, 1888-04-15

you" said CASTOR, az resigned from the
army because you didn't like living in a
garrison"
"And I Joined the Imperialists for you'll
cried Armand. ''This gentleman had &C
customed you to the riot of Second EN-
pire balls, and, rather than that you
should give them up, I scandalized my
whole fnnily by showing myself at the
Tuileries. l, accepting the hospitality Of
a NapolconI"
"No pollticsI" said St. Joseph firmly.
"Above all, nothing derogatory to Napo-
leon III. Suppose he should withdraw
his troops from Rome, what would be-
coIne Of the popeF'
81 shall obey you" said CASTOR. 81
have stronger claims than mere political
affiliations. Our love, Jeannel Remem-
Der! 1 was the first, the first! Our walks
on your fathers estate. Those shady
little paths, when your head sometimes
lay on my shoulder; our wedding day,
when we came to my home, our home, at
midnight, that bitter cold weather. The
ground was white with snow, do you re-
member2 What a roaring big fire there
was at the chateau to welcome usl How
still the room was, how frightened we
both werel'
"Sir," interrupted Armand, ttyour
"reminiscences are in execrable taste"
Every possibly, sir, but l may certainly
be allowed to recall my confidence. My
confidence was simply unbounded. How
many of my friends came to me perfidi-
ously to say, Keep an eye on Armand
meaning this gentleman. Keep a watch
full eye on Armand. He is very fond OF
you, we all know that, but there's some
body he is fonder of, and that's your wife,
I disdained their gossip"
81 have my own record on the grounds
of confidence said Armand proudly.
Later, sir, when in my turn l was the
husband, little calumnies were buzzing
about. 1t was M. de S%ericourt that
they told me to watch, Sericourt, my best
friend-how ridiculousl"
l observed that Jeanne could not con-
troll a little start when she heard the
name of NJ. de Sericourt. l observed
1t, but Armand observed nothing, and
continued:
"And when Sericourt was killed in
Mexico, and you, my dear wife, permitted
the unchecked outburst of your natural
and proper grief, l received an odious
anonymous letter: Your wife, it said,
sheds more tears for the friend than she
will ever give the husband l never
mentioned the letter to you. Suspect
yoll Suspsct S~ericourtr'
"Who is his Sericourt who has got
mixed up with all thisi" said st. Joseph.
els Sericourt a third husbandp l am
very much perpleXed.h
"Just one word, st. Joseph, just one,
but a clincher. The day l married this
lady, a priest, an excellent priest, prom
ised me at st. Clotilde's church that our
temporary union on earth should be fol-
lowed by an eternal union in heaven"
"But st. Joseph" cried CASTOR, 'the
day l was married, at the Madeleine, a
bishop-see'-not a priest, a bishop, made
ME the self same promise in the self same
terms.n
'"rhis is becoming very embarrassing"
murmured st. Joseph, very embarrass-
ing indeed. Our representatives on earth
sometimes act very inconsiderately. But
come, madame, 1 revert to my first de-
%cision; it is for you to choose. You have
not spoken. Speaki''
Then the little widow, rosy and much
moved, said:
"If you are infinitely good, st. Joseph,
you will permit me to rejoin NJ. de Seri-
court, who is over there in that little
cloud on the left. He has been beckoning
to me for the last quarter of an hour"
1 turned m head, and perceived Seri-
court, in fact, at the left, in his little
cloud, expressing his affection and wishes
in highly sentimental pantomine.
Sericourtl Another of my friendsI
This chagming woman was, l repeat,
destined to contribute even, to all
eternity, in this world and the next, to
the happiness of my friends.
"Why didn't you speak at oncef' said
st. Joseph; this solves everything.
Make your arrangements with NJ. de
Sericourt. What do l wish, myself,
except that you may be happy in Para
disc, since you have been n good Chris
tianY"
Whereupon l awoke with n start, this
rejoinder struck me as SO %sprightly on the
part Of the excellent St. Joseph.-Trans-
lated for the Argonaut from the French
OF Ludovic Halevy.