Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-10-03

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THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE HURRICANE DECK
the hurricane deck, just above the smok.
ing-room, where, lying full length on {
reclining chair and enveloped in luxuri-
Gus rugs. she could waech all that was
| going forward Oh the broad expanse OF
| deck below.
She was the only lady passenger on
| deck. The ship was bowling along glo.
| riouSly over the giant swells with roll
| licking, sideway motion far from un-
| pleasant to the now rapidly recovering
| patient. game ot shufie-boar was in
progress beneath. and Miss Gray expe-
rienced wicked satisfaction in the reg
| ularity with which her enemy with the
blonde mustache found himself compelled
to hand his opponent small sum of
| money at the close Of each game. Her
dewy-red lips parted in slight we'll
bred sheer. "Ah, a gambler, see." she
murmured, scornfully, and closed her
eyes.
She felt that the wind was playing
prauks with her hair, but she was too
weak to mind. But suddenly there was q
heavier lurcl. than usual and the pillow
beneath her head shot Oft the chair and
rolled down out Of her reach. She made
two weak, Intellectual efforts to clutch it,
and, thereupon, in the sheer weakness
and petulance, engendered by that un-
ique malady of the sea, she commenced
to cry like a baby.
She could not have uttered more than
four of those plaintive little sobs before
she felt the pillow being replaced. A
strong arm, clothed in a soft flannel
sleeve, had raised her head with an air Of
cool proprietorship, and its fellow
smoothed and patted the pillow into
place as skillfully as though it had never
known any other duty. Then the owner
of the two arms stepped back la pace or
two to survey his work, and Miss Gray
looked up and beheld-her enemy of the
blonde muStache.
His eyes were dancing with merriment
and mis- chief. Miss Gray noted with Bit
terness how handsome and healthy and
daring he looked. Tall, slender, straight
as an arrow, every line Of his figure ex-
pressing grace and the consciousn ness Of
it. He looked primed for mischief.
A sudden sense of her former experi-
ence rushed across Miss Gray's mind.
The combined bitterness of that and of
no cjn Ia inc Two
from were too much for her. She was
not to be trapped twice. She half rose
on her elbow and cried, peevishly:
$50 away"'
Over the young mans face swept a
look Of amazement to be followed by
one of combined amusement and pique.
He bowed low, with great grace, and did
as he was hidden.
OF course the young lady regretted her
action the mex: instant. She knew that
she had been rude, inexcusably rude.
She began to wonder il the young man
would come back, and next to hope that
he would. Then, as the minutes dragged
by and he did not come. she began to re-
fleet on what an extraordinarily hand
some young man he was. There was
honesty and breeding in every line of his
face. He had done nothing but what
ordinary courtesy would dictate. He did
not look like a young man in the habit
of taking liberties. The upshot of her
reverie was that she remarked. quietly:
''Lucretia Gray, you are a fool" Then
she cried little more. and felt better.
She could not accuse the young man OF
presumption after that. When she met
him,in her frequent promenades on deck,
his face assumed the expression OF u
stone WALL For all that he appeared to
know to the contrary, she might have
been at the bottom of the Atlantic in
stead of sailing across il in the same ship
with him. He persisted in this course.
He never looked her way, and it was not
very long before people began to notice
it. Acquaintances had sprung up be-
tween the passengers, as they always do.
aud bye and bye these two young peo-
pie were actually the only saloon pas
sengers who did not speak to each other.
Strange as it may appear. the longer It
continued the better Miss Gray liked the
young man. She fell to studying him. as
he paced the decks or lounged on the
cabin sofas with an unread book in his
listless fngers-the fingers that were al
ways so beautifully white, and tipped, 10
the brink of effeminacy, with such Won
derfully polished nails. Once she was
guilty OF gazing long and earnestly at
him through the windows OF the music.
room as he sat stunning idly az the
piano. He could not play note. but,
strangely enough, the discords that he
struck seemed far from uuharmonious TO
the young lady, herself an accomplished
musician. But, then, she was looking at
his hair. and marveling inwardly a; the
tricks the sunshine played with it. After
that her eyes were always upon him,
except at such times she knew her
glauces would risk being intercepted.
Once he caught ber-caught her fairly and
unequivocally. He was leaning over the
raillng. aud turned suddenly to fud her
gaze full upon him from a distance of
short six feet. Was it 8 prank OF the i'm
agination or did fash of pleasure CLEAN
into his eyes. as she hastily turned aside
with her chasES e,-n-~