Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1900-10-18

Father Beret, missionary, hero aud
leader Of men. It VAS be who had
taught Alice TO fence with such
skill. fer be had learned many
things besides theology in far.away
France.
NIncennes was iu closer SYM
pathy with st. Louis and New Or
leans than with its nearer neighbor,
Detroit. because of TIE affinity Of
race. Frenchmen lived at VIM
cennes and to the south and west,
while Englishmen held Detroit and
made a claim to the vast territory
lying south of the lakes and north
of Mexico. When Father Gibault
arrived at Vincennes from Kas-
kaskia and ST. Louis, the lnhabi.
tants were quite ready to listen to
hia and to swear allegiance to the
United States. When Captain
Leonard Helm and Lieutenant Fitz-
hugh Beverley came to Vincennes
to take charge, the American flag
was already flying over the old fort.
1t was beautiful flag, made by
Alice and Madam Godiere. Bever-
ley was Immediately impressed with
this charming girl, called Alice
Roussillon, bat whose real name
was Alice Tarleton. Big Gaspard
Rouisillon, the great man Of Vim
cennes, had taken her from some
Indians when she was 12 years old.
Save q gold loeket, a string of
pearls and a slip of paper bearing
the words "Alice Tarleton," there
was no clue as to the origin of the
child, who had been a prisoner
among the Indians for some time.
Rouisillon brought her up as his
daughter
The story of the growth of Bev-
erley's love and of Alice's response
is worth the reading 1t was when
Beverly told Alice about his hand
some old home in Virginia that she
confided to him that she was not
French, and showed him her locket
with the miniature of herself at
two years old. On the reverse of
the locket Beverley saw the crest
of the Tarletons and recognized it.
He was glad that Alice was equal
to him in point of family.
Their dream of love was inter-
rupted by the arrival of Lieuten-
ant-Governor Hamilton from De-
troit with a force against which
Captain Helm could not stand.
Only Helm and Beverley were in
the fort, their French colleagues
being out IN the forests hunting.
Then it was that Alice resolved to
save the beautiful flag which she
had helped to make. Climbing up
to the roof of the blockhouse she
took it down and hid it. This was
the beginning Of her persecution at
the hands of Hamilton, who de-
manded that the flag be surrender
ed TO him. The story tells why it
was not, and the trouble which
Alice was compelled to bear.
Here is bit of description Of
how Alice repealed the British when
they attacked Gaspard Rouisillon
at his home. Rouisillon had put
out the light and escaped, as it was
best be should, but the red coats
we're furious.
"Alice had snatched down one Of
her rapiers when the guards first
entered. They now saw her facing
them With her slender blade leveled, !,
her back to the wall, her eyes shin
ing dangerously. Nine. RouisilIon
had fed into tho sdjoiuing room.
Jean had also disappeared. The
officer, a subaltern. in charge Of
the guard, seeing Alice, and not
quickly abe to make ont that it
was a woman thus defying him,
crossed swords with her. There
was small space for action; more
over, the officer being not in the
least a swordsman, played awkward
~, and quick as q flash his point
was down. The rspier entered just
below his throat with a dull, chuck
ing stab. He leaping backward. /"
The wound was not fatal, but il
snfficed to show to Hamilton that
the nimble and quickwitted girl
who had defied him was = foe to be
feared. She was imprisoned, and
then it was that her persecution
made Fitzhugh Beverley tell Ham
ilton that he would no longer re-
gard his parole, and would escape