Mountain advocate., 1922-12-08
World and tke
Woman
se. isia. w..,.rs Nsw.p.p.. Union, ,

90. isia. Western Nevsp.pss unionl
Hale stood upon the highest point
OF bis property. surveying life
The highest point was Just six feet
above the level Of the sea. The lowest
point was about six feet below. But
the palmettos we're 20 scattered and
the mangrove 20 dwarfed that Hale
could see clear TO the encircllng
waters.
Over them a boat was coming. Hale
swores
He did not want company. He
would warn OF the intruders. He
hurried down to his strip Of silver
beech and assumed an angry look.
In reality Hale could not look very
angry. 1t Is impossible to look angry
at tventy-nine. when you are the
owner OF an island kingdom.
As the boat drew near Hale saw
that II was pulled BY a single occu-
pant girl, with eoppercolored hair
and white arms. She did not see
Hale until the boat grounded. Then
she sprang ashore and gasped:
Goodness, I didn't know anybody
lived on Shell Keyw
II am the owner Of Shell Key" said
Hale grlmly.
I'm sorry ! trespassed- You see,
I'll wanted place to be alone"
Hale softened. won't you come
up to my cabin and have a cup Of
tea9" he asked. "That is. II you don't
mind condensed milk"
She laughed. She had pretty gray
eyes and a delightful smile, though
she looked little sad Hale thought.
She sat down on the camp stool, and
soon the tea was ready.
"You see" she explained, II was
school-teacher, but my throat got bad.
and the doctors were afraid of tuber-
culoss. So they sent me down to
Florida. And it isn't tuberculosis at
all, and I'm getting better, but you see
there's the cough, and the boarding
houses are afraid of coughs down
here, $3.50 none of them would take
me. It's So hard to stop coughing
She coughcd apOlogetically.
$50 | had to come down to Palm
Point and live in a cabin there, and
It's crowded all the time with tourists,
and just wanted to. be alone. SosI
came over to Shell Key, to look at 1t,
meaning to camp ont here. for week IL
well, If there was no. one here"
"And then 60 back to teachingT
"And then go back to teaching"
she answered sadly.
"Pm much like you" said Hale. 81
was threatened with the same trouble,
when my fare was paid. So l bought
Shell Key-an acre and half-for
twenty dollars down, purchased fifty
dollars worth of food and implements
and started-but come, and I'll show
you"
his domains. Through the palmettos
the girl saw a clearing of a quarter
Of an acre, In which corn, tomatoes,
and other esculents were fiourishing.
"Im going to get a nanny when /
sell my corn" said Hale.
Rather than go back to clerking.
yes. Tn going to make Shell Key
the most highly intensified example of
truck farming in the world. And I'm
going to raid an orange plantation five
miles down the coast on the next dark
night, and bring back suckllngs. They
grow the best navels in the world
there"
Slowly they went back. "You seem
to have made little island paradise
here" said the girl
"A Kingdom world" he answered.
~ wouldn't go back to the world out
side for anything"
"And l." she said, must go to take
up my work in the world again. Each
Of us to his fate"
"Yes," he answered.
"Perhaps I'll row across to Palm
Point some afternoon and call on you"
ave only got one more week." she
said. "And I'd rather you wouldn't"
"Why not?"
"Its-too sad, isn't 1t. l mean
he saw that her eyes were full of
tears-"giving up ones dreams"
I'VE all have TO give up our dreams,
l suppose" he said.
'But you have your dream"
"NOt all of It,"
They were upon the beach now. She
turned and looked at him. "What
dream have you mad to abandon?" she
asked.
"Oh, every mans dream, suppose"
he answered.
"The dream of finding some one TO
share my kingdom with me. I've often
thought of her. She has gray eyes and
coppery hair"
"And you've abandoned that
dream?"
1--WE never found her" His look
was unmlstakable. And she could
6muse herself no longer with him.
l.. I II. 4