The weekly Thibodaux sentinel and journal of the 8th Senatorial District. [volume] (Thibodaux, Lna. [i.e. La.]) 1875-1898, 1896-06-13
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A QUEER CHARACTER

1t was n evening about a fortnight
litter l had installed myself in a little
sllla at Sicua. I had just sat down to
dinner aad was waiting for Concetta,
my elderly parlor maid, to take the lid
Oft my tureen Of riinestra, when she
came into the room ~ little Hurried ard
indignant and announced that al Gin
dividuo,' evidently Il foreigner, was
waiting ID the hall and desired to speak
with mo on Il matter Of tie greatest I'M
portance. Who could it be? | wondered,
for / knew scarcely a soul, Certainly no
foreigner, in sieaa. was struck, too,
by Conee:ta's emphasized use Of the
word 'individuo," for an Italian serv-
ant is usually ready enough to give the
person tie benefit Of the doubt and
call him q signore. He must bc Il toler-
ably low specimen, l reflected, but I
felt bound to go out and interview this
most mysterious visitor.
There stood before me in tho dimly
lighted hall a being when / would have
passed without q thought in a London
street, but who here in remote Siena
compelled my closest scrutiny and arous-
ed to the full all my faculties Of obser-
walton. Ee was q small, mean creature,
with small, bald head, small. pEckered
features, small. pursed mouth and re-
cediEg chin. He had close cropped cler
lcal wiislers, and his upper lip and
chin were covered with a three days
stGhb,e. Ee was wearing a seedy brown
oyerceat and shiny black trousers. In
f;c l.,,l 1o bafl ~ I1,,!- l,llrooo1- la+
oily and crinkied With age and much
Wear, and I noticed that his i'll fitting
booss were down at the heel and showed
patches Of dirty white stocking at the
toes and sides. Waif, stray, bully. cow
ard, sneak, cad, mendicant, outcast-all
were stamped On every lineament of
him, and yet these characteristics SEEM
ed almost rEllifcd by the indcscriEable
insisnifcsEce, the hopeless pettiness Of
the creature. What was he? What could
he ever have been? I seemed to remem-
Der having seen creatures a little like
him hanging about the platforms Of
Hyde park meetings, and lie had Il GER
tain resemblance to a shabby, fawnlng
knaye who once served an uncalled for
writ upon ME.
Good evenin, Mr.. 'Utchinson,' he
said, i'll a rich, unadulterated cockney &C
cent, Il really must ~kapologize for dis
turbin a English gen1'm'n at this hour
CT the evenin." Il noticed that be strug-
gled greatly with his his, but more often
put them on than left them out. But
p'raps between one English gen'l'm'n
and another i'll foreign parts there's a
kind of brother ood. Eli, Mr.. 'Utchin-
soy? The fac is''-
80 His e%ffrontery began to anuse me a
little.
MAY l ask your name?'Isaid. "And
will you tell me what you want with
me::"
"Certainly-eertainly, Mr.. 'Utchin-
son. He unbuttoned his o7ercoat, fun
blad in a waistcoat pocket, and produced
a dirty, greasy card, Gil which was writ
ten, "The Hon. Patrick kilfnane
Winch, Castle Winch, Co. Limerick"
OF course I had often heard Of Castle
Winch it is the seat of Lord kildyke.
"You bein a English gen'l'm'n will
know my name. nc doubt, Mr.. 'Utchin-
son." he. pursued with q familiar wave
of the arm. I'm Lord Kildyke's only
brother and heir to the barony. His lord
ships lyin desperate i'll at Rome, and
can't recover. In fact, at this very mo-
ment that I'm talkin to you, l may be
Lord Kildyke with a rem roll Of E12,-
600. Mines a sad story, MI. 'Utchin-
son. l needn't trouble you with it. I've
been very much to blame. I've come
down in the world through my W
fault. All that 'orrid gamblin, Mr..
hutchinson. l 'ope you never touch a
card" with a confidential leer.) GIVE
tramped it here from Florence. I'm
trampin it to Rome to arsk pardon Of my
pore dear brother for 'avin disgraced the
family; all / arsk of you, Mr.. 'Utchin-
son, as between one English gen'l'm'n
and another, is a franc or two for a
nights lodgin and a mouthful Of food.
In the mornin I'm Off again, tramp,
tramp, tramp-'ard fate for a English
genPm'n of noble family, amt it, Mr..
,Utchinson?"
I was looking at him curiously. New
er had I been face to face with such
matchless effrontery. But what a clun-
sy scoundrel he was! Could he possibly
suppose that any one would believe that
he was a gentleman and heir to an Irish
peerage: The problem Of this strange
medley of innocence, ignorance and
brazen self assurance began to fascinate
me. | desired to study il at my leisure.
Too close a habit of studying and OBJ
serving human nature leads to rash and
morbid acts. / was about to do a SUI
premely foolish thing.