Los Angeles herald., 1891-11-08
A DREAM.
BY LUDovIc HALEvY.
TRANSLATED By oTHEMAN sTEvENs.]

day at Sainte Clotilde. went to the
church, arriving after the ceremony had
commenced. The priest was finishing
his little sermon of good advice, and
ended it by this phrase:
sBe then joined on this earth, and
live SO that you will be finally united
in heaven"
All! could not help the exclamation.
Raoul was not marrying mere girl
his bride was that pretty-faced little
countess Jeanne de Charmelien, the
widow OF another friend of mine, Gas
ton de Charmelien. This delightful
woman seemed destined to make my
friends happy. Raoul after Castor.
Nothing in the world could be palmer,
CASTOR being retired there remained
Raoul, but in heaven for that final
union, there would be two: CASTOR and
.Raoul. the first and the second hus-
band.
/ reflected. Probably that same
phrase was used at all weddings. Five
years before at Gaston's marriage the
promise had been made to him that if
he lived and died as a Christian he
would find his little Jeanne among the
angels, the archangels and the golden
thrones in Paradise.
There was a stir. and the mass was
finished. The organs commenced Men,
delsssohn's march, and l followed the
tide OF people, which carried me to the
sacristy. Here I gave handshake to
the bride and one to the groom. l did
not say word to either, and it was we'll
that / did not, for am sure could not
have helped saying to Raoul: care
you very sure that you have understood
that phrase about your meeting hereaf-
ter? There will be two, my dear fell
low, at that final union"
I leave the church. | make two or
three calls, 60 home, take ride, 60 to
the club, and later to the opera, but
cannot get away from that stupid idea.
How will Raoul and CASTOR settle the
matter some day in the next world?
At last go to bed and to sleep, and it
is here that the dream begins. A dream
which it should not be forgotten is a
dream.
The first thing l knew was in Para
disc, at the station. Trains were con-
stantly going and coming, the cars leav-
ing empty and coming in more or less
well filed. The station agent was Saint
Thomas. introduced myself to him,
and very obligingly he explained to me
the system on which the road was con-
Quoted.
'Of course" he said to me, 'stravel is
all one way. Trains leave the earth,
stopping only at He'll and Purgatory
before Reaching Paradise. We have n
good many people here now, a good
many. The pope, you know, has been
bothered greatly during the past few
wears; there has been just enough of an
air of persecution about religion of late,
which has reinterested the backsliding
and decided the indifferent. That ecu
menical council was an excellent thing,
and has done us much good. We have
no reason to complain. There has been
for some months constant increase in
the number OF our arrivals. Every day
we have to put on extra cars. The
smallpox has been one reason for this,
but the extension OF the true faith has
done the most good. You can judge for
yourself Seven, ten-the express is
just about due, there's the whistle.
Here she comes. You see our company
is organized on the French plan; it is
much the best. The bonds are all
secured by heaven. Our principal lines
are all completed, but we, have under
construction few feeders running to
some planets off the main line. We are
Just about to increase the stock by
second issuance. Here's the train.
You see we have first, second and third
class coaches, baggage car and COM
partment for dogs. There, the passen-
gers are getting out. You will notice
that there are not many in the second
class cars. The middle class people are
not good patrons; they are generally
agnostics, Voltarians, free thinkers. In
the third-class cars, however, there is
always crowd, a great crowd.
And the same in the first-class
coaches. We must admit that
the rich have the best facilities for look
ing after their spiritual welfare. They
have plenty OF time to themselves.
Even admitting that they give up the
best part of their lives to the world and
the devil, they sooner or later, without
much trouble, find time enough in
which to repent. God is not half as
hard to please as many believe. He il
very easily satisfied. If you would only
stay here two or three days you could
see a number of trains come In, and
among the arrivals there will be surely
some one you know. You will see that
people can get into Paradise very cheap
~"
He is bore, this Saint Thomas. He
talks, talks, talks but for some min
utes had not heard him. My widow
whom / had last seen at Sainte Clio
tide, Gaston's wife, Raoul's wife; yes
it is she. had seen her pretty face a.
the window of a parlor car; then. as the
train stopped she had jumped lightly
down from the platform, just displaying
her charming ankles. She trotted here
and there, asking, "Well, where is Par
adise? Where is Paradise? have my
ticket"
/ remember having seen her just tn
same at the station at Compiene, as sh
alighted from a special train which
brought to the chateau some guests o
the empress. That day in getting dow
from the car, she had shown jus
enough of those beautiful ankles, an
she had run up and down the platform
of the station, saying to all the officials
Don't forget my trunks, be sure not t
forget them; have fourteen of them.
A crown officer came up and told he
that she need not worry, that he wa
there only to look after the trunks
That was at the station at Compiene.
And Saint Peter came up to her in th
Paradise station and said