The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1908-09-17
The Fortune Hunters.
COriginal.1


Raymond Pigs. rich bachelor. find.
Ing the weather oppressive in the city.
concluded to run down to the seashore.
He found there a bevy Of girls, the
most of whom, having worn themselves
out during the gay social season in
town, were endeavoring to put the
roses back into their cheeks under the
influence of ocean breezes. Neverthe-
less there was not one Of them but
could spare the time to secure IAN es-
Enlistment"
Raymond Riggs was key to the
wealth he possessed. AL girl had to
Go to unlock the door to It was to snare
him. He had fought OF regiment Of
them during the previous season and
had hoped for a rest at the seashore.
He was doomed to disappointment
They attacked him by platoons and
companies. To get rid Of them he
went off one day several miles up the
beach and sat down on the sand. The
waves rolled lazily in, broke on bar
and slid up on the sand with an effer-
vescing sound. The sky was blue and
eloudless. The ships out at sea sailed
on as silently as if they were painted
instead of real. 1t was all very restf'
and in marked contrast with bein.
hunted down by flock of-women. he
should have said. but he preferred the
word harpies
A glass bottle was thrown up by the
waves. rolled about on the sand and
carried out When it came up again
Raymond noticed that 1t was corked.
He seized it, took out the cork and
with the blade of his knife managed
10 extricate through the narrow neck a
card. On it was written in pale ink.
"Aline Eliot" The address was given
coast. then followed, Dear finder. i
am lonely"
For heavens sake" exclaimed Ray
mond. "are all the women in the world
hunting lovers? escape from flock
Of them back on the shore only to be
met by an advance from the ocean"
But as he gazed at this singular con-
trivance for mating. as he regarded it,
1t seemed far different to him from
the advances he had received from the
fortune hunters. He fancied the
writer to be some innocent girl who
craved only to obey the instincts
mother nature had planted in her pure
bosom. Perhaps she had sat alone by
the ocean as he was sitting. yielding
TO natural inclination to mate,
and had sent out her message with
blind confidence that it would fall
into the hands of the man who was
destined to be all in all to her. Was
this the explanation, or was she, too
hunting for fortune? He would open
correspondence with her In THU,
way he could find out what he wished
to know.
He inciosed the card with his own
name and address and the words, 81
too. am lonely" In a few days he re-
ceived letter. There was nothing in
it about love or marriage. 1t was an
unsophisticated epistle from young
girl about nothing. Raymond read be-
tween the lines. Perhaps you are he
for whom | intended my message"
But it did not say. you may be some
rascal who will take a mean advan-
tage of what l have DONE" What re-
freshing innocence! Fancy one Of the
fortune hunters reposing such conf
dence in the average man. Raymond
was an imaginative fellow and would
sit long on the dunes or on the beach
mentally contemplating this innocence
If he could see her likeness he could
judge of her motive with more Ger
tainty.
He thought he would send a picture
Of some man about his own age and
ask hers in return, but the girls guile
lessness had affected him, and he shrank
from such deception. Then. confident
that he could not be mistaken. he in
closed his photograph. AS soon as he
had done SO the thought occurred to
him that he was a fool. The danger
of society fortune hunter was moth
ing beside one he had never seen pos
graph.
However. in exchange came like
ness. 1t was the likeness Of one a
painter would seize upon as model
for a Madonna. There was innocence
personified. A pair of soft eyes looked
out from an oval face The lips were
sensitive. and Raymond considered
them especially kissable. He thought
Of the faces Of the fortune hunters.
restored to their natural appearance
by cosmetics. There was none Of
them who would not consider herself
dagrantly immodest to thus advertise
for q husband. Yet here was the
Madonna-like face looking at him with
modesty that none Of these could
have assumed.
One day Raymond was missed Mt the
seashore. There was a futter among
the fortune hunters. for. though none
Of them had secured foothold. every
one hoped for herself. not for the 9TH
ers. Had he returned to the city? No.
Inquiries elected the fact that his bag
gage, like our flag. was "stilI there"