The Washington herald., 1917-11-09

It was a beautiful meerchaum pipe,
with a mouthpiece Of amber. II rep
resented q xouave's face. CHEEKY and
genial. terminating in a double-point-
ed beard The tassel Of the cap hung
down on the neck.
The day when Louis Journee re-
ceived this pipe-that was an eventful
day. One hasn't many distractions
In the trenches. and the hours drag
along with q desqlating tediousness.
So the arrival of packages Is pow
erful dispeler of ennuL
For q long time nothing had come
for Journee. He had no relatives. to
his knowledge, and was practically
alone In the world He had lived in
the streets Of Paris-no one knew
Just how, tenacious Of existence. as
cats are: by no means good looking.
shabby and thin. with a face that
seemed to have been carved out OF a
radish. He had no trade, and was
forced to make a living out of what
ever came along. He was a philoso-
pher in his way. He had learned at
least two things. First that one is
never really happy; and. second. that
one can always manage not TO starve
| to death.
Louis Journee had been at the front
five months, when q package was
sent to him through the agency of
| relief society. 1t contained some
knitted things. The person who made
| them also sent a gracious little let
ter. Her name was Mile. Descos-
soles. She was certainly one OF those
| maiden ladies who, in a corner Of
some remote province, seek without
much success TO satisfy those desires
for service which flower in a heart
which doesn't know how to grow old.
Journe had much natural polite
ness. He judged that the gift. even
/ though sent thus indirectly. deserved
a personal Acknowledgement He
wrote. with some dificulty. a few
words OF thanks. That bit OF a letter
quite upset Mile. Descossoles, who
trembled with emotion. in her morose
| solitude, at the idea OF having an in
terest in some one at the front. Wild
with JOY, she at once constituted her
self the godmother OF Journee, and
began to send him linen, chocolate
and boxes of conserves. A regular
correspondence established itself be-
| tween the soldier and his godmother.
She finally asked him what special
thing he wanted most He refused al
first to say. She insisted. At last
he told her that II was a pipe.
Then II came, all white and gold.
| eItravagant. comic. luxurious, like
/ an object in a showcase. His COM
rades gathered about him. They re-
garded the gift with something like
veneration.
Some of t1em said. their eyes spark
ling with covetousness:
| For a pipe, that is really a pipe"
Journee decided finally to MI IL
and light it He smoked II with a
! feeling of blessedness, his brain full
J of vague and happy ideas. penetrated
with the confused feeling that this
day was the most memorable in his
I life, and that a man who could smoke
such a pipe is at least the equal
I OF kings.
The next day Migot, a blacksmith
OF rude appearance but with a sar-
donic fancy, called out to him:
Say. Journee, IL you are killed by
the Boches we shall inherit your
pipe"
This pleasantly appealed TO all the
men. They found il 50 droll that not
a day passed without one OF them
! repeating II i ne most stupid reptdNeu
| il, as well as the most intelligent.
J Pallons, who was a poor devil Of a
shepherd and half an idiot, used II no
/ less than Goullsinne, who was pro-
| fessor in 4 faculty.
Try to get killed quickly. so that
we may inherit your pipe"
At first Journee felt cold chills run
ming down his back; for he had no
desire whatever to be killed. But
after a while he got used to this
specimen Of poilu facetiousness.
In writing to his godmother he
! passed the saving along to her. with
a certain pride in showing how gen
eral was the opinion of his COM
rades on that point. But for fear
J that his benefactress might think i'll
Of his fellows he added candidly:
"But all this, madamoiselle. is only
Jest"
! Mile. Descossoles found the pleas
antries OF the trenches rather pc
/ culiar. For her part, she could not
understand the humor OF that kind
OF badinage.