The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1885-08-28
THE PRINCESS BARNABAS,

Estate OF the most profound perpleXlCy'
She could not, for the dainty little life
of her, make up her mind on the I'M
portant question as to whether she
should or should not commit suicide
at the close of the season. 1t was not
very easy for the Princess many adj
mirers to understand why she should
perturb her mind with such a problem
at all, but perturbit she did with that
very problem, whether wisely or I'M
wisely.
The Princess Barnabas was a very
remarkable young woman, who had
proved the puzzle, the pride, and the
passion of London society for three
whole sensational seasons. She was
not yet four-and-twenty. She bore
the title OF a great Russian prince who
had married her just before she came
of age, at IL time when he himself was
old enough to be her grandfather, and
who had considerably died within
two years of the ceremony, leaving
her the absolute mistress of his for
tune and his territories. as she had
been during life the absolute mis-
tress Of his heart for the short time
III which he swayed it. She was said
to be fabulously wealthy. Her jewels
were the wonder of the world, and she
delighted in wearing them, in season
and out of season, witha semi-barbar-
ic enjoyment of their glitter and spIen-
dor which was, like everything else
about her, partly Oriental and partly
childish. Some time after her hus-
bands death she had come to Paris
and got tired Oft, and then she crossed
the Channel and conquered London.
During one resplendent session little
else was talked about but the Princess
Barnabas. Society journals raved
about her delicate beauty, which
seemed to belong to the CanTases of
the last century, which ought to have
been immortalized on pate tendre, and
'hymned in madrigals. Men adored
her. Women envied her marvellous
dress and machless jewels. The dying
ashes of a seasons scandal dared up
into marvellous activity around her
pretty personality. She was enor-
mously 'the thing" Enormously
''the thing" she remained during a sec
ond season, after an interval of
absolute disappearance into the
dominions of the Gar. Enormous
ly "the thing she still appeared to
be now in her third season, in spite of
the rival attractions of an American
actress who had not married an En-
,glish duke, and an American girl with
millions who had married the bluest
blood and the Oldest name in Europe.
1t would have been absurd for any one
to contest the point that the Princess
Barnabas was the very most interest
ing figure of that phantasmal dance of
shadows which is called London So
ciety.
Nevertheless the Princess Barnabas
was weary, positively bored. If she
had been less ofasuccess, life might not
have appeared so d~esolate. There
would have been apiquancy in the pos
sibility ofrivalry which would have lent
"a new interest to the tasteless feast.
AS it was, however. London life at the
height Gifts maddest activity appeared
to her as drear and gray as thosevast
stretches of steepes which lay like o.
great sea arodad one of the Russian
castles ofthela late Prince Barnabas. 1t
was during this fit OF depression when
the Princess Barnabas was graciously
pleased to agree with the author of
"Ecclesiastes," that life was vanity,
that it occurred to her that In all her
strange experiences she had never vet
committed suicide. She Immediately
gave up her mind to the important
problem, whether she shonld gain this
ultimate human experience at once, or
postpone it indefinitely.
1t was in this frame of mind that the
Princess went to the great ball at the
Russian Embassy. As she nestled
among her furs in the dim, luxurious
warmth of her carriage, her mind was
running entirely upon the various
forms of self-destruction which had
been made famous by celebrated per.
sons at different stages of the worlds
history, and she could find none that
were sufficiently attractive or remark.
able TO please her. Good heavensl'
she thought to herself, with a little
shoulder which even the warmth OF hel
surroundings could not repress, sis il
possible to be banale even in that?'
and she gave a little groan as she
stepped out of her carriage and up the
embassy steps. The thought was still
on her mind, and tracing the least sup
eestion cf q frown upon her exquisit,
.lirlish face as she entered the cread