The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1872-12-21

DER the circumstances. But now and
then she would come to bring back
books and borrow others; and a few
days ago, added Butts, she had glided
in timidly at nightfall, and brought him
a dozen water-cOlOr sketches, asking
him whether he saw any hope of selling
them. He had kept the sketches out
of curiosity, and shown them to some
of his lady-subscribers, who had been
much amused at the girls impudence.
Naturally he had not been able to sell
any, nor was l sure that he would con-
sent to do so, zen had the chance 0c-
people whom one does not know. This
is what Butts said.
We were lOunging over the counter,
cutting the leaves of new magazines,
skimming through the papers, and in
specting the library catalogues.
Let us see the sketches, Butts"
asked Halsey, who, like the rest of us,
had, from the outset of his acquaintance
ship with the Sandbeach nagnate, dis
carded the name Mr." as superfluous
AS the women are making such Il
dead set at the girl, it is obvious she
is pretty" remarked Merry, whose char
acter was, contrary to the usual rule,
not out of keeping with his name. Il
even suspect that, since our friend
Butts talks so lightly Of the sketches,
there must be some merit in them."
But no: there was no merit in them
whatever, except such as comes from
patient work misapplied. Butts, who
was quite imperyiOus to sarcasm from
not understanding what it meant, pro-
duced the sketches out of a drawer,
and laid them before us with a kind Of
expostulatOry shrug. They We're views
of Sandbeach and neighborhO0d, the sea
by day and by moonlight, and displayed
only the most elementary knowledge of
cOl0ring. Poor, simple drawings they
were, with dabs of blue for sky, gray
for sea, and brown for shingle. It was
a schoolgirl art-nOt so bad as to be
absurd, not good enough to be worth a
glance. Merry, Gloves, and | threw Il
look over them, and no more. Cloves,
who was a bit OF d cynic, even said
something tart about teaching girls to
waste paper and cOlOrs instead OF in
structing them to bake and spin. But
Halsey collected the sketches, and, after
going through them curiOusly, began to
pore over them one by one, with deep at
tention, as if there were beauties in
them which we had failed to discover,
but which were visibleto him. When he
reached the last, he held it almost five
minutes before his eyes then, like a
good fellow that he was, with a manly
sympathy for all that was weak and
suffering, he exclaimed, Poor little
herself out to teach her poor scraps of
knowledge, and being rebuffed every
where because there is miserable Sc
cret in her young life which she wishes
to conceal. Perhaps it is her mothers
or her fathers honor which she is en-
deavOring to cloak. But Butts, there,
and his lady patrons, don't choose to
perceive. that, if this pretty girl had
vicious instincts, she need never have
troubled any of them for place or
money. They ban her-the ladies by
pursuing up their lips when she crosses
them, the chaste Butts by preaching
her down from behind his counter, and
musing as to whether he shall let heI
beguile her evenings by reading one OF
his books, which she hadpaid for, Then
she falls back upon these attempts to
earn her bread; and Butts puts them in
a drawer, vOwing not to sell them, lest
he should encourage immortality. Well
one day when she has exhausted all
the methods she knows for keeping
starvation away, she will find herself
thanks to Butts and his ladies, with a
choice of three roads before her-theft
dishOnor, or suicide If she takes tC
the first road, Butts will be there under
the coat of Il policeman, and with hand
cuffs in his pocket. II she selects the
second course, Butts will proclaim thai
he foresaw it all along. It she filings
herself into the sea we shall have Butts
wanting to bury her in the felon's cor.
ner of the churchyard, with verdict OF
self-murder. Isn't that about it, Butts p
Butts, who was quite impenetrable tt
the notion that anybody should think
of pOking irony at him, did not seize &
word of this, and answered complacent,
ly, "They're silly daubs, aren't they p
Nevertheless, shall buy them
Butts" answered Halsey. What il
the price?" .. -. "a. -.....
"Ohw said Butts, who would have
smiled had nature endowed him with {
capacity for doing SO, sFsixpence apiece
would be q deal of money for sucl
things as them, l should say"
How do yoH rate the worth of labor
Butts :" muttered Halsey, still consider
ing the sketches. Each of these
| drawings must have taken day and {
half to execute. supposing anybody
were to set you working for a day. ant
a half, then give you a sixpence, anC
| call it a deal Of money!"
| +" The wages of q male artisan aver
age between three shillings a day anG
| ten; those of a woman between min.
pence and five shillings,n replied Butts
who always took questions gravely.
"And it must be skilled labor to earn
the money! took up Cloves, who, al
though an excellent fellow, was for up
roofing sentimentalism. "DOn't let III
have any paradoxes, Halsey. You pa,
work if it's good if not, you give moth
ing .-rss.r. a.r..sr ..,s. ..~... .s
"That's your theory, Cloves; bu
supposing we genera1ized it, and pai(
professional men only for the g00t
work they did, what would become O
most nOvelists, barTisters, and eabine
ministers, to say nothing of the clergy
I'll rate the drawings according to thei
industry, and according to my owl
means, at seyen-and-six each, Butts
or let us saya flyer for the lot J" and, put
ting the unknown girls pictures tOgeth
er, Arthur Halsey handed the Sand
beach censor abank-note. s..s..
| / suppose the money could not havt
! lain ten seconds in Butts hesitatins
palm, when the shop-door turned AMI
admitted girl, at whose sight Merry
Cloves and /, who had begun to bante
Halsey on his Quixotism, instantl,
lapsed silent, for it needed no one t.
tell us that here was the very person WI
We're diseussing-come as il to speal
mutely for herself, as to her deserts
her sadness, and her destitution. Sh
was surprisingly lovely, but pale am
her beauty was of that frail, infant -1ik
sort, which has astonished eyes, deel
and mysterious as velvet, the tiniest O
mouths, and timid candor spread owe
all the features like q bloom. There wa
/ ~ ha1 1roap4 +x IL