The Holly chieftain., 1905-02-03

me to make in his behalf. Can you
remember this?"
Every word; and l will repeat it
faithfully"
"Adieu. then, old comrade," said
Jean, grasping Greloire's hand. This
may be our last meeting. but it will
not end our regard for each other"
Indeed no. nor our thoughts OF
one another" was the hearty response,
accompanied by a tighter clasp of
Lafitte's slender fingers; ''and | trust
it may not be the last, by many, Of
our meetings"
"Adieu, old cOmrade."
"Adieu, mon ami
One final hand-clasp, and Iaftte
turned away. But, after taking few
steps, he faced about and went back
to Greloire, who stood as he had left
him.
One thing more" said Laftte hes
itatlngly; "one more question, which
you may answer or not, as you
choose" 3-f
II will answer whatever question
you may ask" declared Greloire; "and
| will answer 1t upon my honor"
Lafitte appeared irresolute, as If
the question were Of such grave i'm
por; that he dreaded an unfavorable
reply. Then. laying hand on Gre
1oire's shoulder he asked, What said
he-Bonaparte. when you told him
that ] had departed from Toulon?"
Nothing"
You have told me all wished to
konw. and l thank you" said Lafitte,
again holding out hand, which Gre
loire clasped firmly.
"Adieu. and bon voyage"
"Adieu, and bonne fortune"
With this they parted; and LATTE,
returning directly to the wharf, or.
dered the boats crew to row him
back to the Condor"
Jean had. up to this moment, con-
sidered himself deeply aggreved by
Bonaparte's apparent neglect; and,
looking at the matter from the stand
point OF youth, his ardent, impulsive
nature, and his unstinted love for tho
young officer, his feelings were not
without warrant
But, in the light of Greloire's expla.
nation. the man of thirty could well
see how unreasonable and hasty had
been the boy of fifteen: how unthink-
ing and rash; how utterly lacking in
proper appreciation of Bonaparte's
regard, and Of how the manifestations
of this was subject to conditions and
influences beyond the latters power
to always control.
He thought of Margot, and her
words returned to him-when, upon
that last evening of her life, she had
said that Bonaparte was his good an
gel, and Laro his evil one.
Truly had her words been proven;
for now he knew the former as he
was, and would have been, while the
passing years had either increased, or
made more apparent Laro's coarseness
and cruelty.
1t was only to the boy Jean that he
had ever been otherwise; but latterly
something of change had taken
place in this respect toward the man,
especially after he had refused to ac-
quiesce in the adventurer's cherished
scheme, that he Jean LATTE, should
take as his wife, Lazalie, the formers
niece.
But the young man had, all through
his wild life, held within the inner.
most depths of his soul sacred
shrine, kept closed and pure, where
never the love for woman had en-
tered. Over its altar, faded and in
distinct, yet his life, fingered the
teachings of his foster-mother. and
the remembrance of sunny-faced,
blue-eyed girl, who had promised the
boy to pray that he might be that
which he had so woefully failed to he,
or had even sought to attain.
The past rolled in upon him like
smothering food, until. in a wild
tumult of despair, he left his cabin
and went on deck There he heard
one of the watch whistling to him
self; and presently the man broke
softly into the words of the air:
"C'est lamour. ramour. i'amour.
Qui fait In monde la rounde.'
The song brought to mind again the
blue-eyed girls face. and also that of
her daughter the little Island Rose"
whom, late the previous May, he had
piloted through the woods, and down
the rivers, from her dead mothers |
home among the Choctaws.
The long, rough journey had given |
him rare opportunities for sounding
the depths of the childish soul so
close to nature that it seemed to wor-
ship the mothers God through nature,
and nature through God
He was known as Captain JEAN"
a friend of her grandfather-as Can. |