River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1884-01-31
"SLEEP NY BABYr"
THE INVITATION TO SLEEP.
From LIE Fissro. 9 ssContes a Ete'

ars, deies translation. We have no English
expressions capable of rendering it. "Fais
aodo, non behew (''Go to sleep, my baby, =
is more infantile, caressing phrase than
anything in our lullaby songs. The whols
story which follows is founded on this pref
~ idiom; and the translator has deemed 1t
osst 70 leave lie idiom itself in the origin.
Al.pl
Il When he was quite little boy-long,
long ago--at home with his good father
and mother, it used to be the happiest
hour of the whole live long day, just be-
fore bed time.
Dinner vas over; mamma, after
wiping the oilcioth cover with a napkin,
brought in fathers cup of coffee, =
father was the only one in the family
who took coffee, not as luxury, nor fcI
greediness, but because he had to sit up
very late writing. And while
the good man was sweetening his
Mocha, with single lump of sugar,
mindl while all the family were seated
At the round-table, mamma Ia plump
little body of forty, still quite attractive,
continually casting upon her husband
Iluiet glances, but intelligently affection.
ate, like those OF faithful dog, mamma
would bring the work basket. The three
sisters, born in three successive years,
much resembled each other-chastely
lpretty, their dresses all cut from the
same piece of goods, their hair honestly
lsmoothed down in broad bands like
hat of dowerless girls who can never
marry. They would commence to hem
aaadkerchiefs, while he, the urehin, the
youngest, the Benjamin Of the family,
vat upon his high chair-made still high
er for him by Royamount Quarto Bible
placed upon the seat, so that he could
build castle of cards upon the table.
In the long days of summer they used
to light the lamp as late IS possible; and
through the open window one could see
he stormy sky OF sultTy evenings, with
Wrathful-looKing clouds, and, right
against the furnace of the sunset. the
dome of the Inyalides, sll sheathed with
gold.
As it is very bad for digestion to set to
work writing Immediately after dinner,
hey used to make papa talk little, SO
rs to delay the moment when he should
begin his evening labor; copies OF notes,
accounts, etc., fat six sous the sheet, for
certain city contractor. The poor man,
naturally inclined to romantic revery
and possessing literary tastes, who in his
student days used to rhyme philhellenic
| odes, had come to this pass at last, hav-
ing lost all hope Of obtaining even good
| position as clerk and employed all his
evenings in copying such technical jar
gon as-"Iaking offand putting on lock"
| giving free play TO the catch" etc.
| But he would allow himself to forget
all this for moment, while gossipiHg
with his wife and daughters.
They ehatted pleasantly; for they
we're all most perfectly happy in that
household. A dealeri in pictures OF saints
and angels, who kept shop in the
Place Saint-SUTplice, had offered the
eldest girl--tall Fanny-whose blonde
,urls were the admiration of all the ra-
ains of the Salon Carre-iity francs for
her pastel copy of the Verge au Cousin
vert The second daughter, Leontine.
had been drumming away all day at her
Menuet de Boccherini, AS for plump
Louise. the youngest, she was certainly
| Inclined to be coQuettish. Why, she
was actually talking about making her
self little cloak-(always providing her
| !ather should get little extra allowance
lpon the 15tb)-iust like cloak she had
seen in q dressnlaker's window in Rue
Louise, my child, cried the father,
you are building castles In Spain"
And they laughed.
But mamma began to talk seriously. II
papa should get that little extra allow
anee. she had noticed at the Petit st.
Thomas establishment, = fine sample of
lmerino-''a nice color, and just the right
width for your winter dresses, Made
moiselles." And she added gravely;
1T is all WOOL" just as if cotton had
never existed and as if ever so many
thousand negroes had not been kept in
slavery on account of 1t.
Suddenly-it was then almost dark i'll
he Toom-papa saw that his little boy
had fallen sound asleep with his head
On his arm amid the fallen ruins OF the
last castle Of cards.
| Al. ahp cried the good man mer-
rily-"so the Dustman has been here"
What an exquisite moment! He will
never forget it, Though his hair
is now CRAWL His mother took him in
her arms; and he felt the rough beard OF
his father, and the cool lips OF his three
sisters pressed in turn upon his drowsy
forehead: then with delicious sensa-
ton as of fainting away, he let his little
head tall upon his mothers shoulder,
and vaguely heard a sweet voice-onl so
sweet and so aressingi-murmur In his
ear" Maintenant il s'agil de fare
1odo"
II.
Twenty years later he was an unpub-
| lished poet, rhyming student; and he
was on a country pleasure trip with his
| little MarIa-who resembled one OF
| Correggios madonnas, and might have
been taken for an English girl.
| On their arrival after leaving the
public conveyance and placing their
| baggage in chamber of the inn, they
/ had both laughed good deal at the
| framed brevet of the fencing master, the
bouquet of orange flowers undera glass
shade, the great big boat-shaped bed,
and the wallpaper on which was repro
| duced ad minimum a nabob smoking
| his chebouk on the back OF an elephant.
But when they had opened the window
| looking out upon the country, the real
country, and had gazed at the road
winding through the forest, all humid
and green and vailed by chestnut trees,
| they uttered a cry of joy--these young
| Parisians-and in their enthusiasm they
kissed each other fairly upon the mouth
| in the full presence of that beautiful ma
| ture.
And for two days, two excessive warm
June days,-while the atmosphere was
heavy as that of yapor bath, but slight
| Iy cooled by occasional showers, they
lived there, wandering through the
woods from morning to evening, and al
WAYS before going to bed, leaving the
windows open that the nightingales
might awake them.
| And they were SO happy, so happy
that they had forgotten all their past;
and it seemed that they had always lived
| in that rustic chamber. Sue had given
| 1t the charm of, a home-the pretty
blondei-by always throwing her parasol
upon the coverlet Of the bed, when they
| both returned from their merry prome-
nades, and by placing her coquettish
grisette hat on top Of the glass shade
which covered the faded bouquet Of or
ange blossoms.
He had loved others, but she was the
| frst he had really loved, the only one
| he could have loved with such utter
abandonment of self, with such thorough
confidence Gentle, silent, atiectionate
and SO dainty, with eyes so tenderiy
mischevious He was mad with love OF
her. intoxicated with the perfume OF
her presence, with her pretty childish
| talk, with the wise and grave little pout-
ing Of her mouth when she was pensive.
Aud she loved him SO innocenuy in re-
| turn that if he were absent from her
even for two days, she would write to
him-in a clumsy hand-such adorable
| letters, full of sentiment and bad spell
ing.
1t was long time since he had first
/ .,.l.,.,e,,1 - ,,aalya +aiS country trim. and