Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-08-24

coughod a warning agais.st his be-
trayin MS lie hesitated. then despair
inglv dcd. in voice of resigaatron;
my MASTER the King, of a single
stroke Of this sword, which ave de-
voted entirely to his service"
Il do not doubt" said the lady, with
cold irony, that your sword is active
enough when drawn in the service OF
your kmg."
"My King" replied Blaise with
dignity, had the goodness to make a
somewhat similar remark when he took
Cahorsr'
"Cahorsl' repealed the lady in tone
ol pcrpleSity. "But the King never took
Cahorsr'
The King of France, --nor cried
Blaisc; "but the King of Navarro did,
''Blaiscr' | cried, in angry reproof at
his lmprudeace.
The tone in which | spoke had so
startled the lady that she dropped her
mask, and | SAW the sweetest face that
ever gladdened the eyes OF man. III
was the face of a girl naturally OF q
cheerful nature, but newly made ac-
.ouainted with SORROW. GrIef had not
rendered the nature, or the face, un-
responsive To transient impressions oi
pleasant or mirthful kind Hers was
one ef those hearts in which. grief does
not exclude all possibility of gaiety.
Sorrow might lie at the bottom, never
forgotten and never entirely concealed,
hut merriment might ripple on the sur
face. As for its outlines, the lace, IN every
part, harrnonized with the grace and
purity OF the chin and mouth. Her
eyes were blue and large, with an elo-
quence displayed without intent or
consciousness.
what does il meanP' she said, In
charming bewilderment. = he servant
iepruyes the master. All! L seet Inc
servant is the master"
And she smiled with pleasure at her
discovery
But still your servant, mademoi-
scllc. " was all that | could say.
Blaise vented great breath OF rell I
II feel better now, he 81 d, heartily,
and he turned with a beaming counte
nance 20 the maid, who looked at his
stalwart form and promptly revised her
opinion Of him. The two were soon IN
conversation together, at the fireplace,
and was left 10 complete explanations
with the lady, who did not attempt the
coquetry of replacing her mask.
Our secret is yours, mademolselle,
and our safety Is In your hands.
.'lour secret is safe, monsieur, she
said, modestly averting her eyes from
my frankly admiring look. And now
| understand why 1t was YOU who drew
sword"
"A privilege too precious to be re-
signed. answered in a low tone, even
for the sake of my secret and my safety,
Nv words were spoken SO tenderly
that she sought relief from her charming
Embarrassment by taking up my sword
from the table, and saying, with smile;
Il have YOU in my power. monsieur,
follower Of the King of Navarrel What
ii | were minded, on behalf of the
governor Of this province, to make you
"a prisoner
''My faithr' | could only reply, '1you
need no sword to make prisoners OF
men"
You hope TO purchase your freedom
with a compliment" she said, con-
tiauing the Jest; but you cannot close
my eyes with fiattery.
lit would be crime beyond me to
close eyes 50 beautiful
She gave a pretty little smile and
shrug of helplessness, as If to say, Il
cannot help it, monsieur, if you viii
overwhelm me with compliments which
are not deserved, / am powerless TO
prevent YOU" But the compliments
were all the more deserved because she
seemed 10 think them not so.
Her modesty weaken d my own
audacity, and her innocent eyes put
me into kind. of confusion. So
changed the subject
1T appears tonne, mademoiselle,
said, that | have had the honor of rid
ding YOU of unpleasant company.
Her face quickly elouded, as il my
words had brought TO her mind
greater trouble than the mere impor
tunities of an insolent adveaturer
DE Berquinr sh said, and then
heaved deep. sigh; T had forgotten
about him.