The Indianapolis journal., 1893-05-21


beautiful of the Italian lakes. We were
spending few days at L.. and had felt
kind of interest in the people who inbso-
tied all the quaint little villas and chalets
which peeped out from amongst the luxuri-
ant foliage with which the shores OF the
lake were covered.
Our boatman was Italian. and o good
specimen of his race. He was not very tall
but broad -sh h0uldered and muscular. lhad
picked him out from a number of others
who Oh our ARRIVAL had offered rs their
services.
The mans face pleased me. and his whole
appearance denoted that love for the pict-
uresque which distin guishes most of the
inhabitants of the sunny south. His
neither garments were of blue and white
striped cotton material lie wore also a
rough blue jersey. and u red cap which bar-
monized exceedingly well with his brown
face and bright eyes. HIS age might have
been any thing from thirty upward. His
boat was not as beautiful to look at as he
was himself. but il was entirely safe. and
not uncomfortable.
We had already spent many hours in il
cruising about the lake when the heat of
the day had given place to the pleasant
warmth OF the evening.
The villa which had excited my interest
was built on the side of the hill, rather
higher uD than the rest, and painted
warm shade of pink. Its bright green
shutters and striped ewnin gs gave IL a kind
of gala appearance and marked II out as a
conspicuous object IN the general land
scape. My brother asked the question. and
Brevlo, who, 10y the way. spoke very good
Euglish. shipped his and gazed re-
nectIyely at the house in question.
Ill hG III lu.f n
Frau SchinkmaDn lives there. a good
woman. the fran. married 30 IA good man.
That is well. but II has not always been so.
santa Maria, There was time when
things were ditferent
My curiosity WAS excited.
What do you meant / asked. Tell us
about the Frau Schinkmann. Is she old.
young prettyp
cigar-case to our friend, who selected from
Its contents with much satisfao tion depict
ed In his countenanee. He lit his cigar.
and puffed at it for a few seconds In silence,
aud then proceeded with his story. which
give now exactly a. IL was related to me,
omittIng only the many Italian phrases
with which he interlarded il.
Frau SchinkmanD." he said. lisa woman
OF some forty summers. Not pretty, dear
me. Dof She has no beauty of form either.
She Is short. and dark. and fat like all
these German women. But she has fine
eyes. is clever and her dresses. Santa
Mavia. her dresses are different for every
day in the year. She came here. let me see,
ten summers ago. Then, the senior will
understand, she was ten years younger.
Bene. She was not Frau Schinkmann
either, then. She was Signora Cont and
her husband was q brute. Sometimes for
the whole summer he would 20 away to
Milan. to Florence. 70 Rome, who knew
wheref There he would stay, but perhaps
II aid not matter.
1T would have been we'll if he had al
vnA lint h. IL A..gN ID rx~lr
you. When the winter came he came. too.
and then the Signora led but the life of a
dog without friends He beat her sOme-
times. when he had been TO the Piazza in
she evening. and sat an hour or two drink
lng.
''Her maids told the towns folk that Sig
nor Contl beat his wife; she would never
have spoken, for she Is proud, the signora.
.'At last one day there came an opera
company TO the town. They were 20 stay
two months. and every week they gave
something differeDt tonight Carmen"
next week Faust" Their primma donna
was q fine handsome woman, and wicked.
too. The youths In the town went mad
over her; i myself was not married then,
siRnor. 1 got burned the fire with the
Others. but sne played with US all, and
made fools of Us.
There was only one she would not play
with that was the Cont. He was rich,
you must know. and he gave her presen IS:
trinkets for her hair and gold ornaments
that should have been for hrs good wife.
The SignOra knew nothing of this for
many days she did not go much to the
town. you see. She was German, and
they love TO stay IN their houses.
'One day she heard of it. though. The
opera was over, and the Cont had gone off
somewhere with Madame Carita. as she
called herself. So the signora waited for
her husband. sitting mp all night and
watching Tor him.
In the morning be came. No one knew
what passed. but my Carolina was maid
then IN the service OF the Cont, aud she
told her mother that the Signora had fresh
marks on her shoulders next day. and q
cruel bruiss on her temple.
The company left l. tFo days later.
and with them went Signor CONT No one
knew whore they went, some said America,
Others Spain but no one knew.
The Signora remained at home and kept
quiet Tor year, seeing no one. Then. one
fne day. there came a new family to l.,
looking for dwelling. There were but
twO-a father and daughter.
lie Was German-a .baron-and HE
daughter was fine girl-'.carceIy twenty
Now the Villa Cont is "a large one. you see.
and only the signora lived there with my
Carolina to do for her. SO the baron went
10 her and offered her o good price fer her
upper etage. she was proud woman the
Signora. but she had become poor. AZ Con
bad disappeared and taken what was his
with him.
'.His wife had then only the Villa Contl
and her dowry. and she lived on this. She
saw the young frauleiD. and took 10 her al
once. so she agreed ana let aer etage TO
the Baron. so they lived all in that villa
which you see from here. Signor.
The Baron had work TO do IN Germany.
and AT times he would go journeys which
took him weeks In the coming and going.
Then the yOnng fraulein WAS left alone.
except for the Signorain the lower etage.
katerina ibid | tell you her name was
Aaterinah she used TO walk by herself to
Castiglione. and sometimes further, alone.
People said she sang TO herself In heI
roamlngs. but she was strange creature.
anu she liked to be alone.
But my Carolina says she was not al
ways alone. My Carolina Is so wise, sig
nor. sine knows q great deal.
Well Carolina followed the young Kat
erina one day. and she saw some things
which the good Slgncra would not nav,
liked. There IL a town called Asti, some
ten miles from CastaglIone. 1t - big
town. and they have rything there.
There Is O medico. and priests. ana there
was also the dentIsta-how do you cal
him. dentistes Yes. All well. there wes the
dentiste-Slgnor Mattel What "a man 10
takea girls silly fancy. SignoTs Little
mean. sall0w. santisslma. Who would be-
heve II. How he made acquaintance with
the Frsulein no one knew
But Carolina saw them. The Fraulein
met him and they kissed each other as Low.
ers. and sat hours together so long that
Carolina feared TO wait and returned o.
her work. Every dag the Fraulein wniked
alone and stayed till the sun went down
behind the mountain. anu then returned
atone. of course.
Nv hen the Baron was at the villa ther.
kaferiua STAYED hom.. for tha haro,,