Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-08-10
A TALE OF GREECE.

A young Irish officer of British regi.
ment quartered at Corfu was in the habit
of hunting frequently in Greece. One day
while following doe be became separated
from his companions and lost his way.
After considerable wandering he at last
came in sight of tho Ionian sea, with its
numerous and beautiful islands. The day
was now, however, far spent, and it was
with much delight that from tho top Of a
hill he espied the white walls of Greek
cottage before him. He determined at all
risks to seek admission for an asylum for
the night. He approached tho door, which
he found shut. He knocked loudly with
his hunting whip, and quickly the door
was opened by u Greek female, the love
lest his eyes had ever rested on. The
young huntsman made his misfortunes
and his wishes known to her in as good
Albanian as he could muster, to which
she replied in Italian and invited him in.
The cause of manhood and misfortune
seldom finds deaf ear among the ladies,
and this beautiful Greek yielded to its in
1uence, and readily offered him an asy-
lum, telling him at the same time that
he must depart at daybreak, for if her
male friends, who bore no great love to
the English, caught him there he might
repent his intrusion.
| Costello-for such was the officers name
readily resented, and ioyfully took pos
session of uhe small chamber the beautiful
| Zoraida showed him for the night. He
even, in the ecstasy Of his admiration for
| his beautiful hostess, nearly forgot his
| poor steed. His recollection, however
quickly returned, and he sailed out to the
| stable and made the necessary arrange
ments for its comfort himself. The pCcul-
| iarity of his situation nota little surprised
| him. Alone, amid the desert mountains
| of Albania, with the most beautiful woman
| his eyes ever rested on, and conjecture
| seemed at a stand to account for her soil
| tary situation. Ills true, she had spoken
! of male relations, but he had as yet seen
no human form in that solitude except
| herself There was neatness about the
| cottage which scarcely belonged to Il Greek
| peasant, and her language, although
| Greek in habit and appearance, was pure
| Tuscan
On his return from the stable be found
| his beautiful hostess had prepared suit
| able collation., which, with cup of the
|
| his fatigue She seemed not'unwilling to
| enter into conversation. Costello was a
| good linguist. Having been some time
in Florence, he spoke the genuine Tuscan
| with sufficient fluency. He therefore will
| ingly seized the opportunity offered Of en-
| tering into conversation in that language,
| to which her soft, melodious voice lent an
additional harmony.
| Her story was short. She belonged to
party of brigands who occupied this re-
| treat among the mountains, from whence
| they made excursions on the plains for
| plumber on one of which they were now
absent. They had lately come from the
opposite coast of Calabria, and her father,
who was the head of the gang, was orig
inally from Pisa, where she had been
brought up, which accounted for the pu-
rity of her language.
She was, she said, tired of that kind of
| life, which was now doubly odious to
her, as her father was forcing her to marry
| ono Of his own gang-a young Albanian
| whose habits and disposition she could not
| fancy.
| She owned she was unhappy, and the
| downcast melancholy of her beautiful
| eyes too well attested the truth of her as
sertion. Costello felt for her, to which
! perhaps the extreme beauty Of her appear.
| ance not little tended. He resolved to
rescue her. Yet how to effect it he did not
| know. 1t was more easily thought Of than
executed. In the ardor of the moment he
mentioned it to her. He urged her to fly
with him. Sho hesitated-she resisted.
| At last she yielded.
| iRv,t NOT now ~ cniI che &C Ouct
again see my father. Poor, miserable old
mani He will now have nobody to watch
over him-to pray for him Perhaps he
may even fall victim to his own blood
thirsty companions Return" she con
tinued, "to your own quarters. Prepare 9
| few servants to attend you, and in the
next dark of the moon meet me under
yonder rock at midnight and I shall be
prepared to accompany you to some place
where you may be able to procure safe
escort for me back to Pisa"
Costello promised all she asked. He re
| tired to rest, and the next morning at day
J break started off on his return to Corfu,
bearing with him the image of the beauti
| full Zoraida strongly impressed ON his i'm
agination.
Another week passed on without their
| meeting. Still Zoraida was uppernost in
| his thoughts. The moon had now arrived
at that point in her orbit at which, even
| in that delightful climate, she wells her
| light for short time, and Costello, thinly
| attended and ignorant of tho errand of
| danger he was entering on, prepared tc
| put in execution his intention of rescuing
| the beautiful Zoraida and making her his
| own.
He found no difficulty in retracing his
route, and, leaving his servants and horses
| at the foot of the mountain, joyfully as
| cended the rock, armed simply with his
| sword and a case of pistols.
An overhanging mountain sheltered all
| from the back, while before them stretched
the fair plains and valleys Of Epirus,
though now shaded by the veil OF night.
Another moment, and Costello held the
beautiful Zoraida in his arms. They had
just turned to descend to the horses when
two brigands rushed from behind the
rock, and with cry of 'Faithless Tor
aida !" "Villain Inglesel" plunged dag
ger into each of their hearts. The follow.
ing morning saw the corpses of the beauti
full Zoraida and the unfortunate Costello
in the market place Of Corfu.-New York
News.
William Mckinley.
When President Mckinley was governor
of Ohio, his father was still alive The