Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1914-07-02

and a career were waiting for little,
Francois II their love for him should
be unselfish; seeing these things, h
father and mother agreed to the gem
erals plan. Atutor was to be engaged
for the three children; Francois was
to live at the castle as fit should be
explained to him-he were going away
to school. and every Friday he was to
walk to the Ferme du Val-the Valley
farmland stay with his people until
Sunday afternoon.
So. without realizing the change, the
boy who had been the child of a peas
ant cabin became the child of the cas-
tie. n while entirely loyal to the home
he still held to be his own. he learned
ways of living and breathed in ideas
which could not hav come to him at
the farm. The Fridays. were eagerly
looked Onward to. and it was excite
ment and rapture to see and share in.
the new prosperity-the large stone
house of a story and a half, rooted
with immense oak shingles richly dark
with age; the farm buildings clustered
about 1t. connected with stone walls,
forming a large court; the big granary,
standing aside on a hill slope: and tho
multitude of live stock-the 70 COWS, the
eight heavy work horses of the coun-
try. the six horses which pertained ia
the farmer for driving and riding, and
the two pairs of mild-eyed oxen, used
for breaking the earth. The father and
mother reigned busily and happily over
all this plenty. and all the brothers and
sisters We're together once more around
tnem n the uninterrupted grand
mother smiled a benediction from her
big chintz chair. Such a greeting as
Francois. her especial boy. got from the
grandmother on a Friday evening, after
his long walk!
h new order of things was well
settled before six months had passed
after the going of the Marquis Zappi.
Francois was not now allowed to fill
the place Of secretary except in an in
cideatal way. The new tutor, a serious
young man whom the children aston
ished and worried. copied the & of
the history OF, the emperor. 1t was
thought important now that Francois
should work at his studies. There was
a rumor already that he and Pietro
might go together. perhaps. in a year
more. to a military school-in fact, to
Saint Cyr itself, If h marquis thought
We'll OF the place when he came home.
And then in three or four months more
something happened.
Francois was alone with the general
when the letter I'm Marcelle. the
younger footman, had been sent to the
mayors In the village for the mail,
which came by post to Delesmontes and
was brought on by foot messengers ia
Vicques, to the mayor, who distributed
II. eyes were on his seig-
neur's face as he read the letter and
the boy saw the blood rush through the
weather-hardened skin in a brown-red
flood. and then fade out, leaving IT
gray. The boy had never seen the gem
eral look SO. With that. the big arms
We're thrown out on the table and the
big grizzled head fell into them. That
cut Francois soul-his seigneur was
in trouble. And before he knew 1t his
childish arm was around the big neck
and his cheek against the se%igneur's.
And the seigneur put up his hand and
pressed the little face closer. For Ions
minutes not a word was said and then
the generals deep voice spoke, more
gently than Francois had ever heard it.
1T is a good thing to have a son, my
Francois" he said.
Then he lifted his head and told the
boy how the friend who he had found
lately. after so many years of a
ton. had gone away not to come back
In this life. and how Pietro was
fatherless. Francois. holding tight
ly with both fists to the generals
hand, listened wide eyed, struck to the
come near, and the face of it was grim.
Yet instantly he rallied, because he
felt that his %seigneur needed him.
But he had a brave life, my seig-
neur-it is the best thing that there IS.
My mother said SO. My mother told
me that we shall smile later, when we
are with the good God, to think that
we ever feared death on this earth.
For h says M spends a long time
with the good God later, and all ones
dear friends come, n it is pleasant
and it is for a long, long tinae, while
here it is, after all, quite short. Is
not that true, my seigneur? My mother
said it,
But all the general answered was to
pat his head and say once more: 1T
is a good thing to have a son, my
Francois"