Litchfield enquirer., 1879-01-30
WHOLE NO. .2747

motest corner, hidden by some shrubs, found a small wicket-gate that opened upon rather precipitous slope, debris of chalk rubble from the cliff above. And yet there were the re. mains of a gravel path that endeed here ab- ruptly. By the gate the gravel had sunk Et- tie, so that the rain of the night before had made kind of puddle there, and in the soft mud there was the distinct impress o1 IOot' just such a small and well-shaped foot as Fan- ny's Some one had recently passed this way, and stepped over the gate and followed the direction of the footmark Once across the sliding ''talus" found narrow foOtpath, lea ding along ledge in the cliff. It wldenu presently, and came to narrow avenue or fir-trees the ground beneath carpeted thlckly with their spines. Presently there opend out a little green plateau, where the sun shone ln with delicious warmth. Just in front was brick building, ornamented with shallow pllas- ters and a cross of ornamental irOn-work over the gable; wooden gates of open palisades gave a glimpse into a darkly-shadowed interior The gates were locked but the wood work was soft and rotten a vigorous push dlsindged the bolt and I entered ;within were two flat grave stones and at the farther end a marble bust, that gleamed out in the half-hght. With out boubt had found the mausoloum.
 The place looked damp and deserted. yetthere were signs that some attempt had been recent ly made to put it in order. The dead leaves that had drifted in had been carefully swept into a corner, and wreath of immOrtelleS, OlacH and rotten with age, had been carefully placed against the wall beneath the bust. The lnscrp- lions on the grave-stones were ilIeglhle from the messy growth upon them; with knife be- gan to clean the figures that represented the dates. '.Le ? Novembre. 17S6." It was the date of the French girls birth eagerely clear ed out the rest of the inscription.
 ''Ici repose Jeanne de la Mote Davigny, nee St. Arnoult le 2 Novembre, 17e6, decedee le 12 Janvier. 1S36.
 had found it. There was no doubt in my mind the correspondence of name and date were too remarkable for mere coincidene. and everything seemed to show that in this seclu- ded spot some childless couple not over friend
 y with the Church, perhaps, had chosen to be laid Everything now was plain sailing; 1 had got the right end of the clue, and could hardly fail of complete success.
 Nv first impulse was to communicate the good news to the HaZlewoods. l left the mau- soleum, and went back to the house to write my letter. I wrote in the best ot spirits. They were not to be too confident, but stll the worst part of the task was over. had lit- tie doubt that in few weeks all would De set tied one way or the other, and had great hopes in a way favorable to them; and then followed certain tender passages addressed to Fanny.
 I did not close the letter, however; while daylight remained I would return to the mau- soleum. and make sure that l had got the dates all right. Approaching quickly and softly,my footsteps muff1ued by the thick carpet ot dead leaves, was astonished to find some one al- ready there slight, girIish figure, dressed in deep black, set off by wreaths of bright i'm mortelles that she carried on her arm.
 With handkerchief she was wiping away the dust and leaves from a third grave-stone which had escaped my notice before. Then she deposited one of her wreaths upon the stone and clasped her hands before her-sott, white hands. plump and dimpled like chids. Ma mere p she whispered, in whisper low, hut audible in the surrounding stiffness.
 A movement on my part alarmed her. and she looked up with a start, a faint flash of sur prise on her pale cheeks. A deadly kind of vertigo came over me as 1 recognized strange likeness to Fanny in the stranger. Here was my mysterious vistant of the previous night And then the truth fla he'd upon me this was the French girl foreshadowed all the tiiEe took off my hat and advanced.
 "Mademoiselle, is it possible that you are a descendant of Madame de la Motte ?"
 An, yes, It was SO she was the granddaugIl- ter of Jeanne Ge la Motte, the girl so strangely lost sight of in Paris. She was full of wonder that should know anything about her family; she was going back to CauVille now, and as walked with her on the way she told me the family history. Her name was Jeanne, too, by the way.
 The first Jeanne. her grandmother, left des- titute in the streets of Paris, had wandered homeless for awhile, and then had been picked up by some vagabonds, who, finding that she had a fine voice and engaging air, sent her out
 into the streets to sing. A certain musician, M. Davigny, heard her, and was struck by her voice. He bought her from her propretors, and intended to educate her for the stage-ln the end he married her. NJ. Davigny became the director of the grand opera, under the first Napoleon; and in the time of his prosperity he took steps to establish the identity of his wife; but, although this was acknowledged by thos" who formerly knew the De la MOttes. the con nections of the family rigid and implacahle rOyalists, refused to associate with one whoLad married an artist and functiOnary of the En- pre. In spite of that, however to please his wife, M. Davigny purchased this property of CapucinS, the monks having been turned adrift years before, and eventually came to live there when, at the restoration of the mon- archy. affairs in Paris no longer went to his liking. There was one daughter who married an artist, clever but unfortunate, and the present Jeanne was the sole issae of the union. It was all clear enough, painfully clear to me at that moment. 1 added dismal post cript to my letter to the Hazlewoods. All was lost" l wrote, ''the hope we had cherished had vanished. A French girl stood in the way of everything"
 CHAPTER III.
 I was inclined to hate that French girl who had come to light so prOvohngly. But it was not possible to hate Jeanne very long. She was dark and rather tawny cOmplexiol ed not SO handsome as Fanny, but with somrthug of her look, only softer and more sympathetic. Soon we were great friends and she told me the whole story of her life which did not take long in telling She had been early left an orphan with portion of few thousandfrancs, all that her poor fathers misfortumes had left, which had been expended in preparing her for the lyric stage. She was to make her debut at Rouen in the following week. in Boieldieu's "Dame Blanche" And she had come to Cau- vile to visit her mothers grave; had arrived late on the previous evening, and had bern beiZed with the desire of seeing the place by moonlight. she knew Madame Pochet tandher habits that she went to bed with the birds, and rarely fastened her doors knew, too. where the key was kept, and came to fetch II.
 When told her vaguely of the fortune that would come to her, Jeanne looked at me with the wondering eyes of child who is promised some treat almost beyond it's comprehension. Her first idea was that she wonld give sump- tuous petit s0uper to her friends of the Com euy. DuJ WLcu Shc tDdb IiiC lOituiF could not be touched all at once, and that she would have to accompany me to Eugland, and stay there some time, her coun;enancr fell. To forfeit the engagement it had cost her so much to obtain, to disappeint her friends and leave her own country for that cold and foggy England-ah, no! With thousand thanks she must decline.
 But her friends were sensible people, a.id when they found that the fortune was not an affair of thousands of francs, but of millions, they insist on her going. Jeanne took leave of them all with uubounded grief. The sea. too frightened her. By good luck the sun was shining when we reached Southampton, and the general aspect of things was so cheer ful, that Jeanne frightened up, and reached London in the highest spirits.
 We drove at once to our horise and handed Jeanne over to my mothers care while l went on to Horton-street to explain matters to the Hazelwoods Bad news met me there Brid- get appeared solemn and hushed. Lady HaZlewood was dead. Her young mistresses