The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1898-03-20

20 me Win n graceful, lnpNSn COME
scending bow "The abbot is informed
Of the reasons for which secrecy is imper-
Gtivc, he continued. Il feel sure that
lou --ilI hold me excused. But we must
not suffer you to so hence without
draught of wine" His daughter went be
fore him.
| followed. down the dark staircase into
q hali-thc same evidently as that into
which | had peeped from the window of
he Eoudoir. II lay in darkness now;
even the FIRE burned low. The count car
led a lamp.
Strange figures, stranger faces. met my
yes Coat-fOOted creatures were driving
airy charints over my head cupids and
faUns and things half man, half beast or
bird, We're at thcir widest rcveIry around
ne. Eere stood lhomme aTine, his visor
up, nothing but vacant blackness behind
it, There two colossal heads, man and
woman. leered at each other. Garlands
u carved fruit ana flowers. amidst which
squirrels, monkeys ana Iittle owls Wcie
playing, wTeathcd pillar and post Of the
staircase by which we had come down.
no two were alike.
In front Of the fire stood n table; on
it a tray of polished brass, holding a
flask Of fine Venetian work, ana some
glasses.
lie seated himself in silence. 1 did
tbs same.
\ French clock or It's bracket struck.
or rather toIlcd, an hour after midnight.
Lifting his dark eyes the count fixed
them steadily upon me. / feared his
recognition too much to meet them fOy
he and | had looked at each other in
the eyes once before 1t is impossible
to mask the soul when she is sitting al
her open Windows But he had no sus-
picion.
In the course of your long life" he
said, won have no doubt seen many
strange things" lie waved his hand in
the direction of the grotescues. Did
you ever, II I may ask the question, see
house furnished in this way before
Never"
Gould it have been so furnished by
any reasonable man"
"A pOet?" 1 said tentatively.
The count shrugged mis- shoulders
There are no poets III the family"
! kept silence
The man shot himself. His son built
the little room M above. 1t has no
window to the front There his wife
lived until her death"
He glanced up at q portrait on the
wall, the features of which strongly re-
sembled his own.
NO one knows what became of him"
AS he spoke, he pulled n silk tassel
which hung by a long slender cord from
the ceiling. \ thousand lights flashed
out The heart of every carven rose be-
came a heart of flame. stars glowed
among the vine and pomegranate, eyes
Of fire shone from the Erotesque heads.
The lights the faces. the flowers and
fruit all round Wreathed themselves in
to the first letter of the name of my
enemy. Everywhere it was written. a
wave of fresh vigorous hate surged over
me.
Have you ever seen an apartment
lighted in this manner before?" he asked
II must confess that it appears to me
fantastic though very beautiful
I'VE We're not speaking of the effect,
think. 1t is unusual?"
Certainly"
THE invention is due to the father of
the present owner. He fell by his own
hand"
And the present owner?" I said
The counts expression changed. He
looked at his daughter, who had seated
hedself on a low couch by the fire. She
did not appear to be listening; but he
lowered his voice.
The present owner has one child-now
in the flower of her youth She does not
know the dreadful fate of her ancestors.
She has only been told this much-that
at the age of seventeen she will pass into
another life. She feels no fear. since she
| is going TO the mother whom. as a babe
| she lost. OF the exact moment and man
| ner of her death she has been kept in
| ignorance until within an hour of it,
Nothing has frightened, nothing has dis
| tressed her. Pure and unspotted as she
| came 10 him. he that best loves her de-
| sires to send her back to that heaven
which is more real to her than earth
! TO that heaven which VIII save her from
knowinS-aS, but for him, she must in
| failibiy know-that this earth is a hell
| Is he right?
No, / said, with a certain assur-
ance. HE is mad
The count started; but on the instant
| he was calm again.
THAT makes the fifth generation" he
| said, as if to himself. In the eyes of
ignorant persons he may be mad per
| haps. Is it not the truest sanity to pre-
| vent these horrors from eliminating in
| sixth? | cannot but approve his judg-
ment'
He turned toward the girl. She raised
her face to his. 1 saw that it was white
as marble. I thought that she was go
| ing to faint. Instinctively | seized the
| flask and poured out some of the wine
well thought of" said the count
The church, however. comes frst-eyen
| before lady.
You need refreshment more than T.
| she said, Offering me the glass
| did. And yet some word of hers recalled
| u word spoken before.
'Refreshment!'
Take no refreshment in that house -
| had but tasted. For the moment my
| senses still We're clear. I saw the count
| sprinkle drops from veil onto his hand
| kerchief and give it 10 the little lady. I
| saw her fall back softly on the couch.
Her father watched with rapt atten-
| ton. The sWashdown cloak that she had
| worn was hanging over the back of a
| chair Suddenly he tore a bit of it
| away and held it to her lips. The light
| down never stirred
I thought that ] called out. but heard
| no sound.
There was a weight of lead upon my
| eyes-the air was thick with fog. l
| fought with might and main to get to
| her. could not stir a step. 1 could
not even see her now
Making one last effort to move.
missed my footing and fell-fen. as it
| seemed, into a yawning gulf that open
/ ed suddenly before me-felI down and
down and down into the fathomless
| depths of that slumber wherein we spend
| the half Of existence.
But Lethe had been melted out I'M
| evenly; to her the sleep that knew no
earthly morrow-to me the sleep that
ended in Il few hours. leaving the rest
of life a dream.
On the day after I met the count at
8 o'clock in the morning. At o'clock
in the evening | kept my dinner engage
ment.-Coruhill Magazine.
QUEER TRADES OF PARISIANs.
Little Professions That Seem Ey-