The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1892-11-11
5flisccl lanen1ts.
THE CHILD.

| 1t was the 18th Brumaire in the sec
| ond year of the French Republic. The
d ~ was cheerless, and the sky dark
with threatening snow-storm, as the
beautiful Delphine, Countess of Athis
under the monarchy, alighted from a
| hack on the Point Neuf, close to a lib
erty tree surmounted with its red cap
| A man, who had been leaning fol
| some time against the pedestal from
! which they had dislodged the statue
| of Henry w., came eagerly forward
| and lifted his fur cap. His hair was
| close cropped in Revolutionary fash
ion, and he wore ragged carmagnole
open at the throat, without any era
vat but even thus disguised, the lady
| recognized Maurice Despies, one OF
| the youngest and most promising adj
! vocates in the last Parliament.
| Maurice she said, ''your dress is
admirable but that does not insure
your safety. / have sent for you to
take me before the Revolutionary
! tribunal
II, DeIphine, take you before those
executioners ~
You know that our friend, Lefeb.
vre, is brought to trial today"
Eyes, l know that, Delphine, and ]
know, too, that he will not be alive
| tomorrow"
And /, Maurice, know that | ought
| to testify in his behalf. Since the 18th
| of July | have often heard him de-
clare himself a Republican, and | can
| prove that he refused place offered
him as tutor of the Dauphin-against
my advice, it is true. | can bring for,
10 h t,.in
| that must convince his judges"
"They will not listen t you. Write
send word but do not go yourself"
She looked at him beseechingly.
"Do not try and discourage me
Maurice. If you only knew how fright
ened | am in such a crowd and how
hard it is to do my duty am tremb
ling now, and l only go because
must"
"You ask me, Delphine, to take yor
to certain death"
''If you really love me, Maurice, yol
would not have me cowardly."
But it is so useless"
''It is never useless to do our duty
| have been perfectly frank in &C
knowledging my weakness; but what
would you truly think of me if should
| follow your advice, turn now and &c
back to my house at Auteuil p
Come then" said Maurice. Sht
took his arm and they walked along
the quay, talking in a low tone of thu
old friend whose courage had brough
him before the bloody tribunal.
He was hiding" said MADAM
d'Athis, "at Madam dAubry's, IN,
lace -woman's and he was perfectly
safe there but he insisted onleaving
because he had reason to think tha
his stay was endangering his benefac
tress. He succeeded in reaching Sew
res in safety, but he was recognized
in a wine-shop by some Jacobins
brought back to Paris, and now he is
in the Conciergerie awaiting his trial
1t will go hard with him
"Thank you, Delpline, for sending
to let me know
"Who but the man love, Maurice
should share my danger
AS they turned the corner of the
large square clock-tower that abut'
on the quay, they saw II crowd o
armed men, tumultuously swaying tt
and fro before the iron gateway o
the Palace of Justice. Delphine quick
ly withdrew her hand from Maurice:
arm
keep me in sight," she said. "My
courage will fail me if | do not fee
that you are looking at me all tn,
time but it is best that we should no
seem to be together. | had better APP
pear to be quite alone for have al
Instructive feeling that | shall be safe
if these creatures think me entirely
unprotected"
He yielded to her imperious sweet
ness, stopped outside the gate, an6
then entered. following at a distanc,
the woman now threading her way
through the brandished pixies anC
sabres. The wide staircase was crowd
ed with rabble in sabots, carmag
noes and red caps, singing, shouting
and surging to and fro. Groups o
men blocked the entrances to the diff
ferent Revolutionary tribunals, loud
ly urging summary proceedings ant
general massacre, accusing the au
thorities of lukewarmness and lenien
cy toward the guilty. Newspaper
vendors came and went, crying Here
you have the list of the lucky mum
bers in the lottery of the holy guillo
tine Buy the treason of Joseph LIE
febvre, former physician of the infa
nous Capet. Buy the account of the
dreadful conspiracy of the traitor LIE
febvre to bring about the massacre o.
all good patriots"
Delphine made her way through thu
crowd. She was going upstairs wheI
she was brought to a stand by a maj
pointed sentinel. Where are you
going citiZene p
Il am going, citizen, to attend the
| AL 1 Of T of /
ness"
He made no objection, and she wal
moving on when a hideous woman
with baby in her arms, protested
declaring that aristocrats ought to bt
kept away from the tribunals, where
they only went to corrupt the judges
She, for instance, that woman, would
60 and show her face, and weep an6
faint away and turn the heads OF al
those men inside. Such creatures
know perfectly well what they were
about, and that was the way justic,
was cheated and traitors escaped wh(
let people die of starvation. But Del
phine hurried on to the room where
she heard the clerk of court reading
the summons of Joseph Lefebvre.
Protected by his dress, Despies fol
lowed her unmolested. But the wo
man railing had inflamed vindictiv,
hatred. and on all sides cries arose of
"Marat has gone. We have lost ou
best friend. Since he was killed til,
aristocrats are raising their heads
Down with the aristocrats Death t.
the conspirators To the guillotin'
with the enemies of the people! Dealt
to false witnesses Down with tn,
sorceresses, the fine ladies ~
The Indictment against Joseph LIE
febvre was read, the interrogation.
was over-the witnesses were to b.
heard. Every moment some one com
ing out of the courtroom gave to TIN
crowd outside distorted account o
some incident connected with tn