The Press., 1915-03-24
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Capturing a Bride Failure Meant Her
 Death.
l. By ESTHER VANDEyEER 5000 Q oo0Q QooooooooG

On the westeJh coast of Central America is tribe of Indians who are
 very proud of their ancestry, tracing 1t to the Aztecs, who were a semi-civ- ilized people. They trade with other
 races, but marry only among them selves. Nature in tropical climates | supplies food in such superabundance | that the natives may exchange what | they don't need for what will provide other necessaries than food
 The principal food produced among this tribe of Central America is cocoa nuts. The Indians do not need to climb the trees to gather them. for
 when they are ripe they fall to the ground. All day at the harvest season there is a constant dropping. and at night one who is unaccustomed to the sound will be kept awake by it. There seems to be q natural law that those who don't have to work for a living consider themselves better than those who do. Whether it was this i'm munity from labor. or the fact of the blue Aztec blood in their veins. these Indians would admit of no union among their people with any other. Their cocoanuts brought ships to their shores, and the sailors necessarily came ashore to load them. This was always done by daylight, but when night came every man on the island must leave. The Aztecs described by the Spanish ml6A race, and some of their women in their dusky way were beautiful. So it was with these Indians of Central Amer ica. They would go to the shore i'll groups while the sailors were loading their boats with cocoanuts, and doubt less there were glanceS between them and the Jack tars. But the girls knew that there must be-no further cOurtng. for should there be the life of one Or both would be forfeited.
 One day a-ship was loading cocoa nuts on the shore of these proud people. Several girls stood on the bank watching the yawls come to the beach. take on load of cOcOantlts and start back for the ship. This getting boat over the breakers is always all entertaining sight. Several men walk ing in the shallow water would pull the boat out to where the oars might take hold: then the oarsmen. watching an opportunity between waves. would pull Justify in order to pass the next wave before it broke. Unless the boat was skillfully handled it was liable to be capsized.
 The morning when the girls were watching the sailors the breakers were quite high. The rudder of q boat com ing from the ship was unshipped by striking bar a short distance from the shore. and. the coxswain not being | able to keep her straight for the shore her side was turned to the incoming | waves, and she was capsiZed. Some of the men in her got ashore. and some were drowned. One was washed ashore some distance below where the l boat was to have landed. There he lay. rolled hither and thither by each succeeding line of foam that slid high mp on the beach.
 The men who succeeded in getting ashore alive. were helped by the girls. who waded into the water for the pur- pose. One girl. seeing the body that had been washed ashore some distance from the others, ran to him.
 Lying unconscious on the sands, his light curly hair stirred by the ever moving water. he was a picture of manly beauty. He was Ned Phillips, considered by his mates the daredevil of their number He never went ashore that he did not get into scrape and on several occasions had been saved by some of them from getting killed.
 The girl kneeled by him and lifted his head in her arms. Whether it was their warmth or the change of posi- tion or that he had been revived by the air. he opened his eyes and looked into dusky face with sympathetic eyes. all Of which seemed very beau tiful to him. He had become exhaust ed shortly before being thrown up on the beach and was therefore not very far gone. He returned the look of sympathy with one of gratitude. admi- ration. love. Then. staggering to his feet. he pulled himself together. and the two rejoined the others.
 But Ned was not in condition for anything but rest. He lay down on the sand. and the girl who had raised him from the water sat by him and famed him with tropical leaf. For time the other girls stood about them looking down at Ned's pale face and limp figure. But young people soon detest the mating of those about them. and one by one the girls stole away and left them together. Presently one of the other girls came and whispered something in the ear of Ned's mate. gnd with a frightened look she rejoin- ed the others. Some native men were eoming.
 In due time. the sea having gone down. the process of loading was re stunned. Phillips. with two other men who had suffered by the spill. was left on shore 10 recuperate. This was bad policy so far as he was concerned. for the girls resumed their position as watchers. and Ned caught few mo ments when no native men were present to endeavor by signs and
  few Spanish words he knew-sone Of which the girl who had taken him in her arms understood-that he was grateful
 Forbidden fruit is the sweetest. This girl knew that by encouraging this white man she was bringing upon her self the penalty of death and Ned, too, was aware of the fact. While native men were present both were circum- spect: when1no one except sailors saw them they failed to conceal the bonds that were quickly being bound around them.
 An old adage is Love laughs at locksmiths." There were no locks and keys for these lovers. but there were plenty of persons to note what was going on between them. How they managed to secure few moments now