Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1933-09-21

THE Princess Alexandria Sophia
4 stirred ever SO slightly. The day
was breaking and ray Of light shone
dimly on her small white face. Her
eyelids fiuttered, but were still too
weary to lift their heavy fringe of
lashes. She pulled the cover closer
around her shoulders. Cold! Cold!
Really she must ask Katja to unpack
Aunt Anna Karlova's coverlet. That
funny cover of lace and fur and silk
that Aunt Karlova had spent an en-
tire year in embroidering.
Winter! 1t must be winter! For
suddenly sleighbells were ringing in
the streets. Strangely muffled and
far away they sounded. Perhaps d
heavy snow had fallen during the
night. Bells Bells! Bells! An in
cessant ringing Of them an
amending procession Of them. Would
they never stop! Where were they all
going? All! But of course! Strange
that she shouldn't have remembered.
Suddenly it was clear as crystal. How
could she have forgotten! Her we'd
ding day This was her wedding day
The jingling droShkas were bringing
the wedding guests. From distant
provinces, from the suburbs, from
Moscow itself, were coming uncles and
aunts and cousins-VictOr's as well as
her own; schoolmates, friends, officers
from Victor's regiment, officials from
the court and their families. Why,
there must be hundreds of them, thou
sands of them, there were so many
bells! And all coming to celebrate
her wedding, hers and Victor's. Yet
strange weight lay on Alexandria
Sophia She felt she was not NOV
ing-that she was powerless to move.
And now, as suddenly as they hal
started, the bells stopped. The guests,
then, were all assembled-al waiting.
And Victor, her adorable Victor, he
too, would be waiting How splendid
he would look in his uniform of the
Imperial guard, all white and gold,
with the flashing order of st. Stan
islaus upon his breast. All, but he
was wonderful! Swiftly, swiftly, her
thoughts flew back to the day she had
met him. 1t was at the ball at the
Dolgoruk palace; she was making
her first formal appearance in society.
Victor had asked her to lead the pro-
cession with him. They had passed
through an arch of flags, and instead
of returning to the ballroom, he had
carried her off to the gardens. Un
der the willow by the fountain, he had
kissed her, and told her she was the
most divinely lovely thing God had
created. And now here at last, she and
Victor were to be married-never, so
Victor had sworn, would he allow her
to part from him.
But suddenly, more guests seemed
to be arriving-there were the sleigh
bells again. The wedding banquet
must be already spread in the great
hall. But she, Alexandria Sophia, the
bride, she was not there. Where was
she? Oh, where was Katja? Why
didn't Katja bring the wedding dress,
that shimmering thing that had been
sent from Paris? Where was the veil
with headdress of pearls that had
been worn by her mother, and her
grandmother, and by countless Orlof-
ski brides before them? Why this
strange sense of impending doom in
Alexandria Sophia's heart! Why this
pain, this anguished foreboding-th
heavy, heavy weight!
Sleighbells Sleighbells! Would they
never stop? Was all of Moscow COM
ing to her wedding? And she, the
bride, not ready-not ready! All!
They were calling her-it seemed she
was hiding somewhere. They were
coming for her, some one was pound
ing at the door, shaking it. Dear
God! Some one was breaking in.
Why, she had been asleep, fast asleepl
Her eyes were still dazed, her mind
vague.
Some one stood on the threshold
Katja? good old Katja with the we'd
ding dress? But no, Of course 1t
wasn't Katja it couldn't be
Katja. The little princess was wide
awake at last rushing with q
shudder into the complete awareness
A slovenly woman in a faded wrapper
stood before her. She was holding out
thick white cup and talking: "See,
dearle, it's coffee I'm after bringing
up to We. l feared as ye'd oversleep
this morning, it was so late you got
in last night, poor lamb, poor little
lamb"
ALL Awake! How terrible to be
awake! To realize the TRUTH To
know that she was only Sophie Orloff,
apprentice at dressmaking establish
ment, that she lived in a hall room
in Mrs. Murphy's boarding house on
Lenox avenue, that she had oversight
n, would be late to her job And bit
1, t of all, to remember that she is
no longer young, no longer beautiful,
that no one in all the world really
cares what happens to her.
Victor? Katja? Aunt Anna Kar-
Iowa? Where were they? The Dolgo-
ruki palace, court balls, wedding wells
of lace, silken coverlets? Gone, gonel
Borze Moi Long and long ago had
they all vanished. War, revolution.
Red fury had annlhilated these dear
~IA Go