The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-07-16
MARIE LAFARGE.

"Where shall we go for our holiday
asked my friend Haywood, as we sat al
breakfast one day toward the end Of July,
1855.
Haywood and had been friends at col
lege, and had lived together in chambers in
the Temple ever since we left Oxford.
We shared each others tastes and amuse-
ments and were, in fact, inseparable.
eve seem to have done everything" re-
marked l, in reply to Raywood's question.
"Can you suggest anything new?"
"Let US do some mountaineeri ing"
eve have already been to Switzerland
twice"
ayes, in the ordinary tourist fashion.
What mean is, let US go off the beaten
track and find out new places for our
selves"
Agreed" said l, so in few weeks time
we were off to the Alps.
After few weeks in Lucerne, where we
had friends, we went south to Niterlaken,
and then set out to wander among the less
frequented portion of the Bernese ODER
! land, and it was on this excursion that we
heard Of Marie Lafarge.
"Well, we're certainly having a good
time" remarked Haywood one day as we
tramped along, "but so far we haven't had
a single adventure.
eve are on the eve of one now, perhaps,
for the barometer is going down rapidly,
and to be caught in violent storm on the
edge of this precipice would be no joke"
"Why, look at the Finsteraarhornl There
is a storm brewing sure enough. Is there
village anywhere about, 1 wonder" said
Haywood, whose ardor for an adventure
had cooled when he found it might be neaE
at hand.
eyes; according to the map there are q
few huts about mile further on"
Let's hurry along, them" and we did.
We reached the village just as the storm
burst. The hamlet consisted of some half
dozen dwellings built on narrow ledge of
rock.
We looked around for a hostelry, but
saw none. We went up to peasant wom-
an standing at the door of a cottage, or,
rather, hut, and asked for the inn.
! 'There is not one" replied she, looking
establishment at the question.
"What do tourists do, then?"
'"They never come here"
| Ii CLIClC III OuO WIZ Will give US d
nights lodging!" asked Haywood in dis
may.
"Any of us would do so willingly" re-
piled the woman kindly, "but we have no
suitable accommodation Nine Lafarge
might put you up, sir. She has the largest
house in the village, and madame never
loses the chance of earning anything. Ma
dame is not one of us. She comes from
4
But madame is in such Distress" inter
posed the woman's husband. "She has
just lost her poor stepdaughter in dread
full manner. There is reason to fear the
poor girl has been murdered"
''Then it would be useless to disturb the
poor woman" said l.
81 don't know" replied the peasant wo-
man, who appeared shrewder than her
husband. 'Mme. Lafarge is not one to miss
a chance of earning money, and never did
think her heart was so set on that girl
Marie as she pretended If you offer her
good terms she'E smother her grief for a
time Grief can always bide."
''We will try, at all events; thank you,"
said |, and taking one of the woman's chill
dren as guide we went toward the dwell
ing of Nine. Lafarge
What has happened to this girl that
your father speaks OFF," asked Haywood Of
the lad.
With some circumlocution he told a
story, which was briefly as follows:
Nine Lafarge, who was a widow, had
a daughter and a stepdaughter. The lat
ter, Marie by name, had inherited a little
fortune from her mother, and, being also a
charming girl she had been sought in mar
rage by most of the eligible young men of
her own and the neighboring villages.
She was coquette, however, in an inno-
cent, girlish fashion, and while not posi-
lively dlscOuraging any, she gave accept
ance to none
a handsome. daring young fellow from
the next village, Max Reikmann by name.
seemed likely, however, to be the happy
man, and he and the coquettish Marie
were on the point of being betrothed when
Marie set out one fine afternoon to meet her
lover and-never returned.
This was about three weeks before the
day on which we arrived at E.
Whom do they suspect" asked Ray
wood.
The boy would not say at first, but a lit
tie cross-eXaminstion ELECTED the fact that
suspicion was divided between the miserly
stepmother, who had inherited the poor
girls property, and the lover, who was
known TO be of a passionate disposition
and desperately jealous.
Most people suspected the lover, how
ever, more than the stepmother inasmuch
as some friends who were spending the
day with Nine. Lafsrge and her daughter
witnessed the departure of Marie to meet
Max. Nine. Lafarce, however, had left
her guests for short time after Marie set
out, though, as far as they knew, she had
not quilted the house. Max himself en-
tered the house of the I4afarges an hour
later, appearing much excited, and asked
why Marie had not met him as she had
promised.
Have the remains Of the poor girl been
found yet;" asked Haywood.
No II she fell over the precipice at the
point people think likely she never will be
found A man fell ever last year and they
have never seen trace of him since.''
Presently we reached the house of the
Lafarges
1t was the last in the hamlet, and stood
somewhat apart from the others. Il looked
comfortable enough in its way. Yet a
chill sense of eeriness, for which I could
not account, fell upon me as we entered
the dwelling.
In another moment l forgot everything
else in surprise and admiration.
J 1:.s boz YnS conducted Us had called o1t