Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1859-01-29

NeD VI i"i nan Vi nis qualfty; but 6aston
was welcome to stay in bis house till something
turned up; be would be lonely now without
sophia, and wan ted somebody to help in the
reformation of the mniik which be intended to
begin without delay. CASTOR made all suitable
Acknowledgements for his hospitable effer, hint
ed his own unfitness to assist in the revision of
the namJtS's morals, and added, in a peniten-
tial tone, that be considered the post of valet
quite sufficient for his deserts; but as there were
probabilities Of preferment to come, he request
ed the councillor to see that mademoiselie his
daughter, did not recognize him in the Grodi-
zof palace. The old man was much edited by
the present humility and future prospects Of
MS young friend. The second Wallets place
was speedily obtained. Sophia was duly warned
to know nothing of the new servant; and, under
the name OF jacques le Noir, CASTOR entered
on his humble duties.
The office of second valet was not sipecure
in the household of her excellepcy Like most
OF the great ladies of that age, half the duties
OF her toilet, and all her confidential errands,
were done by the gentlemen of the chamber
which courtly term included the above men
toned Jacques and his commander, IN Italian.
named Paulo, who had been first valet ever
since the Princess became a widow. Paulo did
nothing but eat spiced maccaroni and prepare
IL Tor himself In private kitchen, which he
had constructed behind his suite of apartments.
He also kept the keys Of her highness's shoe
room, ana all the other rooms in which the
treasures OF her wardrobe were laid up and N
very strict eye over the second valet. who was
expected never to 60 out but when sent on
errands-then to make no delay in returning.
to attend the bells of the princess, her three
ladies-in- waiting, her two hair-dressers, her
secretary, and, chief of all Paulo, who Iiberally
scoided him when there was an opportunity
Of these rites and duties the sot-GiSaHt JACQUES
had full allowance. The eight bells rang
him up at all hours. The ringers sent him to
every corner of st. Petersburg in all weathers.
aud no city In Europe enjoys such a variety of
the undoubtedly bad He ate with the serfs,
be slept above the horses. The housekeeper
had to get presents for not finding fault with
hlm; the laundress tore his shirts, paulo called
hlm names in Italian, French, and Russ; and
the entire household laughed at him for having
white hands and expecting washed shes Ii
was not coDgenial life for young man fond
OF elegance, and anxious to be somebody; but
daston kept his post for almost six months,
with the self-devotion and endurance of a
jesuit missionary; yet not the smallest thread
OF the Grodizoff secret could he unrayeI. If
Paulo had any good graces to be gained, thew
were beyond tie reach Of his Gallo subordi-
nate. All the French servants were new, and
could tell nothing The Secretary, though
gracious to cOuntryman, had been long in
Russia, and spoke little except in praise of his
employer. Ali the maids were Russians from
the Princess's estate, and all Gaston's efforts
failed to make an impression on any of their
hearts. The errands they sent him on were of |
the most common place and overt description;
indeed, there was nothing strange about the |
palace but that inexplicable tale. Like other
great Russian houses of the period, its chief |
apartments were all magnifcence, its inferior |
ones given up to dirt and ualor. %.
There was q constant succession Of festiyi- |
tives. and no lack of d-tables, at which he /
nf ha
spicuous magnitude Of her hoop, her diamonds |
and her immovable face Of the north Some |
times, too, he caught the sight of Sophia, |
richly dressed, attended by waiting women and |
pages, keeping well in mind the charge against |
recognition yet now and then looking as If she |
had not forgotten him, too.
1t was marvellous that the Door girls head
was not turned By her sudden transition from |
the old house, with all the work to do, the |
muJlk to keep In order, and the state cou-cil- !
lOr IN good temper; but Sophia kept her bal
ance, and seemed to make her footing sure.
AT the end OF the first month, the princess was
6oastng of the accomplishments her young
PTotsSe had acquired from the half ore of |
masters and mistresses retained for that pur-
pose. Before a second had expired, all her
circle voted Sophia brilliant and,
with frenchman's perception in such mat.
ters, the sec7nd-valet at length discovered that
Feodor Beselovich, one of the 0rloH family,
was about to offer his hand and fortune, lands
and peasants at the shrine of her charms
That was discovery for which he had not
oargalned; but common report soon assured
him OF its reality. The wealth and rank of |
young Baselovich would have made him a
welcome suitor to the best families in st. Pc
tersburg. Like most of his line he was tall
and handsome. 1he princess openly. favored
his suit, the state councillor concurred in the |
back k-ground he was expecting to occupy, and |
aOread hat fha hid 81.
be we'll inclined if she were in her senses.
Gaston had observed her looking absent and |
thoughtful, as if balancing something in her |
mind. Was it for this he had become second |
valet, answered Russian bells, and abstained |
from kicking Paulo? The thought was sufici- |
ent to sent a less sensitive subject upon the |
road to self-destruction. CASTOR was nearing |
the borders Of that romantic land one evening |
late in the st. Petersburg winter, when the |
princes had given her last ball before Lent.
. From a corner in the picture gallery, where |
he stood as IT In waiting, he could see through /
the open doors of the ballroom Sophia dancing |
the nli'iEet de Ia eoHr with the young scion Of |
the OrlOff line. The lady Was gay with frils |
OF Fla27t,fs lace and pendants of pearls, the |
geDtlemanYas grand in his uniform as a colonel |
OF hussars. conscious of their approaching |
alliance seemed to pervade the company, and |
the princess smiled graciously on the pair. 1t
was afterwards remembered that her hghness
said she hoped Providence would permit her to
send one bride from the Grodizoff palace; and
g aston, like other disappointed men, was max |
ing severe reflections on the fckieness, vanity,
and mercerary mind Of the sex, when Paulo's |
bell recalled him to his humble duties. He
was received at the foot of the back stairs with
the usual volley of names. A carrier from the |
south had just arrived, bringing, among sun
dry packages of less value, two small cases of
polished ebony, which CASTOR was commanded
10 place on the toilets of their owners-one was
addressed to the princes, and the other to Mad
enoiselle Petrova. Both were labeled ''iean
q OF" and Gaston's Versailles education made
him acquainted at least with the reputc Of that
article. In it the rank and fashion Of those
days put faith as a specific against all their
dreaded ills, the loss of spirits, the decay Of
charms, and thousand other evils quite as
serious. Its composition was kept profound
secret by the manufacturing chemists. 1t was
believed to be made only in Paris, somewhere
about the Sorbone; and, if not extracted from
the precious metal, it cost its weight in gold
10 the vulgar eye, however, there was nothing
remarkable about it but clear, tasteless fluid,
thicker than common water which according
4 awwWA -aN l.