Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

i Under By FREDI ' Author i * Copyright,m 1005. by the Thoughtfully tlio tlukc continued to ? obsene the Jestress. Between tliem whirled the votaries of pleasure; before hlxn swept the fragrance of delicate perfumes; In his ears sounded the subtle enticement of soft laughter. Her face wore a proud, self reliant expression; her eyes that look which had ^ made her seem so Illusive from the Inception of their acquaintance. And now, since his Identity had been re#venled, she had seemed more, puzzling to him than ever. When he had sought her glance, her look had told him nothV. log. It was as though with the doffing of the motley she had discarded Its recollections. In a tentative mood he una striven to mthom her, but found himself at a loss. She had been neither reserved nor hnd she avoided him. To her the past seemed n page, lightly rend and turned, llnd Callletto truly Bald "now she belonged to the world?" Stepping upon one of the balconies overlooking the vnlley, the duke gazed out over the tranquil face of nature, his figure drawn aside from the flood of light within. Between heaven and earth the chateau reared Its stately pile, and far downward tlio4e twinkling flashes represented the town; yonder faint line, like a dark thread, the encircling wall. Above- the gate shone a glimmer from the narrow casement of some officer's quarters, and the jester's misgiving when they had ridden be.i. S neath the portcullis Into the town for the first time recurred to him; also the glad baste with which they had sped away. * Memories of dangers, ef the free and untrammeled character of their wandering, that day to day Intimacy and night to night consciousness of her presence haunted him. Her loyalty, her fine sense of comradeship, her Inherent tenderness, had been revealed to him Still he seemed to feel himself the Jester, In the gathering of fools, and she n mlnlstralissa, with dark, deep eyes that baffled him. The Hound of voices nenr the window nroused him from this held of speculation. voices that abruptly riveted his attention and held It?the king's and Jacqueline's. CHAPTER XXIX. THE young man's brow grew dark. Tumultuous thoughts filled his brain. Cnillette's words. Brusquet's-' rhymes, confirming his own conviction, rankled In his mind. This king dnred arrogate a law absolute unto himself?Its stntutes his own caprices, Its canons his own pretensions? The duke remembered the young girl's outburst against the monarch, and a feeling of hatred arose in his breast; his hand Involuntarily sought his sword, the blade of Francis' Implacable enemy. "We have heard your story, my child, from our brother, the emperor," the king was saying, "and although your father rebelled against his monarch we harbor It not against the daughter." - "Sire," she answered In a low tone, "I regret the emperor should have ncqxinlnted you with this matter." You have no cause for four," Francis replied, misinterpreting lier words. She otTered no response, and the duke, v moving into the light, observed the king was regarding the young girl intently, his tall tigure conspicuous above the courtiers. Flushed, Jacijueilne looked down, the white robed form, however, very straight and erect, her hair untrammeled with the extreme conventions of the day, a single flower a spot of color amid its abundance. Even the duchess ?bejeweled, bedecked, tricked out?in her own mind had pronounced the young girl beantlful, and there surely was no mistaking the covert admiration of the monarch as his glance encompassed her. Despite her assumed compomire, it was obvious to the duke that only by a strong effort had she nerved herself to that evening's task. The red hue on her cheeks, the brightness of her eyes, told of the suppressed excitement her manner failed to betray. "Why should you leer? with Charles?" continued Francis. "Perhaps were we overhasty in confiscating the castle of ? tne constable. Vrai I)leu," he added meditatively, "had he unbent but_ a little! Marguerite told ua we were driving him to despair, but tho queen regent and the rest of our counselors prevailed"? He broke off abruptly and directed a bolder gnze to hers. "May not a monarch, mademoiselle, nndo what he has done?" "Even a king cannot give life to the dead," she replied, and her voice sounded bard and unyielding. "No," be assented moodily, "but It #ould not be Impossible to restore the castle- to his daughter." "Sire," she exclaimed In surprise, then shook her head, "with your majesty's permission, I shall leave with the emperor." Francis made an Impatient movement. Her Inflexibility recalled one who long ago had renounced his fealty to the throne. Her resistance kindled the flame that had been smoldering in his breast. "Bat if I have pointed out to the emperor that your proper station Is here?" he went on. "If he recognizes that It would be to your disadvantage to divert that deatfo which Ut? lo France r I the Rose ! u J I ' =1 * 3RIC S. ISHAM, of "The Stroller*" . ". r DOWEN-MERRILL COMPANY |'t| i 11 j ilis words wove measured. his man- g nor tinged with rooming paternal Inter- fl 'est; hut. as through a mask, she (Ms a t eorncil his fnce, cynical. libidinous, the ' countenance of a sybarite, not a king. s< The air became stilling. The ribaldry tl of laughter enveloped her. Instinctive- v ly she glanced around, and her restless. f< troubled gaze fell upon the duke. e What was it he read In her eyes? A confession of Insecurity, fear, a mute F appeal? Ilefore It all, his doubts and e misgivings vanished. Tlie look they ex- p changed was like that when she hnd o stood on the staircase in the Inn. c Upon the monarch, engrossed In his e purpose, it was lost. If silence gives h consent, then had she already acqul- P esced la n wish wli!cli from a king n became n demand, but Francis, ever u complaisant, "OH . an inconsistent i C chivalry worthy of the subterfuge of b his character, desired to appear forbearing, indulgent. s "F'or your own sake," he added, P "must we refuse that permission you ask of us." rl She did not answer, and, noting the n direction of her gaze, the eager ex- ? pectancy written on her face, F'rnncls * tufned sharply. At the same time the r duke stepped forward. The benignity faded from the king's f manner; his countenance, which "at no ? time would have made a man's for- 1 tune," became rancorous, canstle. The ' corners of his mouth appeared almost 11 updrawn to his nostrils. Ke had little v reason to care for the duke, and this ^ Interruption, so flagrant, menacing almost, did not tend to enhance his re- v gard. In nowise daunted, the young 0 man stood before him. A c "I trust, sire, your majesty will re- ^ consider your decision?" t With a strained look the young girl regnnled them. To what new dangers c had she summoned him? Was not she, , the duke, even the emperor himself, in f the power of the king, for the present j at least? And knowing well Francis' j headstrong passions, his violence when , crossed, it was not strange ut that ino- t ment her heart sank. -Shs felt on the | brink of an abyss, a nameless peril x toward which she hud drawn the com- ? panlon of Iter flight. It seemed an endless Interval before the monarch ^ spoke. "Ah, you heard!" remarked Francis # at length satirically. "Inadvertently, sire," answered the duke. Ills voice was steady, his face pale, but In bis blue eyes a glint as of Are came and went. Self assurance marked his bearing; dignity, pride. lie looked not at the young girl, but calmly met the scrutiny of the king. The latter surveyed him from head to foot, iucu suuueiuy unireu mijra ni a sworu whose hilt gleamed even brighter than his own and was fashioned in a form that recalled not imperfectly a hazard of other days. "Where did you get thut blade?" he asked abruptly. "From the daughter of the constable of Dubrols." "Why did she give It to you?" "To protect her, sire." The monarch's countenance became more thoughtful, less acrimonious. How the present seemed Involved In the past! Were kings, then, enmeshed in the web of their own acts? Were even the gods not exempt from retrlbutory Justice? Those were days of superstition, when n coincidence assumed the importance of inexorable destiny. "Onco was it drawn against me," 1 aid Francis reflectively. c "I trust, sire, It may never again be t drawn by an enemy of your majesty." < The king did not reply, but stood as a man who yet took counsel with him- 1 elf. < "By what right," he aaked flnaffj, ' *Mo you speak for the lady?" A moment the duke looked dlscon- 1 certed. "By what right?" i Then swiftly he regarded the girl, i As quickly?a flash It seemed?her dark eyes made answer, their language more c potent than words. lie could but un- J derstand. Doubt and misgiving were e forgotten; the hesitation vanished from c his manner. Hastily crossing to her WUU, he took her hand and unresisting* 1 ly it lay In his. Ills heart beat faster. Her sudden acquiescence filled him y with wonder. At the same time his c task seemed easier. To protect her t now! The king coughed Ironically, and the dnke turned from her to him. j "By what right, your majesty?" he y said In a voice which sounded differ- c ent to Francis. "This lady Is my af| flanced bride, sire." t * Pique, umbrage, mingled In the ex- j presslon which replaced all other feel- | (nor ftn tho lrfnc'a pnnntAnn nnn o a Ha ? heard this announcement. With manifest displeasure be looked from one to B the other. f "la this true, mademoiselle?" he _ asked sternly. t Her cheek was red, but she held herself bravely. ,< "Yen, sire," she said. j, A new emotion leoped to the duke'e fl face as he heard her lips thus fearlessly confirm the answer of her eyes. ? And so, before the monarch in that court which Marguerite called the court of love, they plighted their troth. a Something In their manner, however, ptussled the observant king?an exaltstlhjv fierfcapft WK&U4L *QLPZ t?e slm- t le tolling or a secret unaerstanain ctween them, thnt rnpld In tore hung f glances, that significance of mat or when the duke stopped to her sld< 'rnncls bit his Hps. "Mn foil" he exclnlmed sliarplj This In noniewhnt abrupt. How lonf ?y lord, since she promised to be yon rife?" "Since your majesty spoke," rcturi i the duke tranquilly. "And before thnt?" "Before? I only know that I love er, sire." "And now you know for the firs me thnt she lovos you?" added tk Ing dryly. "But the emperor?are yo ot presuming overmuch thnt he wll ive his consent? Or think you"?wit ne irony?"thnt marriages of stat re made In heaven?'"" "It was once my privilege, sire, so t ervo the emperor, as his majest; bought, that ho hade me ask of hit 'hnt I would, when I would. IIeret< ?re have I bud nothing to ask; no-* verythlng." Some of the nsperity faded frot 'rands' glano*. The situation nppen tl to his strong penchant for incrr lnisnnterlc. Besides, such was hi verweeniug pride, to hear a womn onfess she enred for another dtimpei d hh own ardor Instead of stlmula lg it. "None but himself could be hi urallel." The royal lover could broo o rival. Ilad she merely desired t inrry the former fool?the Countess c Imtenuhrinnt had had a husbandut to love him! After all, she was but an nudnclou lip of a girl, a dark browed, bol ypsy, by nature intended for the mo ?y?yes, the Duchesne d'Etnmpes wo Ight. Then he liked not her paren C.o. She was n constant reminder r no who had been like to tnake vncar he throne of France and to destroy oot and branch, the proud lionse i irlonns. Moreover, whispered avaric e would save the castle for hlmsel stately and right royal possessloi le had. Indeed, been overgenerous 1 roffering it. Ix>ve, said reuson, wr nstable, flitting; woman, a will o' tl rlsp; but a castle?its noble solldlt ,-ould endure. At the same time po ;y admonished the king that the dufc ras a subject of his good brother, th mperor, and a rich, powerful nob! rltlial. So with such grace as he coul ommand Francis greeted one whoi le preferred to regard as an ally rat >r than an enemy. "Truly, my lord," he said, not di lourteously, masking in a courtly ma ler his personal dislike for him who iharp criticism he once had felt tools' ball, "a nimble wltted Jester wi ost when you resumed the dignity rour position. But," he added ca lously as a sudden thought inor< iim, "this lady has appeared somewh mexpeetedly. The house of Fricdwa s not an Inconsequential one." "What mean you, sire?" asked tl roung man as the king paused. Francis studied him shrewdl Why," lie replied at length liesitu " Jaajuellnc I Sweet JestresH!" ngly, "there la that controversy of tl onstnble of Dubrols?certain lani ind a castle, long since rightly confi nted." "Your majesty, there Is another ca :1c and lauds to spate in a dlstai rountry," returned the duke quickl, 'These will suffice." "A s you will," said the king in ivelier tone. "For the future, con nand our good offices, since you ha\ nade us sponsor of your fortunes." With which well covered confesslo >f bis own defeat Francis strode awa; Is he turned, however, he caught tt imlle of the Duchesse d'Etampes an Tossed to her graciously. "Your dress becomes you well, Anne, te said. She glanced down at herself demur y; her lashes veiled a sudden gleni f triumph. "IIow kind of you, sire, 1 lotlce my poor gown." "I was right," murmured Tribouh oyfully as he saw the king and favo te wnlking together. "No one wi iver replace the duchess." Silent, hand in hand, the duke ou he joculatrlx stood upon the balcon; Jolow them lay the earth wrapped i mxy light; behind them, the cour vith its glamour. "Have I done well, Jacqueline, to ai ??? iuo ftuig hn i nitvw uone /" no sal Innlly. "Are you content to resign a -forever?here In France? To go wit ne""Into a new world," ?ho lnterrupte< 'Once I asked you to take me, but yo ies1tnted and were like to leave me b< ilnd you." "But now 'tis I who ask," he ai wered. "And I?who hesitate?" looking 01 iver the valley, where the.shadow c i cloud crossed the land. "Do you heeltate, Jacqueline?" She turned. About her Hps irembls ha old fleeting spill*. . * ^ J ,1 11 5 1 s 9 "Wbnt womnn knows her mlihI, Kir i- Fool? Yot If It wore not so"*? >. "If It were not bo?" he said eagerly. Her eyes became grave on n sudden, r. "I might believe I hnd been of one f, mind?long." t "Jacquellnel Sweet JestreBs!" lie caught' her suddenly In his nrms, h his line young features aglow. This, I then, was the goal of his desires, a goal of delight far, far beyond nil d youthful dreams or early Imaginings. With drooping eyelids she stood In his it 1 embrace; she, once so proud, so self e willed. He drew her closer, kissed her u hair, the rose! 11 She raised her head, and, sweeter h still, be kissed her lips. ? I Across the valley the shadow recedI ed, vanished. In the full glory of nlghto ly splendor lay the earth, and as the Y mystic radiance lighted up a world of n I bcnuty It seemed at last they beheld h their world, the light more l>enutlful % for the shade and the purple mists. tiie rm n 1. ? * y PERT PARAGRAPHS. Is n The cheerfulness with which some i* I people run Into debt Is equaled only t* I by the slowuess with which they creep 's out of It. k _ ? fTn It Is ImposI Cyy slble for a I ("^ man to forget I /-? > t,,nt *ie 's a 9 I Ct'CT gentleman If ^ I u?v?r wm I on?" '* 1 When the wolf comes fooling around ^ I the door of a hustler, he will capture I the beast and sell Its scalp for the I price of a few square meals. S I _ ^ I The con man lovcth a cheerful giver. I There may be some tilings in this n I world more exacting than a music 19 I teacher, but the small girl never met li 10 _ ^ I It Is quite exasperating how checrfulI ly hens will lay when eggs are cheap. ;e I l?' Men despise the tllrt collectively, but '?11 they are never so flattered as when I they are allowed to take orders from 111 I her Individually, h- I I Some men try to make a reputation I for generosity by giving all of their n" I money to their wives on pay day and se I then borrowing it all back the next In I .io<> [18 ? ?' TJio woman who doesn't keep help B* likes to talk about the servant pflrl 5(1 problem when visiting In another town, at _ HJnP i> There are sixty minutes in an culinary hour, but not always In the one the plumber charges for. We would l>o n race of millionaires If every man who ever Invented a washing machine had made good. One touch of nature when It comes In the form of a frostbite Is not the I kind of which the poets sing. "I Dunno/' D'you mind the times when we were young And oft were caught In mischief. Hob? Remember how the faltering tongue Was often checked with frightened sob? When we were nsked why thus we did. We stammered out with llsplngs low. Our faces from our parents hid, I " "N" I dunno; 'n' I dunno?" Sometimes we tinkered with the clock To see If It were running right; 16 It always gave our nerves a shock i_ When It would strike with all Its might, Quito unexpectedly to us, 8* When wo were jabbing In the case; It almost seemed to make a fuss g_ That It might get us In disgrace. 11 Perchance somebody's prized gold pen y. By one of us was tightly gripped At some untimely season when (We'd heard the pen was diamond tlpa pod) a" We'd fancied that wo were secure re And started to Investigate. That diamond point was Just a lure, u And sad was then two urchins' fate. y. "What made you touch those things, I 10 sn>'? ^ Come, straighten up and stop your noise. No one can put a thing away And have It safe from you two boys. What made you do It? Come, explain!" Hut still we writhed and murmured low And sought to hide our tears In vain " 'N' I dunno; 'n' I dunno." HI ? Get Common After Awhile. "IIo thinks ho hns the most wonderful Imby on oarth." T' "Is It his first?" "Didn't I say lie thought It the most . wonderful that ever happened?" d y. n They Frequently Do. t "His wife presses his trousers for him." j. "What of that? Rho probably had d plenty of practice before they were U married doing the same thing." 11 Some Evidence. 1. "I consider him n true poet." u "What has ho written?" 9- "I don't know, but he assures me he has never perpetrated a parody on i- 'Maud Muller.'" it The Come Down. if This Is a cruel, cruel world. As you agree, no doubt. A man Just gets his fortune made In politics or law or trade, % And then his pipe goes out. %% . * Jk ' *3?r:. - -v. lift 1' INDIAN ? SUMMER | i [S Br KEITH GORDON ; !t Copyright, 1WV>, by T. C. McClnrc Jfc , The barbaric red of tlio parasol which alio presently unfurled wlion wltli a sort of aimless reluctance she bad passed down the stops and out into the September sunshine fornnsl a vivid background for the small, well sot head and a face which was at once humorous and quizzical, as If the pageant of life had raised In her an eternal question and an accompanying smile. At the distance of a half block the ' trim figure In Its severe white pique seemed all girl. A closer approach, however, showed In the wavy dark hair isolated silver thrends?those outriders of time which come to lay low j the loveliest. And, indeed, only a few days before two placid matrons who had cast off their girlish sllmncss as a snake does Its skin and achieved in Its place so- i Hdlty and double cbins might have | been heard discussing her case. j "Strange that Elizabeth Ware doesn't j marry!" observed one, as with eyes j bent upon her embroidery hoop she caused a strange floral piece to bloom j upon a piece of white linen. "She's j getting on. I.ot me see. She was In i the next class to me at Mine. I lore's, j and Ilarold will be fourteen next Oc- j tober." Harold was her eldest child? I one of those cantankerous pegs by ' which matrons keep tab 011 the ago of i their unmarried friends. "She must be nearly thirty-live If j she's a day." the speaker concluded ; after a brief pause, in which she dc- j bated with herself what would be the ' proper shade of green to use for j maidenhair fern. "Her time is grow- j lug short." Iler companion, engaged in a similar employment; looked meditatively off over tlie smooth shaven lawn which seenunl to share her own domestic placidity. "Thirty-four, I think," she announced iu a voice whose preoccupation suggested that she had been rummaging In that prehistoric past which contained neither husband nor babies. "Thirty-four, I'm pretty sure. Still, she certainly doesn't look It, and she's always had plenty of attention." I11 the absorbing interest of the Mowers they were fashioning the subject was dropped, but the thought wave then started reached Elizabeth Ware herself later on. It was a wonderful day, full of mellow, mature, Indescribable charm. "Summer grows wise," Elizabeth thought to herself, "no longer dazzling and shriveling, but Hooding the world with tender light, veiling its splendors in mists." The strong, white, ungloved bands twirled the parasol thoughtfully while their owner drew in a deep breath. There was something in the day that stirred memories, brought, back half forgotten tllrtatlons, filled her thoughts with a vague, beautiful regret?the loss of something she had never known. Somewhere about a locust shrilled its warning of the frosts to come. Miss Ware's eyes grew dreamy, pensive with that questioning of the future which will disturb the mind of the uumated woman until the last fence Is reached. Had she perchance made a mistake? She thought of her school friends wrapped In contentment?and flesh?who no longer seemed contemporaries. They had secured their matrimonial prizesyes, and sat down by the roadside of life, with no desire to fare further! So far as she knew all were mildly happy. But beside them she felt ridiculously young and Joyous. V smile touched her lips as she reflected that it was with Harold, the fourteen-yearold, thut she preferred to walk and talk, rather than with Harold's plump aud settled mamma. Then she reviewed the thlrty-flve years that stretched behind her, flam Ing like the tall of a comet, with varlct3*, with pleasant wanderings, with an ever changing group of men friends who had added piquancy and deep knowledge to her experience. Exchange that long, beautiful experience, that | brilliant after glow of youth wtflch'had . kept her radiant and alert, for the cnlui happiness of her married friends? Never! Just as she reached this energetic negative the approaching figure of a man held her Idle gaze. As he came ' nearer a smile of pleased recognition lighted her face. She could scarcely belleve her eyes?Fergus Illynu, lined and his meaning deepened by bis ten years of absence, but still undeniably Fergus. Before the gladness of the surprise died out of her eyes he had seen her and they were wringing each other's hands In smiling delight. "The same old Elizabeth," he said warmly and yet with a little wonder In his voice, which made her feel like | an anomaly. "You used to bo about j my ago; but, groat Scott, you might ] almost pans for my daughter now! How do you manago It, nnd who's the happy man?" Ho was walking beside her, and Elizabeth turned her faeo to him inquiringly. Thon It dawned upon her, and she voiced a rather superior "Oh!" before she proceeded to explain that her life partner tarried unaccountably. Blynn eyed her shrewdly. | "You seem to pass the waiting with a i good deal of satisfaction to yourself," j I he laughed?"that is, If one may judge ! from appearances." "You are married, of course?" she . questioned after she had assured him , that one might. He shook his head with blithe g&yety. "Vet I suppose w? arc the once out of all that old not who would bar# boon picked out as llkoly to muke early marriages," he wout on. "IIow under the buii do you account for It?" "It's one of the things that can only he accouuted for on the theory that we nro both wise beyond our time," wa? the mock grave answer. Then In a teasing tone she continued: "My, hut you're going to have u lovely time! There are nl>out two dozen little and big Johns, Marys, Charlies ami Franks for you to admire. " 'This Is your T'ncle Fergus,' the fond parents will say. 'lie and I used to go to school together.' 'Oh, papa, he must be an awful old man!' That's what you're going through again and again. I've been through it until I wish the word 'aunt' were blotted out of the language." On and on they walked, talking with undiminished interest. As he remarked In reply to her suggestion that It was time she turned toward home, the more they talked, the more they had to say. Never had there been the slightest sentiment between them, though they had been good friends until circumstances had sent Blynn to a distant . land on a business enterprise. He recalled her as the best of comrades?a girl with no nonsense about her. But he could not remember that In the exuberant days of his youth, when he had made love in turn to most of the girls of their set, he had ever included her. As he watched her now from the corner of his eye, losing no whit of her mature grace, he wondered by what eliarm she had been held immune. T'p to tin* moment of their accidental meeting If he had thought of her at all his mind had only brushed her identity along with the group of old friends, all of whom it would be a gentle. half sad pleasure to see again, If only to tlx a standard by which to measure how far he had gone, for It Is only thus by comparing ourselves with the friends with whom we were once abreast that we can gauge our progress or estininto our failures. Yet now he had a curious sensation of having stumbled upon something that he had craved?something the lack ?.I.I.O. 1....1 ..... .1.. 1.1... '' 1 VI U nil II liiiti uiaui; mill toiu*r?? llllii ill at on so, ami as the conviction overspread his mliul In all Its amazing certainty his manner grow abstracted. Then he became alert with n sudden purpose. With something of Ills old impetuosity ho reasoned that here was n matter that had been deferred long enough. If his instinct told him so much at that first meeting he was doubly sure of It at the end of the following month, lie seemed now to himself to have returned homo for the express purpose of seeing Elizabeth. Iler society was like long drafts of cool water from some boyhood's well. lie hadn't thought much about the water at the time. One never does. He had supposed that all water was cool, clear and refreshing. lie knew better now. There was but one such well?but one Elizabeth. "It isn't decent for a woman of your age to be hushandless," was his scornful way of beginning the attack. "Oh, I don't know!" was that lady's easy rejoinder. "We spinsters have our uses. Think how we serve to point morals. Why, I've no doubt that I myself have been the object lesson that has saved more than one sweet young thing from celibacy. I can Just Imagine a mother saying, 'You'd l>etter not be too particular or you'll be an old maid like l?th Ware!'" He grinned Into the dark, debonair face for a moment and then scowled portentously. "You've had your own way too long, young lady! What you need Is the subduing effect of masculine guidance, and frankly I should like the post. "Itemcmber, you let me go away once before," he went on In an aggrieved tone, seeing that she was about to protest. "Of course you did. If you had been the right sort of a girl, wouldn't you have taught me that I loved you even then?" She laughed outright. "I happen to remember that you were head over heels In love with Harold's mamma about that time," she Jeered. "Anyway, we're too old for sentiment. Our spring and summer are over." "Yes, they are," ho admitted, with gravity. "But this love of ours"?his tono rang with tho mastery of one who la sure?"we'll coll It Indian summer." Boston'* Crooked Street*. Boston has had to stand much joking on the subject of Its crooked streets. Every one liaa heard of the stranger who, lost In the tortuous ways, desperately caught the coat tails of the mai^.In front of him and got along very well until an abrupt turn revealed the fart that It was his own coat talis to which he was clinging. Enrly last century n French man gave an Interpretation of the devlousness of the highways which Is both pleasant and patriotic. It Is found In a l>ook called "A Trip to Boston," by E. C. Wines. "I have passed a delightful morning In Boston," writes the author. "We went to Charlestown In an omnibus, passing through a considerable portion of the city. The Irregularity of the streets Is amazing. It Is a common saying that Bostoh was laid out by cows, and I can well believe It. The labyrinth of Crete never equaled It. I do not say the lrreeularltv Is nble; on the contrary, the effect ! pleasing. To a stranger It is a perpetual surprise." Many years ago the Marquis of Chatclot visited Boston. "Marquis," said an apologetic cltlaen, "you will find Boston streets very crooked. They turn and twist In every direction." "Ah, ver' good, ver1 good," replied the courteous nobleman. "It show da Uberte." _ ai