The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-08-30
The Imprisonment of Lillian Trent
By GILBERT II. P4GE

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! family where the children were pretty and
interesting. the mother appeared kind
hearted. and money was evidently Of no
consideration. Every one in Madame Rails
household had all that any one could desire
in the way of luxury and amusement there
were constant dinners and dances, at which
Lillian Trent was invited to assist, and al
most daily excursions to the Bots the
beautiful Panhard motor car which Mad
anne Rail- was accustomed to drive her
| self.
But during the very first week of Lii
| ian's arrival something happened which
was destined TO exercise an evil influence
over her relations with her employer. Sir
Claude Conway. a handsome Englishman,
| and a great friend of the lady's turned
up Unexpectedly TO dinner, and. to her I'M
concealed annoyance. betrayed how much
| the pretty young English governess at
tracted him and pleased him.
Lillian had responded to his attention with
/ innocent pleasure, as a young girl will,
| with smiles, sparkling eye. and a varying
| color until she suddenly grew conscious of
Madame Ralli's malevolent gaze fixed upon
| her, and she stopped short in the middle of
| a sentence, feeling too certain she was in
| disgrace. For the future" Madame Ralli
had said to her, significantly, next day,
you will dine in your own ROOM" and Lii
| ian realized with establishment that her
employer was jealous. although she might
have been less surprised had she heard
Conway's eager inquiries after her.
She only saw him once again, and that
| by accident, as she walked with her pupils
I in the gardens of the Tulleries. But when
| that evening in Lilian's presence the little
| girls told their mother how the English
| Milford had played with them that after
| noon, and talked lever so long, with
''Mademoiselle Mees," Madame Rail- shot
the girl look of such venemous hatred as
almost to turn her sick.
Then came the expedition with madame
and the children to the jewelers. shop in
| the Rue de la Prix: the diamond solitaires
| which were inspected and priced; the sud-
| den, inexplicable disappearance of one of
| them; the hubbub which this excited, and
the final discovery Of the missing jewel in
the pocket of Lilians coat.
After this the dream became nightmare,
| and policemen, judges, advocates, the jew
| eler. Madame Ralli, and the diamonds,
whirled confusedly through, until the poor
child woke up, 50 to speak. in the peniten-
| tiary of ST. Genevieve with three years
solitude. silence. and sunlessness lying be-
| fore her.
Yet she had never so much as touched
| the diamond. and when Madame RalIi had
| suggested that the detective should search
Miss Trent's pockets, she had handed him
her coat with proud disdain of such a
L cua nj hut nj fba lie
sivings. No one was more thunderstruck
| than herself when the missing stone was
| extracted from her inside pocket
| Madame Ralli, indeed, seemed less sur
prised than triumphant, and Lillian, recall
ing now that look, wondered whether the
jewel could have been put into her coat
pocket by Madame Ralli herself.
II.
Twice every day all the prisoners were
marched down to the chapel, in the MORN
| ing at $50 to hear mass, and in the after
noon at $3.50 to attend the service of bene-
diction.
Lillian no only did not understand these
services. but did not want to understand
them or to follow them at all, and her
compulsory presence seemed but an ag-
gravation Of her unhappy plight.
Bow your head" commanded a nun,
pushing her roughly on the back of the
neck. and she found herself expected to do
| as the others did. and bow her head almost
to the ground at the tinkle of the sanctu-
airy bell.
But she could not initiate the theat-
rical veneration of those who, as they
doubled themselves up at this solemn mo-
| ment, generally managed to exchange
winks and words with their neighbors, nor
| would she cross herself with holy water
on entering and leaving the chapel, as to
her mind this was but piece of foolish
superstition.
One morning she sat pricking her
| fingers over the horrible sack-making, she
was surprised by summons to the Rever-
end Mothers room.
The superior OF the order of st. Genevieve
! was woman Of over sixty years of age
upright, OF commanding presence, with an
unctuous manner and a ruthless eye. Lii
ian, who knew her well by sight, yet had
| never been addressed by her, feared this
woman instinctively more than any of the
other nuns
Number g." began the superior In
honeyed voice, II hear with great pain
that your behavior in the chapel shows
neither reverence nor decency. Is that sog'
NO." replied Lillian, timidly. Il behave.
1 hope, with perfect reverence, but 1 am
not Roman Catholic, and So"
And So" interrupted the superior, you
admit your offense. Mother Jane has al
ready spoken to you on the subject many
| times. but it seems that you are of a sulky,
obstinate disposition on which forbearance
is thrown away. We must try other meas
| ures, my child" She spoke very gently.
| as a real mother might speak to her lit
tie girl for the chiId's good 1--WE will give
you-let me see-forty-eight hours of the
punishment cell, that you may have tran