The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1913-05-02

she knew | vas much too simple a
girl to give the devil a hold on me.
My progress, by the voices
own order, was kept a secret between
the voice. Mamma VaIerius and my
self. 1t was curious thing, but, out
side the dressing-room, | sang with
my ordinary, everyday voice and no
body noticed anything. | did all that
the voice asked. 1t said, Wait and
see: we shall astonish Paris!' And |
waited and lived on In a sort OF
ecstatic dream. 1t was then that /
saw you for the first time one evening,
in the house | was so glad that |
never thought of concealing my de-
light when reached my dressing
room. Unfortunately, the voice was
there before me and soon noticed, by
my air, that something had happened.
1t asked what was the matter and |
saw no reason for keeping our story
secret or concealing the place which
you filled in my heart Then the
voice was silent. | called to it, but it
did not reply; | begged and entreated,
but in vain. | was terrified lest it
had gone for good. I wish to heaven
1t had, DEAR That night, |
went home in desperate condition.
| told Mamma Valerius, who said,
Why, of course, the voice is jealousr
And that, dear, first revealed to me
that | loved you
Christine stopped and laid her head
on RaouPs shoulder They sat like
that for a moment, in silence, and
they did not see, did not perceive the
movement, at few steps from them,
of the creeping shadow OF two great
black wings, a shadow that came
along the roof 50 near, so near them
that it could have stified them by
closing over them.
The nexC day." Christine contin-
ued with a sigh, Il went back to my
dressing-room in a very pensive frame
to me with great sadness and told me
plainly that, il | must bestow my
heart on earth, there was nothing for
the voice to do but to go back to
heaven. And it said this with such
an accent of human sorrow that l
ought then and there to have suspect
ed and begun to believe that | was
the victim of my deluded senses. But
my faith in the voice, with which
the memory of my father was so
closely intermingled, remained undis-
turbed. | feared nothing so much as
that | might never hear it again; |
had thought about my love for you
and realized all the useless danger of
it; and | did not even know II you
remembered me. Whatever happened,
your position In society forbade me
to contemplate the possibility OF ever
marrying yOu and | swOre to the
voice that you were no more than a
brother TO me nor ever would be and
that my heart was incapable of any
earthly love. And that, dear. was
why | refused to recognize or see you
when / met you on the stage or in
the passages. Meanwhile, the hours
during which the voice taught me
were spent in divine frenzy, until,
at last, the voice said to me, You can
now, Christine Daae, give to men a
little of the music Of heaven | don't
know how it was that Carlotta did not
come to the theater that night nor
why | was called upon to sing In her
stead; but / sang with rapture |
had never known before and | felt for
a moment as II my soul were leaving
my body"
''Oh, Christine said Raoui, my
heart quivered that night at every ac-
cent of your voice. | saw the tears
stream down your cheeks and | wept
with you. How could you sing, sing
like that while crying?"
Il felt myself fainting." said Chris
tine. Il closed my eyes. When [
opened them, you were by my side.
But the voice was there also, RaouI!
l was afraid for your sake and again
| would not recognize you and began
to laugh when you reminded me that
you had picked up my scarf in the
sea, Alas, there is no de-
ceiving the voice. The voice
recognized you and the voice was
jealous, 1t said that, if ] aid
not love you, | would not avoid you.
but treat you like any other old friend.
1t made me scene upon scene. At last,
| said to the voice, That will do! |
am going to Perros tomorrow, to pray
on my fathers grave, and | shall ask
NJ Raoul de Chagny to go with me-