Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1917-03-15

| good of any girl or woman he focused
his eye upon. Freneau was magnetic
and he was great fun, but David Stat
ford was good business. To capture
the son of Pierpont Stafford would be
| high something tremendous.
The Judge, her father, kept his eyes
on Lois more than on the golf ball.
and landed in the bunkers with regu
larity. He knew that his daughter
was up to some mischief, but he was
sure that it was not the innocent mis-
chief of the obstreperous Gloria.
Gloria Stafford, exquisite in he1
bathing suit. was like bisque figure
come to life-yery much to life as
she stood outside her bedroom door
and held the knob against her gov.
erness, who tugged in vain at the op
/ posite knob Then Gloria let CO. and
the governess went staggering back.
ward across the room, while Gloria
I with shrieks of laughter made her way
off and down the corridor and out to
the beach.
The beach being no less than Palm
Beach, she lodged among throngs of
the we'll known, the much photo
graphed, who were also making their
way, though more sedately, to the
surf. 1t was twelve o'clock, the fash
ionable bathing time. To be seen in
the water more than half an hour
earlier or more than half an hour late
was socially fatal.
The governess followed the fugitive
in hot haste, but Gloria sought refuge
in the crowded ocean. She dived and
stayed under as long as she could, but
Miss Sidney deserted her at once and
gesticulated violently, commanding
her to come back. Gloria merely
bobbed her pert little bonnet and
splashed in behind her father. Miss
Sidney persisted and Gloria gave her
father a push, saying: You go make
her let me alone. Tell her she'll be
sorry if she doesn't"
The capitalist fioundered out with
| the apologize manner of an over
grown schoolboy, for even he was
afraid Of the governess And he was
not very impressive in bathing suit
He made his way to Miss Sidneys
presence and mumbled: would you
mind if Gloria had her morning swim,
please?"
The governess explained to him, as
if she were talking to another child,
that since Gloria had positively re
fused to work out her problem in alge-
bra she had been forbidden to go into
the water. Nevertheless she had fla,
GRAVITY rebelled, secretly arrayed her
self for the bath, and fed 1t would
never do to let her have her own
way.
"Er-um-I see," said Stafford. He
bowed meekly and returned with still
less courage to face his daughter.
A widower with a woman-child of
sixteen is pathetic enough at best, but
Gloria was so effulgently sixteen, SO
eagerly alive, and so enchantingly
pretty that her father was disarmed
by a mere glance at her His anger
was sure to melt in a shamefaced
smile.
In the meanwhile Gloria had made
the most of her stolen moments and
with swift overland strokes had put
number Of cleaning breakers be-
tween her and the shore.
She turned just in time to see her
father reckoning to her with his best
imitation of the stern parent. She
knew that the governess had cowed
him, and she did not wish to humili-
ate him by her own disobedience.
So she swan back through the
heads floating on the water like ap-
pies floating in Halloween tub. 1t
made her boiling mad to be disgraced
before all the important people. She
could see some of them grinning at
her. Her brother David openly ridi-
culed her and splashed water over
her.
She pretended not to notice him,
but, reaching her father at last, she
hurled herself upon him and ducked
him under the water. Then she scram-
bled to the beach. When the enraged
governess seized her by the wrist Clio
ria tried to pull her into the froth.
But the governess was too big for her
and she hauled Gloria out of the ro-
mantle sea into hard world of dry
sand and drier mathematics.
Gloria skunk along in white rage,
storm brewing behind her eyes. She
was not often sullen and never NOR
bid. She was made up Of joy, sunlight
and mischief, all the fresh and sweet
of life. But she loathed being told to
do things or not to do things, forbid
den, commanded a word, bossed.
She was poised at the nameless stage
between childhood and girlhood She
was not what is termed out yet her
FESTIVE spirit made it impossible for
her to be kept in She was tired OF
being sndbbed
Her brother David, some four years
her senior, made life increasingly lone
some for Gloria by his freedom and
the superior, worldly airs he assumed