The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1884-04-25
MY KINGLING.
detroit Free Press. I


ERound whom the enshadowing purple lies
OF babyhood's royal dignities,
Lay on my neck thy tiny hand!
am thine-Esther-to command.
Philip, my kingw
We never called him Philip, although
that was his name We just called him
"Pet" and "Rose- bud" and "Precious"
and Baby" or any other sweet diminu-
tive that our fond and foolish love for
him prompted, and he answered to
them with a sweet trembling of his
baby lips, and a questioning look on
his beautiful, serious face.
He was still baby, with heavens s
blue III his lmpid eyes, and heaven S
sunshine on his golden hair, when one
day rap came to my door, and there
stood a woman without who was swarthy
with the sun of Egyptian centuries,
tall, strong, sinewy, with coarse black
hair and tawny skin, woman Stunned
and feared as sorceress-a Gypsy for
tune-teller and vagrant.
was about to shut the door in haste,
and exclude her unwelcome face and
form, when the baby gave little cry
as of recognition and held out his tiny !,
dimpled hands with caressing motion
w GlC 6GIuuSO, NOI1o mO1h0hs
And she-her whole face was trans
figured with that look of mother-love,
which comes from a heart bereft of its
young; Tears were in the fierce black
eyes. She devoured my child with her
burning glance, and I-weu L pitied
her and bade her come in.
Then the baby laughed and cooed
and patted her with his precious hands,
and laid his golden head on her hard
breast, while l watched her narrowly,
jealousy, as trod the hospitable round
of kitchen and sitting-room, he fell
asleep in her lean, dark arms, with a
sweet smile on his contented face.
Oh, strange democracy of a child's
nature As she laid him down his arms
sought her neck; he would have nestled
again on her alien breast. She held
one little hand in hers, and he smiled
in his sleep.
I fed the woman and clothed her for
babys sake, but then I bade her be-
gone. She wanted to stay to work for
me; assured me she was wise in woman's
ways; could minister to the sick, read
the stars. knew the secret value of the
herbs of the felds-but no, I felt that
I could not breathe the same air with
that Egyptian sorceress, and I sent her
away.
But before she went she leaned over
the baby, took his little hand, soft and
relaxed in sleep, and spread it open in
her dark, withered palm, where it lay
like white rose leaf. Then the weird
woman looked at me.
"You Ieetel bebe, I tai you leetel
bebe fahchune, propah good?"
"No! now I cried, hastily. II viii
not have my baby's fortune told, at
least not by-you."
The woman was smiling to herself;
the baby smiled, too, and nestled his
hand in hers. hated her and longed
to thrust her away.
$50 leetel lines in leetel bebe's han!
leetel short line, but so good. Missee,
I tai you leetel bebe's past?"
"You tell his past ?" L answered scorn-
fully; "his past is in heaven"
"4a, va Get is true, Missee-heaven
my bebe there tool"
I wanted to cry "It is mott" and
snatch my baby away from her, but
there was something in her weird face
that checked me.
Il tai this leetel bebe's fuchah ?" she
asked.
looked at him, my beautiful boy;
his future! had trodden that path
for him over and over again.
"A wreath. not of gold but of palm one day
Philip, my king"
I said briefly: eyes, yes; tell me-"
at ess not mooch," she answered in
low and solemn tones tricks of her
trade, believed then. "He ess leetel
kingling; here ess lifeline in pity
han, an on both ends lifeline, eet ess
heaven. He leetel kingling, an
have crown in fuchah."
She went away reluctantly, and keep
ing her eyes upon him until the door
closed, and when he awakened
looked around with little grieved cry,
and fretted and was impatient for some
thing that was gone.
I have only few words more to say,
and that is to mothers. Never let any
weird woman tell your child's fortune
There is such thing as an evil eye,
and it envies all happiness and pros
perity, and casts its baleful glances on
those whom it would injure, and they
fade, wither unto death. My baby
pined from the hour that woman left
and when the wood violets were abloom
in the spring-time and the robins
plucked their breasts, We laid him
away from our sight forever! Don't
tell me it was malaria, or teething, or
some natural thing! It was that
woman's longing for him, that drew him
away. And she came with crocodile
tears, and tried to see me, but they kept
her from me. should have strangled
her, weak as [ am.