New-York tribune., 1917-12-30
Octave Feuillet and LA
MOrte"
How AIiette de Vaudricourt, Failing to Achieve
Real Spiritual Marriage With Her Husband While
Alive, Tnumphed in Death

you have allowed me 20 contract TIA. hateful
marriageP ..
She seemed more confident, and her vote.
grew gentler "Monsieur, Il is beesus.
madame, before she went 70 God, made m.
take oath on the cracifx 70 keep that seere,
forever
"Yot not with me. in faet-not With metz
And ], in turn, questioned her; ny eyes upon
hers. Shc hestatcd, then stsmmered out;
"True not with you, because she believed
poor little soul, that"
what did she believe? That knew ~
That was an aeeompice? Tell mel" H,,
eyes fell, and she made 70 answer. @Is Il
possible, my God! is 10 possiole2 But come:
sit by me here and tell me all you know. All
you saw. At what time was 10 you noticed
anything-the precise moment7' For. IA
/ truth, she had been suffering for long time
past.
Victoire tells the miserable story Of
/ Sabine's crime The old nurse had sur-
prised her in the very act. "when sur.
priscd her." she goes on:
at may already have been 100 late. B.
sure il was not the first time she had been
guilty. Ny first thought was to give you in.
formation. But had not the courage. Then
I told madame. | thought I saw plainly ths,
had nothing to tell she was not already
aware OF. Nevertheless, she chided me a.
most harshly. 'You know very well she said.
that my husband is always there when
mademoiselle prepared the medicines. So
that he, too, would be guilty. Rather than
believe that, I would accept death at his
] hands a hundred times overl' And I remer,-
| ber monsieur, how, at the very momen. when
she told me that, you came o0t from the little
/ boudoir and brought her glass of Valerian.
/ She cast on me a terrible look, and drank A
/ few minutes afterward she sss 60 i'll that she
| thought the end was come. She begged me 10
/ give her her cruciix, and made me swear
never to utter word concerning or sus-
/ picions. l. was then that sent for the
/ priest. ] have told you, monsieur, what
/ know, what / have seen with my own eyes
/ I swear that have said nothing but what |,
absolutely true" She paused. | could no.
answer her. seized her old, wrinkled and
trembling hands and pressed them 10 my
forehead, and wept like child.
May 10.-She died believing me guilty.
The thought is terrible 20 ne. know no.
what to do. o creature so frail, so delicate.
so sweet. "Yes," she said to herself, my hus
band Is a murderer; what he Is giving me is
poison, and ne knows IT," She died with that
though: in her mind-her last thought And
she will never, never know that il was not 80;
that I am innocent; that the though. Is tor
meat TO me; that I am the most unhappy Of
men. All! God all powerful, ii you indeed
exist, you see what l suffer. Have pity on
me!
An! how wish ! could believe that all is
not over between her and me; that she sees
and hears me; that sllA knew the truth. Bus
find it was impossible! impossible!
Aliette had hoped TO bring her husband
to point Of view which should permi. bis
accepting her religion, with its belief in
personal Immortality. This is the last
entry in Bernard's journal:
Juhe-That was criminal was her las,
thought, and she will never be undeeeiyed
All seems so completely ended when one
dies. All returns TO its first elements. How
credit that miracle Of personal resurrse.
ton? And yet, in truth, all IS mystery, mir
acle, around US, about US, within ourselves
The entire universe is but continuous
miracle. Mans new birth from the womb o.
DEATHS it a mystery less comprehensibk
than his birth from.the womb OF his mother
These lines are the last written by Bernard
de Yaudr!court. HIS health, for some time
past disturbed by srief, was powerless sgains,
the emotions OF the last terrible trial in.
posed on him. A malady, the exact nature Of
which was not determined, in few hours as
sumed a mortal character. Perceying that
his end was come, he caused Mon,eignsur De
Courteheuse TO be summoned; he desired 70
die in the religion Of Aliette. Living, the
poor child had been defeated she prevailed
in her death.