Catoctin clarion., 1897-04-29

do not trust her. It is not to her interest
that should prevail; nor can st. Helena
ever be forgotten. And before go-if,
indeed, destiny decides that must go-l
shall prepare the way by sending to the
United States in advance treasure suffi-
cient to meet whatever needs may arise.
And it is this treasure, mon ami, which
wish you to take charge of and forth
with convey to its destination"
Solange lifted his heavy eyebrows.
"Well, truly, that is not SO much Of
an undertaking, my emperor" said he,
though, to be sure, gold weighs good
deal. Are there many boxes Of it"
''Only one, captain, and that does not
contain gold" replied Napoleon, with
smile. Moreover, it is not 80 large but
that you may lift it with one hand, See
there it stands in the corner"
THAT! Why, sire, 1t is but band box"
exclaimed Solange, following the direc-
ton of Napoleon's finger "Surely, nei-
ther courage nor address is required to
carry such thing to its destination
Cannot the mails take itl''
Bring it ont and place it or this table"
said the emperor, still smiling Solange
obeyed. The box was of size to be easily
carried in the arms. 1t was Of oak, with
plain exterior; but it was strongly put
together, the framework of steel, painted
to resemble wood. Napoleon put key
in the lock and opened it.
Solange peeped in and saw some folds
of woolen cloth. The emperor lifted
them up.
Perhaps no spectacle more remarkable
was ever offered to the eyes of man. The
box was full of jewels. Precious stones
Of inestimabe value lay packed together,
like SO many walnuts in a bunch. There
were single gems worth years pay Of a
division of an army. They were all
separated from their settings and boro
no distinguishing mark except their un-
common size. Heaped closely together
in this manner, the splendor and brill
lance of their hues was in great measure
disguised, and they might have been
mistaken for tinted crystals or even bits
of glass. Indeed, it was difficult for the
mind to conceive Of such concentration
of wealth. A single handful of the con-
tents of this box would be enough to
make man rich for life. There was
not one that was not Of royal magnii-
cence. Where had they all come from2
That is question that doubtless never
can be answered. Napoleon the First,
in his campaign, had an eye to the Pc
cuniary future of his dynasty, and he
must have helped himself with free
hand whenever opportunity offered.
Could those stones have spoken, they
might have told tales that would make
the enchanted valley of Sinbad and Alad-
din's palace seem tame. There were
few superb rings in the collection. but
otherwise, as has been stated, all were
naked.
Solange was far enough from compre-
hending the significance of the sight.
"Are these all, sire?" he asked. lifting
his eyes to the emperors face.
"They could be exchanged for good
deal of money" returned Napoleon quiet
ly. "Have you any idea how much?"
''In truth, don't know much about
such things. | never owned jewels in
my life. But now, then, | remember. A
friend of mine once had one, not SO large
as the least of these, which he said cost
thousand francs. OF course, did not
believe such a story, but were it only
half true can understand that all these
would be very valuable. Many thousand
francs, perhaps; fifteen or twenty thou
sand?'
"A philosopher, possibly-if he were
really philosopher value them
at less than that sum-" said Napoleon,
who had been watching the soldiers face
keenly without seeming to do SO. "But
our artificial modes of life tend to give
them an artificial worth. Besides. they
nave the interest of history and associa-
tions. Most of them belonged to my
famous uncle, and were obtained by him
during his campaigns. Others came in
other ways. Blood has been split for
them; romances are connected with
them. At the present time, however,
there are but one or two persons, in ad-
dition to ourselves, who are aware that
this collection exists. The secret could
not be safely divulged, for men have
risked and lost both their lives and their
souls for less than thousandth part the
money that these stones would bring"
Solange opened his eyes, "Of course,
then, my guess was too small-much too
SMALL" he remarked. Fifty thousand
francs, thenl" The emperor's face re-
mained inscrutable. Solange took long
breath. Come, let us say a hundred
thousand?" he exclaimed, recklessly.
"That seems to be an immense sum-"
said Napoleon.
"Assuredly, it would seem SO to any
man. A man might labor night and day
for a hundred years and not get together
80 much rs that"
Every true Nevertheless, my brave
Solange, if were to pay you every day
this sum of one hundred Thousand francs
and continue those payments, not for a
week, or a month, or a year, but for
fourteen years, should still have paid
you barely the value in gold represented
by this little boxful of stones. They are
worth, in other words, at least five hun
dred million francs"
The soldiers jaws gaped, but came to-
gether again without a sound. His bluff
visage became pale. He stared stupidity
around him. He moistened his dry lips
with his tongue, bnt still was unable to
utter word.