Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1861-10-13
MARIETTE.
nv FTTSTORFC.FE TEE OF re-
E'E.T'gE.

You defy me, Mariette?" said Paul Dubois.
''Yery well I give you fair notice that if You
persist in this way to ScOrn proposal so much
| above what you have a right TO expect, ! viii
take speedy and ample revenge. Consider well.
l have your reputation in my power. | offer
you, ON one hand, a position which most young
| ladies wOuld eagerly grasp at, to make yUu my
wife, with settlement of fifty thousand francs
at my death; and on the other should you be
nIad enough to refuse, / solennly declare that
you Shallrue il in a way that YOU little expect"
Your proposal has no inducements for me,
| monsieUrp replied Mariette; your threats have
| no terror. / am strong in my purpose l came
to Paris from a little provincial town in which
hope TO pass my future life, after l shall have
! earned certain sum as your sisters gOveTness
do not blush to tell YOU that IN that quiet re-
| tirement l have left true heart that beats for
me lbeseech You, monsieur, to go vour way,
and suffer me to go mine, which diyergrS
! wholly from yours. | 20 not covet the hOlorS
and riches with which you are trying to tempt
me"
"Ahl" said Paul, caught, I suppose by
! some upstart OF a clodhOpper! Think wen be-
| fore you decide"
/ have decided, said AIarirtte. "No NOR
! tai can alter that decision. Is 60 the mere out
| ward beauty in man, I simply despise it,
" Then your provincial adIHircr is of course
not handsome, as I at first concluded ?"
Not handsome, certainly" she replied. &" On
the contrary, he is diSigured by wound across
the face, and has lost an arm. Had it been
| otherwise, he would have gladly worked his
! fingers to the bone for me And gladly viii
do as much for him."
"A pretty MATCH truly" said Paul So
you refuse me, after all, for deformcd Grip
pler
Il dil not say So" replied the goYcrness.
&. ]. = g. - e IL
! you, monsieur, since YOU provoke me to it, l
would not exchange him for YOU if he had no
more than body enough left to contain q soul
| so much more noble than yours, as IS thatwhich
animatos his fragile fIame'
Little did the brave girl know what a mine
she had suddenly lighted or how it would one
day explode upon her dclenseeSs head
Marictte Durant had been betrothcd at her
fathers d5ath-bed TO Jean Alallet. An attach
ment had sprung up between the two almost in
their childhood and the father knowing that
bis days were drawing to close, had encouraged
that attachment, in hope of leaving his mother
less child to a worthy protector. Durant had
nothing to bestow upon her; but he had given
her more than riches; an education by which
she could at any time support herself should
death Uvertake her affanced husband.
Not long after her father died, Jean was sum
moned to join his regiment; for he had become
a soldier ir0ma FEELING Of pure patriotism and
Mariette, while she deplOred tue separation, was
proud OF her soldier, sympathzed heartily with |
the sentiment he cherished toward his country, |
and chcerfully bade him adieu
il was in the spring of 1896, when the Young |
Corsican, Napoleon Bonaparte, was beginning /
to astonish the world by his wonderful and un- |
exampled successes in Italy. On the llth OF |
April the battle OF Montcnotte sent her hero |
home, crippled and dishgured; and doutiul of
his reception in this state by Mariettc he was
thoroughly disheartened. His low spirits act
ing in concert with his wounds, threw him into
a fever, from which he recovered TO find that
the brave and high-minded girl, regardless Of
hls nut!lated appearance had watched beside
BIN both day and night, without a single
thought Of disSoivng an engagement made un-
der such solemn circumstances. But they were
both poor, and bui poor provision was made for
the manned soldier who had spent blood and
limbs in his cOuntry'S service Mariette, there
fore, proposed to spend single year as g0v,1n-
eSs m some Parisian Centleman's family, hoping
TO be able, by that means, to set up some bust
ness which Jean and herself could manage to-
gcther, and which would relieve Jean from the
mtoieTablep pain which he suffered at the thought
of being henceforth useless in the world.
Full Of her noble object, she sought and OBJ
tanned a situation, with a high salary, as govern
ess 10 the little daughter of Monsieur Paul Du-
bois, a wealthy citizen of Paris. who was a
Tid0wer, with one son of mature age and |
daughter Of thirteen years. Mariette rcioced
that she had received SO desirable situation
The salary wa high. in c0usidcraticr7 of the
child having no mother, and Mariette willingly /
devoted her whole time 70 her pupils improve
mrnt. Onlywhcn little Amelia slept she poured
out her soul in writing TO poor Jean, whose
sole consolation was these letters He too
Iar
left hand ior that which he so sorely missed
! am counting the weeks now, love-" be |
wrote, in scarcely decipheIable characters which
only the eye OF love could have recognized. q
say to myself, One week more, poor crippled
jean, and you shall behold her who is the only
star left in the heaven Of youthful hopes y"
Alas he did not dream how much more TO be
ptied than he was that being on whom he de-
pended SO much. Her trouble came to her in the
PLY fallen in love with her Brought up in uil-
limited indulgence, his passions unresuained in
those law.ess times of anarchy and crime, and his
temper ungoverned, Paul Dubois thought that if {
he condescendcd 10 ask his sisters goycrness TO
be his wife, enriched as his family were known
to be with the spoils Of the revolution, she would
At once consent to his proposal and become his
wife.
1t was as unexpected as It was maddeninc,
his preference, but begged him never again to
name the subject, as it was one however tiatter-
ug that preference, which she could not enter
tain. He could not understand her clear
way of answering. lie believed {
il only a trick to enhance theprize. Al women
whom be had seen had affected to be shy, but ]
their shyness was not Of long duration and he {
confidently thought that after a few struggles,
Marictte would fall into his arms, tha liking fate
4h .. - 10 hot h ! L q
slavery. And endless, in consequence, were the
struggles which marked his persistent attentions J
to the unwilling girl, who had several times re- !
solved to leave the scene Of her relentless persC
cutiOn, but had been deferred from it by her s
given promise to N. Dubois 10 remain at least I
year. Ii
All this time she had never named her annoy &
lnce to Jean, generously wishing 10 spare him
the pain Of knowing that she was unhappy, or {
running the risk Of exciting jealousy in his SEN
5itiye mind. The last time that her arrogant
over had troubled her was upon the occasion
Of the above conservation, when he had detained
ler for an hour TO listen 70 bis rhapsodies She
hon determined to tel him her situation. hop
ng that if he had a Spark Of manly sentiment !.
within him, he would desst from further perse-
,ution. 1t had a contrary effect, for he was de-
tcient in the quality she hoped to find Her
confession only increased his passion, and added
the WISH OF revenge upon one VINO could actually I
prefer a manned and disfigurcd cripple to such
an Adonis as Paul considered himself
At length her courage gave way under the re-
peated troubles she endured from her contempti-
be pcTsccutOr, and she resolved to plead with NJ
Dubois to release her engagement, now that it
wanted but a few weeks Of its termination. He
was surprised and disturbed by the request, and
his remarks. though polite, were severe. The
was overheard by his son, who lis
tened eagerly for the decision. When at length,
in pity 10 her evident distress, he reunctantly
his sons rage knew no bounds. His
thirst for revenge grew deeper and deeper, and
plot was laid that night worthy of such a demon.
Mariette sat up all night, packing her trunks
and writing to her pupil, whom she was sorry to
leave. Had it not been for her dread of Paul,
she would have begged NJ Dubois to yield her
to her instruction at her own home; but that
WIS not to be thought Of She went down to
breakfast at the usual time, leaving her trunks
mtlstened. She was Tejoiced not to see Paul,
and supposed him not yet risen. lie came in,
however, before she had finished, and sat down
beside her. 1t is not yet too late to repent
he whispered.
She regarded him with a silent scOrn which
was more eloquent than mere words At that
moment the butler came rushing into the break
fast-rOom with cOuutenanee of dismav, saving
that quantity of plate had disappeared sud-
denly from his pantry. Fau affected surprise,
and went instantly to his room whence he re-
turned with the tidings that certain yaluables
DO. al from, It1 |