Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-10-31

banker, Elizabeth's father. Just 40 he went in two
beh;nd them o. s,r res ~IT thick * c hrIn'e Of pp pSnsen tU SMOKE aRa
as the smell Of naphtha loiters behind a launch or
;S. a tsme: IL ,ob rss '1 sSd S;. TOO T Hsw fi1 dift.y w's
thought Father Augustin. from the sanctuary of All
Saints, and he pictured Elizabeth at prayer In the
bowed above the cla.ped, tapering fingers. A quick
stab of pain pierced his heart when he remembered
that this heavy-jowled, greedy;hngered human ma "a.
hands.
Elizabeth's father came forward toward the priest
with outstretched hand and the manner OF eXagger-
ence.
"How do you dor" he said, and, pereeiving the
gravity Of the priest's demeanor, adds g us any
Wondering, Father Augustin withheld his hand.
IF you thought your child was Ill" he said, gently.
how could you bear to wait a good half-hou. before
learning if your fear was unfounded or mott"
The bankers coarse face clouded with annoyance.
I'VE who play the game" he said, must play it in
season and out. Ten minutes suffice sometimes to
wipe away a fortune or to make one"
Ten minutes" said Father Augustin, also suffice
for a souls undoing..
What talk is Ibis Of a souls ;. qn,doing;," said
": ash. IS IS IN hs' g ,S~fq hssI.h sse. said al The DC ABB nS .e'! @And of
you say, be no fear"
Then, without further preamble. the Able
launched boldly upon the waters he had come to
trouble. He spoke simply, in the homely, straight
forward way in which he exhorted his parishioncrs;
iusilsdss Of imprisoned rhetoric would not have
sionate manner in which Father Augustin set forth
his brief, his slightly exotic English, the charm OF
f flsn se[ Sim, p snd whi:S t h. e soIloaa;si w masne eFi BAT no
means e%xpunged, moved the hnancier more than be
cared TO show.
liberation, the deft touch of the Abbe's homely elo-
quence awoke memories in the other of the pearl
nd-sIlver rose-garden OF youth, through which all
hood and womanhood-peasant, merchant, soldier,
hnancier,. and-who ~knowsi-perhaps even a priest;
shaken the citadel of worldliness and cyniclsm in
which the hnancier sat intrenched?
After all" he said. as the Able concluded. II am
eaux is a son OF one of the noblest families IN
1ts1s HI wh is capable; , wealthy Of ir5ep"T0aehable
Only this" said Father Augustin, quietly, that
he light the divine spark in her heart without which
marriage is a mockcry and love the synonym of lust"
There IS no reason why. the two should not fall
in love-" objected the hnancier. ~ have seen CASTOR
Devereaux, and he has all the outer accoutrements
to win a woman's heart as also the stabler qualities
which guarantee happiness"
Father Augustin smiled sorrowfully, and in his
peryerse wV %iidero sU,I eu ali ,Po OF the .. ins qua Mbics sw cisny
ors for romance and will have it at all costs. The
land Of love is the land Of adventure, and who so
having the veil OF mystery torn rudely away before
the awakening by an alien handi Only if our dis.
romance, and the friend or lover found without
parental Intervention or .scene-shifting will be closer
kith Of soul and dearer kin Of flesh than one who L
heralded by prolific introduction and fastidious visit
ing-card on regulation ea!vef:
Not q muscle moved In the great bankers face or
the Gargantuan rosewood desk, from which scowline
dragons with ~gargoyle heads looked forth. he
Queried:
"What do you propose"
Father Augustin told him.
Thus it happened that Elizabeth was permitted to
spend Christmas at the convent, and. as If the ele-
ments were conjoining with the rest Of the world to
please her, It began to snow shortly before three
eousness the ~feathery fakes descended. 1t had
rained in the morning. and the wind which had
building increased to a gale when the rain stopped,
and its boistcrous breath transformed the lichen-
covered wallis to frosted silver. 50 that icicles hung
upon every cornice. Then, the wind having pranced
in aat the s0% e]4thodos Christina. - 4lashi se%'eo COW" TO snow
Elizabeth. peering forth from her window-seat in
Il bon Dieu has caused all this to come to pass
for me, because l am here this holy night, for surely
never before was there SO beautiful a Christmas Eve.
Amen"
The next morning Elizabeth said her prayers
n npen Geod Ts'p p%erishabie' snow S"sc ips @'s while e00 saving i"s
them. After dressing, breakfast, and mass, Elizabeth
and Sister Veronica, who was the youngest sister in
Something near the roof caught Elizabeth's eye. and
she clapped her hands delightedly. like any child.
fully funny thing Elizabeth had discovered, and,
when they were all assembled, and stood huddled to-
gether in the narrow. bit OF path which had been
cleared Of snow. Elizabeth pointed upward to one of
the inches in the building, and cried:
See how unesthetic Saint, Peter is. There is an
icicle on the tip of his nose"
At this some of the nuns were shocked, or pre-
tended to be, and others were amused, and Still
others shook their fingers at Elizabeth in gentle ad-
monishment, but little Sister Veronica laughed so
heartily that the tears came with the laughter, and
Mother Philippa, the Mother Superior, waddled
away as swiftly as her embonpoint would permit,
lest Sister .Veronica's hilarity arouse her own risi,
blities and she suffer a diminution of dignity
thereby.
Later, when Elizabeth came into the reception-
room, her eyes shining and her cheeks red as toma-
toes, she found Father .Augustin and Mother Phil
ippa in serious consultation. She was about to will-
draw, but Mother Philippe said:
Come in, my child. The good Father had a won.
derful adventure last night after leaving the chapel"