Amador ledger., 1904-12-30
BY BREEZES
BLOWN
Copyright, 1904, by Kate NJ. Cleary
BY Kate NJ. CfearY


ttT' asked Ivy Lyle.
The sensitive face under the big, rose
tned sun hat was very white. Her
lips quivered little. The hands that
held the vagrant sheet trembled
1T isn't that l carep' she told her
aelf. 81 hadn't begun to care-in that
way. l was only becoming-attracted
But the shock-the disillusion"-
When she had started out an hour
ago for her usual brisk morning walk
along. the crisp, shelving sands, she
had been one of the most Indifferent,
light hearted of girls. She was done
with college, and the two years of for
eign travel had succeeded school as
sort of polishing process. She had per-
feet health and misty dreams of all
the yelled future held in its keeping
She had aesthetic tastes, and her skill
in athletic sports was the admiration
Of her less vigorous girl friends. She
had been having Il beautiful time down
at this gay, unconventional resort on
the Michigan coast And now-well,
temporarily it seemed that her pleas
ure was spoiled.
And i'll her heart she knew that she
must have been beginning to think too
much of the man whose attentions to
her had been so marked or else this
discovery would not so affect her Sit
fino tO rpct and xvafah tho vr-bita
ed waves come curling up to break on
the border of the lake like threads of
rarest lace, her attention had been
caught by n small, white, whirling OBJ
iect that at first sight she had taken
for a bird 1t had whisked lower and
nearer. Then it foated so close she
could put out her hand and grasp it,
and she found it was a sheet of note
paper covered with diminutive chirog-
raphy. 1t was written on the station
cry of the fashionable hotel looming
up on the dunes behind her. At first
she had been about to crumple it up
and cast it aside, but in the very act
Of doing so name-her own name
met her eye.
Even then she hesitated But the
three words were so significant she
must know their writer's full mean
ing. The page was the continuation
of letter, and the first three words
at the top of the page were 'love
Ivy Lyle!' Impulsively, giving her
self no chance to weigh the niceties of
honor in the balance, she scanned the
page. AS she read it slowly again the
fresh, soft color went tiding out of
her cheek.
Love Ivy Lyle. I've fought against
it, for 1 can't afford to marry her, as
you know. But she has rather swept
me off my feet, old chap. At first |
was taken with her innocent beauty.
| There was no one at this big hostelry
to compare with her for looks. So |
let myself drift. 1 thought she was
just a dear little country girl and that
it would be easy to say a sentimental
farewell when The summer was over.
fiirtations amount to. So I've been 60
ing to see her steadily and taking her
everywhere. We've gone dancing and
swimming and boating and all the rest
| of it, and, by Jove, for all she's
mighty quiet, I've come to find out
she's not the typical little country girl
at all. She's well read and Travelled,
though she seemed rather aghast when
she let that fact out. And she looks at
fellow in a cool, apprising sort of
way that makes him feel pretty cheap
if his spoken thoughts are not quite up
to her white standard. But she's not
really in the social swim. She's ma
tive, l take it. It's been hard to pin
her down to any confidence about her
| self She lives with very dragon OF
an aunt at farmhouse on the edge OF
town. She wears her cotton dresses
and shade hats in q way that takes
the shine out of the women up at the
hotel, but I've never seen her sport
any of the swell clothes they wear to
the hops here. Oh, confound it, what's
the use of my incoming away to you
at this rate? I've got to go away and
try to forget her before it's too late
"Damaris Chase and her father are
to be here this week, they tell me
And she's the girl the heads of bott
our houses expect me to marry. She
may have the good taste to refuse me
and 1 almost hope she will. She's 6
great heiress, and the consolidation OF
the business interests would be q cap
ital thing; but, oh, hang me if thought
it would be so hard to get that little
girls sweet face out of my heart.
must do the sensible thing and go il
for the $4,000 year. Lord, but I'm
sorry for those poor devils of kings
who have to wed for reasons of state
1 feel disgustingly like one of them
I'm sleepy Good night. I'll fnisf
this in the morning. Ten to one
dream of Ivy LyleF'
1t needed no signature. The writer
was easily recognized. She crumplet
the paper tightly In her hand anc
thrust it into the blouse of her gow1
as rapid, heavy step came crunchint
down the beach. That step had be
come too pleasantly familiar. Coul(
he have known the sheet had beer
whisked out of his room? Had h
seen it blown down to the beach?
f "Good morning, Miss Lyle!' HI
flung himself down beside her. Hi
} handsome, boyish face looked strained