Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-09-24

| find 1t. SO had to strange him with my
| hands, he gurgling horribly, and jerking
out his arms vainly to reach his sword.
But am 4 wir9 man, and it did not take
| long. He daught at my arms once or twice
then 1 shook him off and went to FIR.
Benoit. who knelt alone. bending over the
girfs body Without word, but shivering
like man in an ague he drew back her
hood. and the moonlight streamed full upon
her face. It was the Demoiselle Alys.
| She was not quite dead. Her heart moved
feebly and her ayelids fluttered, but there
was dark trstain upon the broideries
| of her dress, where the mantle fell back,
and it grew larger we gazed.
Water,''s saidffFr. Benoit. 1 went to
where, just inside the postern gate played
a little fountain with a cup and statue OF
our lady. wrenched the cup free, filled
1t and began to mutter prayers and curses,
all mingled together in my falling tears.
Ihe gate was open and through 1t ; l saw
a figure scudding down the hill like a
scared rabbit It. was the Sieur d Audilly.
So we had, married her to a craven and
killed her into the bargain; the one deed
balanced the other. The tears dried on my
hot face as / hurried back with the brim-
ming cup.
The alarm of Logs had wakened no one.
and the court was still as death as we
bathed her white face and forced little
of the water between her lips Down in the
valley horse Weighed as it parted company
with its fellow. In a moment she opened
her eyes and said clearly, seeming to re-
call everything at once. an Oy
Where is he?"
FIR. Benoits fat face was working, and
the tears chased each other down ms
round cheeks. He looked at me In an
agony.
1t was no time to count words. I took
her hand and kissed 1t, He is dead,
madame"
She never doubted me. A bright smile
shone her little face, and her slender
| limbs relaxed. l lifted her in my arms, and
FIR. Benoit began the short absolutlon
through his tears. AS he lifted his hand
she raised her head on my arm, and looked
straight up between US and beyond. she
closed her eyes again, and we thought her
dead, but she opened them once more ana
smiled upon us, just she had Smiled over
her roses that very day.
4 hope you have not lost the red king,
said she, quite in her old voice. You are
both so careless-but lost or found, he is
| still the red kng-was it not d brave
| tOken?' Perhaps she wandered, Tor all at
once, before we knew, her bNi> eyes grew
misty, her body became heavy III my arms
and it was over.
| So died the Demoiselle Alys, who was the
brightest, merriest lady, and whom l held
on my knee before ever she was SO long as
my baubie.
FIR. Benoit rose his wet face shining in
the moonlight, and motioned me to follow
hinl-we were both past speech--and | car
ried her back, through the great door,
along the passages of the great silent
house, cropping our way, for we had 70
light, and sometimes stumbling in the
darkness. once | felt something touch me,
and heard dogs shifting at my BURDEN
the creature seemed to understand, and
whined, very softly, and followed us, pat
tering along behind US to the very chapel
door where. as no one had the heart to
thrust him back, he came in, whining as
we laid the DemoiSele AlyS upon the step
before the altar rail, where she had kne!t
as bride not half an hour before.
we fell on our knees, FIR. Benoit and J.,
and prayed while the moonlight crept
round the pillars, and grew faint in the
western windows, and the eastern window
frightened and flushed, and the birds be
gan TO tWItter in the caves. |, the fool, and
tr. Benoit, and the dog-well, there were
three hearts of US, unlike as all three were
while the Sieur d'Audilly was saving HIM
self at the rate of five leagues an hour.
So was incurred the Demoiselle Alys
who, as | said, was the merriest lady, and
even when she was the length of my bau-
bic her eyes Were as blue as pansies-only
some pansies are purple, but her eyes were
like the kind that are blue.