Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1892-11-25
NICETTE.

lou are IL utdu llldD SdlC llle uOO-
tor, looking intently at Anatole.
Anatole staggered.
He had come gayly to pass the even
ing with his old friend. DR.. Bardais,
the illustrious savant whose works on
venomous substances are known all
over the world, whose nobility Of
heart and almost paternal goodness
Anatole had learned to know better
than any other living soul and now,
without the least hesitation or prepa-
ration, he heard this terrible prognos-
tication issue from those authoritative
lips
Unhappy child, what have you
done 81 continued the doctor
Nothing that | know Of" stam-
mered Anatole, greatly agitated.
Tax your memory; tell me what
you have eaten or drunk-what you
have inhaled"
:. The last word was u ray of light to
Anatolc. That very morning he had
received a letter from one of his
friends who was travelling in India.
In the letter was flower plucked on
a bank of the Ganges by the traveller
"a strangely formed red flower, the
perfume of which-he now recalled
the fact vividly-had appeared to him
to be singularly penetrative. He
hastily drew forth his pocketbook
and produced the letter and its con-
tents and handed them to the savant.
No doubt it possible y cried the
doctor lit is the Pyramenensis indica
the deadly flower, the flower of
blood -
''Then-you-really-think-"
Alas am sure of it,
Butt is impossible l am only
five and twenty years Of age and feel
full of life and health ~
"At what hour did you open that
fatal letter p
This morning at o'clock
"Well-to-morrow morning, at the
same hour, at the same minute, in full
health, syou say, you will feel pain
in your heart-and all will be over"
And you know of no remedy-no
means Of"
None ~ said the doctor.
And covering his face with his hands
lie sank into chair, overcome by
grief.
In face of the profound emotion of
his old friend Anatole understood
that he was really condemned.
He hurried from the doctors house
like madman. His forehead bathed
in perspiration, his ideas all confused,
going he knew not whittier, he sped
on amid the darkness Of the night,
taking no heed Of the loneliness Oft
streets he was traversing. For long
time he pursued this blind course, un
til at length, finding a bench, he sank
down upon it.
How many hours had he still to
live?
The persistent and distressing sound
of racking cough brought him back
to consciousness he looked in the di-
rection whence it came and saw, seat |
ed upon the same bench, pale and
weak little flower girl-a child not |
more than eight years old, who, as
Francois Coppee says:
"Dies of the winter while offering us the |
spring"
That verse Of the poets occurred to |
the mind OF Anatole he felt in his /
waistcoat pocket and found there two
sous and two louis. He was going to |
give the poor child the two sous, but |
recollecting that he had Only few
hours longer to live he gave her the
two louis.
This incident did him good.
He had been like man stunned by /
a blow on the head; his bewilderment /
was overcome now and he began to
his dislocated ideas.
MY situation" he said to himself, /
lis that of a man condemned TO |
death. A man in that position may |
still, however, hope for pardon
many Of that sort are pardoned In |
our days In past times even some
have been saved from the ak or the /
cord to devote themselves to some !
or dangerous piece of work
the launching Of ship, for example,
or as in the time OF Louis AI, TO mar
nv an old woman. II were consult
ed i'm the matter l should prefer TO !
launch a ship. Unfortunately shall |
not be consulted during the short in
terval OF time that remains to me.
But, by the way, how long have got
to live p
He looked at his watch.
Three o'clock in the morning-it is
time to 60 to bed. To bed-waste in
sleep nv last six hours! Not if know /
il. | have certainly something better
than that to do. But what? or
make my will"