The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-09-03

Duoyancy OF bacchanalian strains rnalted
gently. almost imperceptibly, away into
sobslng wall of regret and Ianouor
ana WEAKNESS and despair. Tt was
beautifully rendered, and made great
impression upon the guests, one of
Whom, lady, cried, Glow lovely how
SAD Did you compose that yourself,
NJ de Lasa ?" He looked towards her
apsentlv for an instant, then replied !:
II Oh no. That is merely remi-
n!seence, madam" 'eDo you know who
did compose it, NJ de Lasa?" inquired
vlrtuoso present. 81 believe it was
originally written by Ptolemy Athletes,
the father of Cleopatra" said M. de
Lasa, in his Indifferent, musing. way,
:" but not In it's present form. It has
been twice rewritten, to my knowledge !;
still, the air is substantially the same. I"
- From whom did you get it, NJ de
Lasa, II may ask j" persisted the gen.
tleman. d" Certainly certainly ! The
last time l heard it played was by Sc
bastian Bach; but that was Pedestrians
the present-version. / think pre-
fer that of Guido AreZzo-it is ruder,
but has more force. / got the air from
Guido himself" ''You-from-Gui 7"
cried the astounded gentleman. eyes,
Monsieur" answered De Lasa, rising
from the piano with his usual Indifferent
air. =" Mon Dieu!" cried the vi1tuoso,
putting his hand to his head after the
manner of TWemlow. Mon Dieu!
that was In Ammo DOmini 1922 r. ga
little later than that-July, 1031, if 1
remember rightly" courteousIy correct
ed M. de Lasa.
At this moment the tall footman
bowed befcr re NJ. Delessert, and pre-
sented the salver containing the card.
Delessert took it and read : son VO2IS
GccOTde tTe1lte- cling SecOndes, 1[. Fla
Dry, tout a1G 7oLaks!" Delessert followed
the footman from the salon across the
corridor. The footman opened the door
of another rosm and bowed again, sig
nifying that Delessert was to enter.
"Ask no questions" said he briefly
"Sidi Is a mute" Delessert entered
the room and the door closed behind
him. It was a small room with strong
smell of trankincense pervading it.
The walls were covered completely with
red hangings that concealed the win
dows, and the floor was felted with a
thick carpet. Opposite the door, at the
upper end of the room near the ceiling,
was the face of large clock under it,
each lighted by tall wax candles, were
two small tables, containing, the one an
apparatus very like the common regis
tering telegraph instrument, the other
crystal globe about twenty inches
in diameter, set upon an eXquisitely
wrought tripod of gold and bronze in
termipgled. By the door stood Sid, a
man Jet black in color, wearing a white
turban and burnOus, and having a sort
of wand of silver in one hand. With
the other he took Delessert by the right
arm, above the elbow, and led him
quickly up the room. He pointed to
the clock, and it struck an alarm he
! pointed to the crystal. Delessert bent
over, looked into it, and saw-a fac
smile of his own sleeping room, every
thing photographed exactly. She did
not give him time to explain, but, still
holding him by the arm, took him to
the other table. The telegraph-like in
strument began to click.c click. Sid
opened a drawer, drew out a slip of
paper, crammed it into Delessert's hand
and pointed to the clock, which struck
again. The thirty-fve seconds were
expired. Sid, still retaining hold of
Delessert's arm, pointed to the door
and led him towards it. The door
opened, Sid pushed him out, the door
closed, the tall footman stood there
bowling, the interview with the oracle
was over. Delessert glanced at the
piece of paper in his hand. It was
a printed scrap, capital letters, and read
simply: "To NJ. Paul Delessert The
policeman is always welcome; the spy
always in danger I"
Delessert was dumbfounded a mo.
ment to find his disguise detected, but
the words of the tall footman, "This
way, if you please, M. Flabry," brought
him to his senses. Setting his lips, he
returned to the salon, and without delay
aoUgbt M. de Basa. "Do you know
the contents of this ?" asked he, show
ing the message. "I know everything,
M. Delessert," answered De Lasa in his
careless way. "Then perhaps you sre
aware that mean to expose a charlatan
and unmask an hypocrite, or perish in
the attempt 70 said Delessert. "Cela
M est egaL, monsieur" replied De Lasa.
"You accept my challenge, then ?"
"Oh it is a defense, then !" replied De
Lasa, letting his eye rest moment upon
Delessert; "n1ais oui, ie pGccepte!"
Aud thereupon Delessert departed.
Delessert now set to work, aided by
all the forces of the project of police
could bring to bear to detect and expose
this consummate sorcerer, whom the
ruder processes of our ancestors would
easily have disposed of-by combura-
ton. Persistent inquiry satisfied De-
lessert that the man was neither an
Hungarian nor named De Lasa that no
matter how far back his power of
"Reminiscences might extend, in his
present and immediate form he had
been born in this unregenerate world in
the toy-making city of Nurnberg that
he was noted In boyhoOd for his great
ourn for ingenious manufactures, but
was very wild, and m1GuUaiS Sujet.
In his sixteenth year he had escaped to
Geneva and apprenticed himself to
maker of watches and instruments.
Here he had been seen by the celebrated
Robert Houdin, the OrcStidigitateWr.
HoudiD, recognizing the lads talents,
and being himself maker of ingenious
Gutomata, had taken him off to Paris
and employed him in his own work
shops, as we'll as an assistant in the
public performances of his amusing and
curious diablerie. After staying with
Houdin some years, PhOck Haslich
(Which was De Lasa's right name) had
gone east in the suite of a Turkish
pasha, and after many years rowing in
lands where he could not be traced
under a cloud of pseudonyms, had
finally turned up in Vienna, and come
thence to Paris.
Delessert next turned his attention to
Nine. de Lasa, 1t was more difficult
to get a clue by means of which to know
her past life; but it was necessary in
order to understand enough about Has
Itch. At last, through an accident, it
became probable that Nine. Aimee was
identical with certain Nine. Schlaf,
who had been rather conspicuous among
the denli monde of Buda. Delessert
posted off to that ancient city, and from
thence went into the wilds of Transyl-
vania to Medgycs. On his return, as
soon as he reached the telegraph and
civilization, be telegraphed the project
(from Kardszag): Don't lose sight of
my man, nor let him leave Paris.
will run him in fer you two days after 1
get back"
1t happened that, on the day Of De-
desserts return to Paris, the project was
absent, being with the emperor at Cher
bouCh, He came back on the fonrth