Gilpin observer., 1913-08-28

the charm OF their delightful make
believe. They looked at each other,
in the dressing room. with their sad
eyes. without exchanging word.
Raoul had to restrain himself not to
cry out:
81 am jealousl am Jealousl 1
am 1ealous"
But she heard him all the same.
Then she said:
Come for a walk. dear. The air
will do you good"
Raoul thought that she would pro-
pose a stroll in the country, far from
that building which he detested as q
prison whose jailer he could feel
walking within the walls the
1ailer Erik. But she took him
to the stage and made him sit on the
wooden curb of we'll, in the doubt
full peace and GOODNESS OF first scene
set for the evenings performance.
On another day, she wandered with
him, hand in hand, along the desert
ed paths Of garden whose creepers
had been cut out by a decorators
skillful hands. 1t was as though the
real sky, the real flowers, the real
| earth were forbidden her for all time
and she condemned to breathe no
other air than that of the theater
An occasional fireman passed, watch
ing over their melancholy idyll from
afar. And she would drag him up
above the clouds, in the magnificent
disorder of the grid, where she loved
to make him giddy by running in
front of him along the frail bridges,
among the thousands of ropes fast
ened to the pulleys, the windlasses,
the rollers, in the midst of a regular
forest of yards and masts. II he
hesitated. she said. with an adorable
pout of her lips:
You, a sailor!"
And then they returned to terra
firma, that is to say, to some passage
that led them to the little girls dane
ing-school, where brats between six
and ten were practicing their steps. in
the hope of becoming great dancers
one day, covered with diamonds.
Meanwhile, Christine gave them
sweets instead
She took him to the wardrobe and
|
empire. which was artificial, but i'm
mense, covering seventeen stories
from the ground-fioor to the roof and
Inhabited by an army of subjects. She
moved among them like a popular
queen. encouraging them in their
labors, sitting down in the workshops,
giving words of advice to the work,
men whose hands hesitated to cut in
to the rich stuffs that were to clothe
heroes. There were inhabitants OF
that country who practiced every
trade. There were cobblers, there
were goldsmiths. All had learned to
know her and to love her, for she al
ways interested herself in all their
troubles and all their little hobbies.
She knew unsuspected corners that
were secretly occupied by little old
couples. She knocked at their door
and introduced Raoul to>~them as 9
Prince Charming who had asked fol
her hand; and the two of them. sit
ting on some worm-eaten property
would listen to the legends OF the
opera. even as. in their childhood
they had listened to the old Breton
tales. Those old people remembered
nothing outside the opera. They had
lived there for years without number
Past managements had forgotten
them; palace revolutions had taken
no notice of them; the history oi
France had run its course unknown
to them; and nobody recollected theii
existence.
| The precious days sped in this
way; and Raoul and Christine. by al
fecting excessive interest in outside
matters, strove awkwardly to hide
from each other the one thought oi
their hearts. One fact was certain
that Christine, who until then had
shown herself the stronger OF the
two, became suddenly inexpressibly
nervous. When on their expeditions
she would start running without rea
son or else suddenly stop; and her
hand, turning ice.cold in a moment
would hold the young man back
Sometimes her eyes seemed to pur
sue imaginary shadows. She cried
This way" and This way" and
This way" laughing a breathless
laugh that often ended in tears. Then
Raoul tried to speak. to question her
in spite Of his promises. But. even
before he had worded his question
she answered feverishly:
Nothing swear 1t is
nothing"
Once, when they were passing be-
fore an open trapdoor on the stage
Raoul stopped over the dark cavity.
You have shown me over the up
per part OF your empire. Christine
but there are strange stories told OF
the lower part. Shall we go down.?
She caught him in her arms, as
though she feared to see him disap.
pear down the black hole, and in a
trembling voice, whispered:
"Nayari l will NOT haxo