Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-12-17

CompIonS garden was me garden or @ nlre0 villa kept more or less in order by the in- dividual who blacled the boots and cleaned the knives, whereas Dr. Lavergne's roses were famous even in that land of roses; he had succeeded in rearing creepers and flower ing shrubs which nobody else could rear, and his small domain was at all seasons a model of exquisite neatness; and he was hard at work in his shirt sleeves when Chris came behind him and tapped him familiarly upon i the shoulder.
 He wheeled round quickly, showing sharp, smooth-shaven face and pair of bright black eyes, overshadowed by bushy eyebrows. At the first glance, and at a short distance, he ~ might have passed for a man of fifty; but closer inspection made it evident that he must be great deal older than that; and in truth he had passed his soventieth birthday, though he was still sound, healthy and active.
 "I am all the more enchanted to see you, mademoiselle," said he, "because it is break fast time, and because have been told that we are to have regular ragoutaux feves to-day. Can you resist ragout aux feves2"
 "I came to beg you for something to eat," answered Chris. "I don't much care what it is; but detest eating alone-don't you2 And my father has gone out to breakfast"
 Mime. Lavergne, a little wizened old woman of that dowdy, yet tidy type of French bour- geoise which is so fast disappearing, made Chris sit down beside her on the sofa in the stifiy arranged, uncarpeted salon, and held her by tho hand while she talked to her. Mme. Lavergne had had plenty of sorrows in her life; all her children were now dead; some of them had given her a great deal of trouble and anxiety before dying; and her husband, though she adored him and be- lievcd him to be the best as well as the wisest of mankind, was not always in 0 good humor. ,Hc was in good humor to-day because Chris Compton had come in, and be- cause he had taken fancy to Chris, who in- deed had the gift of making all sorts of people take fancy to her. Mme. Lavergne herself : was fond of the motherlsss girl, and sorry for i her, having reasons for being sorry for her with which Chris was not acquainted. ! That young lady talked without much inter- i mission during breakfast, saying whatever came into her head, as her habit was; and when the repastwas concluded Peter exhibited 1 his tricks, which were varied and ingenious, to the delight of the old couple who gave him many more Jumps of sugar than were good f for him.
 At three o'clock Chris jumped up and ran, away, having an engagement to go out riding with some of her friends; and after she had | gone Mime. Lavergne said with sigh, to her husband: "Mon ami, nay heart aches for the | child. What will become of herr" l "Who knows2" returned the doctor, shrug- | ging his shoulders. "Who knows what will become of any of us?"
 "Oh, as for you and me, we know very we'll. Besides, what does it signifyp But she is SO young and so happy, and she does not think about the future at all. It would be sad misfortune for her if anything were to happen | to her father."
 1T do not know," observed Dr. Lavergne, | drowning. "He consulted me as 8 friend, and | as friend told him that he might live an- 1 other ten years. It was true: he may live ten l years. But it is more likely that he will die next week. What would you have? He is 8 ytN.1@ 4-Irn 70 I.I -IQ now he is frightened. A frightened man is l already half dead"
 Mime. Lavergne siglsed again. "I was afraid of it. And what will become of our poor child when she is left alone in the world2'
 'Why, then, my dear, she will learn what human nature and human friendship are worth. It is lesson which all of us must learn sooner or later; and say that she will learn it then because her father gave me to | understand that he would only have a small fortune to bequeath te her."
 | q hope at least" said Mime. Lavergne, after a pause, "that she wiE not be disappointed in our friendship" Waereupon the doctor laughed and went back to his roses. As for Chris she had as yet had no occasion | to ask herself whether her fair-weather friends l would remain constant to her in diversity or | not She liked them for their own sake, l and supposed that they liked her for hers which, indeed, was the truth. There was Lady Barnstaple, for instance, who had often told her as much in so many words. Lady Barn. | staple, being an outspoken woman, avowed that she had no great fancy for MT. Compton, whom the Duchess of Islay and others found l so charming.
 "I admit that he is clever" she would say, Che is a useful sort of man to ask to dinner. | Chris is a dear, good Ittle girl, without par- ticle of humbug about her, and am only too | glad that Oracle and she should be allies" It was with Lady Grace Severne, a pretty, | fair-haired girl of about her own age, that | Chris went out riding after she had left Dr. Lavergne's house; and Lady Grace informed | her that they were going over to the Nice Car nival on the morrow; also that they would | like to take her with them if her father did not object. And so it came to pass that, on the following day, Chris, clad in a domino and 1 0 wire mask, was seated at an open window overlooking the broad thoroughfare which of late years has become very much what the Corso of Rome used to be on Shrove Tuesday. "This," exclaimed Chris, "is the sort of | thing that I should like to do every day for @ weekI Then pe!!laps one might have a chance of getting tired of it. AS it is, one has l just enough to mako one long for more. Gra- cie, do you know what it is to be bored2" Lady Grace, upon reflection, rather thought | that she did.
 q don't," said Chris, "and don't believe I | ever shall. People say that the London sea-
 
 tation, because, why should they go through l it if they don't like it2'
 "One doesn't see great many new faces in London, and the dancing men are getting fewer every year, and some of the balls are | given by people whom ones mother won't know. Taking it altogether, it is very tiring and rather poor fun," said Lady Grace, who had elder sisters, and knew what she was l talking about.
 "Well, mean to have plenty of fun at all events," said Chris decisively.
 "I dare say you vii, !" answered her neigh bor smiling. "You are sure to have plenty of admirers, which is another way of saying l the same thing"
 "oh, don't want them," Chris declared, with superb disdain. "Give me few decent partners, and that is all that I ask. have made up my mind," she continued, "that shall not marry. That is, unless somebody very exceptionally nice should turn up. Rich, l ink ho hndL Lott hc .;aI. L..<l