The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1880-08-19

not hear OF his being promoted out Of
nls t.lrn' and there was nothing of the
cocktail about him, so he did not nut
nlmself IN the way of special service to
shlrk his regimental duties; but every.
oody looked upon him, with good reason
DIS man who was booked for every
P[lze OF LIE that does not go by favor.
Not chap in his regiment, from the
colonel to the piper, had word to saw
against him. W ''''
".Unluckily,' unused Captain Bolton.
again throwing his head back, perhaps
1or phllosophy's sake this time, "that
was Just it. People liked him too much.
especially ladies. There was whisper
shat an hlustrious beauty, not far off
from the reigning dynasty. had fretted
herself nearly crazy about him; and
though even the Court officials agreed
bhat he had behaved very we'll in a
mysterious business that it would not
90 to talk about, Rudy Eisenberg went
TO parade with face white as a ghost
after masked ball, where it was
thought some scandal had taken place.
| would advise YOU never to toucb on
tms part OF the story if you mean to
make any stay here. One thing only
oozed out and this was that the love. if
there was love, had been mutual; and
have heard that Rudy got little wrong
IN the head after it was all over. The
doctors spoke of brain fever and re-
commended change Of air; so the old
Marshal, who knew nothing about mon
| ey, gave his son about enough to keen
him for week and sent him off TO HON.
| burg for the waters. The devils own
play was going on at that picturesque
little hole in those days and Young
Elsenburg naturally found himself tum-
bled headlong into the set who lived
where 1t was hottest. There was Bob
Cheyke, of the Life Guards, and Aein-
court, who had just come into his title:
with Ivry de Videsac, the crack French
man, who went such tremendous
smash two years later; and Chrichton
and Mauleverer, with Jack Nortiman,
blrbantaki Pasha. old Lord Chowser,
and do not know how many more of
the same lot. fancy Rudy Eisenberg
did not know what to make of them at
first. Their ways were not his ways,
but he soon fell into them. As mis-
chance would have it, too, he spoke a.,
little English and that helped, | dare
say, for he had got many of the stolid,
honesti ideas of his countrymen about i'm
proving himself, and very likely thought
at times that he might some day have to
act his part in Battle of Dorking, so
that it might be as well to prepare for
the emergencies that would probably
arise out of such a situation, whether
he was among the conquerors or the
conquered. For while Cheyke and
the rest of them used to always find
him in his den on the fifth floor of a
cheap hotel, poring over books of tao
ties and working out military problems
with corks and pins, or some one of
those wonderfully accurate maps issued
by his native war Office. But they soon
badgered him out of that and he was
forever with them when they were go
ing fastest. He rode steeple chase on
Agincourt's horse and won it gallantly
for him, but he also held the bank
against Ivry de Videsac and Lord
Chowser for three nights running with
out going to bed, and he won nothing,
as you may expect, at that game. The
Lord knows what happened next. 1t
was never made quite clear. Some fel-
lows will have it that Nortiman and
Bob Cheyke, who had won whole pot
of money from him insisted on having
it at once, and it is certain that
check, bearing the Field Marshars
signature. given in payment to Cheyke,
was refused by the Bilkendorfs, his
bankers. But by the first express train
afterwards, the old Count came to
Homburg himself, stalked into Bob's
rooms at the best hotel, laid down the
money on his toilet table and then
stalked out again without word. 1
hardly like to tell on my own response
bility what followed, but Lord Chowser
saws that he met the Marshal upon the
stairs leading to Rudy's room, and that
he could not help hearing what passed
between them through the half open
door of Young Eisenburg's apartment.
1t was very brief. The old soldier
sternly confronted his son.
".1che habe,' then said he, das
schmutzes geld bezahlt. 1 have paid the
foul gold for which you have dishonor-
ed us. Now do your part And as he
ceased speaking he placed on the table
between them pistol he had brought
with him.
'sThe young man made no answer,
but the next moment there was a loud
report and the Marshal came forth from
the presence of his dead son with that
white, ashen face you have just seen.
He never smiled again.
s.All the set who were mixed up in
the affair naturally tried to put the best
face on it. Bob says he had a right to
get his money and so does Nortiman;
but Chowser, though he is hardish old
boy, doesn't like to talk much on the
subject and / believe had to consult his
doctor respecting ghost, or something
of that sort, which he fancied was fol-
loving him about and wanted to catch
hold Of him whenever he was alone.'
"Ah,;' I said, yawning, every odd,
isn't it?'' l did not know what else to
say and don't know now. only was
glad that the story was over. Bolton
and then passed the rest of the even
ing in witnessing some capital card
tricks, performed by irregular professor
of sleight-of-hand, who was then MAX |