Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-02-20
A THRILLING ADVENTURE.

"A nAsAA LIAM III AA> ~ AS~~~
THE Royal Italian Opera, Covent
Garden, closed on Saturday, the goth
inst, with Meyerbeer's great masterpiece,
"L'Etoile du NGrd." Talking with a
friend about the principle features of the
season, had, naturally, much to say
about Madame Pauline Lucca. After a
time our conversation turned upon her
high qualities in private life; her kind
heartedness, affection, generosity and
courage. For cool resolution, the follow
ing incident, related to me by my friend,
cannot well be surpassed Madame Paul
inc Lucca usually resides in the Victoria
Strasse, Berlin. Last spring, however,
she occupied, temporarily, at some dis
lance outside the city, a gartenhaus, or
country house, consisting of only spa
cious, rambling basement story, surround
ed by veranda One night, about ten
o'clock, she was sitting there in her bed
room. Her chair was placed before her
toilet table, which was lighted by wax
taper on each side Of the glass. The two
tapers were not sufficient to illuminate
the rooms very brilliantly, and the further
end lay buried in a sort of semi -obscurity.
Madame Lucca was busy reading some
letters concerning engagements, when
suddenly she imagined she heard noise
She looked round, but, seeing nothing,
concluded she had made mistake, and
resumed the perusal of the letters. She
had forgotten all about the noise when
she heard it again. This time, instead Of
looking around, she happened, without
moving her head, merely to raise her eyes
to the glass. She beheld reflected in it the
face of man peering cautiously from out
cupboard behind her. At first she fancied
she was dreaming. She quietly looked
again. No, it was no dream. There was
the man, whom she now recognized as
havingbeen formerly in her service, whence
he had been discharged for general bad
behavior. She had also suspected him of
purloining several objects which she had
missed from time to time, but, not being
certain on this point, she had kept her
suspicious to herself. Yes, there he was
there could be no mistake about the mat
ter Madame Lucca's first impulse was
to start up and give the alarm. But there
was not another habitation within a mile
or two, and she recollected that the only
person beside herself in the house was
her maid, who, though a very good girl,
and extremely attached to her mistress,
was by no means celebrated for her nerve.
The other servants, including the gardener
and coachman, had been granted permits
sion to attend friends wedding some
miles off, and were not to return till the
next day. 1t flashed across her mind that
the man, who, as she knew, had been
lettering about the neighborhood for two
or three days, had learned that she would
be alone, and meant to rob the house, OF
perhaps murder her, if his project OF
robbery could not be executed without
the preparation of the greater crime
What was to be done? Again she glanced
toward the mirror The eye was still
there, glaring on her through the gloom.
All at once she remembered that a revOlv,
er belonging TO her husband, the Baron
Won Rhaden, ought to be lying on shelf
in the dining room; but she was not quite
sure "If it is there, and if | could only
get it," she thought, 81 should not mind? %
While she was rejecting, a knock was
heard on the door of the room. She saw
the man instantly draw back into the
cupboard and close it after hun. She felt
relieved that those two horrible eyes
were taken off her; they seemed to pierce
her like daggers.
Come in!' she said.
Her maid entered.
Il thought you had gone to bed, my
good girl" observed Madame Lucca, in a
tone of unconcern.
II was going, please your ladyship
but I-l-thought you might perhaps
want something," replied the maid.
81 told you would be my own femme
de chambre tonight. No; the only thing
| want is to stretch my limbs little, for
they are cramped from long sitting"
Speaking thus, Madame Lucca arose
with an air of admirably acted inditfer-
ence, and took turn or two across the
room, passing close to the cupboard as
she did SO. She afterwards declared she
thought she could hear the man breathe
in his hiding place. He, on his part,
might have heard her heart beat, she said,
when, on looking at the keyhole, she
found the key had been removed. She
was foiled in her plan, which had been to
lock him in. Still her presence of mind
did not desert her.
'Ah. dear mel" she said, gaping, II feel
very sleepym
SLEEPY, your ladyship! wish did,
replied her maid. II don't feel sleepy.
I'm too frightened"
"Frightenedl What are you frightened
of, you foolish goose? Nonsensen replied
Madame Lucca.
'Oh! begging your ladyship's pardon,
1t is not nonsense, and that's Just it! How
can you be sure that some 6oseacfch will
lain), some taughenicht good form othing
fellow, hearing you and [ are all alone
IN the house, may not murder US in our
beds? But he shan't murder me in mine.
for, with your ladyship's permission,
will sit up all night in your ladyship's
easy chair"
Madame Pauline Lucca glanced at the
cupboard. Her blood ran cold; she
thought she saw the handle turn. What
course was she to adopt9 She dared not
give her maid the slightest hint of the
real state of matters; she felt the girl
would go into fit then and there, and
thus bring on crisis. Scarcely knowing
what she was doing, Madame Lucca re-
piled at random:
Murder us! What for?'
"What for, your ladyship? Why, for
your money-for your jewels, to be sure;
everybody knows you have plenty of
them! -
The girl might have been unconscious
~ sharpening, so to speak, the knife by
which she and her mistress were doomed
to perish.
What absurdity!" said Madame LUG
ca, with forced laugh. As she spoke,
her eye wandered from the keyhole of
the dreaded cupboard to that of an adj
Joining room. In the latter there was
key Her face flushed, and a smile, as it
were, Of proud inspiration, lighted it I'D,
though only for second.