Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1917-08-30
opposite his own that maddening

= III IN
gritted his teeth and waited for
the joke. There were IA possible
forms that it might take. Tempted
often to return to that rocky Con
necticut hillside, he nevertheless
stuck it out, and, as time passed,
found he didn't mind so much. He
even reached the point where he
made bets with himself as to which
of the IA it would be. And he
progressed in other ways: the ma
terial symbol of the progress being
that, instead of cub reporter at $12
a week, he was now one of the
trusted members of the staff at six
times that salary.
Also he was we years older,
and this had been his first long
vacation-six weeks i'm England.
Belgium, Holland and France
glorious weeks: but his eyes were
aching for the lights of Broadway
and his fingers itching for the pen
ell. The most exacting and be-
witching of all professions was
clamoring for him again.
Having disposed Of the rolls and
coffee, he rose reluctantly, stepped
out upon the beach, and filled and
lighted his pipe-with a grimace
at the first puff, for French. to-
bacco is the worst in the world,
outside Of Germany. Before him
lay the mighty breakwater which
guards the harbor, with it's light
house in the middle and it's fort at
either end, while to his left were
the great naval basins, hewn from
the solid rock. To the right, be-
low the high sea wall, the narrow
beach stretched away, empty and
uninviting.
Dan felt depressed. Cherbourg,
evidently was not an exciting
place. He had never seen an
uglier beach, but, after a moments
hesitation, he started off along it.
Perhaps, farther on, it might inn
prove.
The tide was going out, and in
the little basins in the sand minute
crabs and strange sea midgets
scuttled about panic stricken at
finding themselves marooned;
here and there a stranded jelly
fish glOWed like an iridescent soaD
bubble, and, farther out, an ugly
mud flat began to be revealed by
the retreating water. Some dis
lance ahead, a ridge of tumbled
rocks ran from the sea wall down
into the water, and, as he drew
nearer, he saw that on one of the
rocks a girl was sitting.
He glanced at her as he passed,
and would have liked to glance
again, for he had never met more
arresting eyes, but he was going
on with face rigidly to the front,
when her voice startled him.
Pardon, monsieur" she said.
1t was a ~contralto voice, of a quail
ity that made his pulses leap.
He stopped short and turned
toward her, incredulous that it
could be he to. whom she had spok-
en-. But there was no one else in
sight; and then he saw that her
hands were gripped tightly in her
lap and that her lips were culver
ing.
"Is something wrongi" he
asked, and took a step toward her.
lis there anything I can dot"
"Oh!" she cried, her face light
ing, and a wave of color sweeping
into her cheeks. ssThen you are an
Americana"
eyes; thank God!"
$50 say II" she echoed. "For
myself, / mean. I also am an Amer
lean. We will speak English,
them" -
81 should much prefer it, he.
smiled. my French is wholly
academic-and covered with moss,
at that. It doesn't even enable ME
to get my eggs turnedi"
She looked at him, the color
deepening in her. cheeks. Dan,
looking back, decided that he had
never seen such eyes; he conld.
scarcely believe that she was an
American. She did not lookin the
least like one. But she was speak