Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-03-20

answer me that! What of the trust
| Placed In your"
The answer is SIMPLE" said,
struggling my shoulders with a touch
OF my old self II am here to pay this
penalty"
And do you think that do not
know why?" he retorted, striking his
one hand on the arm of the chair with
force which startled mo. Because
you have heard, Sir, that my power
| is gone! That I, who wss yesterday
the kings right hand, am to-day dried
] up. withered and paralyzed! Because
but have a care' Have care!" he
continued not loudly. but in voice
like q DOGS snarl. You, and those
others! Have care say. or you may
find yourself mistaken yeti"
/ AS Heaven shall judge me-" l an
swered solemnlv, t'that is not true.
Until reached Paris last night knew
nothing of this report. came here
with single mind to redeem my
honor by placing again in your Emf
nence's lands that which you gave me
on trust"
For moment he remained in tie
same attitude. staring at me flsedlv.
| Then his face somewhat relaxed. 'tPe
| good enough to ring that bell" he
said.
| 1t stood on table near me. rang
1t and velvet footed man in black
| came in and gliding up to the cardinal
placed paper in his hand. The car
dlnal looked at it while the man stood
with his head obsequiously bent; my
| heart beat furiously Very good" the
cardinal said. after a pause. which
seemed to me to be endless, "Let the
doors be thrown Open"
The man bowed low and retired be.
| hind the screen. I heard little bell
ring somewhere in the silence and in
a moment the cardinal stood up. "Fol-
low me-" he said, with strange flash
| of his keen eyes.
Astonished, stood aside while he
| passed to the screen then I followed
him. Outside the first door, which
stood open, we found eight or nine
persons-pages, monk, the major
domo and several guards waiting like
mutes. These signed to me to proceeds
them and fell in behind us and in that
order we passed through the first room
and the second. where the clerks stood
with bent heads to receive lis. Tho
last door of the antechamber few open
as We approached; score of voices
cried, place! Place for HIS Emf
nence!" We passed without pause
through two lines Of bowling lackeys
and entered-an empty room!
The ushers die not know how to look
at one another. The iackeys trembled
in their shoes. But tho cardinal
walked on, apparently unnoved until
he had passed slowly half the length
| of the chamber. Then he turned him
self about. looking arst to one side
and then to another, with low laugh
of derision. Father" ne said. in his
thin voice, what does the psalmist
say? I am become like a pelican III
the wilderness and like an owl that Is
| in the desert!' "
| The monk mumbled assent
"And later. in the same psalm is It
not written. They shall perisl., but
thou shalt endured
.'It is So" the father answered.
"Amen."
Doubtless that refers TO another
life," the cardinal continued, with his
| slow. wintry smile. "In the meantime
we will go back to our books and our
prayers and serve God and the king In
small things, If not in great Come,
| father, this is no longer place for lis.
| Vanitas. vanitatum; omnia vanitas!
We will retire.
| So. as solemnly as we had come, we
marched back through tho first and
second and third doors, until we stood
again in the silence of the cardinals
chamber; he and and the velvet
footed man in black. For a while
Richelieu seemed to forget me. He
stood brooding on the hearth, with his
eyes on the embers. Once heard him
laugh: and twice he uttered in tone
of bitter mockery the words, "Fools!
Fools! Fools!"
At last he looked up, saw me ana
started.
AL. he Salu. lAQ IOTSCCCGU
you. Well, you are fortunate, M do
| Berault. Yesterday had a hundred
clients. To-day I have only one and
cannot afford to hang him. But for
| your liberty-that is another matter"
would have said something, but
he turned abruptly 10 the table and
sitting down wrote few lines on a
| piece Of paper. Then he rang his bell.
while stood waiting and COMPOUNDED.
| The man in black came from behind
the screen. "Take that letter and
this gentleman to the upper guard
ROOM" His Eminence said sharply. Il
can hear no more" he continued wear
] lily, raising his hand to forbid inter-
| ruption. "The matter is ended, NJ de
Berault. Be thankful"
| And in a moment was outside the
door, my head in a whirI, my heart
divided between gratitude and resent
ment Along several passages fol-