Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-08-31

Madame F., who. missing our arrival the
night before, came now to bid well
come and inquire as to our satisfaction
with arrangements. etc. She was q short
woman of surprising breadth and more
surprising velocity OF speech. She could
pronounce more words to the single
breath than any other person / have ever
met. She was German by birth and spoke
French with strong German accent.
while her English was a thing to wiring
the soul. sprinkled as it was with Ger
man "unds, 'ufs' and "yousts,' ard
French ices and Eats" Our French
being of the slow and precise kind and
her English of the rafting and at first
ircomprehensibe type. the conversation
was somewhat confused. But even SO,
my friends noticed with surprise that
madame did not address one word of well
come to me. They fastened to introduce
me, using my married name. A momen-
tary annoyance came into her face. then
she dropped her lips haughtily, swept me
from head to foot with one contemptuous
glance, and without even the faintest nod
III return to my, "Bonh-j jour, madame!"
she turned to Mrs. p, who, red with in
dignation, was trying to sputter out n
demand for an explanation and asked
swiftly: "Und, Eat ozzer lady? you was
to be tree-n'estce pas? She hav' not
come yet. Tomorrow, perhaps-und-
und. q saw what was coming, but my
companions suspected nothng) IND
she dropped her lids again and indicated
me with a contemptuous movement of the
head-'she-zat maid den, you want to
make arrange, for her? You hav' not
write for room for Eat maid?' i leaned
from the window to hide my laughter, for
1T seemed to mesT that Col p. jumped
foot, while the cry of his wife drowned
the sound of short, warm word that is
of great import to angry men. Before
they could advance one word of explana-
ton, an aproned waiter fairly burst into
the room, crying for Madame! Madame!
to come quick-for that Jules was at it
very bad again. And she wildly rushed
ont saving her shoulder. 'bV ind
by-we zee for dat maid, und about Eat
oZzer lady-by and by" and so departed
at run with a great rafting of starch
and f1uttering of cap ribbons, for Jules |
the head cook. already in the first stages |
of delirium tremens, was making himself |
interesting to the guests by trying to |
jump into the fountain basin to save the
lives of the tiny ducklingS, who were |
happily swimming there. and Madame +. |
was sorely needed. Yes, I laughed |
laughed honestly at the helpless wrath of |
my friends, and pretended to laugh at the
mistake, but all the time I was saying
to myself: Had / really been acting as
maid. how cruelty / should have suffered
under that contemptuous glance and from
that withheld bow of recognition She
had found well dressed, intelligent and
well mannered-yet she had insulted me.
because she believed me to be a lady's
maid. No wonder women find service bit
ter.
Profuse Apologies.
We had retired from the breakfast room
and were arranging our plans for the day,
when a sort of whirlwind came rushing
through the hall-the door sprang open, |
almost without a pronounced permission,
and Madame F. flung herself into the room
my hands in hers-pressed them
to her heart-to her lips-to her brow Wept
in German. in French in English. and
called diStractedly upon 'Himmel!' 'Ciel!'
und Heaven But she found her apollo
gies coldly received by my friends that
she was glad to turn the flood of her re-
morse in my direction, and for very shame
of the scene she was making | assured
her the mistake was quite pardonable Gas
it vast her manner that was al
most unpardonable). Then she added to |
my discomfort by bursting out with full
some praise of me as an actress-how she |
had once seen and had wept, and-so
on and on-she being only at last walked
and talked gently out of the room But
that was not the end of her remorse A
truly French bouquet, with its big white
paper petticoat, arrived in about an hour
From the so madly mistooken Madame
F., the card read, and that act of pen
ance was performed every morning as long
as L remained in Paris. But day she
appealed to the colonel for pity and SYM
pathy. All" said she Il have re two
tr ubles-zee two sorrow. 1 have zee grief
to wound zee feeln's of Eat so fine actrice
ees one trubles und den
l have zee shame to make Eat grande fool
mon Dieu, I take her for
zee mald-und Zare my most great tr'uble
come in! l have no one with zee right to
keek me-to keek me hard from zee back,
for being such fool. l say NIT my hus-
band Eat night. will you keek me-hard. if
you please? But he cant-he have zee
govt in zee grande toe und he can't keek
worth one sou! und Eat is my second
tr' ube!'
Behind her broad back the colonel con-
fessed that had she expressed such a wish
on the occasion of the mistake he would
willingly have obliged her, as he was quite
free from govt.
SO any woman who goes forth to win her
living as an. actress will at least be spared |
the contemptuous treatment bestowed on
me in my short service as amateur lady's
maid.