New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-07-30

Ind then settle down in quiet, and live happily |
with my Ciotilde.'' Thus they talked together,
md by-and-b by we parted in the' court yard cf
The coach-0fice.
house. Itentered, and seated myself at little |
able, in distant corner Of the room. Two !
persons only were still in the saloon in an oppo-
,ite corner, and before them stood two glasses |
If brandy. One was an elderly, stately, and |
1ortly gentleman, with dark red face, and
lressed in aquite colored suit. 1t was easy to-
perceive that he was clergyman. But the |
appearance Of the other was very striking. He
;ould not be far from sixty yeers Of age, was
all and thin, and his gray, indeed almost white
lair, which, however rose from his head in lux \
arious fullness, gave to his pale countenance al
peculiar expression that made one feel uncom. |
'ortable. The brawny neck was almost bare |
simple ,carelessly knotted black 'kerchief alone
.ncircled it; thick, silver-gray whiskers met |
together at his chin; blue frock coat, panta-
looms Of the same color, silk stockings, shoes |
with thick soles, and q dazzling white waistcoat
and linen, completed his equipment A thick |
stick 1eant in one corner, and his broad brim-
med hat hung against the wall. There was a
certain conyulsive twitching of the thin lips of
this person, which was very remarkable; and |
these seemed, when he looked fxedly, to be q
smouldering fire in his large, CLASSY grayish- |
blue eyes He was, it was evident, seaman |
like myself, strong oak that fate had shaped |
into mast, over which many storm had blus- !
tered, but which had been too tough to be
shivered. and still defied the tempest and the
lightning. There lay gloomy resignation as
well as wild fanaticsm in those features. The
large bony hand, with its immense fingers, WINS
spread out or clenched, according to, the turn
which the conversation with the clergyman took
Suddenly he stepped up to me. l was reading
a royalist newspaper. He lighted his cigar.
You are right, sir; you are quite right not
to read those infamous Jacobin journals /
looked up, and gave no answer. He continued
ss sailor %
"Yes sir.''
'sAnd have seen seryicei''
..s Yes Y5
s' You are still in active sergseei''
ssNo.'' And then, to my great satisfaction,
for my patience was well nigh exhausted, the
examination was brought to conclusion
Just then, an evil destiny led my three young
fellow travellers into the room. They seated
themselves at table, and drank some glasses
Of champagne to Clotilde's health. All went on
well but when they began to sing the Mar
seilfaise and the Parisienne, the face Of the
gray man began to twitch, and it was evident
storm was brewing. Calling to the waiter, he
yonder not to annoy me with their low songs!'
The young men'sprang up in fury, and asked
if it was to them he alluded.
"Whom else should mean J" said the gray
man with a contemptuous sneer.
But we may drink and sing if we like, and
to whom we like said the young man. g Teve
Ia Repn5iiqe ct uire Ciotilde.'
some as blackguardly as the othern' cried
the gray beard tauntingly; and wine glass,
that flew at his head from the hand of the dark
haired youth, was the immediate rejoinder.
Slowly wiping his forehead, which bled and
dripped with the spilled wine, the old man said
quietly: A. To. morrow, at the Cape Verd p and
seated himself again with the most perfect COM
posure.
The young man expressed his determination
to take the matter on himself; that he alone
would settle the quarrel, and promised to up.
pear on the morrow at the appointed time.
They then all departed nosily. The old man
rose quietly, and turning to me, said; Sir.
you have been witness to the insult; be witness
also to the satisfaction. Here is my address !:
| shall expect you at five o'clock. Goodnight,
Monsieur rAbbe Tomorrow there will be one
Jacobin less, and one lost soul the more. Good
night" and taking his hat and stick, he de
parted. His companion the Able followed soon
after.
l now learned the history Of this singular
man. He was descended from good family Of
Marseilles Destined for the navy while still
young, he was sent on board ship before the
Revolution, and while yet Of tender years.
Later, he was taken prisoner and after many
| strange adventures, returned in 1893 to France
was about to marry, but having been mixed up
with the disturbances at Toulon, managed to es-
cape by miracle to England; and learned be-
tore long that his father, mother, one brother, q
sister Of sixteen years OF age, and his hetrothed,
had all been led to the gullotine at Marseillaise
Thirst for revenge, revenge on the detested j. AGO
bins, was now his sole aim. For a long time
roved about in the Indian seas, some times as
privateer, at others as slave dealer; and was
said to have caused the tri-colored flag much
damage, while he acquired considerable for.
tune for himself. With the return of the Bour.
bons, he came back to France. and settled Of
| Marseilles He lived, however, very retired
and employed his large fortune solely for th,
poor, for distressed seamen, and for the clergy
| Aims and masses were his only objects of ex.
pense. 1t may easily be bel eyed that he &C
quired no small degree of popularity among th,
lower classes and the clergy. But, strangel,
! enough, when not at church, he spent his tim,
with the most celebrated fencing masters, and hat
| acquired in the use of the pistol and the swort
a dexterity that was hardly to be paralleled
In the year 1915, when the royahst reactio,
broke out in La Vendee, he roved for a long tim
at the head of band of followers When a
last this opportunity Of cooling his rage wa
taken from him by the return of order, he locke,
out for some victim who was known to him b,
his revolutionary principles, and sought to pro
woke him to combat. The younger, the richer
the happier the chosen victim was, the more de
sirabls did he seem. The landlord told me h.
himself knew of seven young persons who ha,
fallen before his redoubted sword.
The next morning at O'clock, l was at tn
house Of this singular character. He lived ol
the ground floor, in a small simple room, where
excepting large crucifix, and picture covere
with black Grape, with the date 1894 under il
the only ornaments were some nautical instru
ments, trombone, and human skull Tb
picture was the portrait Of his guillotiued bride
it remained always yciled, excepting only whe
he had Stacked hisreyenge with blood; then Il
uncovered it for eight days, and indulged hin
self in the sight. The skull was that of hi
mother. His bed consisted Of the usual ham
mock slung from the ceiling. When l enteree
he was ut his devotions, and little negr
brought me, meanwhile, II cup of chocolate an
| . cigar When he had risen from his knees, b