The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-12-14

arrive on II. Then came the second
disappointment. There was no Henry
Imbrie.
The O'Clock train was distinguished
by being the only train each day.
When it pulled out again Jack came
within an ace of hitting the mare. He
stopped just in time. But ne was to
be pardoned. For now his last hope
OF having even a passably merry
Christmas Eve had departed.
He sat down in the library and
tried to read. But every book that he
picked up seemd to be imbued with
determination to tell of jovial Christ
mas Eve celebrations.
At 10 O'Clock he decided to escape
from himself by going duck hunting.
He stalked out to look for Joe. Joe
was the handy man. But he wasn't
handy just then. II transpired that
Joe, calculating justly but incorrectly,
that his master would not wish to go
shooting that day. had gene himself.
Thus at IL O'Clock Jack Trevor was
a pessimist.
He remained a pessimist all day. The
luncheon, arranged for a big house
party, choked him. The mist outside
filled him with yelling grief. The
thought of the unreliable night boat
irritated him.
And suddenly he found himself
blaming his cousins and aunts and all
their cousins and his parents and Her
for enjoying themselves in town Gas
he had no doubt they did) without
thinking of him.
He carried that bitter thought
around with him until it was dusk.
He cultivated 1t carefully until ii was
bitterer than ever while he stood star
ing out over the bay that was turning
black and sad.
All at once something happened, or
rather, didn't happen.
The lights of Capt. Horners cottage,
four miles across the bay, failed to
shine out as they had done at dusk
every evening for years. Then Jack
remembered that the day before, the
old seaman had complained of feeling
ill. And he remembered, too, that the
old. mans two orphaned grandchildren
were with him.
His gloomy reflections over his own
gloomy Christmas Eve vanished be-
fore the real gloominess of the Christ
mas Eve that he could picture-the
two little ones in the dark shanty
among the deserted sand dunes, miles
away from any one; the old man, dis
couraged and suffering; no Santa
Claus, no decorations, possibly not
even food or light.
A Santa Claus was on the way In
less than another hour; a Santa Claus
with strong arms that pulled the boat
swiftly, as IL 1t were not laden with
a mound of gifts from a ham to a
rag doll. Jack had made reckless in
roads on the piles of presents that he
had slowed away for nieces and neph-
ews in his enthusiastic expectations
for that evening.
Two little girls with begrimed faces,
cleaned only in zigzag streaks where
tears had done their best to wash
them, pressed their stub-noses into
still more pronounced stubs against
the tiny window pane, watching the
man who came plodding through the
white sand with the mighty bundles.
Their teeth actually ceased chattering
when they saw the dolls. The old
man, helpless with rheumatism and
cold in his bunk, croaked out the first
| joyful word that he had uttered all
| day. Even the stove Joined in the
| glow of the occasion, for ten minutes
| after the arrival of the big Trevor
| Santa Claus the fire was a-roar. And
| it was high time. The weather was
| doing it's best to make a real Christ
mas Eve, even IL all humanity failed.
Jack BUSTED out again and found an
| axe. In half an hour he returned,
stumbling under a swamp cedar, some-
what gnarled and wind-beaten, a lit
tie bit inclined to run to wood instead
of green needles, but a glorious
| Christmas tree for the two little Hor-
ner girls after 1t had been hung with
the best that the Trevor house at Lone
Dune had contained for It's own Christ
mas tree.
BY this time you may be sure Jack
| Trevor felt kindly again toward his
absent ones-and ashamed. But, in
stead of repining uselessly he made
up his mind wisely to do penance by
| civ IA ,nfI
evening that he had expected to be
| giving himself and his friends at about
that same time.
He stuffed the girls with sausages
and eggs and ham and cakes and cam
dy and dolls and picture books. He
! lifted the old captain out of the bunk
and made him comfortable before the
fire. He sang Christmas song that
he had practidd to please his guests,
and especially one guest named Mar
| garet.
SO busy was he playing Santa Claus
that 1t was some time before he no.
| ticed that the old man had something
on his mind. Then he found out that
the Post Light had not been it,
The Post Light was the one guide
to mariners in the bay at Lone Dune.
1t was a red light on pole planted
far out on the edge of a wicked shoal
that ran toward the inlet like a SUBJ
merged trap. The United States
Lighthouse Department had hired
| Capt Horner to light II every day at
dusk: and never before had he failed.
Jack Trevor was in the old mans
hip boots and his oilskins before the
captain had finished talking.
1t was hard pull to reach the light.
| The wind had increased and the sea
was rolling in over the bar. When
ever wave broke under the bow of
the boat 1t covered the oarsman with
| spray that froze as 1t struck. But
| with a line of Trevors reaching from
the quarterback of the Constitution
clear down to young ensign who was
at that moment holding down a mag
niicent cruiser made of a native tug
boat in the Philippines, It wasn't at
all likely that that light would fail to
| shine out.
Another light shone out from the
shanty windows when Jack returned,
for he lost no time in kindling the
candles on the swamp cedar. Stand
ing under it, the little girls sang a
| Christmas hymn that Jack taught
them. The old mans deep bass Joined
I'm gruffiy, but with hearty faith and
fervor. And then
Jack Trevor's Christmas adjusted
! itself
Unnoticed by the Christmas merry
makers, the wind had risen TO a gale.
With 1t had come snow. The surf
! was booming I'm sympathy. II was a
1 Christmas storm, and a big one.
| So 1t happened that, what with The
! roar outside and the laughter and song
| inside no one heard the staining OF