The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1903-04-30
TheTrd$edy
OF Toto
az FILLS PARKER CUTLER
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BY EL. =
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sr1HEN kubelefsky had visited
w every part of the ship and con-
.;rced himself that it had been de-
s.rted. and that only Toto remained to
te,p him company, he seated himself
+ :. one of the steamer chairs that had
al been swept overheard during the
.,le and gazed out over the sea.
aItis bad, bad!" he said, more to him.
s.If than to Toto, and then his ire
pressible optimism asserted itself, and
s. added: "But things are not as bad
q they might be-"
II was indeed bad. To be adrift in
m;d-Atlantic on an abandoned steam
sssr II was terrible! 1t was donner-
l baitzlich. And the ship all mussed up
md broken by the storm! But on
,he other hand, there were endless
] ouantities of food, the ship did not
seer to be sinking, there was still
Toto. and there was still his violin.
Things were really not as bad as
4hey might be.
All the world knew Kubelefsky, the
magician of the viclin. All America
] ] remembers his hair, his art, his ec-
rtntricities, his triumphs, and his
Toto. His tour was one grand ova-
4;ou. one round of teams, cheers and
kisses. Musical womanhood knelt in
rapture before his hair, throbbed with
his art, but, above all, talked about his
Toto. But every genius has his eccen-
tricities, and Kubelefsky would not be
Kubelefsky without his Toto. Some
said he affected Toto for her advertis-
ing value, but we who knew him best
/ did him no such injustice. He loved
her. He loved her only as those great
/ souls that are set high above the world
By their surprising genius can love
that which is lowly and soulless and
animal
How Kubelefsky and Toto happened
10 be overlooked when the ship was
abandoned l cannot pretend to say.
I Kubelefsky had been unutterably sick;
sick as only the great genius can be,
and as he always was when the sea
was rough, and they may have left
him, thinking him dead. But Toto had
not been seasick. She was a splen-
did sailor. All cats are.
Yes, Toto was cat; but she was
more than cat, she was friend, a
companion, almost lover, and in the
weary weeks that followed the storm
4 she was Kubelefsky's refuge from SOL
itude. She was his audience, his
plaudit, his appreciator, and apprecia-
tion is demanded by genius. Genius
lives on appreciation. For weeks, as
The derelict floated on the summer sea,
Kubelefsky lived on Toto's apprecia-
ton and canned goods. 1t is such
occasions as these that bring out the
noblest qualities. They are, as the
adrertisements of certain liniments
say, good for man and beast"
Things were truly not as bad as
they might be. Kubelefsky had his
violin and he had Toto, and he drew
great solace from each. When he
pressed his chin against the vibrant
wood of the violin and drew the living
bow over its speaking strings, he for
& got the world in an ecstasy of JOY,
and when he glanced down at Toto
sitting sedately and watching his eyes
1or the smallest token of love, his soul
vas filled with contentment.
They had always been good friends
had Toto and Kubelefsky, but they
become more than that as week fol
lowed week. In all his walkings to
and fro she followed at his heels, an6
when he paused she would rub against
Ais shins and purr with delight. He
talked to her as one would talk to 8
sweetheart. He fondled her, and helt
aer in his arms, and when he was
weary after playing a difficult rhap
sody, he would bury his hot face in hel
soft fur and gain new strength.
sometimes he would vainly specu
Ate whether he loved his violin Of
1910 the better, but he quickly pu
sucn thoughts aside, for why shoult
g tmnk of distressing possibilities
. Tor him.
y was an odd companionship, thes
alee; Toto, with her dove-colore,
Sa'' the violin, in it's rich reddisl
own, and Kubelefsky, with long ra
~ locks. These three alone in tn
-4,uss OF the boundless, desolate ocean
= vas the 18th of August that tn
-. ..a break came to mar the happines
.ne trio, and it was violin strin,
as q. broke. As the sickening ''snap
: she string interrupted the obligat'
as Aubelefsky was executing, h
eheeks. o'e1 uo"A -
oor thing! Poor thing!" he mul
o' as he stroked the mutilated vic
- ana Toto, seeing his grief, cam
~ s iaid her head gently on his foo
hanks, Toto. sweetheart" he sait
sou teach me to endure to be brav,
tears. = 1sAeo as'oe -
III: !. was soul-trying to play with on
~,. ~ missing, but Kubelefsky was
lard, and none but he would hay