The morning call., 1893-10-15


and Tante swung herself softly to and 1ro
. IN q low rocker on the other
Uncle Marcellus was Virginia Bran
:.don. In the dashing and gallant days OF
: his early manhood he had adventured-
with gigantic black body-servant at his
elbow and the proceeds of an unusually
fin tobacco crop in his pocket-down TO
= New Orleans for the avowed purpose Of
dancing at one of the then famous Gordon
.bleu balls. He bad it in mind to scatter
broadcast other seeds of that unfenced
!: crop which fashion at that time permitted
the youth of his class to SOW openly and
>:Rboye board.
:: :: Passing down rue Bourbon on bis way to
:; his frat reyel. however, he encountered the
" dark and lustrous eyes OF Mile. Elise Sou
=. .bert Her pretty hand was enveloped in
. feecy laces, her white gown was garlanded
= with, roses. her softly rounded cheeks had
the yelvety whiteness of a magnolia leaf.
:: Size was tripping demurely along behind
her short, fat mama and her shorter papa,
near the entrance TO the old Theater dor
leans.
;. = The Gordon bleu. with Its dreams of vo-
.:iuptuous octoroon sirens. vanished in
stantly from his mental vision. He aban-
.doned like one under spell his mocking
companions and elbowed passage with a
fierceness quite unnecessary through the
!: :good-natured chatting crowd lounging
about the contrOle.
The curtain was already up when he
entered the fine old sale, and soft hiss
pursued him as he marched with an uncon-
sciously eager and determined step along
the narrow stairs. But he needed this no
more than be needed the faint ripple of
amusement that stirred across the high
bred assembly when he stood stock still
before the loge grillee where she sat. and
stared at her with all his heart in his eyes.
=. The wooIng was hasty and impetuOus.
though the wooer knew not one word OF
French, and Ia belle Louisianaise had at
her comma nd the merest scrap OF English.
When duly informed of his demand for
her hand by her mOther-to whom, much
to his disgust. Marcellus Brandon found
T. himself obliged first to submit it-Mlle.
Elise consented meekly and with down.
dropped eyelds to be transported TO
sWheatfield. the Brandon estate, Albemarle
County, Virginia; and then with eyes up
relied vowed sweetly that she would at
the instant make herself cette belle langue
:AngIaise.
: But that was when SHE was Mile. Jou-
bert. When she became Mrs. Marcelus
Brandon she placidly but firmly refused
;ta.do either. Uncle Marcellus was fain To
transfer himself and his 100 odd hands"
from WheatfieId, Albermale County, Viz
fanai which ample plantation was part OF
.=his wife's dot, and to begin his lifelong
struggle with French verbs
=. His forehead. knotted by years of this
combat, gradually smoothed as Marcellus
" and Joseph Marie, his twin sons, grew to
:: manhood. French came to them with their
mothers milk, as Pere JOubert proudly
( Observed. but by the time they were fairly
in trousers they learned to twist their soft
tongues to English whenever they ad-
:. dressed their father. In the meantime,
CJhcIe MarcpIlus used often TO be seen
hanging over the garden gate, his face
!: .agIow with pleasure as he listened to the
: familiar Jeems River vernaeular of Unk'
Billy, an old Brandon retainer. And then
= there was Bedford, his own solemn old
:: body-servant.
::.:Bnt all that was in the halcyon days.
."Befo' de wah."
:. LINK Billy and Bedford had been
: gathered to the dust these many. years;
: the twins were long ago gone out into the
>wC<lds ana Uncle Marcellus. whe WAS
+: growing old, and had been Uncle" Mar
ce4}us to half the parish for two genera
flons at least, had resigned himself TO an
unbrOken tete-a-tete with Mrs. Marcelus,
who had become "Iante" alike to rela-
. trTes and friends.
=. Therefore it was worth something to see
: the smile on his round face nowadays.
when Cecile Joubert, Tante's orphaned
niece, who had come to live at St. Denys.
entered the breakfast-room with a kiss
: ard bon jour" for Tante, and-oh, the
: dear old English with the quaint little
:: flavor of accent upon it-"GOod morning"
and kiss for Uncle Marcelus.
:: : II was Cecile who came along the hall
- now and stood in the doorway between
them. She had, it appeared, brought q
shawl for Tante, for the evening was
}: drawing on. and she had fetched Uncle
: Marcellus his pipe. When she had lighted
q taper for the one and wrapped the shawl
about the other, she came down the steps
:: and paced back and forth along the shelled
;walks of her rose-gardeu, bumming
gay little chansOnette and glancing now
and again toward the gate and up the
lane that led to La Fermeaux Ifs, whose
distant chmneys showed slender and
: dark against the face of great yellow
moon slowly rising into view.
Uncle Marcellus remarked to Tante in
his painfully acquired and labOrious French
that CPcile seemed to grow prettier every
day. Tante nodded pleased assent.
Now, truly, Uncle Marcelus had never
in all his life loved any woman but Tante.
;. Her eyes, which remained the same large,
soft and shining wells of light that had
lured him into the Theater d'Orleans fifty
. years ago (thOugh her form had broadened
to shapelessnesS and pronounced mus
tache shaded her upper lip) had been the
only eyes in the whole world for him. Yet,
somehow, as he sat looking at Cecle
with her tender blue eyes and her
fose tinted cheeks, and her fair
wavy hair, his heart stirred strangely
within him, and he was minded OF the slim
:, little fourth or fifth cousin who came
: down to the gate to bid him good-by the
day he went away on that first registering
Journey 10 New Orleans. and who, when
:: he looked back. was gazing 80 wistfully
after him. She had the same name. too,
: though at Wheatfeld they called her Cis'ly
and sometimes Cis. AND sue had been
dead these forty years and more, dear,
deari
The old man coughed and Tante got up
and went over and stood beside him, pat
ting on the back with affectonate So
Hcitude. Just then the clatter of horses
'hoofs sounded in the lane, and presently
the gate opened and shut.
"Tis but Octave" said Tante, reseating
herself, and she smiled significantly. She
spoke hs always in her own soft-sYllabled
native tongue. SIT is thy wish" she went
!: on after short pause. that the children
should settle this marriage for themselves.
and t is. perhaps, best for them. Thou
and / were not permitted this curious
Ruf then had n