The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1888-09-14


lar, which did duty to support the dining
room roof, bore mysterious characters on its
darker side, runes, according to the doctor;
nor did he fail, when he ran over the
legendary history of the house and its pos
SCISSORS, to dwell upon the Scandinavian
scholar who had left them. Floors, doors
and rafters had made great variety Of
angles; every room had particular inclina-
ton: the gable had tilted toward the garden.
after the manner Of a leaning tower, and one
of the former proprietors had buttressed the
building from the side with great strut OF
wood, like the derrick Of a crane. Alto
gether, it had many marks Of ruin; 1t was a
house for the rats to desert; and nothing
but its excellent brightness-the window
glass polished and shining, the paint we'll
secured, the brasses radiant, the very prop
all wreathed about with climbing flowers
nothing, but it's air Of well tended, smil-
ing veteran, sitting, crutch and all, in the
sunny corner Of a garden, marked it as a
house for comfortable people to inhabit. In
poor or idle management it would soon have
hurried into the blackguard stages of decay.
AS twas, the whole family loved it, and the
doctor was never better inspired than when
he narrated its imaginary story and drew
the character Of its successive masters, from
the Hebrew merchant who had re-edified 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 at ruinous
expense. AS for any alarm about its security,
the idea had never presented itself. What
had stood for centuries might we'll 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, aad one which lay nearer their hearts.
Jean-Marie was plainly not himself He had
fits of hectic activity, when he made unusual
exertions to please, spoke more and faster,
and redoubed his attention to his lessons.
But these were interrupted by spells OF
melancholia and brooding silence, when the
boy was little better than unbearable.
'Silence," the doctor moralized-"you see
| Anastasie, what comes of silence. Had the
boy properly unbosomed himself, the little
| disappointment about the treasure, the little
annoyance about Casimir's incivility, would
long ago have been forgotten. AS it is, they
prey upon him like disease. He loses flesh
his appetite is variable, and, on the whole
impaired keep him on the strictest regi
| ulcIl, cAHiDlO UhO AiOoo fo"SAANA '"AA'~S
both in vain"
Don't you think you drug him to- much!
asked madame, with an irrepressible shudder
"Drugr' cried the doctor; 81 drug! Ana
stasie, you are madm
Time went on, and the boys health still
slowly declined. The doctor blamed thu
weather, which was Id and boisterous. HI
called in his confrere from Bourron, took {
| e., a5 hic &, nitv
was pretty soon under treatment hmself-i
scarcely appeared for what complaint HI
and Jean Marie had each to take medicine a
different periods of the day. The doctor
used to lie in wait for the exact moment
watch in hand "There is nothing like regu
larity," be would say, fill out the doses, ane
dilate on the virtues of the draught; and il
the boy seemed none the better, the doctor
was not at all the worse.
Gunpowder day the boy was particularly
low. 1t was scowling, squally weather
Huge broken companies of clouds sailed
swiftly overhead; raking CLEANS of sunlight
swept the village, and were followed by in
tervals of darkness and white, flying rain
At times the wind lifted up its voice and bel
lowed The trees were all scourging them
selves along the meadows, the last leaves fly
and the weather, was in his element; he hao
q theory to prove. He sat with his watcf
out and barometer in front of him, waiting
for the squalls and noting their effect upor
the human pulse "For the true philosopher,
he remarked delightedly, 'every fact in ma
ture is toy" A letter came to him, but al
its arrival conceded with the approach Of
another gust he merely crammed it into hi
| 70 To- bx
next moment they were both counting theil
pulses as if for wager.
At nightfall the wind rose into tempest
1t besieged the hamlet apparently from
every side, as if with batteries of cannon; the
houses shook and groaned; live Goals were
blown upon the floor The uproar and terror
of the night kept people long awake, sitting
with pallid faces giving ear.
1t was IL before the Desprez family retired
BY $780, when the storm was already some
what past it's height the doctor was awak
ened from troubled slumber, and sat up.
noise still rang in his ears, but whether Of
this world or the world of dreams he was moi
certain. Another clap of wind followed. II
was accompanied by a sckening movement
of the whole house, and in the subsequent
lull Desprez could hear the tiles pouring like
a cataract into the loft above his head. He
plucked Anastasie bodily out of bed
"Run!" he cried, thrusting some wearing
apparel into her hands; ''the house is falling
To the garden"
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
ity. 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 slum
bers, seized her by the hand and tumbled
down stairs and into the garden, with the
girl tumbling behind him, still not hall
awake.
The fugitives rendezvoused in the arboI
by some common instinct. Then came bull.
eye fash of struggling moonshine, which
disclosed their four figures standing huddled
from the wind in rattle of flying drapery
and not without a considerable need fol
more. At the humiliating spectacle
Anastasie clutched her night dress desperately
about her and burst loudly into tears The
doctor flew to console her; but she elbowed
him away. She suspected everybody OF
being the general public, and thought the
darkness was alive with eyes.
Another CLEAN and another violent gust
arrived together; the house was seen to rocl
on its foundation, and, just as the light was
once more eclipsed, crash which triumphed