The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1874-03-12
AN.lINExPLICABLE FANCY.

ANAlINEXPLICABLE FANCY.
French men or french women arc
tragic or nothing, unless they hap
pen To -De c0mical. Nature has en-
dowel the Gallo mind with an adj
roit aptness that seizes with equal
facility upon the terrible or the gro
tesque, u revolution or masquerade.
This, by way of preface, and the
story of "an ineXplicable fancy"
begins:
Henri CardOne was young French
artist OF distinguished promise. His
neatlittlodOmicilc and his pretty lit
tie wife were situated in suburban
Paris. One early twilight i'm the
month of November of certain
year, us he entered his home, his wife
ran up to him, twined. her plump
arms around his neck, bestowing a
full-blown affection upon his respOn-
sive lips, and Immediately exclaimed,
go, dear Henri! had such sur
prise, such an odd visitor this after
noon u man with such an expllcable
fancy that / have been waiting these
two hours for your arrival, and (be-
slowing 2 playful cut thereupon)
your cars"
And now the ears have arrived,
Irene, my pet, 1 suppose your merry
tongue will rattle away as giibly as q
newly wOund-up music-bOX; and once
started, shall not have an OppOrtu
nifty to put Il word i'm etlgewisc until
you have run down completely. But
Tor this odd man, with ineXpicable
fancy He could not have taken q
fancy to you, for that would have
been neither OLd nor eXplicablc. Did
he, utterly regardless of the divine
set of his trousers, go down upon his
knees and bcSeech of you to fly with
him to some intensely rural retreat,
there to subsist upon mOOnshine and
his adorable moustache? and was it
his inexplicable fancy that you should
be accompanied by such little articles
of available value rs this poor hOvel
might afford? Or, was he Il wander
ing gypsey lord, who predicted that
you were to be queen of all proud
heart? And did ne, just as he was
about to surround your august brow
with the imperial CROWN suddenly
suspend it and take an explicable fan
cy TO have his dirty palm first crossed
with a crown of silver? Or"
"There, there! do cease your bad
image" said the pOuting little
woman, stamping her small foot inn
patiently. "You will never become
wise listening to your own wis
DOM"
"Nor weary listening to yours, my
charming sage" laughed the voluble
Henri, carcssing her soft brown hair
fondly; proceed-from this on l am
all ears"
"WelI, let all ears listen. At about
three O'Clock this afternoon, as i was
sitting intent upon taking the finest
possible stitches around the border of
your finest cambric, there came Il
sharp rap ut the door. i fastened,
opened it, and found myself face to
face with man of middle age, who
bowed politely and inquired If he
were on the Rue de Chalons. On be-
ing informed that he was, he thanked
me very aflably, and was turning to
depart, when his glance chanced to
fall upon this little cornelian cross,
which then, as now, was lying on my
bosom. He stopped short, gazed
fixedly ut it, as though 1t pOsscssed
some terrible fascination, turned first
deadly pale, then livid purple, and in
q hoarse whisper articulated, Mad
anne, you will pardon me, for IL Is no
ordinary curiosity that prompts the
question, but might venture to ask
how that trinket,' pointing a trem-
bling finger at the cross, came into
your pOssession-under what circum-
stances?'" lcr
Well" queried Henri, in low,
interested tone, "what was my little
wife's repIy?"
il was present from her husband,
and that it had been In her possession
about four years. How or where you
came by 1t she could not inform
him."
"Then he departed satisfed?"
+" No indeed"
"What then?" =,
"Then he inquired your name, age
and profession"
"Did he? 1 do not know whether
l ought to feel c0mplimentcd or in
suited. Did you tell him 2"
"I hesitated, and told him."
"I wish you had not hesitated, and
then not told him. Something OF
moment may grow out Of his curios-
ity. But it will not matter. Then Inc
departed 2"
aNo; he stood absorbed In troubled
thought few minutes, as though
weighing a deep problem, and then
said he had taken u very strong and
eccentric fancy for the trinket, and
asked III would for consideration
consent to part with It,"
"What was your reply to that very
business-like proposition 2"
THAT being your gift, i should
much dislike TO let II CO."
"Of course that must have termin-
ated the conversation %
"Of course, but Il did not, though,
IT became more pointed than ever.'
Well, Welt ] am eager to learn
the denoument,u said Henri. " IL i
am not at fault In my surmises,