Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1906-09-07

he was, but superstitious to the last
drop of his hot Italian blood.
When Harold Whiting carelessly re-
counted the tale to his girl bride that
night, as they sat on the balcony over
| hanging the water, it was with. min
Sled sense of vexation and amusement.
that he saw how readily she accepted
the gondolier's. version of the miracu
lous music, how she. respondedsto the
appeal of the old time romance.
But when, as time went on, and the
nocturnal concert was repeated again
| and again without visible cause, when
he noted how firm hold it had taken.
on her young Imagination, how it fos-
tered her sense. of the supernatural,
he was filled with serious concern.
In vain he reasoned, protested, pleaded
with the girl. .Beppo's idle imaginings'
and~ve of superstition, the strange
haunting music, surpassed his sound
est judgment, his gentlest authority;
until at last, wearied by her obstinate
adherence to an idea, which threatened
to rob her of health, peace of mind
and enjoyment, he resorted to strong
er measures, and scolded her as one
would child who had committed some
misdemeanor.
Lolita, for shame! l believe you
capable of better sense, or I had never
brought you to this land of sentiment
poor untaught Beppo to credit fables
fit for a child's intelligence, but for.
you, an American girl, born and bred
in free country, to lend yourself for
one instant to such a piece of arrant
nonsense"
But here the lecture same to an fg-
nominious end, with the fair penitent
in tears, but still unconvinced; and
for the first time he realized the folly
of reasoning with woman, and that
the sweetest, most pliable of the gen
tier sex are more than match for
the strongest man.
The only visible result of this first
cloud on the honeymoon was a fixed
resolution on his part to force the
matter to come to some reasonable
conclusion before many weeks had
passed, or to leave the scene of en-
chantment forever.
But they were both under the spell
of this city of the sea, like many an
other bridal pair, who have idled
away their first happy months in its
golden, translucent atmosphere. City
of dreams and visions, of rose dap
pied dawns and sunset pomp, of pal
ace walls reelected in the blue tide,
of blossoming gardens hidden from
sight like fair clustered nuns, of,
/ bright winged boats on the shining
lagoons, of picturesque, gay-hearted
people, and days of careless content
So they fingered on, and each night
by mutual unspoken consent, when
the moon lent it's: mystery to the
sleeping scene, theSprow of their light
gondola turned instihctively toward
the lonely music haunted spot, where
enchantment lurked in the shadows,
and tangled roses mingled their fra
GRANGE with the salt sea breeze.
And when the wondrous music sob
bed, and sighed, and swelled through
the stiffness of the voluptuous south
ern night, weaving. web of witchery
about them, for the time reason was
silenced in breathless delight, and
Whiting felt his sturdy Anglo-Saxon
sense waver under the charm of rthe
hour, the solution of the strange prob
lem UNNECESSARILY removed from his
reach
If such music, which scaled the
heights, and sounded the depths of
human joy and woe, played on the
heartstrings as the wild wind played
on aeolian harp, made one laugh and
weep as a very. child-if such music
sprang from living hands, then would
he hail the unseen player as the won
der Of the age, a magician by divine
right.
But for Lolita he had long ago leap
ed from the gondola and forced an
entrance TO the moon-heeked old gar
den, with its tangled paths and riotous
roses, clambered over the balcony to
the darkened palace. and called to the
hidden musician to come forth.
But when at this laughing sugges-
tion she had clung to him in unfeign-
ed terror. and even Beppo had clasp
ed his hands In mute appeal, he was
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