Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1883-01-03

our names written on II quite plain: 'Cy gi-
sent Jean Desire Perrault ct Odette Celestine,
son spouse Chifoniers, and then our age"
continued Perrault, who, now that his tongue
was loosened, spoke unhesitatingly
| "Are you gone mad Perrault" asked his
| wife, bending her shaggy eyebrows.
at will be beautiful, like corner OF one OF
the gardens In the Luxembourg; and 1t will
understand, perpetuitey--for ever; for hun
dreds of ycars-always-and all the time
| people win know us and speak OF us" con-
tinued Pere Perrault," without needing his
| wife, chuckling to himself aud rubbing his
hands up and down over his knees.
''But have you gone madl" she cried again,
shaking her hand up in the afr. "What does
II signify after death to lie IN fine place IL
you must labor and weary In lifep'
"What does 1t signifyW cried the old man,
turning upon her with a gesture OF frightful
energy. "I'll tell you what: Doyou remember
Totini / saw him dead. i went to his fu-
neral. did not care for Totin living, but
when saw him lying there on pailtaSee mo
| tionless, then sewn up In dirty sheet, nailed
down ia q deal box-well, l tell you felt
something here"-and he struck his chest. at
seemed nothing TO me that Totin should grub
| in the dirt while he lived; but as he lay there
dead before me felt somehow as IL / had
| loved him. That was why went to his fu
neral. Then, when l saw him put down into
the .fosss commune, thought, There he is; no
| one knew him alve-no one will know him
| dead; not his name, or anything about him;
| then said to myself 'Perrault Perrault the
| degradation Is the fosse commune.
"The .fosss commune or another grave, 1t is
| the same to me- said Mere Perrault, with bib
| ter emphasis. What want Is a little COM
fort in life-that bit OF garden with the cab
bages.n
| Pere Perrault INDUCED In one of those ex,
pletives not known in polite society. " A
cabbage garden II don't want your cabbage
| garden. / dig In the sunshine Mott is not
i will do 1t. / still prefer my trade; know IL
and 1t knows me. Here l come to heap of
itnever disappoints me, sometimesi 1t gives me
| more.n
at Is rough trade" feebly put in Mere
Perrault, overborne by her husbands vehe-
mence.
cit is a rough trade; all the more reason ia
take my ease after death. 1 made friends with
one OF the gardeners In Pere Ia Chaise. He
| showed me the tombs. There is a fine one to
two people; he told me their story. Iremem.
Der their names, for l said them to myself
sieur Abelarts. They lived hundreds and
hundreds OF years ago; they loved each other;
they could not marry, so she became nun, he
became monk; but after their death there
they came together. There they lie like bride
and bridegroom, and every one knows their
conln,uns YOU would lie there, l would lie here"
| making a gesture OF his hand In opposite
| directions "but In our BIZ OF ground we'd be
| together, and every one would always know
| as we were husband and wife,"
"That would be gentH, certainly" said Mere
| Perrault, softly, thrill Of amazement passing
| through her frame at these extraordinary
words.
81 shall have picture Of our basket and
| hooks carved upon the tombstone" said Pere
Perrault.
1--WE might have Medor's picture put there,
| too, remarked Mere Perraut.
81 believe it-indeed-the rogue! Lord !
he trots by our side as II he were himself
chifIonier," said Pere Perrault, giving a
genial kick to the doing quadruped, who sat
up, responsibility, blinked one eye at his mas
| ter, and shook his rag OF tail.
The old couple chatted till deep into the
| night; for the first time, they forgot to go
| rag-picking. Pere Perraut had won his wife's
| complete adhesion to the scheme of this wish
to be known to the world and posterity as her
| spouse Her imagination once kindled, trav-
| eled as fast as her husbands In picturing the
mausoleum, erected to their united memory.
| The note had been struck that set these two
| old hearts beating In unison. They grew
| garrulous with each other, these two whose
| married life had been so morose. They con-
! hded to each other the fancies that crowded
| into their brains. They vaguely felt drawn to
| each other as In the olden days when they had
walked as sweetbearts In the woods of Sceaux,
and the freight glancipg upon their wrlnkled
faces seemed to touch them with something OF
uniting radiance
The husband aud wife paid a mysterious
| visit to Pere la Chaise next day. They kept
| their project close At the promised treat to
| his mates, Pere Perrault was silent as the
grave about 1t. After while the scheme
| oozed out, however, and the Mouffetardians
received the information first with incredulous
| laughter, then with boisterous derlson. The
| unconcern of the couple at the sallies they
provoked had dampening effect upon their
brilliancy, and brought to the perpetrators
| thereof humiliating sense OF wasted powder
| aud shot.
After a while II became apparent that the
community was growing accustomed to the
| idea, that some OF its members were even dis
cussing it with something like interest. Pere
Perrault was silent before hooking SPIRIT
but at any manifestation of sympathy his
tongue was unloosed. Pere Blot, who had
| been the first to approach the theme In spirit
| OF friendly inquiry, was taken into his conf
dencc. He came back one day and explained
| to his comrades assembled at Pere Michel's
| gdrgotte that he had been to Pere la Chaise,
| that he had seen the site Of the tomb, that the
| ground was actually bought. 1t was In the
second row of graves, the place on the first
row having proved too expensive. Pere Blot
| here explained with lucid gesticulations that
| the tomb would be easily seen from the path
way, It being placed between an obelisk and
pyramid In the foreground. He further told
| that the remainder Of the 1000 francs had been
| divided into portions to pay for the headstones
aud expenses OF the two funerals, and that
Monsieur lie Cure had the charge of It. ~
| fnd," concluded Pere Blot, bringing his hand
down on the table, ''that Perrault has had a
| good thought In buying this grave; It Is not
he only who will profit by 1t; for IL a fine tomb
| is put over chiffonier's body, I'm aplace where
| everybody shall see 1t and talk about It, I say
all Of his trade gains respect by IT.
In small community, decided attitude OF
mind is catching; Pere Blot made converts
| there and then. A certain citation might be
noticeable In the department and glance of the
Mouffetardians who adopted this doctrine, and
| acknowledged the scheme a worthy one. II
seemed as II these despised waits and pariahs
| felt vaguely the cheer of the redeeming sacred
| ness Of the body.
BY the time the tombstone was to be designed
| the Quarter Mouffetard had taken the matter
| In hand is one OF personal interest. For the
| better display Of the inscriptions 1t was deci-
| ded that there should be two headstones. The
character Of the letters was question Of much
noisy discussion. Tho majority, headed by
Mere Perrault, considered that an amount OF
| 6ourishes gave dignity to the signs. Pere
| Perrault inclined to plain and honest letters.
compromise was at last effected. The names
| OF the two occupants would be recorded with
| due ornamentation, but the word "chiffonier,"
| the word that placed there, was to be glorif-
cation, an apotheosis Of the craft-was to be
carved In characters that Pere Perrault said
| would "skip'' to the eyes at distance of any
one who could read. The epitaph was recog-
nized to be second only In Importance to that
word. Mere Perrault, and not few with her,
were swayed by the stonecutter's offer to put
Requiescent in pace" Latin would have
good effect, a little air-cossu. But Pere Per-
rault, ambitious of wider immortality than
that which he could share with the learned
only, ruled that every word should be Z" all
French" After this decision the company
proceeded to the composition Of the epitaph.
The following may pass as specimen OF some
submitted:
icy git Jean Desire Perrault, Chiifonicr,
who for forty years worked In dirt, and who
now rests in humble hope OF a country where
no refuse exists"
After some discussion, such Inscriptions
felt to be derogatory to the trade-were put
aside and two not strikingly original phrases
were substituted. Over Mere Perraults grave,
as belonging to the sentimental sex, It was
decided to exhort the passer-by to drop tear;
on Pere Pcrraults to ask the passerby to offer
up prayer.
=" After all, remarked Perc Porraul', COM
n1acantlv pufiinO awav nj hia atumr Of n pipa