The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1890-05-25

rAldily uS cA 3itlAtd'
"There are no longer Ave hundred
francs. First paid Tipaldi's bill, two
hundred francs. And then"
| He stopped, and added more fimidly:
II paid for the drinks at the cafe
''You sect cried all the women stimuli
taneously.
/ Monsieur exclaimed the choking
father, 1--WE did not give you our only
daughter, our Teresa, that you might
make her so unhappy"
"Givel givel" cried Orlando, furiously;
"but tell me. then, did / want 49,
i He stopped. Whatever his Impotence,
he did not wish to wound his wife
| Again he interrupted himself, and, inn
PEELED by a desire of ending without get
ting angry, he repeated:
Come, Teresa, come to bed.
No, monsieur" cried the father in q
tone of authority; "you shall hear what
| we have to say"
The young man Strengthened up: the
handsome Orlando had just revived.
| He came from ON high, from enchanted
| palaces inhabited by chimera; in his
| presence living beings had personifed
the sublirnest realities; in his eyes still
| remained the vision of dazzling radiance.
| Don Agostii1o, with stupid eloquence,
hurled at his head solemn platitudes, re-
| proaches, the value of money, the re-
| quirements of duty, family virtues and
respect for this, that and the other.
He showed no sign of ending; he did
not see that the other was growing
straighter. Orlando threw back his
| broad shoulders and superb head with
its gray tinged hair. Disdain swelled
| his nostrils and curled up his lips. He
| looked at these women, worse than
homely, vulgar, and at this old man,
swollen with paltry pretensions. wear
ing on his feet slippers embroidered with
dogs heads and on his head a black
Greek skull cap embroidered with a green
crown Of laurel-the work, alas! Of Te-
fesa
He saw this dull parlor with its up
holstered furniture--this parlor light
ed by a petroleum lamp Of cut glass.
showing its long wick. And then a floor
of enameled earthenware crossed by
narrow strips of carpet leading from
tAOOA W NCOAs LIZ LOOh Ill bLlG tutuIHDl6
mediocrity of these people.
Unfortunately the father had much
eloquence to ptace-eloquence accompa-
MED by the cries, tears and EXPLANATIONS
Of the women.
Orlando started slowly for the console,
took his soft hat and put it on his head.
Then, throwing circular look, crush
! ing in its contempt, at these four per-
sons, he COMPOUNDED them with a single
/ word:
"Imbecilesl'
Dumb with stupefaction, the Cardellis
saw him start for the door. He opened
/ it, closed it behind him, and went down
the steps. The heavy street gate had
closed noisily upon him before they re-
covered their equilibrium.
| Teresa made leap for the window and
| opened it. Her mother followed her.
| The father came next; after him the
maiden aunt. They thought that the
young woman was going to jump out of
the window, and really her attitude gave
them reason to fear it.
'FigIa miai Figlia mial My daugh-
| terf' screamed the old persons.
And Teresa cried desperately through
space:
Orlando! My husbandi My orIan-
dol"
But her Orlando was descending the
Salita Concezione. He walked with
steady step and disappeared at the cor
ner of the church.
The bewildered parents had no resource
left but to carry Teresa to her room.
| Then next day no one in the house dared
look the others in the face.
The lamb had revolted at one stroke
he had decided all questions.
He had not delayed for specious cavil-
ing, he had not discussed, he had not
excused himself. Though he had here
tofore endured all the little daily an
noyances of which they were now con-
scious without confessing it, it was
evident that he knew how to cut without
an effort the tenuous threads that bound
him.
How could ne do that SO easily? Ger
tainly there were laws--a sacrament,
some sort Of guarantee of the world?
Yet he did not seem to suspect 1t.
How bring these claws of guarantee
into actions For it is very difficult to
explain ones reason when people answer
you:
"What is that to me? Prove it to me-
And similarly with those who go away
without discussing.
But perhaps he would return at meal
time?
Teresa went from the window to the
landing, and plunged her black eyes in
disniay to the foot of the Concezione.
Her husband did not appear.
Now how she cursed her stupid ieal-
ousyi
She accused the others, and said that
If she had beer left alone with her hus-
band things would have been arranged.
But for them her Orlando would have
claimed her with a word, with one of
those conical excuses that disarmed her
and of which he had the secret.
Nevertheless, she could now see that
the conical excuses had been growing
less frequent, that they were no longer
made with the same spirit, and that her
husband was getting weary.
At moments she r,rnrnis.ad barSalf that