Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-08-26

/ lOO uetp LOT WOTuS! IL So, L 10 nOI
wonder at it, for the lady is extremely
! lovely
He glanced quickly at me.
! Did I not say SOP" he exclaimed.
OF all creatures under heaven she is
surely the most perfect Even you.
/ conte, with your cynical ideas about
women, even you were quite subdued
and influenced by her; 1 could see
(! it,"
| I pulled slowly at my cigar and
pretended to mediate.
Was To- I said at last, with an air
of well-acted surprise. Really sub
dued and Influenced? I do not think
SO. But | admit l have never seen
a woman so entirely beautiful
He stopped in his walk, loosened his
arm from mine, and regarded me
fixedly.
Il told you So he said, deliberately.
You must remember that I told you
so. And now perhaps ought to warn
YOU
Warn met" I exclaimed, in feigned
| alarm. "Of what? against whom :?
Surely not the Contessa Romani. to
whom you were so anxious to intro
duce me? She has no illness. no in
fictitious disorder? She is not danger
Gus to life or limb, is she?"
Ferrari laughed at the anxiety dis
played for my own bodily safety-an
anxiety which I managed to render
almost comic-but he looked somewhat
relieved too.
oh, no." he said, ri meant nothing
OF that kind. I only think it fair to
tell you that she has very seductive
manners, and she may pay you little
man who was not aware that they are
attentions which would flatter anv
only a part of her childlike, pretty
ways; in short, they might lead him
enormously to suppose himself the OBJ
1ect of her particular preference.
any"
L broke into a violent fit of laughter,
and clapped him roughly on the shout
der.
our warning is quite unnecessary,
my good young friend" I said. Come
now, do I look likely man to attract
the attention Of an adored and CAPRI
cious beauty? Besides. at my age the
IDEA is monstrousi I could figure as
her father, as yours, if you like, but
IN the capacity of a lover-impossible
He eyed me attentively.
"She said you did not seem old" he
murmured, half to himself and half
to me.
"Oh, I grant you she made me that
little compliment, certainly" I an
sWered, amused at the suspicious that
evidently tortured his mind: land 7
accepted it as it was meant-in kind
ness. [ am we'll aware what a bat
tered and unsightly wreck of a man I
must appear in her eyes when con-
trasted with you, Sir Antinousi"
He flushed warmly. Then. with a
half-apologetic air, he said:
We'll, you must forgive me if I have
seemed prescriptions. The contes-
sd is like a-sister to me; in fact, my
late friend Fabio encouraged a frater-
nal affection between us, and now he
is gone l feel it more than ever my
duty to protect her, as it were, from
herself. She is so young and light
hearted and thoughtless that-but you
understand me, do you not?'
1 bowed. l understood him perfect
ly. He wanted no more poachers on
the land he himself had differed.
Cutie right, from his point of view!
But l was the rightful owner OF the
land after all, and I naturally had a
different opinion Of the matter How
ever, l made no remark, and feigned
to be rather bored by the turn the
conversation was taking. Seeing this,
Ferrari eXerted himself to be agree
able; he became a gay and entertain
ing companion once more, and after
he had fixed the hour for our visit to
the Villa Romani the next afternoon,
our talk turned upon various matters
connected with Naples and it's inhabit-
ants and their mode of life. I hazard
ed a few remarks on the general i'm
morality and loose principles that pre-
vailed among the people, just to draw
my companion out and sound mis- char
acter more oroughly-though I sup
posed I knew his opinions well.
Pooh, my dear conte," he exclaimed,
with light laugh, as he threw away
the end of his cigar, and watched it
as it burned DULY like a little red
lamp among the green grass where it
had fallen, what is immortality after
all? Merely matter of opinion. Take
the hackneyed virtue of conjugal idel-
end, what is the good of it-what does
it lead? Why should a man be tied
to one woman when he has love
enough for twenty? The pretty slen-
der girl whom he chose as a partner
in his impulsive youth may become a
fat, coarse, red-faced female horror by
the time he has attained to the full
vigor of manhood; and yet, as long as
she lives, the law insists that the full
tide of passion shall flow always in
one direction-always to the same dull,
level, improbable shorei The law is
absurd, but it exists; and the natural
consequence is that we break it. So
ciety pretendS to be Mortified when we
do-yes, I know; but it is all pretence.
And the thing is no worse in Naples
than in London, the capita, Of the
m oral British race, only here we are
perfectly frank, and make 10 effort to
| hide our little sins, while there, they