The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-07-25

he had risked insult and election s..
her friends to carry her to a Ilac, -
>alFy. lie could not bear To Oh 49,,
Tue seas carrying the pale. unsofi,f@3
lace OF that gentle girl ever beforn M
80 a sense of DELINQUENCY to DicL
uI Always the accompaniment of doaI
60 Hep' MN from ever limiting his
story TO his host, though he knew, 4iIS
haps because he knew. thar - per
Sratlfy his enmity to the fomilr' 0uia
sudden thought struck Dick. Ho -
her mousse and her name. He -,
"Flte her note. Somebody Womb ~
sure to translate it for her. 'e
ne borrowed pen, ink and paper and
III the clean solitude of his fresh chinta
bedroom, indited the following letter:
Dear Miss Fontonelles: Please excuse
me for having skeert you. | hadn't any
call to do it; | never reckOned to do it
it was all jest my derned luck! ! only
reckoned to tell you | was lost-in them
blamed woods-don't you remember
'lost-derdoo!-and then you up and
tainted. | wouldn't have come into your
garden, only, you see, I'd just skeered
by accident, two of your help, reg lar
softys, and [ wanted to explain. | reck-
on they allowed | was that man that
that picter in the hall was painted after.
] rsckOn they took me for him, seer But
he amt my style nohow, and | never saw
the pcter at all, until after I'd toted
you. when you tainted. up to your house,
or I'd have had my authorizations and
acted according. I'd have laid low in the
woods. and got away without skeerln
you. You see what l mean? 1t was
mighty mean of me, | suppose, to have
fetched you at all, without saying Eek
cuse me, MISS and tOted you out of the
garden and up the steps into your own
parlor, without asking your leave. But
the whole thing tumbled so student. And
it didn't seem the square thing for me
to lite out and leave you lying there on
the grass. That's why. I'm sorry l skeer
that old preacher. but he came upon me
in the picter hall so student, that it was
mighty close call, | tell you, to get off
without "a shindy. Please forgive me,
Miss FontOnelles. When you get this, l
shall be going back home to America,
but you might write to me at Denver
City saying your all right. | liked your
STYLE | liked your grit in standing up to
me in the garden until you had your say,
when you thought | was the Lord knows
what, though l never understood a word
you got off not knowing French But
it's all the same now Say. I've got your
rose! Yours very respectfully.
ORCHARD FOUNTAINS.
Dick folded the epistle and put it in
his pocket He would post it himself on
the morning before he left.
When he came down stairs he found
his interchangeable host awaiting him, with
the report of the veterinary blacksmith.
There was nothing seriously wrong with
the mustang, but it would be unfit VI
travel for several days. The landlord
repeated his former offer Dick, whose
money was pretty well exhausted was
fain to accept, rejecting that she had
never seen the mustang and would not
recognize it. But he drew the line at the
sombrero, to which his host had taken al
great fancy. He had worn it before her!
Later in the evening Dick was sitting
on the low yeranda of the cafe, over.
looking the white road. A round white
table was beside him. his feet were on
the railing, but his eyes were resting
beyond on the high moldy iron gates of
the mysterious park. What he was.
thinking of did not matter, but he was
:, little impatient at the sudden appears
ance Of his host-whOm he had evade6
during the afternoon-at his side. ThG
mans manner was full of bursting To-
quacity and mysterious levity.
Truly, it was good hour when Dix
ad arrived at Fontonelles-"jus N
times" He could see T-Cw what wogiil
of imbeciles was France. What stup31l
ignorance ruled, what low cunning anlf
low tact could achieve-in effect, WI
cretans and montebanks, hypocritikNl
RESTS and licentious and lying noblekae
made up existing society. All, there ma
been a fine excitement, a regular cobb
d'theater at Fontonelles; at the chateau
yonder, here at the village, where tDe
ews was brought by frightened grooIAs
nd silly women! He had been in tie
hlck of it all the afternoon! He had
vamined it-interrogated them like a
udge CONSTRUCTION sifted it. And what
! as it all! An attempt by these wretched
, priests and noblesse to revive in the
10Th century-the age Of electricity aid
, Pullman cars-a miserable mediaeVal
gend of an apparition-a miracle! YES;
! one is asked to believe that at the cha
teau yonder was seen last night ti4ee
times the apparition of Armand de I'm
f tonelles!'
| Dick started. armand de Fonttn-
: ellesr' He remembered that she had Ne
peated the name who's hep he Ne
handed abruptly.
'The first Comte de Fontonellhs!
= When monsieur knew that h efirst cOmte
had been dead 300 years-he would see
he imbecility of the affair.""
"Wot did he come back for?" growled
Dick
"Ah! 1t was legend Consider its
; artfulness! The Comte Armand had
been hard liver, dissipated scoundfel,
a reckless beast, but mighty hunter Of
the stag. 1t was said that on one of
: these occasions he had been warned by
the apparition of st. Hubert, but he had
laughed, for observe, he always jefEed
, at the priests, too, hence this story Ind
had declared that the flaming cross her
! between the horns of the sacred&Rta IA.
was only the torch of poacher, and HI
would shoot it. Good! The body on
eomte, dead, but without a wound H.,
found in the wood the next day, Mil
: his discharged arquebus in his NOD
,, The archbishop of ROuen refused his