The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-05-16
CHAPTER VIII.
A PEACEFUL HOUR.

| TEMPER, 16fO, were ike perfect GAYS
| and nights in June. when soft winds
stir and the blue air scintillates under
! the semmed rays of the sun. The
mornings were fresh and exquisite. the
| sunsets gorgeous, the midnight heav-
ems magnificent.
On the afternoon of the 18th of Sep
TENDER. the day set by General Trochu
for a grand review of the National and
| Mobile guards, Bourke, returning from
the city, found Hardwood writing his
weekly synopsis OF the situation for the
! Boston Tribune.
! Hello he said. looking up from mis-
desk. easily. did you forward our mail
matter. Cecil?"
! Bourke nodded and sat down on the
bed. Hardwood. coat off, shirt sleeves
rolled up, relighted his pipe and con-
tinued writing.
When ne had finished, Bourke, lying
on the bed, was sleeping lightly, but
| he woke as Harewood's chair scraped
across the floor.
Tired, Cecil?" asked Hardwood.
"A little. walked from the Arc to
| the Place de la Bastille-"
| "WheE" exclaimed HARDWOOD
What for, to see the review? Was it
worth the trouble?''
Yes There's a bit of excitement in
the city," yawned Bourke, sitting up,
his eyes still puckered by the light, his
| hair in disorder.
THAT review" he continued, was
significant, Jim. 1 saw 100000 men in
| line from the Arc TO the Place de la
Bastiile, all bawlirg the 'Marseillaise'
and all of them nothing but National
| guards and Mobiles. They made a
| great deal of noise"
WAS it impressive?" asked Hare
wood
They made great deal of noise"
repeated Bourke.
"Ohp'
"They are not regulars, of course. 1
don't know what they can do. 1t was
queer not to see the uniforms every
body expects to see in Parasitic crir-
assiers, you know-and the rest. The
people are acting foohshly, anyway.
| think. They're stark mad over the new
republic. They're changing the names
| of the streets. too. The Rue Bonaparte
Royale is the Place de Vosges-Oh, the
whole business is too childish-toc gro
tesque! Think of wasting time and
energy in such foolish occupa-
| lions, with a couple of hun
/ bred thousand German soldiers
| heaven knows how close to the gates!
Why, Jim, they have even scratched the
| imperial n from the bridges. and the
public buildings, and have painted LID
erty, Equality, Fraternity over every
thing. Victor Hugo and Edgar Quln-
tet are dancing cancans on the ram
parts, hurting odes and lyrics at the
! Prussiansi Think how Moltke must
| grinl But their browning madness mas
| lust been accomplished. In spite of the
/ governor of Paris and the minister of
war. they have decreed that all officers
of Mobiles shall be elected by their own
soldiers! What frightful Stupidity!
What became of the Mobiles and
national guard? Gone to the forts?'
"Some-the Mobiles The others are
scattered. They are to police the city
and ramparts l fancy we'll have Few
here soon. Today the SO gates of the
city, and all the railroad tunnels nave
been closed until the s'ege ends. They re
establishing drawbridges over the
moats. l tried to cable that, but the
censor cut it out. By the way, SO-odd
words OF your Tuesday dispatches were
cut out. too. Don't swear, jim"
Hardwood began to qualify the CEN
sor with such energy that Bourke, I'M
able TO control his laughter. went into
his own room and shut the door.
"Predestined IDIOT" muttered Hare<
wood, scowling at his manuscript.
Now, I suppose he'll also cut this to
suit his own degraded intelligence" He
showed back in his chair and looked out
of the window, sulky, impatient, a lit
Tie at DOuIAc - dAluSSAAiCht.
For he cared a great deal about his
work He labored faithfully to acquire
a literary style. His style, at its best,
was simple and honestly direct, often
forceful, and sometimes clear. To have
a French censor butcher and garble it
always made him furious, but he was
always able to enjoy the good natured
banter of his comrades when he had
cooled down. 1t was his first service as
correspondent in the field, and he
learned that there was little romance
in it, He learned other things, too. He
found that electricity had nothing to
do with the speed of kilograms, but
that their CELEBRITY was regulated entire
ly by the diplomacy and generosity of
the sender. He learned when to bride
and when not to-wiien to use the wires
and when to use the mails-when to
see, when to be blind-when to speak
when TO remain silent. He found that
there were four things which army Off
GERS dreaded-bad roads, the war de-
partment, typhus and war correspond
ents. The could become habituated to
the first three plaques, but it needed
the diplomacy of Disraeli to reconcile
a general to the infiiction of newspa-
per men. However, when this was once
accomplished, half the battle might be
considered won. The other half of the
battle was in reality a duel-a perpet-
ual assault upon a cool, polite, often
playful, often sympathizing official,
who apparently possessed an Unsuitable
thirst for literature. and who took the
closest personal interest in the perusal
of manuscripts. This official was the
dreaded censor. Hardwood had easily
won half the battle-but what man
can affirm that anybody except the CEN
Sor ever won the other half? OF course
1t was not difficult to evade censorship
for a while but indiscretion meant not
only personal inconvenience, but also
ultimate expulsion.
Hardwood sat moodily by the window,
biting the amber pipe stem, staring alb
sently across the Notifications opposite,
where, beyond wrapped in a sapphire
haze, the valley of the Bievre lay, green
and brilliant, under the showered sun
shine. To the east dun-colored va
por hung over the Meudon woods, to
the south the sun glittered with tiny
point of fire. Everywhere lay patches
of green woods, checkered eXpanses of
yellow grain stubble, and ploughed
ground, squares of paler green where
cabbages grew, or blots of sombre YER
dure. marking potato fields. White
spires rose beyond rHay; greenhouses.
roofs sparkling, clustered along the
route to Fontenay, and over all the
great warders of the valley doomed,
purple through the mist, majestic, mys-
terious--Fort Ivry, Fort Bicetre. Fort
Montrouge and Fort Vanves.
Bourke sauntered in presently. note
book open, pipe lighted. Forgot to
tell you something" he said, between
his teeth. II found out that Jules
Favre contemplates making overtures
to Bismarck. What do you think of
that? Rather a tumble. after his dip
Iomatic twaddle-eh, Jim?" He took his
pipe out of his mouth with gesture IF
disgust.