Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1902-04-10
c s:*Storyette
CHILDREN ON THE BEACH.

Clio: Graves in London Sketch.
Who does not know San SahnO, that
southern seabOard Elysium where
health and pleasure seekers Of all
types, grades, degrees and national
lite do congregate, arrayed in bath
tOweling, shod with rope sandals, ana
drowned with broad-leveIed palm leaf
hats? Here the Bordeaux merchant
lays down his cares, oblivious of the
rise in glucose or the increased i'm
pert tax on lOgWoOd Here the Amer
ic&n millionaire shifts for while the
burden Of his millions, the English
peer is said to occasionally forget that
he is somebody, and here the crowned
heads of Europe play at being no
bodies with more or less success.
The high, yellow cliffs that guard
the coast are honeycombed with caves
and broken by sandy bays and it'll"
COves, rock grit Avalons of pine and
sea-scented healing and repose. i}c
fore you, the Atlantic thunders upon
miles of jagged reefs, and, behind,
the yerdurOus country undulates to
the pine-clad foothills of the PyreneCs.
The harbOr lies on the southern side
Of a grim prOmOntOry crowned by the
ruins of a Saracenic castle and the
Establishment des Bains, and the
Casino, the theater, and the sandy
golf links have in the season. com
rrehensive One-their crowds of de-
voices. Beyond the town, with its
hy-o 4n1C
ing-houses, set in cactus-starred, lex
shaded gardens, are the bungalows
and villas OF mOnarChS, crowned and
urcrOWned
There is a sheltered cove on the
northern side of the caStIed promon-
tory which is in especial favor with
children, and here two little people, a
grave, fair boy OF eight and a black,
eyed girl of seven, found themselves
al, ne one June day On the bronze
CClCred border of wet sand left by
the Tetreating tide the girl was dane
ing, some shells of the razOrfiSh serv-
Ing her as CastanetS, clicking the &C
compartments to her improVised cac-
huchR
Snow, snow" she sang; fairy
snow" as the breakers Numbered on
the hOney-combed reef ridges and
spent themselves in kissing sheets OF
daz2 ling Wilderness.
The boy, who wore bonnet OF
Basque tartan upon his fair CurlS, d
crimson string sash about his coarse
linen blouse. and peasant shoes OF
rope upon his slim. bare feet, stood
looking doubtfully at the girl who
danced on to her shell music, and
seemed 70 take no heel Of him. She
too, wore a short. loose frock of I'M
bleached linen, but it was curiously
embroidered at the throat, hem and
sleeves, with silk of bright, barbarfc
hUes, and gaudy tassels adorned her
hempen fOOtgear. Her slim, brown
arms and legs. like the fair limbs or
tic boy, were bare, and her rich
chestnut brown locks danced as she
did, without restraint. for her broad
leaved palm hat had fallen off and lay
upon the sands, where the little pink
crabs were scouting amid the ripple
marks, and the air bubbles of hidden
9hellfish Quiyered and ShOne like bells
of crystal in the hot, bright sunshine
Fairy snow" she went on singing;
fairy, fair, fairy snow"
The boy was not sure whether he
liked her or not. Certainly she was
pTetty-but, then, to dance like one of
the Basque peasant girls, out in the
open air upon the sands, with the sky
and the sea and the cliff martens
looking on! 1t seemed "unbecoming' -
That was a word the boy was weary
of. 1t was ever on the lips of his
governors and tutors. Only that
morning Prof. X. had used it because
the boy had made a little, little mis-
take in geography.
1T is unbecOming your majesty"
All, the boy could hear the pedagog's
grating voice and see his long, hooked
nose as plainly as one does see and
hear things one hates to remember.
'Ycur majesty must be aware that it
is unbecoming that a monarch should
be inadequately informed as to the ex-
tent of the colonial possessions per
tanning to his crown. Your majesty
will CondeScend to write the Laffarin
islands in your copybook so times
over"
For the fair. pale boy OF eight was
the king of Ibera. and the small hand
that played with a Basque stick, oddly
ornamented in the peasant fashion
with rings of metal. would one day
WELD a scepter. He was weary of
lessons and lectures; and that day
seemed very dim and far off; but the
sun was shining, and there were love
ly shells and weeds lying on the sands
et his very feet, and one could forget
tho multitude of things that were I'M
becoming if one had some one to play
win. At home, at the palace, there
was Enrique, the head gardeners
sen, who sometimes was allowed to
share the kings amusements. En-
ricue, too, talked of things, that were
''unbecoming," and was a dull, tame
kind OF boy; but, when one had no
ether boy to play with, even Enrique
was better than nobody He won