The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1885-08-15
From Frank Leslie's Newspaper
PERE LEFORT.

1t was in little French fishing village
on the Normandy coast that | heard
the story. Idly stroIling around the
place one day came upon the bury
ing ground. A lovely, dreamy spot,
with its quaint old headstones and
neglected graves, its buried human
sorrows and its living Joys OF nature.
Further and beyond the graveyard,
on a little emlnenCe overlooking the
sea, stood a marble shaft. Hand
somer that any of the other stones,
Jet there was something patheticin its
loneliness. Drawing near found this
line:
After LIES ftful fever, he sleeps we'll"
No name, no date Truly a strange
inscription to find over an unconse-
Grated grave in a Normandy fishing
village
AZ turned togo Noticed an Oldham
coming toward me with flowers in his
hand. | waited till he had laid them
on the grave and then spoke.
My friend" / SAID, ''can you tell
me who lies here"
He looked at me curiously for a mo-
ment.
lone of the noblest men God ever
made, mOnsieur-NictorL efort."
"Ies? Then why is ne buried here
and not in the graveyard? Can you
tell me?"
''None better, monsieur. There are
not many left now to whom Victor
Lefort is more than a name"
He seated himself by the grave as he
spoke, and followed the example.
''The man who lies here, monsieur,
was my dearest friend, he continued.
patting the grave with his hand. He
and | were boys together. One was
never seen without the other till Vic
tors father began to send him to the
Pere Petit's to study for a priest.
Among us poor fishing folks, monsieur,
Is thought a great thingtO be a priest.
We were all proud OF Victor Even
Pere Petit himself said he had never
seen such a clever boy.
'Fhe time came for him to 90 to
Paris to be ordained. | shall never
forget the morning he went away. We
came to this very spot and sat for q
long time III silence watching the fish
ermen mendIng their nets down by the
beach, Just as they are doiugnow, and
the DIM little specks in the distance
that we knew were the boats going
out to the fishing.
suddenly he turned to me.
Jean, he said, when die | should
like to be buried here. Don't YOU
think it makes a difference where one
Is burled2 | am sure | would be hau-
pier II ! could know the blue water
was close by, and that each little
wave as it came rolling by was crested
with the suns gold.
Victor was a curious boy. I al
ways laughed at him when he talked
IKE that. Sometimes he got very an
gry with me. have no doubt | was
terribly trying; but to-day he lust put
his arms about my neck, and [ saw
that there We're tears in his eyes. All
but he was handsome 4 fresh wind
was blowing that kept his curly
brown halr tossing about his face. and
the blg gray eyes with tears uIistening
II them. Oh, mon Dieu what ewes
Why, monsieur, when he was thinking
1t seemed as ii they sawintO eternity. .
The old man paused and turned
away his face to hide his emotion.
After alI the years, for a moment he
was boy, and lived the past over
again. Everything around was the
same rs then; nothing but himself had
altered. Sky and earth and ocean
were unchanged The very DeOplp
on the beach might have been fhe
same, Tor they We're too far off to see
their faces. Some fishermen were
hosting the sails to their boat. and
the wind carried to the hilltops
snatches OF the song they were sing
ing. 1t was n mournful song, and the
sound OF It seemed to rouse the old
man from his reverie.
That was the last time. he went
ON, THAT | saw Victor I.efort for
many, many years. Hewent TO Paris.
and was ordained Soon after his
father received a letter saying that ht
was 10 he sent to America. Priests al
the true religion were wanted there
he had been called and must obey.
His father went to Paristo hid him
goodbye, but with me it was different
had no money for such a Journey
Even Henri LefOrt himself Went musr
q the way on loot. 1t was hard ia
have Victor 20 without one final word
aeToss ~ .,.,.l : eng country
ono i.,on-s '' ~, C I'M seas, AN,
folks Non. - - 4el en- as lhe hshih=
ran III IT. ''l''' changing inc sea
w, n.
par;. L. ~. ,',-i. i-t.ofI returned IRON
+or ~ $50 ',e =, o'-.l1 me q note rom We
81 N"l ing mat ne was 10 sail for q
l anJ i, e.'lerlca called New Orleans
~, 60 ~ was 'Ae last heard OF hun
r ,,isse,, , s,,lS.