The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1888-03-06

say to me, as he pressed my hand: See
that see But you do not understand
me: / know you don't. Ii you did, we
would be happy. One must love to IN
Cierstand" I would laugh and kiss the
child that was so much attached to me.
Often, also, after dinner, he would sit
on nv mothers knees. ''Now, aunty, 5"
would he say, ''tell me some love stories. !"
And mother. for fun, would relate to him
all the legends Of his family, all the pas
sionate adventures of his forefathers, and
of these there were not feW-thousands
and thousands of them were spoken of,
true as well as false 1t was the reputa-
ton of these men that destroyed them.
Their minds would get worked up, and
then they gloried in keeping up the family
fame. fa. "A FA&1
The little fellow would become ami
mated over these tender or terrible nara
tiyes, and at times he would clap his
hands as he would repeat over and over:
81. too, know how to love, and better
than any of them" .ft ~ -
And then he began counting me in
timid and tender manner that made every
body laugh, so odd did it seem. Every
morning I received a bunch OF flowers
that he had gathered for me, and every
night, before going up to his room, ne
would kiss my hand and murmur: II love
your lr,--k-F-.
was wrong, very wrong, and still
weep over my folly. All my life 1 have
done penance on account of it, and [ have
remained an old maid, or rather l have
lived as q widowed betrothed his widow.
/ would amuse myself with this childish
affection; / even encouraged him; was
coquettish and bewitching, just as might
have been with man. made the child
dote upon me- 1t was fun for me and an
FOR 30 bor for
mine. He was 10 years old. just think;
who would ever have Imagined that this
atoms love was serious? / would kiss
him whenever he asked me to; would
even write him tender notes which our
mothers would read, and he would an
swer me with letters full Of passion,
which l still preserve. Believing himself
a man he supposed that our love was kept
secret. We had all lost sight of the fact
that he was de SanteZe p
Things went on in this way for a year
Or so. One evening in the park he fell at
my feet, and kissing the hem Of my dress
he cried out paSsiOnately: Il love you,
love you, 1 love you TO death. IF you ever
deceive me you understand what am say
ing; if you ever forsake me for another, l
shall do as did my father" And he
added in a deep voice that sent a chill
through mes 'FYou know what he did. -
founded, he rose, and standing on tiptoe
so as to reach my ear, he whispered my
name, ''Geneviever" in so sweet, so pref
ty, so tender a tone that could not help
trembling all over.
| stammered: "Let us return homen
He said nothing more, but followed me in
silence; JUST as we were about to ascend
the front door steps, however, he stopped
me- and said: Remember, that if you
forsake me I shall kill myself"
Then, but only then, realized that
had gone too far, and thenceforth 1 be-
came more reserved with him. One day,
as he reprOached me for having changed
toward him, l replied: 'EYou are too big
to jest with now, and not yet old enough
for serious love. 1 shall wait till you
are .ts-s arms ..-.fe.
1 thought that this would end it ALL
In autumn he was sent to a boarding
school When he returned the following
summer l was engaged. He understood
Immediately how matters stood, and for
eight days went about with SO thoughtful
a nGen that became alarmed. -.-..
The ninth day, as / left my bed I'm the
morning, I noticed small folded paper
that had been slipped under my door.
Picking it up and opening it 1 read: ''You
have fOrsaken me; You know what I told
you. You have condemned me to death.
but you, go into the park, to the spot
where l told you last year that I loved
you, and look up.'
1 felt that was going crazy. dressed
myself in all haste and ran SO fast to the
designated spot that 1 was out of breath
when 1 reached it. His little school cap
lay on the ground in the mud. 1t had
been raining all night. looked up and
perceived something swinging about
hnl for yiTaflxy
windy, that morning. s-s5 t..s -r. 4----~
l don't know what happened after that.
/ must have screamed and tainted dead
away afterward, for when I came to nv
senses L found myself in bed, with my
mother at ny side F.s ~ II r.4IH
thought that had dreamed all this
tnat l had had a horrid nightmare. I
stammered: 'sWhere, where is Gontran?''
No one answered. Twas true, then!
did not dare to go to look at him; but
begged for a lock of his hair. This
thiS-is it.
And with look Of poignant despair
the old Lady held out her trembling hand.
She blew her nose several times, dried
her eyes and continued: 81 broke off my
Neutrality-suspicious. saying why. And L
l have ever remained-the-the widow of
that child Ii years old" Then, dropping
her head, she sobbed aloud and wepJ Bit
terly for long while. 4
AS we went up to our rooms to rest, a
burly hunter, whose peace of mind her
narrative seemed to have unsettled, whis-
pered to his neighbor: i
isn't it unfortunate that a person
should be SO confoundedly sentimental as
that?'-Translated for The Tines Demo
crat from the French of Guy de Maui.
PEASANT. a So 4t II