The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-24

| truly brave do not recoil from dangers of
! any kind. 1t is traditional, in cases Of this
| kind, that the husband should be jealous,
! but Gen. Pascalon was not so. But, If he
was not an Othello, neither was he fool.
] Trusting in the loyalty of his young wife,
he cherished no illusions. He enjoyed
/ many Palais Royal farce--with his wife
| by his side, more often than not, which
was imprudent, perhaps-but he also es-
| corted her to balls, never pleading his
| age as an excuse, and waited patiently for
/ her until after the cotillion; and to all APP
| pearance his wife was quite content.
| Perhaps she was so. But there were
| plenty of young fellows who would look
/ down at you from the high superiority Of
their % years if you ventured TO express
such an idea, and say:
with an old fellow like that! Really,
you are too refreshing
The general was not to be laughed at.
he knew his danger, not only before all
the world had seen it, but before any one
else suspected, and he saved his honor
like man of intelligence-which indeed,
he could have done in no other way.
And this brings US down at last to the
vanished slipper of the exquisite young
man.
1 have said that the affair took place in
the midst of a reception. Dancing was
going on in the larger rooms; the general
was chatting with some of the older
guests in a small room adjoining the one
set out with card tables. He happened
to glance carelessly toward the players
and started suddenly in surprise.
BLESS me-" said he, putting up his
! glasses, "there's my wife at whistta-
| bic. / certainly thought she was waltz
| ing, or polkaing, or something, and there
she is playing whist. She must be very
tired, for she never plays cards and is al
ways dancing. I shall have to scold her."
I h AlA 4, IL
! herself so much in her faYorite pleasure
| that she has to do penance at the card-ta-
ble," and he strolled leisurely toward the
| players.
A jostle knocking his glasses from his
| eyes as he reached the whist-table, he
stopped to pick them up, and saw beneath
the table slipper, patent-leather
| pump, from which its tenant had escaped,
and now, shod only in fine black silk
| hose, was lovingly caressing the little
| foot of the generals wife. But he also
noticed that the latter constantly avoided
the foot that so persistently pursued her
own.
Hum" said the general, taking in the
situation at glance 1.-The fortress is at
tackled, but it is we'll defended. / have
arrived Just in time" Then, smiling
calmly as if he had seen nothing, leaning
over his wlfes chair, questioning and adj
vlSlng her play. he devoted himself to a
feat that would have furnished a
| dramatist with an irresistibly comic
| theme, considering the difficulties of the
situation. The general had undertaken
to draw toward him with the tip of his
| boot the abandoned slipper, provoking
every instant sudden jerks from jostled
feet, proteStations from disturbed play
ers, astonished looks from those who
could see the extraordinary movements
OF his leg, and the remonstrance from his
wife:
My dear, what makes you knock my
chair about soI You are giving me
headache"
! At this moment the mistress of the
house came up to ask Latournelle if he
! would not perform some of his amusing
! tricks.
Certainly, shall be delighted" he
| answered, nervously, preoccupied as he
was by the extraordinary movements of
the general, who stopped down just then,
! as if to pick up something, and got up and
left the group.
'Well, sir,'' said the lady, sgive me
your arm, and 1 will introduce you. Your
audience is growing impatient"
Certainly madame, in just one mo-
| ment,' said Latournelle, feeling with his
| foot for his slipper, and so recommending
the remarkable jig executed by the gen.
| eral a few moments before. Now the
other players laughed outright, which
they had not dared to do the first time
| And the mistress of the house stood
there, surprised at being kept waiting
so long, and wondering how much
longer her escort would keep, her
/ in that attitude. Impatient ladies
came in shoals to add their solicit
tations to those of their hostess. Our
! young man positively had to get out of
the predicament somehow. He did get
out of it, but with only one shoe, for he
also had stopped down and discovered
the disappearance Of his misguided slip
per, and he marveled, in deep anxiety,
how he was going to explain such state
of affairs.
His one shod foot provoked general hi
larty, then delighted applause and cries of
Its trick! It's some trick?"
The petted darling of the ladies smiled
a weak smile and stammered
Eyes, ladies-it is a trick"
Applause, accompanied by general
clapping of the hands, greeted this an
nOuncement, while Latournelle kept say
ing to himself:
Oh, yes, it's great trick, but some one
has played it on me, and | don't find it so
funny. If only knew who it was'-
then. struck with an idea-''heavens? If
it could be the general-his singular per-
Torrance just now-and l saw him stoop
down-if it was really he, it would be a
pretty uncomfortable joke for me. How
can / make sure2"
AS he escorted the lady through the
room he tried to get near the general. He
managed to do so, and with the back of
his hand he cautiously knocked against
the pocket of the generals coat which he
supposed contained the slipper-there
was nothing therel He tried to sound
the other pocket but slight move on the
generals part carried him out of reach A.;
to touch it, it was necessary to pass
around on the side where it was
Where in the world are you taking
me?' demanded the lady on his arm.
''Whe-er- to the head of the room. ,,
and as he was now on the right side of
the general he wanted to try the other
pocket Here was new obstacle that he
had not foreseen. The fact that the lady
had the arm nearest the general made
any attempt at exploration impossible.
He offered the other, on the pretext of an
old wound which was paining him, and
was able at last to repeat his former tao
tics. This time he was satisfied. cts
there" he murmured, and he did not en-
joy the reflection that the husband of his
adored one had discovered his maneuvers
under the table.
well, Pm in pretty mess he con-
cluded.
Everybody had crowded into the room.
there was an expectant hush, and ali
r