The Press., 1890-03-06


 stocks, bonds, all have been sacrificed, and still more is demanded. Monsieur's voice is hoarse with emotion, he knows his name Is on every tongue in New Orleans; he, the honored and fattered merchant of yesterday, the ruin man of today.
 Madame, seated in the old home which has been her inheritance in her own right, br t which she has sacrificed to save her husbands honor, hears his story, and rising with the heroism born of the noble principles she in- herits, goes out and presently returns with a casket containing all her own and her daugh- ter's jewels, and palsing moment before her mirror she takes the diamonds from her own ears and, placing them among the heap, begs her husband to dispose of all.
 He protests, but slse and her daughters are insistent; what are diamonds, what are rubies compared to a fatliers honorf And then madame remembers there is one thing more of value, one thing frgn which she had never intended to part, and going out again, while the girls look on affriehted and her husband stands speechless in anlazement. she brings in piece by piece the service of royal Dresden. She points to it, her husband grasps her meaning; but he takes her In his arms and kisses her, and tells her 'Never! he has no right to allow her to sacrifice this;;n he knows how proud she has besa Of it, how she has treasured it above all her potsessions, and the resolution it required for her to part from it; and he, touched beyond measure, firmly re- fuses and bids her restore it 10 its place again. But she proudly draws heIself to her full height and says: Moi l will not listen; have given up all myproperty, have parted from my diamonds; this, too, shall goi the world shall never be able to say that re- tained single article of value while my hus- band owed debtl"
 The next day we'll known auctioneer of the rue Royale was sent for. He is accus- toned to such calls, is tkis old auctioneer. for every day witnesses the ireaking up of happy and elegant homes Medame shows him the service; his eyes gleam with a satisfaction he can scarce suppress, fSr he knows its value; still he pretends that it is not worth much; one must be business like, you know. In cool, calculating wayhe examines it, and in- differently begins to count the pieces; he seems disturbed; he goes over them again; slowly, carefully and still a third time, with the same result 'lsametn he exclaims, s.the set is incompleteg there are two plates missing, where are thsyr'
 Madame turns pale. "They are broke!" she replies in her imperfect English, rolling her r's most emphatically.
 "Ah," says the auctioneer, incredulously. noting her change of countenance; ''the set loses half its value. f you can find those two plates twill be tpyour interest to do so."
 sThey are broke, Ashe repeats, her eyes flashing fire, her words coming with difficulty, ''they are broke, I sayin And her daughters, standing near, wonder at her emotion and still more at the temaity of the individual who had dared to protane by a touch, much less to break, two pieces of that precious heir loom.
 There are such realties as true friends; hearts whom the smiies nor the frowns of fortune can change. 9he proposed sale of the famous service becslne noised about the faubourg and two snrTi7Qrs Of the old regi. ment of soldiers, two of the few who had re- turned bearing the remnants of the tattered flag, remembering thej Eracious trust that madame had reposed instneir command and her pride on that memorable morning when she recounted the histsry of her beautiful service, determined if pdsable thatshe should not part from it. They accordingly devised 6 little scheme by whicn they would buy it in, and when the talk of the failure and sale of property had all suEided to quietly pre- sent it to madame as mark or esteem from the old command, thus making it doubly precious in her eyes.
 But with a woman,s 3ulck intuition she saw through their desiSn; and, though her heart was touched by tie nobility and disin- terestedness of their pirpose, she foresaw that however innocent n reality, the world would still say that thii was only scheme on her part to retain possession of 1t, and she kindly but firmly refusee to sell it to them. A few days after the srvice, with all its proud tradition and assoiation, passed for ever from her hands and lscame the. prop erty of well known lady offhis city.
 Several squares from hersld home in the rue Rampant madame nuTAves. She sees without @ pang, withousa ntn, the scene of her former t-.---s,h- and successes, the man. e;e--~l1Icn she was so well ffsea @A.~errace occupied by another, thoagh nany and els- gant have been the entertainments which the present proprietors have given since their oc- cupancy thereof.
 Her daughters and herslf, though their gentle hands have never ben accustomed to the most trivial labor, haW meet their trials with the courage and forttude that SO many of the creole women of lew Orleans have displayed under similar circumstances. In her sorrows and reverses madaae is more of queen than she was in the Toudest hour of her social triumphs; for he true woman nature has been brought toths surface, the deep undertone of real nohity of character and action has burst into mlody.
 In the front room of her lew home, with its simple adornments, therehang upon the wall two brackets which spport two rare and beautiful plates. ne visitor is at once struck with the delicag and grace of the de- signs, and upon remaring &his to madame, with the slightest quisr in her voice, she will tell you the histoK of her relics, and add, with faint sigh, 'srsy are all that l have kept to leave to my ciidren as herit age of the old days.n Andthen, with her bright and beautiful smile, be will quickly turn the conversation into anther channel Mayso p<,;vxc {,,N NIo1rr fl,.lono P;cov,,na