Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1894-01-19

flushed and her eyes CLASSY with fever. Ma
man Schubert had warned him that he must
wade chln-deep in falsehood rather than al
low his wife's mind 10 become troubled. lie
must do anything In the world TO soothe
and comfort her. La Schubert herself was
glib and inventive, and her presence had al
ways soothing effect. She brought Rosa
imaginary messages from her sister; and
pretended TO convey Roses replies. She
danoled the baby, and cooked Philips din
ner, and made the invalld's broth, all with
the liyeliest air, and made light of confag-
ration and ruin, although with every hour
the roar of cannon, the hiss of mitraileuse,
grew louder, fort answering TO fort with
sullen thunder, the sound of musketry close
at hand.
AT midday hideous noise resounded
throughout the quarter. The houses rock
ed; fragments OF plaster fell from the cell
ing.
What was that? The explosion was too
loud for any she'll however formidable. 1t
was only the powder magazine at the Ink
embourg, which had just been blown up.
The Pantheon was expected momentarily.
And still Maman Schubert, with mods and
friendly smiles, assured her dearest Mad
anne Durand, ''cette pauvre cherle," that the
Versailles troops were carrying everything
before them. The Commune was surrender
ing without blow. Order would be restor-
ed, Paris at peace, by Sunday morning.
"And we shall hear all the church-belIs
ringing for mass, and see the people in their
Sunday clothes" concluded Maman Schu-
bert cheerly.
So the long day and the evening wore
through, and it was midRlght, and there
was no sign of Kathleen.
She whose return was so eagerly awaited
in the Rue Git le CGur was not very far
afeld when tho clocks ohimed midnight.
She had wandered about Paris all day,
haunting the gates of the prisons, inqurng
for her missing husband of every one who
seemed in the least likely to be able to an
swer. Had there been any new arrests made
within the last three days, and amongst the
new arrests was there a young man, tall,
slim, with darK-gray eyes and marked brows,
handsome, journalist? At the gates of
Mazas, at the Great and the Little ltoquette.
at Sainte Pelagie at La SInte, the patient
| pilgrim appeared weary, with garments
whitened by the chalky duct of the hard
dry roads which scorched her tired feet,
dropping in body, yet brave of soul, ques-
tioning seeking, watching, imploring but
finding no trace OF the lost enc.
Night was falling before she turned away
| from the gates OF Ia Santn, the model pris-
on OF Paris, where General Chanzy had been
! Imprisoned for seven weary days az the be-
! ginning OF the Commune-niglt had fallen
as she walked slowly and YEARLY back to
tina. part of the cry which she knew best,
whera the Pont Neuf spans ;he Seine, and
the dark towers of NOire Dame stand out
strong and stern against the skyline Night
had come, but not darkness. The crescent
moon shed her pale silvery light in the east,
and the stars were golden in the deep calm
azure Of a clOudless sky. But all az once
that azure vault grew dark, and the stars
vanished. Gigantic clouds OF black smoke
mounted 10 the sky, and then descended
earthward, covering the city with an inn
penctrable dome. Beneath this inky vault
all was lurid. An awful light glared and
| glowed on the quays, on the bridges IN the
broad space in front of the Hotel de Vile.
| Lett taak and right hank blazcd and glared;
! here some stately public office, there nil
lionaire's mansion, sent up its tribute OF
! flame to swell the funeral pyre Of the doom
! ed city. "ChaSsepOt and torch, shoot and
! burnt was the order Of the night. YOnder
in the Rue de Rivoli they were fighting deS-
! perately. Kathleen ran across the street
amidst ram of bullets, stumbling over
scattered corpses, deafened by the roar OF
the cannOnade. Slowly, despairingly, she
wander up and down those dreadful
streets, perpe.ually in danger, yet passing
scathless through every peril Now and
| then q savage scOwllng face looked at her
interrogativoly, and then passed by. Sentl-
nels questioned, and let her pass. There
| x,-,s no harm, Ia, bar hn bod diGfracta1
look-a petroleuse who had proved Of too
weak mind for that patriotic work, per-
hapA Women are feeble creatures. This
ones head had been turned. Only an in
mate the more for the Maisoa des Fous.
Amidst blood and fire she wandered to
and fro, pausing whenever there was knO:
Of idlers at a corner to listen to their talk,
or repeat her old inquiries. Had there been
any new arrests within the last three days?
| Arrests? There were arrests every hour,
man told her. The gentlemen in power
wero getting rabid. Shoot and burn, that
was the word. Murder and fire were their
only notion for taking their revenge upon
| Versailles. Arrests, forsoOth. What was
tho use of talking about arrests? The pris-
ons were teeming with hostages, there was
neither space nor provision for the herd OF
| unfOrtunates; and now the word had gone
forth to shoot them down in the prison
| yards, or to roast them alive in their cells.
Rigault and Ferre, Serizier, Megy, these
were not men TO surrender tamely. Ii these
fiery stars were to be quenched, they would
go down in sea Of blood.
Anything newP' repeated man In a
group that stood on tte bridge watching the
burning of the Lyric Theatre, as IL it had
been free representation, waiting for the
Chatelet to take fire on the other side of the
wide lurid street, mementarily expecting
the dark towers of Notre Dame TO vomit
fames-"anything new? Yes, we live in
stirring times. There is always something
new. The Versaillais have taken the Pan
theon, the stronghold Of the Commune, Just
as the Federals were going to blow It up.
AIlliere has been shot. That Is new. Have
you heard of the massacre of the Domini-
cans? That is new. And Serizier has taken
TO his heels-Serizier, the colonel Of the
1o1st battalion, Serlzier, the hero of Issy
and Chatllon. The colonel is gone, and the
battalion Is scattered"
The Dominicansl At that name Kath-
lcen drew closer TO the group, as near as