The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1870-07-07
THE FLOWER-GIRL OF FLORENCE.
From Casselrs Magazine,


is the pretty. mournful refrain of Provencal
song. 1t might be sung now in the City of
Flowers, which has new streets and squares
and public promenades and fountains, and
banks, and shops, but, alas there are no
more flower girls In the Cascine and cafes
are now rarely, if ever, seen those dainty fig
ures, so ,jauntily dressed, all possessed Of the
beauty of youth, and some rejoicing in q
loveliness of a nobler and rarer type, carry
ing basketsful of the choicest flowers, which
they used to protfer with the artless yet
graceful courtesy of their country to the pas
ers-by. At the end OF the season a sum of
money was given for these flowers, so that
all the ugly part of the transaction, the buy
ing and selling, was hidden from view. The
boquets were given and received with smiles,
and cordial words and mercy farewell ':un-
til Tomorrow were exchanged, and that
was all.
About ten years ago, one of these flower
girls was n great favorite, and especially adj
mircd by the foreigners, English American
and German, who stopped to hear the band
in the PiaZzone of the Cascine.
''Oh, auntie, look what 4 pretty girl y
| said Maud Halifax, herself q very pretty girl,
to the lady who was with her. They had
stopped to hear the music on one warm April
afternoon. Maud had been leaning back,
tired and exhausted; for she was in very bad
health when this lovely vision Of a girl Of
her own age stood beside the carriage and
| reused her
''She is very pretty" said Miss Halifax,
''but what is very strange, she is very like
YOU
"Oh, aunt how you tlattern'
1t was the fact, however; the English
young lady and the Italian girl were as like
as sisters. Both had dark eyes, slightly
aquilne noses, broad, low foreheads, and
beautiful mouths; but the Italian was Us
blooming as her own flowers. Maud was
thin, pale and languid.
s'Do you not think | am right ?n said Miss
Halifax, in French, to young Hungarian Of
ficer who now came up.
He assented hastily, but not before both
the faces he had glanced at blushed to the
roots of the hair, worn by both in the same
way, drawn back in simple waves from the
forehead.
The tlower-girl hastily threw some roses
into the carriage and vanished.
II am tired; let me 90 home'' said
Maud.
"Shall we see you this evening?' said
Miss Halifax to the officer.
Il dc not know. Yes, yes; | will come. y
The Halfaxes went home.
The young officer followed the flower girl.
She held out her basket to him.
Il told you," said he with an air of au-
thorlty, ''that you We're never to go near that
carriage"
"Why?"
'Nevcr mind; l have my reasons,
Drodata."
"Shall | ever know them?"
''No, perhaps not.
He turned on his heel, and was gone. The
girl looked after him thoughtfully. II wish
knew she murmured.
s'What do you wish to know ?" said u
young Italian artist who came up. II can
tell you a great many things. Count Lin
dau, for instance, that young man who has
Just been buying your flowers is engaged to
be married to the rich English girl at the lIo-
tel de In Vile, who is so i'll. If she lives to
be married, he will be q rich man; for ii is
said her father has settled fifty thousand
francs Il year on her husband What is the
matter, Drodata p,
u must 60 home" The poor girls lips
We're white.
Come, | will take YOU" he said for she
was trembling too much to be able to walk
They stepped aside from the busy crowd
The music was pouring forth its peas Of gay
melody, the sky was bright, and the flowers
Drodata carried seemed laughing up in sell
nothing, heard nothing, but the dreadful
words Carlo Malaspina had spoken "Count
Lindau is going to be married"
Why, then, had he for the last six months
told her he loved her. and loved her only !?
Why had he said that he was glad he was a
German, for that, as soon as she had married
him, he would take her from Florence; and
at Prague no one would look down upon her,
for they would not know whether she had
been u tlower-girl or Il countess? Why !?
why? Alas9 there was no reply. Carlo was
well known to her. lie had always been
most kind to her mother and to herself, She
called it kindness; but in truth it was SIM
cere and devoted love which he felt for her.
But there is often this terrible disparity and
inequality in love-on one side fire, and on
the other frost The one loves, the other is
loved; and between the active and passive
Of that verb what a world of difference
Drodata had no father. She had heard he
had died when she was an infant at Venice;
and Ida Bcnelli her mother, had come to
Florence, poor and heart-hroken. to learn
how to support herself and her child. No
one knew more than that fact about the pale,
beautiful woman. She was alone with her
child and worked hard at her needle to sup
port both. She was, however, evidently of
gentle birth, though she never alluded to the
past and was Us simple and unpretending
as if she had always lived by the labor of her
own hands. But evidently there had been Il
great sorrow in her life, and it was one she
never got over. She was always sad, and
somewhat stern.
They lived on the ground floor of Il little
villa near Florence, and the flowers they cul-
tivated were sold by Drodata. Sometimes
her mother accompanied her; sometimes
one of the older tower-girls took charge of
Drodata.
Count Lndau had been staying at neigh
boring villa, and it was during his walks he
had met Drodata She used to go some
times to see the lady at whose villa he was
staying, and, after Il few meetings, he told
her he loved her Drodata brought him to
her mother, and Ida Benelli gave her con-
sent to their marriage. She told him there
was no disparity in birth between them. and
that the secret. Of her life should be made
known to him on the day of the marriage
till then, she wanted the engagement to be
secret Not even Carlo Malaspina, though
he was so good friend, knew of it.
Now, as he took poor Drodata home, he
first became aware of it. 1t was fortunate
for Lndau that Carlo could not leave the
poor girl, or the Cascine Of Florence would
have been disturbed by 4 summary act of
When they arrived at the villa,