluefish blue Bsh why it was big as a shark I 1 I 1 used to think it would be romantic to be a lorelei and an life ike deep down beneath the waves but this avalanche of fish bsh I 1 despairingly slie she shrugged tier her shoulders sylvia laughed 1 I dont feet feel at all like that ive had a feast of fish and enjoyed it IL but it if I 1 were to express a preference it would be tor for the hard shelled suitors do select one of those for a hus husband bawl barcla begged she whimsically the others are all very well indeed that bluefish swain was magnificent in his way but me tor for the crustaceans Syl sylvia vial you absurd child just consider the clam character for or a moment so silent so close mouthed never stirring up trouble or wanting to be out nights in ny my opinion he would be an ideal help mata not sensitive either nor apal ous marcia do marry one of the clams I 1 sylvia you are ridiculous 1 mar cla protested you forget I 1 am your jour aunt my mistake I 1 did forget it ill confess and more I 1 probably always shall to me you are just 1 i girl id be head over heels in love with if I 1 were a man I 1 dont blame all the clams lobsters and flounders for flock lug over here to make love to you stop talking nonsense hut but it nonsense its the truth b you certainly are not deluding yourself into thinking these men come gal out here over the flats with the mere philanthropic purpose of seeing you son dont starve to death do you sylvia demanded perhaps they come to see you hedged marcia feebly me lie I 1 now marcia pray do not resort to deceit and attempt to poke pok this legion of mermen off on me As aa a relative I 1 insist on having a truthful respectable aunt consider my youth it your christian duty to set me a good example whether you wed any of these nautical worshipers or not Is your own affair but at least honesty compels you to acknowledge your property A shadow fleet as the rift in a summer cloud pissed passed over marcias Mar clas face but transient as it was sylvia sensitively attuned and alert to changes of mood in others noticed it what a little beast I 1 am marcia Sl arcla she cried throwing her arm impulsively about the other woman forgive Forg lre my thoughtlessness I 1 would lit have ve hurt you for the world you know I 1 never saw uncle jason ile he left home when I 1 was a child and Is nu no reality to me even mother remembered him only as he was when a boy mother felt sorry hurt that uncle jason should have left home as he did and never come back to see her ile he was an impulsive hotheaded hot headed beaded boy and she said he be resented her watchfulness and authority but even though he ran away in a moment of anger one would think years of absence would have smoothed away his resentment jason jason loved your mother marcia murmured in a voice scarcely audible 1 I am sure of that but if he be loved her why no be come to se see elier her I 1 know it was a long journey but it if he could only have come once just once it would have meant so much I 1 men are selfish unfeeling they forget replied marcia bitterly you give your life to them and they toss aside your love and devotion as if it were so much rubbishy rubbish the outburst sharp with pain burst from her involuntarily awin awing sylvia into silence what did she know of jason that dim heritage of her childhood of barcla of their life together she suddenly asked herself to cover the awkwardness of the th moment she bent to caress prince hal who had rhen and stood alert ant and listening beside her only an instant passed before marcia spoke again this time with visible effort to recapture her customary manner suppose we have lobster this noon suggested she im ril get the chafing dish the matter hal old man you look worried dont tell me you hear bear more fish swimming our way the nose of the setter quivered and going to the window he grow growled ledL uc lie does docs hear bear something asserted sylvia what do you suppose it Is gulls most likely they above the house bouse in clouds was mar clas careless ianswer answer the prince regards them as his natural enemies he dell delights abts to chase them up th alie beach and send them whirling into the air apparently he be resents their chatter again the dog growled almost immediately a hand fumbled with the latch and as the door swung open a man staggered blindly into the room ile he was hatless wet to the skin and shivering with cold and before mar cla could reach his bis side he burchel forward and fell at her feet quick sylvia close the door and heat some broth the poor fellow Is exhausted iles hes chilled to the bone f who Is he hel no one I 1 know a stranger bring biln that pillow and help me to slip it under his head well let him rest where he Is a moment her fingers moved to the bronzed bron zeil wrist hes all right she whispered just cold and worn out hell be himself presently she swept the matted half hair lightly sprinkled with gray from the mans mang loreli lorel ead lead and wiped his face an interesting face it was intelligent and highbred high bred with well weil cut features and a firm determined chin A sweater of blue wool a blue serge suit socks of tan and sport shoes to i match them clung to the tall slender figure and on the hand lying across it sparkled a diamond sunk in a band of wrought gold it was as not the hand of a fisherman tanned though it was nor yet that of a sailor there could be no domut about that rather hather it belonged to a 2 scholar a 4 writer a painter or pos po sibly to a physician for it was stron as well as formed sylvia bent to adjust the pillow un nn tier her eyes and Mar marceas clas is met who was tills limn 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