The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1909-09-25

STAND anywhere you like, onO
said. "but let me hear the tune @
Van Torp rose and vent to the
window and she looked quietly ut his
square figure and his massive, sandy
head and his strong neck. Presently
he began to whistle, very softly and
perfectly in tune. Many street-boy
could do as we'll. no doubt, and Mrs.
Rushmore would have called It vul-
gar accomplishment, but the mag
ntf1cent prima donna was too true ~
musician. as we'll as a singer, not to-
take pleasure in a sweet sound, even
If 1t were produced by street-boy
But as Mr.. Van Torp went on, She
opened her eyes very wide and held
her breath. There was no mistake
about 1t; he was whistling long pieces
from "Parsifal," as far as it was pos:
sible to convey an idea Of such music
by such means. Margaret had studied
1t before coming to Bayreuth, in or
der to understand it better; she had
now already heard 1t once, and had
felt the greatest musical emotion Of
her life-one that had stirred other
emotions, too, strange ones quite
new to her.
She held her breath and listened,
and her eyes that had been wide open
In establishment. slowly closed again
In pleasure, and presently, when he
reached the Good Friday" music, her
own matchless voice floated out with
her unconscious breath, in such per-,
feet octaves with his high whistling
that at first he did not understand:
but when he did, the rough hard man
shivered suddenly and steadied him.
self against the window-sill, and
Margaret's voice went on alone, with
family breathed words and then
without them, following the instru-,
mentation to the end of the scene,
beyond what he had ever heard.
Then there was silence in the room,
and neither of the two moved for
some moments, but at last Van Torp
turned, and came back ~
Thank you," he said, in a low,
voice.
Margaret smiled and passed her
hand over her eyes quickly. as II to-
dispel vision she had seen. Then
she spoke. &
do you really not know what that.
music is?" she asked. Really.
really?"
ooh, quite honestly don't!"
You're not Joking? You're not
laughing at me?"
T?" He could not understand. II
shouldn't dare!" he said.
you've been whistling some of
"Parsifal." some of the most beauti..
full music that ever was written-and
you whistle maveilously, for It's any
thing but easy! Where in the world
did you learn 1t? Don't tell me that
those are old tunes you picked up
on California ranch!" ,s.
"1t's true, all the same" Van Torp
answered.
He told her of the two foreigners
who used to whistle together in the
evenings, and how one was supposed
to have been shot and the other had
disappeared. no one had known within
er, nor had cared. t-
"All sorts Of young fellows used to
drift out there" he said, and one
couldn't tell where they came from,
though can give a guess at where
some Of them must have been, since
I've seen the world. There were
younger sons of English gentlemen,A
fellows whose fathers were genuine
lords, maybe, who had not brains,
enough to get into the army or the
church. There were cashisred Prus.
sian officers. and Frenchmen who had
most likely killed women out of jeal.
ousy, and Sicilian bandits. and brok."
on society men from New York. There
were all sorts. And there was me-
And we all spoke different kinds Of,
English and had different kinds Of
tastes, good and bad-mostly bad.
There. was only one thing we could
all do alike, and that was to ride"
II never thought Of you as riding"
Margaret said. %'
well, why should your But I can.
because l was just a common cowboy
and had to. for living" ,1
TITS intensely interesting-what q
strange life you have had! Tell mo
more about yourself, won't you?"
There's not much to tell, it seems
to me-" said Van Torp. From being
q cowboy turned into miner, and
struck little silver. and sold that
and got into nickel, and made the,
Nickel Trust what 1t is, more by
financing 1t than anything else, and I
got almost all Of It. And now I've sold
the whole thing"
"Sold the Nickel Trust?" Margaret
was quite as much surprised as Lady
Maud had been. So
Eyes. wasn't made to do onsY
thing long, ! suppose. If I were, L
should still be a cowboy. Just now,
I'm here to 60 to 'Parsifal,' and since
you say those tunes are out of that
opera, dare say I'm going to like &c
very much" q
TITS all very uncanny," Margaret
said thoughtfully. II wonder who
those two men were, and what became
of the one who disappeared"