The Portland daily press., 1893-11-07
GINEVRA.

Signora Ginevra Lafargue never told any
one the story of her marriage, but when
she found herself alone with Paulo, her
husband, she liked to talk of it, as it gave
her pleasure to recall their mutual remem-
brances. Why should she let any one else
know that when she was IS years old her
beautiful brown eyes, her fresh complexion
and her black hair were her sole dowry?
It is great deal ii one only thinks SO, and
yet it is not too much nowadays.
At 81 Ginevra had known the discom-
fort of rousing herself, the piercing cold on
coming out from the warm covering. the
icy additions that harden the skin. The
tinkling of the bell for the first breakfast,
when she had only got as far as lacing her
boots, and the second call of this miserable
bell that gave the signal to go out for the
O'Clock mass at the parish churcsa. while
she was just entering the dining room, the
hurried rush across the corridors and
through the street, with her mouth full, to
join, all breathless, the long line of pupils
gathered at the church door.
Every morning. in winter especially
there were the same trials, the same hurry,
the same rushing, and this morning-what
ill fortunel 1t had been freezing cold for a
week-there was no end to the trials-and
her watch was 10 minutes slow.
When, after the hurried effort of dressing
and getting her breakfast, she reached the
archway of the great door, every one had
been gone some time-the hum of the col
lective life suspended fora half hour left
the house more silent and empty. A few
servants in the distance were occupied with
setting the dormitories in order.
Ginevra drew the bell rope of the door in
the porter's deserted room and let the heavy
doors fall together with noise against her
shoulders. Then she tried to go out, but
she was Unexpectedly held fast from be-
hind, shut in by her quick slamming of the
door. The resistance to her impulse had
been SO strong that she just missed falling
forward on her nose.
When she recovered her equilibrium, she
was pleased to think she had escaped two
misfortunes, two disasters at once-not only
might she have scratched her nose and cut
her lips, but she might have torn her dress,
a fine dress of black silk that occupied the
second place in her wardrobe and was used
for Thursday-a half holiday
Luckily the stuff, of good quality, had
resisted. Not one tear, nothing but bit
of the underskirt caught and firmly held in
the crack of the door.
'PshawG' thought Ginevra, with a sigh
of complaint, to-day shall not be in time
for the mass, that is all will ring the
bell and go up stairs to the piano. 1t will
be warm in the music room"
She reached out her arms toward the
bell, but suddenly drew back frightened by
q slight warning creak. Then she sought
to gain little more height by twisting her
arm and her shoulder. Alas! even with
her head turned back she could not meas
ure the distance, the enormous distance, IS
inches at least, between her extended hand
and the bronze hand that hung inert and
inaccessible at the end Of the bellrope.
When she realized how the case stood.
the prisoner let her arm fall, and her heart
beat quickly, for very few people passed
through this out of the way alley.
But after few minutes an apparition
came to reanimate her, and all her longing,
all her emotions, all her lost strength,
centered with bound in the fat milk wom-
an, who slowly advanced from the end of
the street balancing the two brass pots that
dangled before and behind her, fastened to
pole
DIG Wdo SOliS w pass ny WlUuOuU uOOlC-
ing Ginevra, with the extraordinary indif-
ference of the peasant who does not under
stand the curious ways of the city people,
when the girl decided to call to her softly.
''Signora- signoraw
The other turned her great, fat, rosy face
Euestioningly, and with little timidity.
Ginevra explained the case.
'Ahi wellr' said the woman, without
~,
norma"
She set down her water jugs, asked Gin
ezra to draw little to one side to let her
arm have free action, then rang the bell SO
vigorously that the glasses trembled, and
dull rumbling was heard through the
house as if violent storm had shaken the
foundations.
Content with her good action, she raised
the wooden yoke to her shoulders again,
rose slowly to her feet to get the Jugs in
place without disturbing the milk, and set
out with the same swinging gait as before,
that she might not delay her customers
At first Ginevra thought she heard some
Sne in the house at a great distance; then
every noise ceased until the arrival of new
passerby
This was young cavalry officer, walking
aicnS Win HIS HoSe III me dif, proudly
swinging his body, clad in dolman and
loose pantaloons. She drew back quickly,
decided not to invoke the aid of this gentle
man who advanced without seeing her, en-
tireiy occupied with himself, and when he
discovered her she had already had time to
taste in anticipation the modification of
this moment. She was bent. with her back
nailed up against the door and her head
bowed, but she was not able to extinguish
the fire on her cheeks, which, it seemed to
her, must illuminate the street like gay
colored ensign. The officer stopped a mo-