The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-11-09
VA R.ANGUE.
By Hans

BY Hans Hansen.
IT was about twenty years ago when
l came into possession OF my estate
in Poland, and MAS received with open
arms by my neighhors, who all be-
lcnged to the old Polish nobility, and.
especially during the hunting season,
We spent every night Sambling and
drinking.
OF all my neiehbors The most reek-
less was Couslt Potocki. lie thought
nothing of gambling away his horse
and carriage and riding home in u
peasants cart, or OF selling his best
COWS 10 set money for champagne. Ile
was married TO a daughter OF Il poor
but proud starost, the most beautiful
woman | ever saw. With Il wealth of
biuish-blacl hair and eyes that would
make Il ma lose all his senses.
We met for the first time at Y fox
hunt and the countess rode like the
devil himself, and every one admired
her but her husband, whose manner
toward her was such than J. felt Tempt
ed to knock him down on the spot.
Since that time we met often and
every time l felt myself falling more
n more in love With her, though I
had never had eyes for woman before.
The count by this time had succeed
ed ia running himself, but he continued
his reckless gambling. and it was an
open secret that when he was at homo
Nv dpQsota llS WIG II Ailc llllSl SiLtiIlt.
less manner.
n night I met him at Rosinews and
my n%eighbor, Count Bieltwitz. whis-
pered to me that Count Potocki was
meeting his Waterloo that evening. He
sat at the faro table n~ervouSly finger
ing his cards and continually losing
In a few hours his last gold piece had
gone. He rose from the table and
coming coward me asked me for a loan
of 5000 rubles on his word of honor.
l gave it to aim.
va %banque,' he shouted. throwing
the money on the table-and lost.
Once more he asked me for a loan
which I refused.
81 give you my wife, he roared. Il
know you are in owe with her, so she
ought to be worth five thousand to
you, anyway"
1 pushed back my chair and raised
my hand to slap his face, but two of
my friends threw themselves between
us and led him out of the room.
1 was terribly excited as 1 was driven
home in the stormy November night
ard could not go to bed when l had
arrived home. l sat at my desk and
my thoughts always returned to the
proud, unhappy woman whom 1 loved
SO ~passionately.
Suddenly looking through the VIM
dow saw a black form on the lawn,
and rushing out l met the Countess
Potocki. / led her into the library UNI
seen by anybody and sobbing she SAL
down on a ouch. Two broad, blood
red stripes stood out across her pale
face.
He has whipped me- she cried.
"whipped me as if I We're a dog. He
would have killed me if 1 had not run
away"
Never in my life had I felt as I did
in this moment. Every nerve was ting
ling and I felt the muscles of my arm
getting hard as steel as 1 thought of
the s%coundrel. Had I met him then L
would have killed him on the spot. l
did not know what to do and could find
no words to comfort the woman, VINO
was worth more to me than my soul.
ooh, baron,' she cried. you will un-S
derstand how terrible it is to me to
come to you, knowing that you love me,
but 1 did not know where to go. l must
get away from here, far away, but L
have no money. not one single kopeck.
You are a man of honor, and l know
that 1 can trust my honor with you.
Viii you help me-?
And still l could find no words. l
quietly left the room and called my old
coachman Ivan, who stared at me IN
surprise when L told him he must drive
to the railroad station Immediately, and
swore that I would break his neck II
he told a living soul anything about it;
but he saw that l was in earnest and
obeyed without a word.
When 1 returned to the library the
countess was sitting at the table. her
face buried in her hands. I forced her
to take my wallet.
You are so good" she said. II can,
never thank you enough. He has brok-
en- my heart, and when I ran away he
shouted after me that he had gambled
me away to one of his friends, and so
1 thought o would save me from dis
grace, Farewell, baron, we shall never
meet again, but to my dying hour ]
shall remember what you have done.
I am not ashamed to tell you that I
love you and am proud of your love-"
She grasped my hand in both of hers,
and 1 led her down to the waiting car
riage as in a dream.
/ have never seen her again, but
know that she entered a convent at
Warsaw and died there a year ago.
blessed and beloved by thousands of
poor people.
killed her husband in a duel two
days after he had driven her away
from her home.