Evening star., 1925-06-09
L0utre
BY LISA YSAYE TARLEAU.
Copyright, 1925. by the Ridgway Co.

sonal advantage. All the profit he
made out of his text books and cook
books and books on domestic science
went into these little volumes of CO.
temporary poetry which he issued
with 81 pride and delight never ac-
corded to his more profitable ventures.
His friends sometimes aruged with
him over the folly Of so costly a
hobby. but Mondell did not heed them
He was a bachelor and his personal
needs were almost negligible, and, in
the end. silencing every argument. he
always declaimed his well beloved
Hefne's warning:
"Verletze nicht durch kalten Ton
Den Juengling. welcher duerftig fremd.
I'm Hilfe bittend gu Dir koemmt-
Siehst Du ihn wieder einst. sodann
Dsn Dse Slog,s s,rsnss sein h1,o haupt Tmnamms; n
Dein Auge NIGHT ertragen kann"
On fine morning in February, q
genius of the Trois Couronnes accost-
ed M. Mondell on the street, offering
him an epic poem in three volumes
M. Mondell trembled; he knew he
would never say no, but he knew also
that just at present the luxury of
another unstable book would be fatal
to him. Very humanity he tried to
escape the embarrassing situation
he said encouragingly:
Just send me your manuscript
My reader. Mons. Tritou, shall at once
report about it,
The epic poet looked at M Mondell
with wide eyes.
"Tritou." he asked, "do you mean
Aristide Tritou? Is he your reader?"
Yes" answered NJ. Mondell, do
you know him?"
The other sighed
All, no, 1 don't know him. I don't
know celebrities-as yet. But, of
course, know all about him. Who
doesn't know the author of 'Loutre"?
It's really the book of the year. La
fitte was lucky to get it. Every one
says that the book itself Is splendid
and would sell even without the illus.
trations by Felix
Monden was dumfounded. Why
had that devil of Trttou never men
toned his book? So much modesty
was really too much of virtue. But
he hid his surprise and said only:
oh, was 1t Felix who did the illus.
trations?"
Yes. yes" the poet assured him,
1T ran serially in Kersac's Revue II.
lustree, you know, and Felix and
Kersac are intimate friends. And
Rather weird, you know, and very
profound and interesting. Full OF
psychology - Coue, auto-suggestion
subconscious-self; and folklore, imita.
tive magic, primitive beliefs Of man
kind, and all such things. Quite up
to-date. No wonder it almost got the
Prix Goncourt."
Mondell nodded sagely. mo won.
DER. he agreed. And shaking hands
with his poet and promising every.
thing and anything. he hurried post
haste to his office.
NJ. Mondell hated les silences'-
sllences that estranged and parted and
that, once entered into, gained con-
stantly in sinister power. 1t was well
enough to be silent when YOU had
said everything you had to say; then
silence was comforting, sweet, uniting.
But to be silent with an unsaid thing
ranking in the mind was absolutely
against his nature, and while he now
made his way to his office, he decided
to have 1t out at once with Aristide.
Why had that boy been so reticent?
why, above all, If he had written a
splendid book-why had he given II Ia
another publisher? Was Pierre La.
htte really so much better an imprint
than Frederick Mondell? Poor NJ
Mondell felt Sighted and was puzzled
and as he liked Aristide-liked him
we'll enough, in fact. to quarrel VIC
lently with him-he felt, in addition
hurt He had given his young reader
full confidence and he had expected
confidence in return. Well, he would
hear what Aristide had to say.
He found Aristide in a cloud of to-
bacco smoke. leaning back in his
chair, his feet on his desk, reading the
galley proofs Of a new Mondell publ.
cation. When Mondell entered Aris.
tide looked up and yawned
heavens. what rot" he said, what
miserable, insufferabIe uncomfortable