The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1903-11-20


what he conceived to be the fears hov-
ering in their imaginations. His good
offices had not been rejected always
during the day. He had helped one wo-
man with her fretful sick child; he had
brought wood and water for others who
were deserted by their servants. But
what could he do at night?
He was sitting in his cabin, gazing
westward into a serene, cloudless,
primrose sky. AS he got up and turned
indoors his eye fell ON a queer, big
something in dark bag in dusky
corner. He had an inspiration! In that
bag was an old viol, a double bass, a
relic of time, draped in the mists of
antiquity, when Blossier had assist
ed in a theatrical orchestra.
Perhaps few instruments are less
adapted to the purposes of strolling
serenader than a double bass, but as
Blossier caught sight of his it was to
night of serenading that he dedicated
it. He would systematically patrol the
town, and from that double bass should
issue strains assuring the poor ladies
eiAstb u AAiCiA was anu OA Tue
watch.
To be sure, as he considered the
scheme he felt keenly the musical linn
itations of a double bass. He knew
that his was not even good of it's kind.
He had regretted before that Fate at
the time she made music his resource
had not thrown a more companionable
I'M sir into
before did he feel it's CALLING defcien-
cies as now. Why, a fife would be bet
teri
Blossicr felt the picturesque and po-
etical element in his plan and that it
was odiouS to be obliged to depend on
such means for its execution. How
ever, there was no chance of getting a
fife and learning to play it within an
hour, SO he soon contrived more opti-
mistic views of the case as it stood. A
bass viol gave forth at all events a
very strong masculine sound, well cal
culated to convey assurances of protec-
ton.
He put himself again into his ragged
coat, again took up his ragged straw
hat and started forth to inform the la
dies of his intentions. There would be
nothing comforting in it if in the night
that heavy scraping boom took them
awares-''tout au contraire," he said
gravely to himself.
1t was not hard to spread the news.
The women were concentrating their
weakness for the night. Scattered rel
atives were fiocking together to spend
it at the most central house of the
clan. The women living on the out
skirts of the village came over the
bridge or down the turnpike or up the
stage road, as the case might be, to
lodge for the time being with neigh
bors more closely neighbored than
themselves. The general trepidation
passed the bounds of reason. Many
StrathborO households had been eX-
clusively feminine for many months
yes, years. Their natural protectors
had been long endangered beyond the
chances of this misadventure; but,
with solidarity of sentiment that did
them credit, the women all agreed to
suffer in kind with those who had spe-
cial causes for alarm, and uncommon
fear prevailed.
Blossier was little man, little,
thin, dim, hay colored man, but with
so French a face and of type so as
sociated in our minds with dark color
ing that it seemed as if he must have
faded to his present tints after centu-
ries of exposure to the weather.
The viol was much taller than he
was, and of course after he began his
patrol at 10 o'clock he soon found
more reasons than sentimental ones
for wishing it something else.
On his first round he stopped in
front of every door on one side of the
street and doomed forth few deeply
buzzing bars of the "Marseillaise" or
still more unfamiliar and dislocated
strains from "Orphee aux Enters"
He had vague doubts as to the appro-
priateness of Offenbach, but the jolly