The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-07-20
EVENING STORY
The Slowest Place.

Douglas Jones had always nour-
| ished a secret desire to visit Ocean
Beach during the winter. Turnout the
| long summer months he had basked
| in the sunshine of the pleasant shore
resort until he felt as if each particle
of yellow sand upon the sloping beach
was special friend of his. He felt.
too, that he and the ocean understood
each other, but it was a summer ocean
he had learned to know and he wished
to see it in the winter when the beach
was barren of myriad bathers. So in
| the middle of January, finding that
| time was hanging heavy on his hands,
he resolved to pay visit to the shore
He knew that the Ocean House was
open and so he telegraphed ahead for
rooms, vaguely hoping that at least
| one of the girls he had seen frequent
ing the big hotel IN the summer might
| take it into her pretty head to spend
| a weekend at the same place during
the uninviting winter months.
After he had settled himself COM
| fortably in his seat in the Pullman
car he rather regretted his hasty de-
| cfsion.
1.-The place will be absolutely for
saken at this time" he unused. I'm
fool for making. such trip just on
| impulse"
He sighed deep sigh of resigna-
! ton and turned to the newspaper i'll
I his hand. The train rolled across the
Jersey meadows, rumbled across the
Market street bridge and drew to a
| halt at Newark. Douglas threw aside
| his newspaper and glanced rather in
| differently out of the window. Then
| he sat up with start, his face alight-
| ing with a new and sudden interest in
| life. For coming directly toward the
| door of the car in which he was
| seated was a negro porter. Douglas
| had seen negro porterS before, but
| this one was different. For follow
| ing in his wake was a girl Douglas
had seen girls before, but he had
never looked upon a girl quite so at
| tractive as the one who entered his
| car and took the seat directly oppo-
site his own.
She wore a blue velvet hat and
white fox furs; not the kind of furs
you can buy in department store at
$3.50, but real fox furs, of the kind
that stays straight. Her suit was blue
and her shoes were brown. Douglas
took in all these incidentals at sin
gle glance. and then his eyes rested
upon her face. He could not tell .ex-
actly what it was that held his gaze.
Perhaps it was the hint of roses in her
checks or the semblance of a twinkle
in her eye. But whatever the cause,
he suddenly realized that he had been
staring at her inselently. With half
:Igain to his newspaper.
But the winning streak of the
Giants suddenly lost its interest
Douglas wondered where in the world
the girl could be going. Somewhere
within him there stirred the vague
hope that she might possibly be
| headed for the same destination as
himself. the Ocean House.
IF she only is" he thought, I'm
the luckiest fellow in the world
na1 oil 7a11 he rrIa
edge of his newspaper and studied her
She appeared oblivious of his pres
ence. and try as he might he could not
for the life of him think of way to
begin conversation. He knew in
stinctively that she would resent any
bold intrusion on his part.
The train rumbled along 18th way
Dull gray clouds which had threat
ened rain thruout the day suddenly
made good their threat and large
drops splattered against the window
pane. The girl looked up and sighed,
end the heart Of Douglas Jones
missed a beat. He lay down his pa
per and glowered out of the window
| as if he could call the sun back by the
very ferocity of his glare. But moth
ing happened; the rain continued and
the train followed its scheduled
course
Finally it drew to a snorting halt at
Ocean Beach. The girl whose name
L(OuSAdS OlO HOI KNOW adjusted hGr
furs, buttoned her blue coat more
tightly around her neck and descend
ed the steps of the car, Douglas fol-
lowing closely in TIE VAN hope that
something might happen which would
give him the chance to play the part
Of heroic gallant. The girl tipped the
expectant porter, hailed the only taxi
cab in sight and drove away ir the
direction of the beach Douglas. with
a sense of impending loss, climbed
into creakiEg hack which threat
cned to deposit him any moment on
driver to take him to the Ocean
House.
He had hoped that the interior of
the spacious hotel would present a
pleasing contrast to the dreariness of
the rainy night, but in this he was
mistaken. The big lobby was com
pletely shut off from the other rooms;
few guests, mostly elderly gentle-
men. lolled on the over-stuffed divans
and read the evening papers. From
around the corner came the sound of
gathering dishes
Douglas entered the dining room
and looked about eagerly. He had
nourished faint hope that the girl on
the train might be there. But one
| glance was enough to assure him that
gusted with himself and with the
world at large, he ordered about ev-
erything on the menu and spent the
next half hour or SO gloomily ponder
| ing over the within which had brought
him to a summer resort in the middle
of winter.
Never againt" he vowed silently.
This is absolutely the slowest place
in the world
His meal finished, he lighted the
biggest cigar he could buy and, seating
himself before the closed window