Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1875-12-18
BLUE SATIN BOOTS.

Holt, the young farmer from Ducktown.
who has Journeyed AL the way to New YORK
In search OF a newly-patented pillow, with
which he proposes to experiment upon the
arid soil OF his native farm.
Ching! goes the car bell; there Is a move
ment among the passengers and the shabby
little girl is gone. But there on the seat Is q
brown paper parcel. Simon catches 1t up,
PUSHES wildly from the car, and finds him.
self on street corner. no shabby little girl
In sight, and himself unexpectedly the pos
SCISSOR OF mysterious bundle, the contents
of which he is ignorant of, equally with the
wherea bouts OF its owner.
For half an hour he goes up one street and
down another, peering anxiously under the
DOnnets OF every female he meets, in search
OF those black eyes. He Is jeered at by
SIN boys, who expressed their disgust at
~ by policemen, comes near getting into q
fight with an inebriated feilow-creature, and
nnally goes discontentedly back to his mod
est hotel ON Fourth avenue, the parcel still
In his possession. Once IN his room, he
turns bis little bundle over and over and up
side down In search of an address, and final
opening OF the bundle Simon opens his eyes.
His hard fingers have come in contact with
something so soft and delicate; and there, dis
encountered from their wrappings, stand
the cunningest. daintiest nattiest little pair
of blue satin boots that ever were made.
simon scarcely dare touch them, for fear of
soiling their delicate white embroidery, but
he puts them on the table, where they incon-
tlDently tumble over Then he rights
them, and they poise themselves on their
little French heels and dainty toes, their
spangles glisten the silver fringe around the
ankles dances and mSles, their tassels
wave, and they look at Simon with a self
conceited, impertinent sort of air. as much
as to say, Think what a pair of feet it ought
To be that deserves 10 go in u.s." Then Simon
falls TO wondering what on earth the shabby
little girl could be doing with such pair of
boots as that. The problem is too much for
him, and, while he Is still revolving IL in his
mind, his eye lights on letter from his
grand mother. And this is the way the letter
runs:
NJ Dear Gra,dSon:-You are making your
first visit 10 the great metropolis of your
country. L hope you will enjoy the many
wonderful and beautiful things it has to
show; but remember, entreat you, what st.
Paul has said concerning the "perils of the
city" Remember that where you are there
are always snares set for the feet of the I'M
wary. Beware of the seductions that en-
compass you. Let not the child of Christian
parents, who are at rest with the Lord, suf
fer himself to be led astray. Always your
loving grandmother,
Simon looks at the boots, and absolutely
bushes He Is thinking what Grandmother
Holt would say TO such an evidence of the
pOmps and vanities OF this wicked world re-
posing on his table. AT this moment one of
the boots, as If resenting the thought. tum-
bles over, and then Simon sees inside the
flap where the button-holes are, the follow
Miss Coralie Dumont,
No Worth street.
Presto. grandmother's letter goes flying
under the bed, the boots are enveloped again
In brown paper, and Simon is in the street.
The policemen recognize him on the corner
OF Centre street, and become quite certain
the commissioning young man Is ''up TO
queer" the small boys repeat
their attentions. and Simon finds himself
knocking at dilapidated door on the third
floor OF tenement house on Worth street.
What a dismal little voice 1t is that says
Come fn.' Simon sees the black eyes
again, streaming with tears this time But
they stop so quickly that he does not even
get a chance to see how this new phase |
becomes them. for Miss COralie springs
forward with bound, the little French |
ace lights up with ecstasy at the sight of |
the parcel, and Simon wishes that the busi- |
ness of life was returning blue satin boots
TO black-eyed owners. 1.-The boots! The
1oots.'' She has got the boots again; |
bat
know how to behave herself, for she
'eizeS SimOn's sunburned hand in her own
little one and kisses it. And Simon-wait |
until we have whole new vocabulary of
words, and will tell you how Simon felt. |
After this 1t did not take them long TO get
acquainted, and in less than two hours little |
.oralie has told Simon her whole history. |
First, there is Mrs. Muggins. Mrs. Muggins |
ives on the first floor, and she is the good |
latured old "lady" (dare to call Mrs. Mug |
how at once y S%t daay and yon viii
oriety in Worth street, who has brought Co |
allie up ever since the broken-hearted mo- |
her died in the Old tenement-house, and left |
her little daughter to the nd-heartet Irish /
goman's care. Then there is NJ. Alphonse. |
de lives In the top story, and is the third /
violin at Niblo's. In France he was q dane
ng master, and now he is teaching Coralie |
20 dance, and she is going to make her debut |
q the new ballet In November. Then there
8 Papa Brown. de is employed at Jeffers',
70 Is his wife, and they have made the won
ierful blue satin boots for Coralie to wear on |
hat OCCASION and 1t Is quite certain no other |
NJ. AlphOnse Is at home, and he must be in |
lrOduced TO the kind gentleman who has |
brought back the lost boots. So Coralie |
ri ps off, and Simon is left bexilderei at the
society into which he has fallen,-a ballet |
lancer and a fiddler belonging to Niblo's |
rheater. Now Simon knows very little about |
! theater, only that 1t is one of those snares |
Of Satan denounced by grandma; a sort OF |
wilderness of sin which he has never liked to
shock the old lady's prejudices by exploring.
Then NJ. Alphonse comes in, and COralie
Muggins. The little Frenchman beams en-
upon Simon. "Ze leetle girl
2 scharm, delight, re m'sieur ees SO geot to |
gives him some particulars OF |
Coralies simple story. IL the simple hearted |
Frenchman could have known what Simon's
early education had taught him to think of |
given the young man such pathetic histO-
~ of his efforts to teach Coralie to dance.
'An' can do noting wit her, m'sieur. Sc
this point NJ. Alphonse would tear his hair |
and look positively wretched. But Coralie |
came in directly, and then the old mans !
face lighted up with pleasure, and somehow
the reflection got into SimOn's face; and
when the small dancer in embryo made him
a cup OF coffee, three people In Worth street |
were ridicuously happy, and all about moth |
ing.
When Simon went home that night, he
felt that his feet had wandered into strange
places. And the worst Of 1t was, his feet
kept wandering there. The small boys got
used to him, and when the policemen found
they had no occasion to arrest him, they
gradually assumed a friendly look. NJ. Al
phonse began to play the part of chaperon
with an anxious air, but Mrs. Muggins
wlnked her eye, and said 1t was "all right"
80 time went on until the night of Coralie's
debut. Now Simon had never yet entered
the theatre, but when Coralie purred and
he consented to 60. n. Alphonse
procured him q little ticket that would al
NIT him at the stage-door, and then he was
to watch the ballet from the sides of the
until little Coralie had finished her
part, when he and Mrs. Muggins were to
bring her home. Thus 1t was that Simon
found himself at q theater, and not only
that, but behind the scenes.
What Simon felt when he found himself
among that wilderness of ropes and wood
work, how he blushed when he observed the