The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1903-09-05

Il
was solidity, richness and quietude IL
all of the appointments of the equip
age which spoke of wealth and breed
ing. Harding noted that the coachmar
] was well past middle life. There wal
no footman.
A door of the carriage swung open
and woman stepped out. She wal
swarthy, fat and old, her iron gray
hair showing under her black bonnet
She could not have been much under
20 years, but was hale and strong and
descended lightly in spite of her flesh.
Once on the ground she turned and
held out hand to some one still in
side.
There met hers hand slender, white
wrinkled and venous. 1t closed like the
meager claw of bird. 1t was a left
hand and on the forefinger blazed and
rioted single diamond larger than a
filbert, white stone of violet and
crimson fires, an almost priceless
stone. 1t seemed to throw CLEANS Of
light upon the brittle wrist above it.
There came from the carriage, step
ping stiffiy down, woman whose face
was skull with dead skin stretched
across it. The upper lip was shortened
by painful nervous contraction, show
ing all of the teeth in front. The nose
was thin to tenuity, the chin sharp.
The eyebrows were as white as snow
and beneath them were eyes of brill
liant and tender blue, the only living
things in that face. The mass Of
snowy hair, dressed in the fashion IT
the early sixties, bore only wreath Of
orange blossoms. The talons of the
right hand clutched an enormous bou-
quet of orange blossoms. From head
to foot the woman was ROBBED in bridal
white; white satin slippers met her
white stockings on high instep;
about her wasted neck was a circle of
pearls, from her snowy hair to the
hem of her snowy silken gown fell a
snowy veil.
She spoke in thin voice. This voice
had dried and wasted as she had dried
and wasted. She said:
"Once again, Clara! Oh! once
again!"
She walked slowly to the grave and
laid the blossoms upon it, then sunk
upon her knees, raised the CHASTITY
hands to the CHASTITY face and bowed
her head. The other woman stood
rigid, her face set, looking afar OF and
silent. So she stood through five min
nj h<, 10 - r1x
upon her companions shoulder.
"Come!" she said.
mot yet" was the answer. The
kneeling woman rose and going to the
shaft laid her forehead against it. Then
she turned and spoke:
eve must talk of him first. could
not go away without talking of him.
He was handsome and brave, was he
not? So handsome and brave and
good. And he died long ago-long ago.
Tell me how he died, Clara?"
HE died in the last charge, under
his flag. Its silk was over his face
when they found him."
"You were his sister, yet you have
not grieved as / grieved, Clara"
II was his sister, but you were near
er and dearer to him."
"And on this day long ago-so long
ago-we were to have been married.
He wrote that he was coming home on
furlough. Then there was the great
battle down in Virginia and I heard
the guns over the hundreds of miles
of space. came to you, don't you re-
member, and told you that the world
was damp with blood. You took me in
your arms and tried to comfort me.
That seems five lifetimes since. He
was handsome and brave. What does
the stone say. Clara?"
at says that it is sweet and right to
die for ones country"
'"Is that true?"
''It 10 true, I believe"
at is-it must be. But it seems so
hard. Why should his life be taken?
He was so handsome and brave and
good; loved him; wanted him so;
and I was waiting for him. This gown
came from the makers yesterday; I i
mean that yesterday long ago. Don't
you know / tried it on and you kissed
me on the cheek and said that he would
kiss me there soon? Oh. God! 1t was
SO long ago! To-day was the battle
mean to-day back yonder in the
years"
HE sleeps soundly mid a thousand
happy whisperings of flowers. He
sleeps soundIy when the leaves Of au-
tumn march million strong. He
sleeps the seasons through, and IL will
not be long now until you see him
again."
until we see him again, Clara. You
will be there when we meet, won't you?
Then you shall kiss me on the cheek |
and he shall kiss me. You have been
with me all of the 1ifetimes since he |
tell. You will not let death part us?"
81 shall be there" said the dark wo-
men. eve three shall be there"
II was 90 years old that day." said |
he woman in the bridal gown, "and
low ! am old and you are old; the
world is DID,"
She stopped and placed her hand
lpon the great slab which rooted the
omb, then entered the carriage ST.
emily. The other followed and the
loor closed softly. The horses wheeled
It sober gait. Harding watched them
Winding among the graves and soon
hAw -