The Wahpeton times., 1918-11-14
Larry's q
Lighthouse
y JOHN TRENT

! NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
! Copyright. 1913. by the Mcclure Nswspa.
| po1 eyndlcato)
When Larry Delmore was ten years
old he had stood ON the beach at
+. Quetchet and flung q taunt at the lit
/ tie girl with flaming red hair who
had wrinkled her nose at him.
"Redhead!" taunted Larry ungal.
lantly. Lighthouse! he added. as
the little girl pulled her white sunbon-
net over her gorgeous curls and sour.
ried away to her nurse.
"Nurse!" pouted Jean. "Am q
lighthouse because my hair is redf'
"No-no-Miss Jean" laughed nurse,
looking up from her sewing; "your
hair ia very pretty, indeed, just like
your mamma's; you mustn't mind what
that naughty little Delmore boy saysl"
II shan't mind Bit" said Jean,
eomforted; but in spite Of her resolu.
tion the memory Of the taunt fingered
and ranked, 90 that as the years went
BY she grew positively to dislike the
name Of Delmore-especially Larry
Delmore-and she was always hearing
1t. although they never met after that
summer.
Larry Delmore was the sort of young
man whose name is always confronting
one. He excelled in everything. He
was honor man Of his class at college,
. famous halfback, the driver Of q
winning automobile In q famous race,
an aviator. . muAeian. and last, but
not least, an excsilent business man.
Jean Lloyd heard Of these things In
her remote boarding school and later
ut the fashionable finishing school. bpt
always sAe discounted his cieverness
by her bitter recollection Of his taune
that midsummer day Is years ago.
Il eouad never endure him." she told
her best friend one day. "A hoerid.
srubby little tow.headed boyi I can
fancy just how dasasreeabae he must
be now"
AiSaam Smith hooked wide-eyed at
Jean. Haven't you met him since
/ them" she wondered.
Jean shook her glorious, rudy.
crowned head.
. .
From his towering height Larry Del
more looked across the hotel ballroom
and saw q tall, graceful girl govned
In white. About her snowy throat was
twisted wonderful string Of pearls.
and, save for the hlgh-piled masses Of
/ her hair, there was not bit of color
about her.
who is that girl?" he asked the first
man he met.
The man glanced in the direction
! Indicated by Larry's eager gray eyes.
"YOu mean the one with golden hair?"
he asked.
mo, no." protested Larry. 'the tall
girl in white-the girl with auburn
hair"
! "Oh. you mean Miss Lloyd-Jean
Lloyd. May I present ,you?"
"Not just now," decided Larry. and
for some inexplicable reason he turned
his back on Miss Lloyd's beautiful
face and wandered out to the balcony.
"There is something very striking
. about that girl" thought Larry, pluck
ing at the geraniums in the flower
boxes. "Confounded funny feeling
had when Morton offered to introduce
me. I wanted to go like the dickens,
but-somehow. she had such naughty
poise to her head that I'm deucedly
afraid she wouldn't be as charming as
she looked. I'm going to find out
later"
When he returned to the ballroom
Miss Lloyd had disappeared, and he
saw her no more that night. BY
careful inquiry he learned that she
and her father were stopping at the
| Quetchet hotel for the season.
The next morning he arose with
the sun and went down to the ocean
for his early swim. He had the beach
to himself save for one lone swimmer
who was breasting the surf with easy
grace. 1t was woman wearing q red
bathing cap he decided at first. A fur
ther inspection revealed that the glis.
tening copper glory was crowning the
head of Jean Lloyd and that her head
was uncovered.
So Larry plunged into the sea and
dfsported himself like young por.
poise. Larry Delmore was a swim.
mer Of note in addition to his other
accomplishments, and when he saw
Miss Lloyd's glowing ',ead turned
steadily out at sea while the flash Of
her white arms cut the blue-green sur.
face of the waves like veritable mer-
maid, he followed her, in the mascu-
line spirit not to be outdone by q
mere woman.
But the water was cold that morn
ing and perhaps Mr.. Delmore was not
up to his usual form; at any rate. he
suddenly stopped his long, steady
strokes. blanched at the agonizing
cramp that seized his limbs, uttered q
low cry Of alarm and went down.
The girl heard the cry and turned
sast as he disappeared. When he came
! up she was calling to him to hold up
that she was coming-coming-l
Through the flying spray and the rock
ing green and white of the waves he
caught the glimpse Of her red hair ana
her white face coming nearer.
When he rose to the surface again.
still wrlthing in that awful cramp, Il
was to see the solacing red Of her hair
close beside him. to feel the support
OF her arms under his shoulders.