, 1920-01-22
THE TIDAL
WAVE -.
By A. HOWARD


Copyright. 1920. Western Newspaper Union)
Archibald Christopher Van Dyne
sat in church, a pious calm on his
countenance and the tail of his eye
directed toward his ~fiancee, Miss Ara
bella Whitney, who sat beside him..
He was trying to remember if there
had ever been a time when he had
not been engaged to Arabella. he was
wondering why they were engaged,
n he was predicting ~savagely that
they should never marry.
Just because theif fathers had been
partners and lifelong friends, Arabella,
when a spotted red infant, had been
jestingly betrothed to the five-year-old
Archibald, inc as the children grew
| older the jest had gradually become
serious, and the two families had al
ways assumed that the marriage would
take place as soon a. Arabella was old
enough and Archie was through SOW
ing his wild oats.
Arches wild oats were of the mild
est kind. He neither smoked nor
drank, he worked faithfully at his job,
n was in the house every night at
t%en-thirty.
That Sunday Archibald wore a fam
ing tie which indicated accurately the
chaotic state of his moral being, for
he felt within himself the Towering
of a mighty love, and Bella was not
the object of this overwhelming pas
sion.
So, for the first time in his life, Ar
chic regarded the blonde Miss Whit
ney with aversion, and when the SER
mon began his thoughts drifted away,
not to Arabella, but to Leona Lepage.
LeOna, the star of the Dixie Stock
company, had floated, a vision in pink
tarlatan, onto the stage of Morgan's
Lyric theater, one night of the previ-
Gus week, and standing there on one
toe, with the other pointed graceful
ly skyward, she had kicked herself
into the heart of the callow Archibald.
Hence the Respondent tie and the
depressed c~ountenance beside Ara
bella.
After church Archie strayed down
to the Travellers house, where Leona
was staying, and settled himself in the
corridor, hoping to catch a glimpse of
his adored. Nor was he disappointed.
for 500 there was a swish of skirts
on the stair, the tap of heels on the
stone floor, and L.eona, decked for con-
quest, swept into the room.
Perhaps she had noticed the mild
eyed youth who attended every per-
Torrance at Morgan's, or perhaps the
appealing look of alteration now cast
toward her moved her easy heart, for
after passing Archibald she paused,
turned. and came toward him.
pardon me-" she murmured. fixing
her large eyes on Archibald from be-
meath the shades of her m hat,
but have you seer Gyp, my dog? He
ran away, and / am sure he came this
way"
Leona looked up and down the cor
ridor, but Archie looked only at LeoDa.
"Yes," he answered. with the bold
ness born of love. 81 am sure he went
this way. Suppose we go and look
for him.
set forth from the hotel with Miss
Lepage on his arm, and with shaking
legs started down the street in nerv-
Gus pursuit of the lost dog.
"Where shall we go?" cried Leona
in maidenly helplessness. (which way
did you see him go?"
Archie Redeemed; he was a very
truthful youth, and 'mendacity did not
come easy to him.
He tried frantically to think of
some place where a runaway dog
would be likely to go.
Leona, however, saved him further
embarrassment by pauslng in front of
one of the larger restaurants, and re-
marking, as she eyed the viands in the
window:
"Don't you think he went in here?"
mo" answered Archie emphatical-
ly. Still. LeOna held her ground.
"I'm sure he did" she said.
Then Archie perceived the drift of
her remark.
"Of course he did" he cried, with
enthusiasm, and, blushing a beauti-
full pink at his stupidity, he led Leona
proudly in. even gaining the courage
to order "hor dog" from the astonished
waiter.
From hat day on Archibald lived
as one in q dream.
Though he paid an occasional per-
functory visit to Arabella to keep the
peace with his family, his real life
passed in a roseate world inhabited
only by himself and Leona Lepage.
In the daytime he haunted her hotel.
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