Anadarko daily democrat. [volume] (Anadarko, Oklahoma) 1901-190?, 1902-05-09

One of the most touching pictures
ever seen by mortal eyes since the
three crosses stood out against the
darkening sky, must have been that of
Abraham Lincoln looking on at the
slave auction in New Orleans one day
away back, long before he had become
a nations idol, only to find a martyrs
grave.
An old weazened Frenchman, with
a scornful turn of his aristocratic old
profile, told me the story of his attend
ance at the slave auction that day.
why, yes, | remember the fellow
WELL" said the old Frenchman, in an
swer to my inquiry, cannot give the
story in all its charm, as it came in
broken French from beneath the
snowy mustache, because l was so
thrilled by the picture conjured up by
the story that l could give little at
tention to the accent. Yes, in those
days l always lik 10 go down to re
levee" (would that / could give you
the quaint, delicious accent, half Pari-
sian French. half 'Cajen, wholly
N'0rleans), 81 meet such strange peo-
pie down there, In my fathers house
all say one thing-nothing new at all.
An, as l say, when ] went to the slave
auction that day-loyely, sunshiny
day, JUS lik' always come here Mardi
Gras time, who should see standing
there but that tall, how you call him?
lanky fiatboatman knew down on re
levee. My lille heart jump, so glad
to see him. but he look sad, vera sad
as he smile at me an he reach down
an took my lille han in his, oh! so
vera hard one, an he hoP her so tight
| feel frightened l know not why
he look so sad. On what they call re
block was only a yellow gal-Mme.
--'s Suzanne, an they were selling
her. remember right we'll she was a
fine figure of girl; remember that
yet" and the famous old roue laughed
softly and sweetly under the weight
Of his ninety summers.
Eyes, | remember Eat yet" he
chuckled 'it's re climate of zis Nor
leans, l tink. But l go on an tell
| yOh aDCuI &c lhdhs Dul, nOy lhtlt lOl
anything to tell, but he look vera sad.
An he hoP my lille han so vera
tight, lik' toll you, an l feel fright
ened lille while, zen | laf' an | say,
She only niger gal, and he hol' my
han too hard zen, an he say sof lik'
to hisself, She's woman, my God!'
An 1 laf' again, lille fellow lik me,
an say, L know zat, but he did not
laf, and he turn an walk away lik'
he thinkin' to hisself.
After zat day l never see him on
Le levee nor at all; an l cannot be-
live anything lik' Eat max me
sad, an Mardi Gras time comm, too,
but l did feel sad lille bit, because l
love to fin him on re levee, an | new
sr forget Eat name. The next time I
heard it-well, we will not now speak
Of Eat time. There was something
strange bout him, an"
The feeble old voice quivered slight
ly as he continued, "an' somehow /
never could forget re fellow; 1t all
ZONES back to me now, an | see him
lust as he looked Eat day. cannot
forget him, but -" and the old
aristocrat of ''la belle France" and the
Rnte-bellun south folded his small,
Ihrivelled hands, "but of course he was
only one Of re people. an we cannot
blame him for his views. sir; views
which we could never share, sir,
never"
And the old Frenchman looked very
grave as he sat there in the balmy sun
shine of his wide gallery" thinking.
perhaps, of how absurdly serious "ze
people" could allow themselves to
become about mere trifies Foolish,
sir, perfeckly foolish. Chicago Inter
Ocean.