Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1902-06-11

1
his brow knotted. He smarted, too,
from Marie's last remark. He did not
know that with all these bitter
speeches she was ready to fall upon
his breast and cry till she had emptied
her heart out. But she had been hui
INFLATED once, and she would rather
die than be humbled again, whether he
meant it so or not.
The room was empty, but it could
not be SO long for sentimental groups
would wander back from the supper
room.
AS Alphonse disappeared Camille
said: "Marie, I'm seeing things us
never saw them before. want to talk
with you alone. just ten minutes; that's
all ask, but alone, where no one can
interrupt u.s.
would 1t be right?' she asked. He
1 could not tell whether she was iron
ical or not.
SIT shall be right" he said stoutly.
you won't mind If it's cold?" she
questioned.
II won't mind anything If you'll only
give me that ten minutes" he answer
ed. "But If it's going to be cold wrap
yourself up WELL"
He took mans coat from the wall.
Come" she said and opened mar
row door that led into little hallway.
AS she did so he threw the coat over
her shoulders.
"Give me your hand" she added
| and, taking it, led the way for half a
dozen steps in the dark. Then she took
| key from the wall and turned it in a
lock, which clicked back rustily.
Its my brother Philippe's room,"
she said as she stepped inside. he fol-
lowing.
The moonlight on the frosted pane
gave ghostly kind of light to the
chamber. Marie felt along the wall for
matchbox.
ooh. there's not a match here" she
added.
Feel in that overcoat pocket" he
suggested. "Its owner is smoker
smell it."
She did so and drew out q handful.
He took one and scratched 1t on the
wall. Neither of them knew 1t, but 1t
was Alphonse's coat. Camille lit n
half burnt candle that stood on chest
of drawers and then turned to Marie.
eve have never used the room since
Philippe died." she said
81 did not know" he rejoined gently.
Philippe had been to Montreal"
she said. "There he'd fallen In with a
| girl"-her voice faltered-"an actress.
He came back to see US, and mother
begged him not to go to Montreal
again, for we knew-a priest had writ
ten to us about the girl. One day he
got paper. He opened it at dinner.
He saw something, gave cry and
fell against the table. Ellie est morte!
She is dead! he cried. A man had shot
the girl because she loved Philippe.
1t reemed to Philippe that he himself
had Tiled her; that If he had been
with her 1t wouldn't have happened.
Since then the room has been as 1t was
the day he died."
Outside the trees were swapping in
the frost, and now and again dull
boom told that the ice was cracking
on the rivera night of deep wrench
ing frost, the snow three feet deep. the
cold steely sky brooding above. Pres
emily as the two stood there the bells
of the parish church rang out. was
midnight, the morning of new
year. There were voices, to, Of men
singing as they drove past the house,
sleigh bells joining with the song and
the church bells. They could not hear
the words. but they knew the air, and
they knew what the song was.
Three men went forth to WOO maid
| Heigho, those lovers three!
And the first one was rowing blade,
And the second came from cloister's
shade.
And the third from the gallows tree.
C'est ca! Ho. no! C'est cal
Try as Camille would, the second
verse e !, song kept beating in his
ears. II did not leave him all that
night, and 1t followed him for many
q day with kind of savage irony.