The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1902-11-15
CUP|D'S SUMMER SCHOOL l?

"dS III ioNe. NoN, III II Way, tnlS
was nothing unusual. for Thomas was
so frequently, so variously and so OBJ.
View House took him at all seriously.
In other words, Thomas was whole
sale riirt who conducted his campaigns
so Openly that had he sat in solitude
for an hour the entire summer con.
tingent upon the island would have
remarked upon the strangeness OF the
proceeding; not that such an event
was probable when there were twenty.
seven attractive and tractable young
women at hand that is. all were tract
able except one. Tommy frankly ad-
mitted that he had been rejected by
twenty six out of the twenty seven. but
when urged to go ahead and make his
volume of reflections complete he
turned strangely reticent.
No one would have believed the
truth-that the twenty seventh was the
real object OF his alteration and that.
despite his vast experience In this In
stance, he became oddly incapable of
uttering the words that would put his
fate to test With twenty six of the
Sea Viewers" as he dubbed them, he
was brave to the point of audaCity.
and not one OF the girls iclt her heart
touched by the turn of So much as n
feathers weight but with Janet Mars
dem All, that was different. She
might not take him seriously either.
Tommy really loved this quiet, self
contained girl, and his tongue STAN.
mered and grew slow when he tried to
tell In all seriousness what he had
ofttimes spoken III jest. In spite OF
his mercurlal temperament Darling
was not a tirt in the common aCCepta-
tion of the word. BencU; Ills Gaycty
was hidden strong, mH4,y nature
that seldom manifested itSrlf Perhaps
better side to Janet. for h" felt in
stinctively that tippancy in her pres.
ence was dcsecration OF the love he
nurtured far below the surface.
The weeks sped by Pretty girls
came and pretty girls went. Moonlight
sails and rides gave Wa! to hops ARD
amateur theatricals on dark nights.
There were grabbing Oh the lake. clam
bakes beyond the Point and picnics in
the woods across the inlet, and VI all
these Tommy was the life, the bright
anl guiding star. But tomorrow 1t
would all end. Janet was going home
Tommy gazed mOodily toward the
point Of rock around which she had
was an idiot, a
Tommy kicked over camp chair
that stood in his way and strode down
the steps toward the beach, He found
Janet with her new magazines perched
In a shady, sandy corner.
"Your mother tells me you leave for
the mountains tomorrow. I'm tremen-
dously sorry you are going"
Tommy was digging holes with the
point of her parusol
His voice was genuinely tender and
earnest The smile died on her lips.
and her eyes softened; but, after all,
his record was against him.
Are you clever at fgures?' she in
quired.
She had the parasol now. and Tom
my followed what she wrote in the
sand:
"27-26=?"
Like a flash he reached for what had
now become Cupd'S weapon. Under
the question he wrote clearly "27 2G=
everything"
"The others don't count, you know"
he added, looking out at the dancing
waves.
VERY clever Of you! What Il time
you must have thinking up all these
pretty speeches. When do you have
time to Sleep Her raillcry brought
flush to his cheeks, and he cfnspcd
his hands rcsOlutely about his knees
TO be honest. haven't slept much
lately. I've had something on my
mind. I've been trying TO find way
to tell a girl that | lose her, but !
cant make IT. She's not a summer
girl you see, but the sort of girl one
would want winter and summer for
all time" His iippancy had quite dis
appeared now, and Janet suddenly
shielded her face with her hand,
though the sun had not yet crcpt
You see, no one believes I've a heart,
FOR rve let :he girls play football with
Ii till everybody thiuks It's worn out.
but that was Just counterfeit, don't
you see, and want this girl to IN
derstand that the real thing is all hers
and | think 1t has been waiting for
.ust her all these years, Now, If you
could tell me what to say-hOw to con
vince hcr"-
His hazel eyes, from which all play
ful, teasing light had fed, were fixed
on distant dipping sail and he did
not see the expression on Janets race,
There was II moments silence; then
she drew a quick, shnrp breath
you might"-hrr voice was very
low-"you might tell her that sou love
her. simply that, nothing more--ho
pretty speeches, but as II sou r"rIIy
meant 1t, and perhaps prfbaps She
would believe you"
Tommy turned sharply ana read
that In her face which trausfprHro
the barren sands into garden OF
Eden
Half an hour later Janet gathered
up Ter books aud banded them to tue
radiant Tommy
You're very docIe pupil dear but
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