The Richmond climax. (Richmond, Ky.) 1897-1914, 1911-11-08

same storm and tide which had borne
her ashore had hurled it also on the
sand. But it had come open in the
battering and it's contents we're pitt
ably ruined. With eager eyes and fin
gers she examined everything She
found intact a little mirror, a pair of
scissors, a little housewife which was
not part of the fittings and she won
dered how it failed of being washed
away. two combs and a package of
hairpins.
She had fought against starvation
and thirst and loneliness and despair.
as she had fought against men and
she had not given way. She had set
her teeth and locked her hands and
endured hardship like the stoutest
hearted, most determined soldier in
the history of human struggles. But
as the realization of this small mis-
fortune burst upon her. she sank down
on the sands and put her head in her
hands and sObbed. Tears did her good.
She had her cry out, utterly unhin-
dered, for the man stood by, shaking
his head and staring at her and max
ing those strange little sounds, but Of
fering in no way to modest her.
The water was beautifully clear and
she could see on the other side of the
barrier the remains of her boat. Per
haps some time, if there we're need,
she could get to that boat, but for the
present all the fotsam and jetsam of
hsr wild and fearful voyage lay in a
wIter-soaked bag full of broken glass
an battered silver from which she
had rescued a pair of scissors, a mir
rof, two combs, a housewife full of
rusty needles and some hairpins. o
vanltas vanitatum!
She was wearing a serviceable dress
of blue serge with a sailors blouse and
a short skirt Putting her precious
treasure trove within the loose blouse
and carrying the battered bag which
she metnt to examine more carefully
later, she turned and made for the
shade OF the trees again. For one thing
the sun rising rapidly was gaining
power and beating down with great
force upon her bare head. She had
enjoyed the protection of wonderful
ly plated straw hat on her long vOy-
age else she could not have borne the
heat, but that, TOO, was gone.
AS she waikiki inland, she noticed
again OF to her right that stream of
water which dropped over the tall
cliff in a slender waterfall a sweet in
viting pool at the base before it ran
through the sands toward the sea. She
made her way thither and at the brink
knelt down and took long draughts of
it. Eating and drinking evidently went
together in the mind of the man. for
when she raised her head, she found
him standing before her with both
hands filed with some of the fruit she
had partaken of before and other fruit.
She thought she recognized the bread
fruit and species of banana. At any
rate, she ate again and having by this
time recovered to some extent her
mental poise, she ate sparingly and
with caution.
Then having satisfied her material
needs, she knelt down by the stream
and washed her face and hands. How
sweet was the freshness of that water
to her face burned by the sun and the
wind and subjected for a long time to
the hard spray Of the briny seas. She
would have been glad to have taken
OF her clothing and plunged into the
pool, to have washed the salt Of days
from her tired body, to have had the
stimulus and refreshment of its
sparkling GOODNESS over her weary
limbs. But in the presence of her dog
like attendant this was not yet posi-
BILE.
Still she could and must arrange her
hair OF all the articles in her dress
ing bag. she was more fervently-
thankful at that moment for the combs
than anything else, the combs and the
little mirror and the hairpins-small
things indeed. but human happiness as
rule turns on things so small that
the investigator and promoter thereof
generally overlook them. And we
knew not the significance of the little
until upon some desert island We are
left with only those.
1t was still early. about eight
o'clock. How was she to- pass the
day? She must do something. She
felt she could not sit idly staring from
Sea to shore. She must be moving
No business called her; she must in
vent some. The compelling necessity
of a soul not born for idleness was
upon her. She would explore the land.
That was logically the first thing to be
done any way and this was a highly
trained woman who thought to live by
rule and law albeit her rules were
poor ores.
She Started inland. the man follow
ing after. She had gained confidence
in herself with every passing moment.
The man who looked at her as q dog
she would treat as one. She must
have some privacy. She could not al
ways have him trailing at her heels.
She turned BY a great boulder pointed
to it. laid her hand on the mans
shoulder and gently forced him to a
sitting position BY it. Then she walked
away. He stared wlstfully after her
departing figure, and as she turned
around to look at him, he sprang to
his feet
NO. mol she cried imperatiyely
making backward threatening motions
with her hands. whereat he resumed
his sitting position. staring at her IN
I'll he lost her among the trees
praa.snll. she l.,rna.l and ..a.nn lanh