The San Francisco call., 1904-04-10

backs and the men do it up on their
heads; the fires are built under the
floors and the chimneys open into the
cutters; Is that new adaptation OF
your Russian stoves, Captain Dejneff?"
This gruff old officer, whose face was
buried under great sandy beard. took
not unkindly to Miss Oranoff's running
fire of bantering quips. Yet my little
experience among men made me look
twice at him: he had an odd predilec-
tion for humming old songs, and he
locked at the plains as though they had
told him some of their strange secrets.
Dejneff had been connected with the
Russian Legation here for many years;
he was somewhat forgetting the outside
world-being slowly embalmed alive in
the traditions and superstitions of this
strange land.
This Dulcine was discovering, with
out comprehending its real intent.
''See," she cried to me, as we were
passing little cluster of straw
thatched huts in sequestered vale,
'the only children in the world who do
not play on doorstep"
We had suddenly flushed covey OF
little people, who ran helter-skelter into
the nearest huts and peeped out at US
from the dark interiors.
do you also fear the devil Of the
threshold, Captain Dejneff?"
The low-hummed song was choked as
the great square shoulders came up In
a shrug.
''Oh, l don't know" he REPLIED why
not? If there is one-peste!-its better
to look out, 1 think. Did not the Ro-
mans carry brides over them?" A peo-
pie of ten millions and not one VINO
dares to stand or sit on the threshold
for fear of the devil there! AS recalled
the superstition in the light OF Dejneff's
attitude thought of the draughts in a
doorway. Were they the devil?
A flock of wild geese flew suddenly
up from paddy-field and went way
wardly circling in the thin blue air
toward the distant mountains.
There goes my Widowed Wild Goose,
Captain Dejneff," cried Dulcine; 'give
me the melody, and Lieutenant Martyr
shall see 1 have not wasted my time in
Keinning."
The old man hummed a little louder,
but as Dulcine caught the measure he
stopped quickly and listened to the
girls clear notes in the Quelpartien love
song:
Sivery moon and frosty air.
Eve and dawn are meeting:
Widowed wild goose flying there,
Hear my words Of greeting!
On your journey should you see
Him I love so broken hearted.
Kindly say this word for me-
That tits death when we are parted
Flapping off. the wild goose chambers.
Says she will If she remembers.
Earewstl,s a fire that burns ones heart
And tears are rains that quench in part.
But then the winds blow in ones signs,
And cause the flames again to rise
My soul I've mixed up with the wine.
And now my love is DIR inking-
Into his orifices nine
Deep down its spirits sinking.
To keep him true to me and mine.
potent mixture is the wine!
Fill the ink stone. bring the water.
To my love I'll write a letter;
Ink and paper soon will see
The one that's all the world to me.
While the pen and 1 together
Left behind. condole each other
The sky and plains made a perfect
setting for the song, so sad and yet
throbbing with human experience.
One must be impressed with the
weird songs of the East, bearing so
lightly and everlastingly their heavy
loads of care. But does this burden
differ from the burden of our own pop
ular music? recalled the street songs
of America prevalent. at the time What
a load of sorrow, regret, hopeless con-
triton, this mongrel music voices! Are
the worlds songs all sad, and are our
Christian hymns of hope and trust and
faith our only happy music?
Old Dejneff was interesting Dulcine
in the women Of this poor land, some Of
whom we met-veiled, unveiled. smiling
in the chairs in which they were carried
, by hurrying coolies, or weeping under
weary loads.
. Up to the age of 10 or II the little
? Quelpartienne of good family enjoys
great freedom, and can play in the yard
with her brothers and see whom she
wishes, but the time comes when she
must never be seen without the chang
! ct. or sleeved apron over her head and
, held close about the face. From that
, time she remains mostly within doors
T and can be Familiarity seen only by the
people of the household and the nearer
, relatives. This. stage of her life is
short. for she generally marries young
and goes to take her place in the family
of her husband, who will be found liv-
ing with his parents. From that time
on she can be seen and conversed with
; face to face only by her husband, faith
er, father-in-law, uncle, cousin, second
cousin etc, down to what the Quel-
partiens call the 'eight point, which
means the relationship existing be-
tween two great-great-gr of a
/ man through different branches. This
: means something like fourth or fifth
/ cousins in America. 1t will at once ap-
5 pear that a Quelpartienne is not en-
tirely cut off from social intercourse
with men, for in country where fami-
! lies are so large as in Quelparte the mer
: on both sides of a family within the
| limits prescribed may number any
where from twenty to couple of hun
! dreds OF course, grandfathers and
: great -grandfathers and great-uncles
2 are also among the fovored ones, al
: tboI1fyb their number is naturally linn