The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1871-12-07
her own shoulder at the grave round
beauty Of her anxious peach face.

"On; mademolselle est belle ravir
Ca " me,veille; on ne peut mieux, |
etc., etc."
"But ny hands are too white,i
breaks in Lenore, steeming the torrent
of encomium. "What will you sell me
your nice red fingers for half an hour
for! Except on the stage, too, sup
pose peasant woman does not wear
rings" (slipping them off on tie wash
sland-dressipg-table there is none;.-
""elp' (with a parting glance, ~
think l am unrecognizable, am 1 not,
stephanie }? I should not know myself
in a ahop.window."
AS she passes the salon door, Lenore
peeps in. "Do you know me, Jemima?"
Jemima gives a great start, and her
knitting rolls down unheeded On the
parquet:
"Why, Lenore, child, what have
you been doing to yourself? What a |
fright you look Where are you 90.
biugir.'
s5@"To the Hotel de la Poste," answers
44enore; shutting the door briskly, and
running down stairs very quickly to
svoid questions or remonstrances.
1T is but i've minutes walk trou
Mdlle. Leroux's to the Hotel de Ia
Poste ; but in Eve minutes there is
plenty Of time for courage to ooze out
at a fingers ends. Lenore's feet, which
At first, despite her heavy peasaut-boots,
bore her along quickly enough, subside
into very tagging walk. Her
bravery is considerably cooled by the
time she reaches her destination. An
old shabby diligence is standing in the
street; on bench, beside the hotel
door, three men in blue blouses are ST.
ting drinking cider; in the doorway,
disengaged qarcon, with napkin IN.
der his arms.
"Est a que c'est lei pHotel de Ia
Poste Z" asks Lenore, almost timidly,
her question being rendered rather
superfuous by the fact of the hotel
bearing its name in yard-long letters on
its front.
"Qui, madame. Madame est An
glaise r with surprised glance at her
dress.
eyes, madame is English. Is there
much company here nowW
"Cs commence, madame"
:"Are there any Of my compstriots
staying herep
"There>re several, madame-a crowd,
in fact" -, =;
ibid any Of them arrive to-day ?"
"Two English messieurs arrived by
the voiture from Carlines. If madame
wishes, the can see their males qu'on
sa n'oate,," pointing inward to heap
Of portmanteaus and hat boxes.
Madame enters and inspects them.
'And where is this monsieur ?" she
asks, pointing with her finger to small
and rather battered portmadteau, bear
ingAhe name Of "Paul le Mesuieur,
Esq" in large wbito letters upon it.
"That monsieur is in the sale, he
has comman ded some cognac and ST.
phon."
AS he spoke second garcon emer-
ges from the unseen, bearing a small
tray with the identical refreshments in
dicated upon it. By sudden impulse
Lenore runs forward to meet him.
"Would it be permitted" she asks,
coloring furiously, "for her to take
that into the sale 2"
."Mais oui, madame, 81 ca vous con-
yisnt."'
+ They both stare At her one laughs.
/ IF she had been herself now, at this
last :moment, she would have set down
tho tray and fed; but retreat is cut
of by the first garcon politely throwing
open the sa]le-door. With trembling
ices and galloping heart, Miss Lenore
enters.
| A long room and long table laid for
any number Of people; bottles Of vi,s
ordinaire, napkins, covered dishes full
of emptiness, toothpick stands, pots of
NANCY hydrargeas and geraniums down
the middle; a little clergyman with
falling shoulders that would have dis
graced woman or a champogue-bottle
1-Frederick, in fact-studying an In-
! dicateur in one of the windows. An
other gentleman at the table, with the
back of his head and suspicion of
lion'colored beard emerging from the
sheets of Galignaa,t.-
| AS noiselessly as her great clodhop.
ping boots will permit, Miss Herrick
approaches tho latter and deposits his
cognao at his elbow. But in so doing
her hand trembles SO much that she
knocks down fork and spoon, which
fall with click on the floor. As she
stoops to pick them up, and as he lifts
his eyes, rather irritated at the noise,
their glances meet. In Lenore's there
is mi1tu,e Of expressions; shame, do
6ancs, and, above al, and before al,
dissppoiatment; ): for, after al, this in-
teresting, womau-hating roue is not
handsome; by no one but the mother
whe bore him could he ever have been
thought even good.lookiug. In the
strangers look there is nothing but ex-
treme surprise-n.y, astonishment.-
Glad, despite herself, to have got off so
cheaply, Lenore Is beating hasty rc-
treat. when LIE Mesurier's voice over