Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1880-10-28
THE MUMMY'S FOOT.
translate fGo the French of beophile
Gantier.l

which Seelleu CipNutu WIN DflC-a- DFdC,
and entered it simply with the idea Of
filing an idle hour.
Ii seemed to be at one and the same
time an old iron shop, a warehouse for
tapestry and upholstery generally, the
laboratory of an alchemist, and an artists
studio. In these mysterious dens, where
the partly closed shutters admit only
very prud nj half light, the most genu-
ineiy antique thing is the dust; the cob
webs aremuch more real than the guipure,
and the pear-tree wool far younger than
the mahogany from America, which ar
rived Yesterday
This establishment was especially Gu
rious, a yeritablc Caphamaum; every age
and every country seemed to meet there
An Etruscan lamp of red clay was placed
on a Boule armure, with ebony panels
severely decorated with fine lines Of unp.
per inlaid: duchess char OF the reign
of Louis Nv, stretched its clawfeet under
heavy Louis XlII table, with clumsy
twisted oaken legs, carved in foliage and
fantastic figures. \ suit of armOr from
Milan, beautifully inlaid, was retl cted in
an antique mirror in the corner; eXquiS-
lite little loves and nymphs in biscuit,
grotesque Chin Sc figures, and beautiful
cups of SaXOny and old SevreS were
crowded upon the etageres and the cor
ner brackets On the dentculated shelves
lining the walls were immense plaques of
japan ware, with blue and red designs
relieved by gliding, side by side with
Bernard de Palissy's exquisite enamelled
china representing adders, lizards and
frogs in relief From half open armoires
escaped cascades of silver brocade, and
waves of brocatelle powdered with gold
glittering in an oblique ray of sunlight,
portraits of every age smiled at one an.
other through their yellow varnish from
out frames all more or less shabby.
The shopkeeper followed me very close
ly in my labyrinthine passage between
the piles of furniture, Keeping his eve
and sometimes his hand on my coat tails
and Watching my elbows with the anXi-
ETY. of an autiquary and usurer. He had
such an odd face, this shopkeeper; an
enormous head, bald and shining, sur
rounded with an aureole of thin white
hair, which, throwing into bold relief the
peculiar salmon color of his skin, gave
him an air OF patriarchal simplicity -
counterbalanced, however by the twink.
ling of two little yellow eyes, which
trembled in their orbits like two louis
d'ors on quicksilver The curve Of his
aquiline nose had an aquillne outline,
recalling the oriental or Jewish type. His
hands, thin, veined, transparent, full OF
nerves protrudiug like the strings on the
handle of violin with claws rather than
nails like thos terminating the mem
braneous wings of bat, had an inceSSant
senile oscillation most unpleasant to wit
ness; but these same hands, so useless
with nervous twitchngs, became firmer
than steel forceps or Holsters claws as
soon as they raised for inspection some
precious obiect-an onyx cup, Vene-
t an glass or plate of Bohemian crystal.
This queer old fellow looked so thor
oughly rabbinical and cabaistic that
three centuries ago he would surely have
been burned at the stake; his appear
ance would have been considerel. sutd
cient proof of guilt,
Can | not sell you anything today
Monsieur? Look at this Malayan sword (;
the blade quivers and undulates like a
flame; see these grooves for draining OIL
the blood, these reverse indentations for
tearing out the intestines when the sword
is Withdrawn: 1t is a terocious weapon,
very rare, and would look well in col
lection of arms; here is sword to be
Used in both hands, it is one OF La Hera's,
and this"
"No | have an abundance of arms and
weapons of every descriptions | should
like little figure, some little tritle which
| could use as a paper-weight, for can
not endure those trumpery little brunzes
sold by every stationer, which one invari-
ably sees on every desk"
The old gnOme rummaging amOJ g his
trash, finally displayed some antique
brOnZes-at least he called them sO-some
pieces of malachite some Hlndoo and
Chinese idols--a sort Of pOussa of OK
stone inCarnations of Bramah or Of
Vishnu singularly appropriate for the
not very divine purpose OF keeping Jour
mails and papers in place
| stood, hesitating between porcelain
dragon and a little Mexican fetish most
abominably ugly, being a representation
Of the god WItziliputzili, when | caught
sight OF an exquisite little foot, which |
at first thought must be fragment OF an
antique Venus 1t had the beautiful
yellow tint which gives the Florentine
bronze its PECULIARLY warm, life-like APP
pearance, so preferable TO the greeIish
gray tone Of the ordinary bronzes which
invariably suggests & state OF putefac'
ton; a soft satlny gloss quivered on the
surface of its lovely curves rounded and
polished by the tender kisses of twenty
centuries; for most probably 1t was a
Corinthian bronze, a veritable antique,
perhaps even a cast of Lysippus. That
little foot suits me exactly | said to the
old man, who looked at me slyly and half
ironically, as he handed it to me to eX-
anime more infinitely
| was surprised to find how light 1T
was; it was not of metal at all, but was
actually a human foot - an embaimed