Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-03-03

1.-THE Paris FIGARO recently offered large induce
ments for good short story, or sketch-some-
thing quite difficult to obtain frequently, even in
such literary centre as PARIS. Out of six hundred
manuscripts, the best was the work of a young law
yer, who had never written anything for news
paper before. 1t was published in The Figaro of
December 6; and the editor announces that it had
been unanimously awarded the highest prize by the
committee appointed. The ''Times-Democrat' of
New Orleans, publishes the following translation Of
the story regretting inability to render in English
all the original force of purely idiomatic express
sion.l
La Petite Republique Framcaise! le Rap
pei! lo LGYterne I les Dr0lts de l'Honafae
lie Passe- Ienpsl lie Voleur! le Petit
Jourmazl
At this cry, so familiar to the inhabi-
tants of the alley, and heard every morn
ing at the same hour, there is general
squeaking of window fastenings-noses
are f1atted against window panes-visions
of night-gowns and loose hair suddenly be-
come visible.
"Psst psst here, little one!"
And then the jingling of coppers re-
bounding upon the pavement cuts short
the half completed monotoneus iitany of
the newsboy, who stops to pick up the mo-
ney and to hoist the papers up to the win
dows Of the eaatresol. at the end of his pole.
The gossips who come down stairs to get
their milk all daily moment to chat with
Mederic; and each woman takes one of his
papers, cheap journals within the reach of
the poorest purses, and stuffed with local
sensations about women murdered and eat
up, and children roasted alive in stoves.
All! one always gets ones moneys worth
out of that Always some awful murder
announced in big letters, the very title of
which makes ones skin creep all along the
spine, at the mere idea Of the delightful
emotions it promises to excite. And there
is nothing in this world SO DELIGHTFUL
while lazily ascending five flights of dark
stairways-a to open that paper, all damp
from the press, which enables one to enjoy
a leisure before the days work begins.
Madame Firmin, who has left her broom
in order to get her paper, runs her eye ovsr
the columns, but slowly without eager
ness, like woman who has read great
many newspapers in her lite time-paus-
ing at every baluster and screwing I'D one
eye in order to see better with the other:
for she will soon have to get spectacles.
Dame! Everybody must grow old some
time. She is no longer twenty. 1t is
long, long, time since she used, when
little working girl, to tumble down stairs,
four steps at time, tightly clenching in
her hand the sou for her feuslleton. Those
tantalizing teuilletons. They always break
off at the best part of the story. But in
those days it was all the sa ue to her. she
would rather have eaten "bricks with peb-
BILE sauce" for breakfast than have done
without her paper Decidedly, there is
nothing in the paper to-day. Politics are
above her understanding; she knows moth
ing about that sort of thing. Let them
squabble as much as they please, it won't
help her to earn her bread and butter.
AHA! Monday next, the Petit Jour
nal will commence the publication of ''The
Lover Of the Guillotine, by Ferdinand du
Bellair, author of ''Melina; or, The Ac-
cused Mother''-a magnificent novel
Absent mindedly she glances over the
department headed Echoes" wherein all
the minor daily events of Partisan life are
strung together. But nothing there
tempts her. She dawdles little longer.
She is going to fold the paper up. ITEMS
she turns white as sheet Has she been
dreaming? She thought she saw name
start out from all that length of column
lines. Where IS that nam9?-where is it?
She cannot find it now; nevertheless she
saw it !-she is going to find it or die. 1t
was like flash Of lightning that blinded
her for the moment. Instinctively she
gropes for the railing with her hands; for
her blood all PUSHES to her head.
She goes upstairs quickly, quite excited. /
Her fingers tremble as she puts the kew
into the lock; and once in her room again.
she let's herself fall into chair, white as
death. It is nothing mo lit will be all
over IN a minute. just little ether to
smell, and it will all go away. But for the
moment-the surprise-t the start the sud-
den revival of old memories. =. It gave
her shock that took her breath away-it
was like blow in the stomach; her limbs
seemed to bend under her.
There is no mistake about lit is he.
Those are all his names-just the same as