The daily Alaskan., 1916-07-20
'aa'99Sa9a9eN7NN5 se'saSs9aaS0eSSo A Strip of
 SeaWeed hWas Given as a Token at the Time of a BetrOthal.
By F. A. MITCHELL

were dDOul tludllg pAoLAlASAb iA tLAAD respect. As the years rolled on all ex- cept New York. Boston and Philadel- phia dropped out, the latter finally leaving the first the supremacy.
 In that early day on the beach where now in the summer season hundreds, at times thousands, of fashionable per sons drive and lounge and bathe, one moonlight night a young man and a girl sat looking out upOa the gilded wa ter. They were Edmond Roscoe and Evalina Blair. the youIg' man a son of prominent shipowner. the girl the daughter of merchant. There were no sounds of revelry II the little town back of them, as there are now at that season. and, as for tie beach, not sound was to be heard except the plash of the sluggish waves as they broke and rolled in on the sand.
 There could be no more fitting place for a young man to tell his story to maiden. and Edmond Roscoe was tell ing Evalina Blair hiU love for her Then and there their tyOth was plight ed under the yellow light of the moon, the lovers voices accompanied by the efreryescing sound of the waves as they slid up in foam on the smooth sands.
 There were both happiness and sad. ness for these two Toung creatures whose lives seemed SO much to them. In a few days they were to part for several years. Evalina was to go to England that her education might be finished under the supervision of an aunt. for she was of the Blairs of Dev. onshlre, a family of country gentlemen and ladies of blue blood, and must needs be given accomplishments suit able to her rank. Edmond was to enter Brown university. which was then in its babyhood and soon to give up Its as yet only dormitory to quarter sol diers of the Revolution.
 The transports of betrothal were scarcely over when Edmond said:
 You are going to Il land where you will meet many persons of rank and fashion. l know that you will be belle among them. Some man, possibly noble, will fall in love with you. You will dread to return to this un- cultivated land. You will remain In England. and l shall never see you again"
 Looking at him through her earnest eyes, she replied:
 Give me some token by which l shall remember these words of yours. If am tempted by fortune to remain In England l promise you ] will look at 1t and am sure 1t will bring up be- fore me the happiness of this evening, and shall choose you and the life of simple Rhode Island woman in pref erence to that of a lady of rank"
 Alas, l have nothing suitable. l should give you a ring orr
 'I wish no bauble." replied Evalina. Give me something to remind me of these sands, the ocean. the plash of the waves"
 Looking about him, Edmond saw a seaweed lying within his reach. Tax Ing 1t up. he handed 1t to Evalina. She took 1t and. spreading 1t out on her lap, said:
 "I, Evalina, promise yOC, Edmond. that in case I am tempted to place rank and fortune before my love for you I will think of you with this plant of the sea before me. And l assure you that when l have finished my education l will bring the token to you as evidence that have been true to you and my heart has been always yours"
 After this assurance there was long embrace. Then they arose and, taking a path which Is now a broad avenue, returned to the town.
 Every day, or, rather. every evening, till Evalina's departure the lovers went to the beach. They were not troubled even in the daytime with persons to disturb their meetings. There were no bRthers In fantastic suits, no car. riagcs. no louuGers. 'The last evening before Evalina's departure they passed there. The moon rose. Hs 1t were, out Of the ocean, the first spark appearing like far distant bonfire. then gliding the shore over the crests of the waves, and finally the great round disk rested on the horizon of water.
 Heaven grant" said Edmond, "that we will again see this beautiful sight and that we shall then be one"
 "If live you will have your wish" replied Evalina.
 The next day the ship that was to carry her to England sailed from the little town on Narragansett bay, the lovers waving until they could distin- gulsh each others forms no longer.
 During the first year of their separa, don Evallna wrote regularly to her lover. The second year abroad was for an education in social life. AS her lover had predicted. she became a belle: She wrote Edmond of the fine people she met, of the amusementS common among persons of quality But her letters showed no diminution of love for him and indicated that she looked forward to their reunion with as much hope and pleasure as when