The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-03-04

air. Hardly any n passing in the
whole street-perhaps a mason, white
with plaster, q sergent de vile, a child
carrying home a four-pound loaf large,
than himself, or a young girl hurryino
on in hat and cloak with a leather bao
on her arm, and every quarter hour the
half empty omnibus coming back to its
place of departure with the heavy trot
of its tired horses.
Stumbling low and then on the pave
ment, for asphalt is an unknown luxury
in these places, I went down the street,
tasting all the charms of q stroller.
Sometimes I stopped before an inclos-
ute to watch through the broken boards
the fading glories of the setting sun
and the black silhouettes of the Chin
neys thrown against q greenish sky.
Sometimes through an open window
on the ground floor / caught sight of
an interior, picturesque and familiar;
here a jolly looking 1aundress holding
her fat iron to her cheek; there work
men sitting at tables and smoking
in the ground floor of a cabaret, while
an old Bohemian, standing before them,
sang something about liberty, accom-
panying himself on an old guitar.
Suddenly I stopped. One Of these
personal pictures had caught my eye by
its domestic and charming simplicity.
She looked so happy and peaceful in
her simple little room, the dear old lady
in her black dress and widows cap,
leaning back in an easy chair covered
with green Utrecht velvet and sitting
quietly with her hands folded on her
lap. Everything around her was so
old, and seemed { ohave been preserved,
less through a wise economy than on
account of hallowed memories, since
the honeymoon with Monsieur
of the high complexion, in a
frock coat and lowered waistcoat,
whose oval crayon ornamented the
wall. By two lamps on the MANTLE
shelf every detail Of the old-fashioned
furniture could be distinguished, from
the clock on a fish of artificial and
painted marble to the old and anti
quated piano, on which, without doubt,
as a young girl in leg-of-mutton sleeves
and with her hair dressed q la grecque,
she played the airs Of Romagnesi. Ger
tainly a loved and only daughter, re-
manning unmarried through her affce-
ton for her mother, piously watched
over the last years of the widow. 1t
was she, was sure, who had SO tender
" placed her dear mother, she who
had put the ottoman under her feet,
she who placed near her the inlaid
table and arranged on it the waiter and
the two cups. I expected already to
see her coming in, carrying the even
ing coffee, the sweet, calm girl, who
should be dressed in mourning like the
widow and resemble her very much.
Absorbed by the contemplation of q
scene SO sympathetic, and by the pleas
ure of imagining that humble poem, I
remained standing some steps from the
open window. sure of not being no.
ticed in the dusky street, when ] saw a
door open and there appeared-oh,
how far he was from my thoughts al
that moment my friend Meurtrier
himself, the formidable hero of tits on
the river and trays in unknown places. |
A sudden doubt crossed me. / felt that
/ was on the point of discovering a mys- |
terry. 1t was he, indeed. His terrible
hairy hand held a tiny silver coffee-pot, |
and he was followed by a poodle, which |
greatly embarrassed his steps-a valiant
and classic poodle. the poodle of blind
clarinette players, a poor beggar's poo
die, q poodle clipped like a lion, with
hairy rufles on his four paws and a
white mustache like a General of the
Gymnase.
Mamma" said the giant, in a tone
of ineffable tenderness, .shere is your
coffee. / am sure that you will find
it nice tonight. The water was boil
ing well, and poured it on drop by
drop"
.sThank you," said the old lady, roll
ing her easy chair to the table with an
air; ssthank you, my little Achille.
Your dear father said many a time that
there was not my equal at making cof-
fee-he was SO kind and indulgent, the
dear, good man-but 1 begin to believe |
that you are even better than me-"
At that moment, and while Meurtrier |
was pouring out the coffee with all the
delicacy of a young girl, the poodle, ex-
cited no doubt by the uncovered sugar, |
placed his forepaws on the lap of his
mistress.
"Down, Medor," she cried, with a
indignation, "Did any one
ever see such a troublesome ANIMAL
Look here, sir! you know very well that
your master eve fails to give you the
of his cup. By the way" said the
widow, addressing her son, ''you have
taken the poor fellow out, have you
Certainly, mamma" he replied in q
tone that was almost i~nfantile. 81 have
inst been to the creamery for your
morning milk, and I put the leash and
collar on Medor andtook him with me-
Reassured on this point, important to
canine hygiene, the good dame drank
her coffee, between her son and her
dog, who each regarded her with an in
tenderness. It was as
suredly unnecessary to see orhear more.
| had already OWNED what a peaceful
life, upright, pure and devoted,
my friend Meurtrier hid under his
gasconades. But the
spectacle with which chance had fa-
vored me was at once SO droll
and so touching that I could
not resist the temptation to watch for
moments longer; that indiscre-
ton suficed to show me the whole
truth. Yes, this type of roisterers, who
to have stepped from one of the
of Paul de Kock, this athlete,
this despot of bar-rooms and public
houses, performed, simply and courage
,usly, in these lowly rooms in the sub
lrbs, the sublime duties of a sister of
This intrepid oarsman had
never made a longer voyage than to
conduct his mother to a or vespers
every Sunday. This billiard expert
knew how to play besique. This
trainer of bulldogs was the submissive
slave of a poodle.
Next morning on arriving at the Of
ice l asked Meurtrier how he had en-
the previous evening, and he
instantly ~improvised, without the least
hesitation, an account of a sharp en-
counter on the boulevard, where he
had knocked down with a single blow
his fist, having passed his. thumb
through the ring Of his keys, a terrible
street rough.