Des Arc weekly citizen., 1868-04-11

continual and deadly battle against God and virtue. Nothing of holiness or good could be mentioned in his presence without calling that awful look to his face, that damning sheer to his scornful lip. IL transformed him, as have said, to the immediate like ness of the star that fell from heaven :; the semblance Of that arch-angel, who, in his pride, rebelled against Omnipo- tence, and became serpent to fasci- nate and destroy mankind!
 It must not be imagined that dis cerned this fearful phase of his charac- ter at once. Many years passed ere guessed it even. and never knew him thoroughly until the moment of his death at my handl In the meantime he had ensnared my soul through his supernatural beauty and his winning, subtle manner; so that 1 believe I should have been his slave even had realized the full extent of the evil in his nature. I have been thus magnilo- quent in endeavoring to describe him because the greatest words are too fee ble to convey an adequate idea of his extraordinary attractions, and the ter rible power of the enchantment which pervaded his whole being. Even when I was fully aware that his counsels and his example were leading me to mortal sin, I was powerless to escape the mys- terious influence. he exercised, and. with my eyes wide open, deliberately followed him to my doom God grant that earth may never more be visited by such an incarnatc devili.
 During his convalcsoence from the injury he had received in rescuing me from death, on the night when first we met, I learned all that ever knew of his birth and previous history. Ac- cording to his own story-which l never had cause to doubt--Arthur de Chargny was the only soil ofa French noble who had been guillotined during the Reign of Terror, and whose family had been forced to fly from France. A rihur and his mother alone reached the United States, and within the year after his arrival he was left an orphan. They had been able to bring with taem q few family diamondsg the sale of which had produced barely enough to provide m income adequate to supply  a miserable subsistence. At his mo- thef death this small income reverted to him and, as he said, he had found il sufficient for hls wants. icarnuu at- terward that this piitanee by no means formed his sole resource; what he re- ally depended upon will appear soon. He was but an infant when his mother fled from France, and when I met him he had reached the age of thirty. The particulars of his intervening life l noyef learned, but what it had been may be coujectured from that which am ahonl to relate of his susequeat career.
 From the hour of our first hcquaint- ance we became inseperable. l have already shown hy l became devoted to him his motives for cuitivating so great an intimacy with mere boy, as l was then, will shortly be painfully apparent. 1 need not dwell on our carrier intercourse, further than to say that introduced him into my own cir cle of friends, and even to my uncle's house and table. In every situation he made favorable impression and gain ed friends. He was toe consummate hypocrite ever to allow the most virtu- ous to suspect his real character. o
 Among his most extraordinary quali- ties was that of an inexhaustible pa- tience. "Festina ente' was his motto, and he never attempted coup de main when cunning subtlety would answer his purpose. l have reason to suppose that he coolly determined to use me as his tool and effect my ruin while he built up his own fortunes, almost in the very hour we met, or at least as soon afterward as he discovered my position in society and future expecta- tions. Nevertheless he neither by hint or action ever allowed me even to sus- pect such design. Through many years of the close intimacy between us his only effort was to gradually under mine my morality and corrupt my ideas of religion and sin. Not openly, not even frequently, but by long, pa tient course of sophistry, the sly cam ming of which would have done honor to the arch tempter himself
 It was masterly plan, and at last his untiring perseverance had it's reward. By degrees began to scotf at straight laced morality louder than he ever dared to do. Gradually the restraints of religion gave way before the assaults Of a cynical philosophy that was the creed of a fend, and, finally, though knew it not, was worse than my tempter in my utter infidoXty and con tempt ofall that was virtuous and i'm nocent The change was very, slow but not the less real and complete, and in secret my destroyer, doubtless, sung pseans oftriumph as he exulted in my certain downfall Thus nearly ten years passed away, and then, finding me ripe for his terrible purpose, my evil mentor prepared and presented before me my first temptation!
 Helena Montlord daughter of the Graees, twin sister to the sirens--thou Gree who betrayed yet loved me-how shall 1 describe thee?
 "Oh, cunning enemy, that @ catch saiat