The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1867-08-16
with Austria foA sItnlihn libeEts.

france was about TO take 1t up Col.
Dufonr was, of co1fse, keepiy alive
to helsituation, for his rekim ent was
| one Of the famous First Corps, :" and
was already under orders to march
towards the Alps. He was q true
soldier, and was resolved, il the war,
came, to seek still higher promotion
| in it; bntfor the first time in his life
the thought of being called into
active service made him sad. The
reason was, the Colonel was in love.
| The signora, also, was sad at the
thought of her friend being called
away. She did not love him; but
with awoman's tact. she had disco
yered his secret. and she knew he
loved her better than he could ever
love any woman again. She valued
his friendship as one of her dearest
treasures, and it panied her deeply
that he should love her when she
could not return his passion.
The night before heleft Paris was
o holiday to the, signora, andsshe re-
fused to see any one but the Colonel,
saying to him, with a sad smile, that
she would not permit the world to
come between them at their parting.
''For you know" she said gently,
I'VE are very good friends to each
other"
The Colonels heart beat fitfully.
1t had never even so much as futter-
ed when the enemy's bullets whistled
round his ears in battle; not even
when, with his heroic regiment, he
drove back the last Russian effort to
retake the Malakoff; but it trembled
now at the tender voice of this wo-
man he loved SO well, but who, alas!
loved him only as she would have
loved her brother Almost before he
knew it, he told her all his passion,
and begged her to be his wife, if he
came back safe from the war. The
simple, manly offer of the brave SOL
dier touched the signora deeply, and
she was almost tempted to give him
the promise he asked for; but her in
nate trnthfnlness rebelled at this, and
she told him frankly the true state of
her feelings for him.
81 do not love you as a wife
should" she said, "and I will not
wrong you by marrying you. I love
ID
brother You will some day learn to
be satisfied with this; and then you
will find another woman who can
make you happy; and shall be your
sister. and be happy in and proud of
my noble brother. +"
The Colonel's face was very sad;
but it was calm and tranquil, and as
the signora spoke, smile passed
over it.
THAT day, signora, will never
come, he said. "I must rest salts
fed with your decision now, but I
will not resign the hope that you will
yet be my wife; for L assure you I
shall never marry any other woman. ;"
II wish I did love you," she said.
softly; 'for desire above all things
to make you happy"
"That is a good beginning" Col.
Dufour exclaimed, Frightening. "I
love you too vel, to fail to win you >"
The signora did not contradict
him. Indeed, she did not think it
unlikely that his prediction might be
realized; and so she answered him
only with blush. AS they parted,
the Colonel asked her for some token
to carry with him.
'I shall not need it to remember
you," he said; ''but when I am far
away, marching and fighting, or per-
haps dying, it will make me happy
and contented with my lot to have
with me something that has been
yours. p"
And as he spoke, the signora drew
from her finger plain gold ring, and
slipped it on his.
Wear this" she said, "for my
sake"
The next morning, Col. Dufour
set out with his regiment for the
frontier of Savoy, to join the army
of the Alps. He reached his destina-
tion in due time, and in the course of
q few weeks shared in the famous
march across Mount Gents to Lusa.
Then came the concentration upon
the line of tile Po, when the army of
France, led by the Emperor Napo-
leon the Third, confronted its enemy
upon the classic soil of Italy.
At Magenta, the fighting was hot
and heavy, and the Seventeenth and
Col. Dufour rose high in the estima-
tion of all in the army; and when the
Emperor came to reward the brave
deeds performed on that memorable
4th of June, it was found that Col.