The Sunday herald., 1886-10-17

VI have no doubt you will receive much
benefit from the journey" she said.
Instantly he raised his eyes and regarded
her curiousy.
Journey =" he exclaimed.
"Your ears are abnormslly acute to day"
she said, with laugh, arising from her
chair. Then stepping forward and kissing
him, she continued; "Still, you must not
forget your high station, wherever and TO |
whatever your journey may lead you"
lie understood her and attempted no fur
ther concealment.
"a princess would do no discredit to the
grandson Of king, would she" he asked,
putting his arms about her.
"No true woman would do him discredit,"
she answered quietly.
For moment he was tempted to tell her
all, but something, he could scarcely deter
mine what, restrained him, and, kissing her
again, he led her back to her chair and
walked away.
The next week he left Spain. When he
reached France II was In the height Of the
vintage, and the whole country was rich
with the heavy odor Of the ripened grapes,
and full Of the songs and laughter Of the
grape.strippers.
The season had been good and the. vintage
was unusually rich; SO everybody, save the
quite content and happy. The fun and good
humor which greeted Casaban everywhere
was accepted by him ss an auspioious omen.
How glad he was that his mothers words
had broken his foolish pride and stirred him
into returning TO France His heart was
overlooking with rapturous Joy and his soul
was fall OF ecstasy. He-Casaban-whom
all Spain adored, and all the rest Of Europe
revered and respected, was about stalking
everything upon the daughter OF q common
French peasant. Yet, lowly as was her ori.
gin, in her he saw more womanly grandeur
than he had ever seen iu woman before.
She was TO him the high priestess Of lost
faith, or the empress Of some dead world,
come back again among mortals, and, Christ
| like, among the humblest. His whole life
had been lived among royal and noble sur
rouniings, and through It all he had never
once been awed or embarrassed by the great.
| And yet he was now shaken and confused
at the thought Of onoe more facing Lucette,
the proud, regal, bronze woman, and offer.
| ing himself at her feet. He thought that
this new emation was called into being by
what was to him Luc-tte's sublime great
| ness. Perhaps II was this; perhaps II was
love.
For three days he hesitatsd, fearing to
meet the woman In whose hands, all uu-
known to her, he had placed his fate and
future. HI went daily 10 the vineyard
where hs knew she was tOling with the
other grape. .strippers; still he avoided her.
One night, when the moon was full, and
It's mellow light softened all the harsh gray
landscape, Casaban, lost In a fantastic maze
Of tender and romantic faucies, wandered by
himself along little river which ran past
the home Of Luoetts.
For time he walked among the shadows
cast by the thick green trees, with only an
occasional glimpse at the moon. except
where 1t was reflected up into his eyes by
the smooth surface Of the sluggish river.
Suddenly he advanced upon the edge Of an
openings sort Of natural amphithsatrs on
the banks of the stream among the trees
At this point the river widened into a small
shallow pond, fanked on each side by CLEAN
ing yellow sand.
Casa6an paused for moment, and as he
did 80 he saw figure advancing into the
opening from the opposite side. Il took but
single glance to tell the handsome Span
lard that what ha saw was the stately figure
of Lucette. She walked slowly into the am
phitheatrs and stood by the waters edge.
She was bareheaded, and her loosened hair
hung IN great black mass down her back.
Her drapery was m.an and soanty, hut
royal raim-nt could have scarcely empha-
sized her strange impressive beauty. Her
arms were bare from her shoulders, and her
bosom was only half hidden by her rough.
loose jacket. Her cold face was upturhei
and her eyes we're fixed upon the moon.
Had she hidden 1t pause In its course, and
had IL obsyed her, Casabau would have felt
no surprise. II seemed to him that such a
woman might control the universe. For
several minutes she stood there m0ti0nless,
in the yellow sand by the silent river, in
the bright mo might, within three yards Of
the man who SO madly loved her. She
seemed more than ever the Woman OF
Bronze.
$50 Cleopatra might have stood some
night on the banks Of the Nile," thought
, Casabau; "only Cleopatra was softer,
weaker, and less queenly."
Luostte, all un conscious Of Casahan's q
presence, crossed her bara arms over her
brown bosom and sighed. Instantly the
, ooldness went out OF her face, q smile came
over her lips, and soft, tender light into
her eyes. Her whole personality underwent
! au entire change, and from regal stat4-
esqueness she was transformed and relaxed
into all that Is indicative of yielding
] womanly gsntlsness. Oasaban watched her
in rapt ama7.menti sooner would he have
, expected one of his marble figures, cut out
of the cold stone with his own chisels, to
, soften aud relax.
3
/, ostte knelt slowly, and, leaning forward
seemed TO he tracing characters In the sand
: with her fingers. Then she again looked al
I the moon, kissed her fingers to 1t, sprang uI
I and darted away, leaving a melodious ripple
l Of girlish laughter ringing In the air after
3 she had gone.
= For long time after her departure Casa
y ban stood as II in q stupor. He could moi
. bslive his senses, and thought at last that
he must have been dreaming: That hapshty
q woman could never SO ppbend Then hs
hastsned forward to the spot where she hai
!, kuelt, and looked down to see II she really
l. had traced characters in the sand. He read
9 his own name, "Casabsn,' and he staggered
8 with rssistless and inoomprehensihls dixsi
n ness. What strange woman she was
" more than ever marvel to him. Still III
n felt that he must hold some small place IL
|s her thoughts, slss she would not have writer
u his nams In the sand. Could II be that SIN
9 loved him I He dared not hope that. Ant
thsn-her knssling aud kising her hand
o to the moon; was that pure accident, or wa
n It part OF her religioni He thought that ~
70 powerful aud magnificent 4 creature mus
ID tails. Throughout that night his head wa
y foil OF Luoette and her strange caprice.
l. thorough artist, he set about weaving ourl
as ous labyrinth Of capricious whims and fan
- cies. osntsring them all upon tucstte an
OF her varying lnoods, and so completely wsr
80 the two blended together that II wDHld b
IN diARcnlt to decide vhsther the part sh
~ played In his dreams was more fantastic an
p irrational than that which she played In hi
waking moments. BE-
y The next day they met in the vineyard
~ and she was once more the cold, haught
.. ., Woman Of Rronzs. aazlpg ugoen, her fac
10 che had svar smilsd, ar that she eyer oonl
smile. Again and again they met, her col
I" face never once relaxing into the msrsst sen
blancs Of a smile, and her voice was Away
W -, ios itself At last, when he could rsstrai
~ NJ himsslf no longer, he told her that he ha
w. ". lQVed her ever since tue laat vintage tims
w and that he had come back to France TO as
her 10 become his wifs.
20 He watched her all the while he was apsa
u inc hnt thara " aa no sipn I'm har faea IN IA.