The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1913-04-11
CHAPTER TX.
At the Masked Ball.

The envelope was covered with mud
and unstamped 1t bore the words,
TO be handed to NJ. lie Vicomte Raoul
de Chagny," with the address in pen
Gil. 1t must have been flung out In
the hope that a passer-by would pick
up the note and deliver it, which was
what happened The note had been
picked up on the pavement Of the
Place de rOpera
Raoul read it over again with few
cred eyes. No more was needed to
revive his hope. The somber picture
which he had for a moment imagined
of a Christine forgetting her duty to
herself made way for his original con-
ceptiOn OF an unfortunate. innocent
exaggerated sensibility. To what ex-
tent, at this time, was she really d
victim? Whose prisoner was she?
Into what whirlpool had she been
dragged? He asked himself these
questions With a cruel anguish but
even this pain seemed endurable be-
side the frenzy into which be was
thrown at the thought of a lying and
deceitful Christine. What had hap
pened? What influence had she I'M
dergone? What monster had carried
her off and by what means?
BY what means indeed but that OF
music? He knew Christines story.
After her fathers death, she acquired
a distaste OF everything in life, In
Guiding her art. She went through
the conservatOire like poor soulless
singing machine. And, suddenly, she
awoke as though through the inter
vention Of god. The Angel OF Music
appeared upon the scene, She sang
Margarita in Faust and triumphed!
The Angel OF Music, For
three months the Angel of Music had
been giving Christine lessons. :.
All, he was a punctual singing-master
And now he was taking her
for drives in the Bots, q
RaouIs fingers clutched at his flesh,
above his jealous heart In his mex
perience, he now asked himself with
terror what game the girl was play
ing? Up to what point could an OPP
era-singer make fool OF good-nat-
ured young man, quite new to love-
o misery!
Thus did Raouls thoughts fly from
one extreme TO the other He no
longer knew whether to pity Christine
or to curse her; and he pitied and
cursed her turn and turn about AT
all no hnn oh ~ TO mr.
The hour OF the appointment came
at last. With his face in a mask
trimmed with long, thick lace, looking
like a pierrot in his white wrap, the
viscount thought himself very ridicu-
lous. Men Il the world do not go to
the opera bali in fancy-dressi 1t was
absurd. One thought, however, con-
soled the viScOuSt: he would certain
ly never be recognized!
This ball was an exceptional affair,
given some time before Shrovetide, in
honor of the anniversary of the birth
of a famous craftsman: and it was
expected to be much gayer, noisier,
more Bohemian than the ordinary
masked ball Numbers OF artists had
arranged 10 go, accompanied Dy a
whole cohort OF models and pupils,
who, by midnight, began to create
tremendous din. .Raoul climbed the
grand staircase at five minutes to
twelve, did not linger to look at the
motley dresses displayed all the way
up the marble steps, one of the rich
est settings in the world, allowed no
facetious mask to draw him into
war of wits, replied to no Jests and
shook of the bold familiarity Of a
number of couples who had already
become tride too gay. Crossing the
big crush-rocm and escaping from
mad whirl of dancers in which he was
caught for moment, he at last en-
tered the room mentioned in Chris
tines letter. He found it crammed;
for this small space was the point
where all those who We're going to
supper in the Rotunda crossed those
who were returning from taking a
glass of champagne. The fun, here.
waxed fast and furious
Raoul leaned against door-post
and waited. He did not wait long. A
black domino passed and gave a quick
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