Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1888-07-06

nothing, but ltS ar OF u wei Uenuel, Slnll-
ing veteran, sitting, crutch and all, in the
sunny corner OF garden, marked it as
house for comfortable people to inhabt. In
poor or idle management it would soon have
hurried into the BLACKBOARD stages of decay.
As it was, the whole family loved it, and the
doctor was never better inspired than when
be narrated its imaginary story and drew
the character of its successive masters, from
the Hebrew merchant who had rc-ediiied its
walls after the sack of the town, and past the
mysterious engraver of the runes down to
the long headed, dirty handed boor from
whom he had himself acquired it ats r1inous
expense As for any alarm about its security,
the idea had never presented itself. What
had stood for centuries might well endure a
| little longer
Indeed, in this particular winter, after
| the finding and losing of the treasure, the
Desprezes had an anxiety of very different
order, ard one which lay nearer their hearts.
| Jean Marie was plainly not himself. He had
| fits of hcctj scivity, when no y,Adc unusuel
exert ions 70 please, spoke more and faster.
| and redOuhled his attention to his lessons
| But these were interrupted by spells or
| melancholia and hroodiug silence, when the
| boy was little better than unbearable.
"Silence,n the doctor moralized see,
| Anastasie what comes of silence Had the
| boy properly unbosomed himself, the little
| disappointment about the treasure, the little
| annoyance about Casimir's inciviljty, would
long ago have been forgotten. As 1t Is they
| prey upon him like a disease. He loses flesh.
| his appetite is variable, and, on the whole
| impaired. | keep him on the strictest regi
| men, / exhibit the most powerful tonics
| both in vain.n
| "Don't you think you drug him to- muchF
| asked madame, with an irrepressible shudder.
| Drug cried the doctor; 81 drugl Ana
stasie, you are madw
| Time went on and the boys health still
| slowly declined The doctor blamed the
| weather, which was cold and boisterous He
| called in his confrere from Bourbon, took
fancy for him, magnified his capacity. and
| was pretty soon under treatment hmself-it
| scarcely appeared for what complaint. He
| and Jean Marie had each to take medicine at
| different periods of the day. The doctor
| used to lie in wait for the exact moment,
| watch in hand. "There is nothing like regu-
larty," be would say, fill out the doses, and
dilate on the virtues of the draught; and if
| the boy seemed none the better, the doctor
| was not at all the worse.
| Gunpowder day the boy was particularly
low. 1t was scowling, squaly weather.
| swiftly overhead; raking CLEANS of sunlight
| swept the village. and were followed by in
| tervalS of darkness and white, flying rain,
I At times the wind lifted up its voice and bel
| lowed. The trees We're all scourEing them
| selves along the meadows, the last leaves fly
| ing like dust. The doctor between the boy
| and the weather, in his element he had
| a theory to prove. He sat with his watch
| out and barometer in front of hirn, waiting
for the squalls and noting their effect upon
the human pulse. ''For the true philosopher"
he remarked deightedly, every fact in ma
| ture is a toy" A letter came to him, but as
| its arrival conceded with the approach of
| another gust he merely crammed it into his
| pocket, gave the time to Jean Marie, and the
| next moment they were both counting their
pulses as if for a wager.
| AT nghtfall the wind rose into tempest.
| II beseged the hamlet, apparently from
every side, as if with batteries of cannon; the
houses shook and groaned; live Goals were
blo-L upon the floor. The uproar and terror
Of the night kept people long awake, sitting
| with pallid faces giving ear
1t was ~ before the Desprez family retired.
BY 30 when the storm was already some
what past its height, the doctor was awak =
ened from troubled sumber, and sat up A
noise still rang in his ears, but whether of
this world or the world of dreams he was not
certain. Another clap Of wind followed 1t
was accompanied by sickening movement
of the whole house, and in the subsequent
lull DeSprez could hear the tiles pouring like
= cataract into the loft above his head. He
olucked Anastasie bodily out of bed.
"Runl" he cried, thrustng some wearing
apparel into her hands; "the house is falling /!
To the gardenr'
She did not pause to be twice hidden; she
was down the stair in an instant She had
never before suspected herself of such activ-
Iity. The doctor meanwhile, with the speed
Of piece Of pantomime business, and unde-
tered by broken shins, proceeded to rout out
| Jean Marie, tore Aline from her virgin SUM
bers, seized her by the hand and tumbled
down stairs and into the garden, with the
girl tumbling behind him, still not half
awake
| The fugitives rendezvoused in the arbor
by some common instinct. Then came bulls
eye flash Of struggling moonshne, which
disclosed their four figures standing huddled
from the wind in a rattle of flying drapery,
and not without considerable need for
more. At the humiliating spectacle
Anastasis clutched her night dress desperately
about her and burst loudly into tears The
doctor few to console her; bat she elbowed
him away. She suspected everybody o.
being the general public, and thought the
darkness was alive with eyes
Another CLEAN and another violent gos'
arrived together; the house was seen to roeh
on its foundation, and, just as the light WI
once more eclipsed, a crash which triumphet
over the shouting Of the wind announced it
fall and for a moment the whole garden wa
alive with skipping tiles and brickbats. On
such missile grazed the doctors ear; an
other descended on the bare foot Of Aline
who instantly made night hideous with he
: shrieks.
BY this time the hamlet was alarmed
: lights flashed from the windows, hail
reached the party, and the doctor answered
nobly contending against Alne and tn
tempest. But this prospect of help onl
awakened Anastasie to a more active stag
a of terror.
y Henri, people will be coming" sh
, screamed in her husbands ear.
J, ~ trust so" he replied.
q "They cannot. l would rather die" sh
Ill