Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1921-06-05
TFanslated From the Freneh By
WILLIAM L. MCPHERSON.


TIME poet awoke that morning In
q bad humor. Such things hap
pen to everybody. They come,
it is said, from bad stomach.
But a poet has no stomach: what he
has he calls heart.
my heart Is sad" he thought.
And because he was a poet he quite
Naturally made a drama out Of this
simple statement. He began, then.
after he was dressed. by entering his
wife's chamber with a countenance
which. completely upset her.
Married for a year. they were ending
their honeymoon. Or. ratheA the hus-
band was ending it. For the wife was
of the sort who remains till death In
love with the man she has chosen.
In addition to his talent. already
celebrated. this husband had face
which was handsome and appealing:
with an expression compounded OF
lassitude and exultation-a face whose
dark velvety eyes, loose flowing black
hair, sensitive and delicate nose, per-
fectly formed mouth, shaded by a
light mustache. and alabaster cheeks
constituted a physiognomy the most
dangerous that could possibly be
imagined for a jealous woman.
The little wife trembled before the
pale mask which presented itself to
her that morning. with tragedy writ
ten on every feature.
She had suspected from the first
days of her marriage that her hus-
band would make her suffer. but she
didn't know yet in exactly what way.
Her mother. a woman Of experience
had said to her:
How can you expect to be happy
with a man who has nostrils like
his?"
Poor little woman, Pretty for a
moment and doomed forever to trou-
BILE. she felt now that her life of sor-
row had begun
What is the matter with your she
asked in anguish.
He answered in hollow voice:
Il don't know.
And that was still more frightful
than anything she had feared.
''See," she thought. He is bored with
me already. He regrets his loss Of
freedom. He feels that he needs new
sources of inspiration. He no longer
loves me. He loves another"
Marco" she entreated. her hands
clasped. tell me everything. 1 prefer
to know everything"
~ ** t.
CURPRISED at her morning toilet,
~ her hair still unarranged. the
rose tint of her youth shining under
her blond tresses. she was so charm
ing and so distressed that he felt his
heart palpitate with emontion. He
hadn't expected so much from a SIM
pc attack of ill-humor or getting out
of bed. His SenSibilitieS were quick
ened. His sadness. until then some
what neutral toned. turned to an inky
blackness.
"She will weep in a minute he
though. Something serious is going
to happen"
The atmosphere was created. Re
felt happy: He was in his place as a
poet. He longed to romanticiZe the
situation. He wanted to spread his
melancholy over the entire household.
Utterly detected, he dropped into
seat near his wife and took his
head in his hands. And because his
felt real grief take possession of
him.
Il wish I were dead" he murmur-
ed.
Thereupon she burst into tears.
After gazing at her for a moment
he, too, began to cry. He had counted
on this. also. The shadows deepened
in his soul, most marvelously.
1t was at this moment that the cook
came in to ask for orders. She had
been turned over to them as an ex-
tradordinary treasure. for she had
years. She saw monsieur and madame
weeping and stopped. horrihed, on
the dOOrSill. %'';
To be weeping. at their ages. after
so short a married life,
She advanced softly Unto the room
and asked respectfully:
What shall 1 serve for breakfast
today, madame?"
But her voice died away almost be-
fore she finished the question. She
began to weep also. and, feeling
ashamed of her breach Of decorum,
hurriedly disappeared to cover her
chagrin.
The poet followed her with his eyes.
He was thrilled. Decidedly here was
sadness in all its somber beauty!
A few minutes later the maid fore
warned that there was trouble in the
house. would be entering with a star
tied face.
Marco. I beg of you. tell me every
thing
There were three little raps on the
door. 1t was. in fact, the maid. She
was followed by the little dog, who
was coming back from his mornings
outing. The maid had frightened
look. as was natural. having heard
the bad news from the cook And the
little dog, seeing his mistress CRYING.