The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1880-04-15
[Temple Bari
THE SEALED LETTER.
IN FOUR CHAPTERS.
CHAPTER ".
ICONCLUSION.

CONCLUSION.
The weary mule stopped readil,
enough, and my companion drew aside
the tarpaulin and began to arrang'
the straw at the bottom Of the cart
whilst | looked in and saw very
painful sight. | saw two enormous
blue eyes, beautifully shaped, but ap
parently out of all proportion to th,
rest Of the countenance. The heat
was perfectly formed and covered with
a world of lovely hight hair, but tht
forehead was flushed as he had de-
scribed, whilst the rest Of the face
looked like that of a corpse. She wa:
nestled down i'll the straw, except hel
knees, upon which she was engaged il
playing dominoes. She looked up al
us, trembled all over, then smiled
family at her old protector, and re-
commenced her game. She seemed as
if she was playing with her right
land against her left.
1T is month and more that she
has played that game" the major OBJ
served, ''and perhaps she will continue
to do so for some time longer, and
then perhaps she will take up back
CANNON, or something like it. 1t is
extraordinary, isn't it?" and he re-
placed the oilskin on his shake, which
the wind and rain had somewhat dis
arranged.
Poor Laura" | replied, "you are
indeed lost to this world" and then
held out my hand to her, which she
took mechanically, with the ghost of
a smile. [ observed with astonish-
ment that she had two splendid dia-
mond rings on her fingers, which | at
once identified as those of her mother,
and wondered how they had been pre-
served through so many vicissitudes.
For the whole world | would not have
dared to say this to the major, but he
noticed that my eyes were fixed on
the trinkets, and said with certain
air of pride,-
They are fine diamonds, are they
not? and would doubtless have fetched
their value if necessity had arisen, but
[ would not allow them to be taken
away from the poor child She cries
if any one touches them, and she nev-
er takes them off She never COM
plains, and occasionally she does lit
tie needlework. | have kept my word
to her poor little husband, and. to tell
you the truth, | don't repent my
promise. | have never left her, and |
tell every one that she is my daugh-
ter, and is mad That sort Of thing is
respected in the army, and is more ca
silly arranged than you people in Paris
would think possible. She has been
through all the wars Of the empire
with me, and | have always managed
to get her safely through them.
With plenty Of straw and this little
carriage, it was easier than you would
imagine; and as | was a ma jor on full
pay, with a pension as an officer of
the Legion of Honor, and the gratui-
ties Napoleon gave his soldiers, [ have
never been pushed for money. There
isn't man in the 7th Lights, officer
or man, who doesn't know poor Laura,
and love her"
Then he touched her lightly on her
shoulder and said,-
Now, my child, say a word to the
lieutenant who is standing there
just little nod of your head"
She looked vacantly at me, and be-
took herself again to her dominoes
"Ahr' said he, shes little put out
to-day because Of the rain. Luckily
she never catches cold, and they say
mad people are never i'll. At the
Beresina, and throughout the retreat
from Moscow, she always went bare
headed. Go on, my child, play away,
and don't trouble yourself about us.
Do just as you like, Laurette."
She took the hand he had laid on
her shoulder, a black, wrinkled hand,
and lifted it timidly to her lip and
kissed it Nlike a slave. 1t made my
heart ache to see it, and I called out
Immediately
Come, major, let US get on, or the
night will be upon us before we reach
Bethune."
! He carefully scraped the yellow
mud off his boots with the end of the
scabbard of his sabre; then he got up
on the foot-board Of the cart, and
drew the hood of the cloak over the
girls head, and, taking a black silk
handkerchief from his neck, tied it
around her. He then replaced the
tarpaulin, started the mule, and with
the customary hitch of his shoulder
we resumed the march. The rain fell
heavily, the sky was dark and threat
ening, and the weary road stretched
away before us in never-ending line,
and even the frightful windmills
VIII ch studded the country seemed
unable to move under the universal
depression. We fell into silence, and
| watched the old officer as he strobe
along with undiminished energy, when
the mule appeared nearly done up,
and even my horse began to show
symptoms of fatigue. Every now
and then the brave old fellow took off
his shake to wipe the perspiration
from his brow or the rain from his
thin gray hair, from his white NOUS
taches, or his thick eyebrows. He did
not seem to trouble himself in the
least with the effect his story might
have had upon me, and he had plainly
sought to make it neither better nor
worse than the reality, but after some
time he fell back alongside of me
again, and began an interminable
story of a campaign he had once gone
through with Marshal Massena in
Spain, in which his regiment, formed
, in square, had beaten off three success
sive charges of cavalry ! could not
listen to it, although he entered into
long disquisition to prove the supe-
riority Of infantry over cavalry. AT
| last the night came down upon US
IL. .,,,,5 lo.o,,o IL; o1-a,. o,1 loa,,o-,