The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1873-05-16

ing he does so cordially hate get
ting up' My only chance is his no
having gone to bed at all. How will h
be looking? 1 have not seen him TO
four months. Will he have succeeded
in curbing his tendency to fat, durin,
his Norway fishing? Probably not
Fishing, on the contrary, is rather fat
making occupation sluggish and Sc
dentary. Shall we have pleasan
party at the house we are going to, fo
shooting? To whom in Paris shall I e.
for my gown ? Worth? No, Worth i
beyond me. There leave the future
and go back into past enjOyments ex
cursions to Lansmere /; trips down tn,
lake to Chiffon hundred and on,
pleasantnesses. The time slips by; tn,
afternoon is drawing toward evening
beginning of dusk is coming over tn,
landscape.
! I look round. Good heavens wha
can those men find so interesting in the
| papers? | thought them hideously
dull, when l looked over them, this
morning and yet they are still persis
tently reading. What can they have
| got hold of? [ cannot see what the
man beside me has ;; his vis-a-vis is
buried in an English Times. Just as
am thinking about him he puts down
| his paper, and / see his face. Nothing
very remarkable; long black beard,
| and hat tilted somewhat low over his
forehead. / turn away my eyes hastily,
for fear of being caught ing disitively
| scanning but still, out of their corners
| l see that he has taken little bottle
| out of his travelling bag, has poured
| some of its contents into glass, and is
putting it to his lips. It appears as il
| and, at the same time it happens, ]
have no manner of doubt, that he is
| drinking. Then I feel that he is adj
dressing me. I look up and toward
him; he is holding out the phial to me,
and saying -
"May 1 take the liberty of offering
madame some %
"No, thank you, monsieur !' I an
swer, shaking my head hastily and
nothing I dislike more than being Of
fered strange eatables or drinkables in q
train or a strange hymn-book in church
He smiles politely, and then adds =
Perhaps the other lady might be
persuaded to take little?
"No, thank you, sir, I'm much OBJ
y,
in almost as ungratefpl tone as mine
Again he smiles, bows and reburies
himself in the newspaper. The thread
of my thoughts is broken I feel an odd
curiosity as to the nature of the con-
sherry or spirit of any kind, for it has
diflused no odor through the carriage.
At this time the man beside me has said
I II l. IL
move or speak, or do something. I
peep covertly at him. Well at all
events, he is we'll defended against the
night-chill. What voluminous cloak
he is wrapped in; how entirely it
shroUds his figure ! trimmed with fur
too Why, it might be January in
stead of September. / do not know
why, but that cloak makes me feel
rather uncomfortable. / wish they
would both move to the window, in
stead of sitting next Us. Bah ! am l
setting up to be timid dove? I, who
rather pique myself on my bravery
on my Indifference to tramps, bulls,
ghosts? The clock has been deposited
with the umbrellas, parasOls, spare
Watson's head. The dressing -case-a
very large and heavy one-is sitting ON
her lap. 1 lean forward and say to
her =
"That box must rest very heaving on
your knee, and / want foot-stool-I
should be more comfortable if l had
one-let me put my feet on it. %
have an idea that somehow my sap
phires will be safer if I have them
where [ can always feel thst they are
there We make the desired change il
our arrangements. Yes, both my fee,
are on it. The landscape outside i
darkening quickly now our dim light
is beginning to assert its Importance.
Still the men read. / feel q sensation
of irritation. What can they mean by
it? 1t is utterly impossible that they
can decipher the small print of the
Times by this feeble, shaly glimmer.
As am so thinking, the one who had
before spoken lays down his paper,
folds it mp, and deposits it on the seat
beside him. Then, drawing his little
bottle out of his bag a second time,
drinks, or seems to drink, from it. Then
he again turns to me =
Madame will pardon me; but if
madame could be induced to try little
of this it is q cordial of a most re-
freshing and invigorating description,
and if she will have the amiability to
allow me to say so, madame looks
faint"
What can he mean by his urgency
Is it pure politeness | wish it were
not growing so dark. These thoughts
run through my head as / hesitate fro
an instant what answer to make. Then
an idea occurs to me, and I manufac-
ture civil smile and say, "Thank you
very much, monsieur I am a little
faint, as you observe. / think I will
avail myself of your obliging offer"
So saying, take the glass and touch it
with my lips. give you my word and
honor that 1 do not think I did more
L did not mean to swallow drop, but
/ suppose 1 must have done so. He
smiles with gratified air.
"The other lady will now, perhaps,
follow your example %
By this time / am beginning to feel
thoroughly uncomfortable why, 1
should be puzzled to explain. What is
this cordial that he is SO eager to urge
upon us? Though determined not to
subject myself to its influence, / must
see its effects upon another person.
Rather brutal of me, perhaps; rather
in the spirit of the anatomlst, who, IN
the interest of science, tortures live
dogs and cats; but I am telling you
facts-not what I ought to have done,
but what / did l make sign to Wat
son to drink some. She obeys, nothing
loath. She has been working hard ell
day, packing and getting under way,
and she is tired. There is no feigning
about her She has emptied the glass.
Now to see what comes of it-what hap
pens to my live dog The bottle is re-
placed in the bag |; still we are racing
on, racing on, past the hills and fields
and villages, How indistinct they are
all growing / turn back from the con-
temptation of the outside view to the
inside one Why, the woman is asleep
already her chin buried in her chest,
her mouth half open, looking exceed
ingly imbecile and very plain, as most
people, when asleep out of bed, do
look. A nice invigorating potion, in
deed wish to heaven that / had gone
aur fttDaeurs, or even with that caval-
cade of nursery-maids and unwhole-
some-looking babies, aotr DANES SeuLeS,
next door. At all events, am not at
all sleepy myself-that is blessing. I