The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-03-07

| III LQe mlOSC OF CQlS Wreck CQuS UuI1cu
upon the contestants a young woman
rose to her feet and stood, beautiful, dis
heveled, frightened almost to madness,
but unhurt. 1t was Marie de Noyant.
The horse, after falling and rolling
over, struggled to its feet, and, with
parts of its harness still clinging to il
and trailing and whirling about, ran
| frantically away through the woods in
| the direction OF the town.
! Overcome for a moment, the seconds
and surgeons stood staring apd motion
less, but they were men of nerve, and
needed but time to take breath and
pull themselves together before spring
| ing forward to the assistance of Honore
and Pierre, who lay as if dead on the
ground where the shock of the collision
had flung them.
Marie de Noyant had arisen early that
morning to keep promise she had made
to visit sick and extremely aged creole
woman who lived in a small house back
in the woods on the road to Jordon
river. Feeling oppressed with what had
occurred between her and Pierre, she or
| dered her servant TO fetch her pony and
and cart and drove away alone before
the rest of the household were up. She
left the servant behind, wishing to be
! entirely free to commune with her heart
and to devise if possible some means of
softening Pierre's disappointment. While
she feared that something dreadful
might come of the terrible passion of the
young man, she did not dream that,
even while she drove slowly along the
dim road under the trees, a duel was in
progress between him and Honore
Chauvin. Her pony, stout, gentle ami
NAL, logged quietly forward in the sand
between the tufts of Spanish bayonet
and thickets of bay bushes; overhead
the pine trees moaned and the grand
magnolias rustled their stiff, glossy
foliage.
Suddenly three or four goats, part of a
herd that had been turned out to Craze
and browse in the woods, Ieaped out OF a
little tangle of tall wild grass hard by
and dashed across the road close in front
of the pony. Marie at the time was abb
sorbed in thought and held the lines with
slack hand. The pony took fright. as
the gentlest horse sometimes will, and
whirled about and, almost upsetting the
cart, ran away through the forest as fast
as his legs could carry him. The move
ment whisked the lines out of Marie's
grasp, and so she lost control. Discover
ing his freedom. and crazed with fright,
the hitherto gentle little animal now be-
came savage and terrible beast, reck-
less of everything, giving no attention TO
road or direction.
The reader Will understand at once
how the catastrophe came about at the
dueling ground. SIR the pony, accident
ally heading itself that way, ran madly
was found dead half mile from the spot.
with Pierre's rapier sheathed to the hilt
in lis breast 1t had struck the weapons
point just as ii was about to dart into the
heart of Honore Chauvin.
The strangest part Of the whole adven-
ture was that Marie escaped without
even the slightest hurt.
The young men were borne 70 the
nearest house, where for many hours
they lay side BY side insensible. Honores
hurts were nearly fatal, and Pierre was
crippled for life. Ia the course Of their
convaiescence they both received the
gentle and untiring care Of Marie. and
before they were able 10 leave the horse
their friendship had been restored.
Aunt Clothilde, a very old colored
woman, who speaks nothing bat the
French patois of the creole country, is
the only survivor OF the slaves owned by
Marie de Noyant's father az the time Of
the duel. You NAV. If you viii visit
her in her little house on Hospital stree:
in New Orleans, have the story. that |
have here skstched, told 70 you IN the
most picturesque way, and II always
ends with a minute description If how
beautiful Marie looked in her white
wedding gown when she and H0nore
Chauvin were married.
In the course of frequent and long
soiourus in the old French region Of the
south / have made note Of many roman
tic, odd or otherwise interesting storiss
Of dueiing, but none Of them seems 20
ne mere strange than ttls tod NE By
Aunt Clotnilde.
Last winter visited the spot where
the duel was fought, and while I tried
20 imagine the scene as !. was sixty-six
years ago q mockirg blrd qExvered It's
Incompatible fute score fro1 a wax
myrtle busn On tha edge Of 6owery
thickes hard rv- What q peaceful spot
il wastMaurice Thompson In New
York Ledger.
A aress ,zay people sre glcorsy becsuS.