OCR Text |
Show flppfV-- iWmmOE) ANDREWS pr M:'hliffitt,.---r ILLUSTRATIONS ELLSWORTH YOUNG . COFrA-ZGrtT BY VfTWJJ. CO. I more. Young Henry Hampton, ruled out of the larger part of his natural pleasures by that stern by-law of nature, na-ture, which had made him lame, appealed ap-pealed to Francois' sympathy every day more deeply. The one thing which the lad cpuld do was riding. "Henry," Francois spoke, as the two trotted together down a shady lane of the plantation on the way to the far fields where negroes worked in the autumn sunlight, "what would you think of organizing a mounted troop of militia?" The boy's face flamed with excitement. excite-ment. What would he think of it? He would think it glorious, wonderful, half a dozen big adjectives. There were many young men in the neighborhood; all of them rode; none of them had enough to do; Francois had a hold on them a than may not spend five years in a dungeon because of a dashing mad act of bravery with- "Led into battle!" Young Henry laughed' shortly. "Led into a corn field is more like it." And then his glance fired. "Moreover, I'ncje Henry, if there were battle in the ease,, we should all count ourselves lucky to be led by a hero." "A hero!" Colonel Hampton sniffed. "A mere French peasant by his own account. Of course, I have received him, because of your infatuation for him. And the young man has qualities. quali-ties. He has been a success socially. I will not deny. I am quite surprised by his success. But when It comes to putting him in a position above men of birth, my blood revolts. I request you, Henry, to use your influence against this. I can not endure to have him give you commands. You should be the captain, because your social position posi-tion has made the enterprise possible. But, yet, if your misfortune if some other seems more fit " A painful color 1 SYNOPSIS. F'Y;i llceN l'.e:nlile, ;i r i r hill"- of 1 1 1 r. . - j.iu.1, allir .in :nini-iri iri'i'l'tit in whhh M;ii..i:i! .eu im'ii.-.. Is i n;ti I - a r..-all.-r ..r l-rcn h tli- Kiui-rr N;t- I.'.I'-'.U. lllin ,l . ,p i I l!,iU III'' ll',V ' HilKhL iilii- 'biy h" it lull rsli.'i ! ill l-'riinee n . I. -1- Mh'.lh.-l' l:,.i,;,p:i,e. At tile ilk'- "f 1,-ri Km ticm vi.HH.i tc-riei;il Hai'mi (lus-panl (lus-panl ( him kii i. I, win, Willi AliX", his ''. in .-ar-olil iiiiilt,-hl.-r, lives at th" 'Ini teiin. A h.iMI.i i.l' 1 1 1 - Knit, ire illi.ler jNn ,"l'''n he hi'-s the It'iV m imaina I l',n with mIi. rh-:: uf his rainpalLWiM. Tin; K'-n-fial oilers I 'l inn nl.s a limne al Hi.- I'iia-l.-Mil. 'I'h.' boy r.-rilMiM t'j lenvfi his pu-VhlM, pu-VhlM, tllll 111 III" Hill hei'llllle.H a ci.pyist fin- llii- if n. ral ami l.-iiiiiM at Hi.- fri.'ii.l-rhlp fri.'ii.l-rhlp In-lwi'ii I In- Ki-n.-ral anil Mnrquis y.iiplil. win, i aniliainn.il with the (j.-iii-ra I limler Nn mi1. ManiniH .ajipl anil his fun, I'lelio. iirrlve at the Chateau. The K'-iiei'iil iiK-re.-M l.i ram for Hie M a rq 1 1 is' nori while lli,- former k'n.' lo Aiu.ri.a. Tin- ManilliM liefo!" leaving for Allleliea iiMke.l 'Ya is to he n friend uf his son. The hoy solemnly promises. l-'t'a nrnls K".'M In Ihe Chateau til live. M a n 1 1 lis Zlipill (lies leaving I'lelio HH 11 WilT'l "f k the general. Alixe. .I'leli'u an. I Krancois meet i Mliani;.- hov who liioves lo he I'linec l.onl.s Napoleon. t'runeois Ha'es Ills life. The Kelieial .IlKeiiVerH Francois Invi s Aliw. (ill. I eMraels a promise from him that he will no! Interfere between Ihe Kill i. ill I'lelio. Francois sura to Italy mm secretary lo 1'ielto. l.Ji n llortense plans Ihe escape uf Iter son Uiuls Napoleon Na-poleon bv ilisKuislntf him and Marquis 7.a.pl as her lackeys. Francois takes Mai'iuls Zappi's place, who Is ill. In tin' escape nf llortense anil Louis. Ilesse,l as Louis's hrother Francois lures the Aiislrians from tlie holel allowiim the prince and his rnollier to escape. Fran-cols Fran-cols Is a prisoner of the Aiislrians for five years In the castle owncil by I'letro in Italy, lie iliscovers In his c,uaril one of Victi-n's ol.l family servants, and through lilm H"inlM ivi.nl to his friends of his l'lu:ht. The Reneral, Ane anil I'ietr.) Iiear from l-'rn neois and plan his rescue. Francois as a truest of tlai Austrian K"V-eriliir K"V-eriliir of the castle prison Inspects the Interim of Ihe wine cellar of the 'appis. Francis receives a Hole from I'ietro explaining ex-plaining Iji detail how to escape from his prison. 'lie awaits liinl on horscbaelc anil leads him to his friends on board the American sailing vessel, the "l-ovcly. I.Mey." other watched him eagerly. All this affair of the troop he had done to give pleasure to Harry Hampton, his friend. It was the only way in which the lame boy could be on equal terms with the other boys, and Francois had determined from the first that every joy which could be gleaned out of it he should have. To be the captain ought to be a Joy, "1!" Harry cried and then was silent and then spoke sorrowfully. "Hut-it "Hut-it can not be ! " ' "Can not be?" demanded Francois. "Why not?" There was a moment's silence and with a painful effort the words camo. "My misfortune. I am lame." And Francois cried out, "Henry all that is nonsense! What of it? It is a thing you do us well as the best riding. Who has such a seat, such hands as you? Why not then, I demand?" de-mand?" And went. on. "it Is settled. I have talked to them all see tha signatures. sig-natures. You are the captain, my Henry and am your right hand and your left hand yes and your feet, too. whenever yon need me." "But," said Harry, dazed, "it is really your place; don't you want to be captain?" cap-tain?" he shot at the other boyishly. And with that Francois' arm was about his shoulder again as the two stood together, and Francois was laughing. "But yes," he said. "I should like it. That is a secret." His face was brilliant with laughter. "Y'ou only may know, my Henry, that I am vain ah, very vain," ho repeated sadly. sad-ly. "Never tell it. I love titles and honors and importance. I like to be called Chevalier though indeed that is my right," 'lie added with a quick touch of dignity. "And I should liko very much to be captain of this company com-pany of fine young men, the flowers does one say? of the South. But it is not best." He heldup his forefinger and looked enormously worldly-wise. "No. You would not mind; the young messieurs would not mind, perhaps but the fathers ah, the fathers!" Ha threw back his. head and gazed at th& ceiling with eyes of horror. Then with a start and a hand flung out, "And the-mothers! the-mothers! Mon Dieu! But the mothers, moth-ers, Henry! They would make what you call it a h 1 of a time, is it not?" Harry roared with joy at the terrified terri-fied whisper. "But I have neither father fa-ther nor mother," he suggested. "Ah, Henry," argued Francois with deep satisfaction in his tone, "that makes you so suitable." "Suitable!" inquired Henry. "But yes, my friend. It kills jealousy. jeal-ousy. All is grist, one says, that comes to your mill. All is fathers, all is mothers to the poor orphan and besides that, there is Monsieur the Colonel. One sees that the uncle ot the captain will be contented. And whom should I wish to content but my first host, my first benefactor in this land? I believe, indeed, he would be displeased if I should take the place. I believe he is not satisfied of my birth." And beneath the nonsense of Francois, Fran-cois, Henry could but acknowledge the dear to him; and he wondered that he had indeed comt: through the long I nightmare of prison to this happiness. ".Mr. Hamilton has been talking to me about Virginia; it must be a beautiful beau-tiful country," said Alixe. "I should love the free friendly life of those great domains. I believe I could leave France and Vieqtie for such a country coun-try as that, where there are no political politi-cal volcanoes on top of which one must live. With us it is always plotting plot-ting and secrecy. Always a war to look back on or to look forward to. 1 should like to go to Virginia." "But," said Francois, with his greal eyes glowing, "the war one now looks forward to in France w ill be short and glorious. And after that will be peace, lor there will be a Bonaparte ruling, and that, means strength and good government." "How you believe in the great captain cap-tain and in his blood," and Alixe smiled down at the pale face on fire with its lifelong enthusiasm. "One must," said Francois simply, and paused, and went on. "For me you know, Alixe, how it is. How the star of the Bonapartes has always seemed to be my star! I believe that. I believe that my life is tied to that house. Nopoleon was more than human hu-man to my mind, his touch 6et me aside for his uses in my cradle-". "And made you a chevalier," Alixe considered. "That was a true accolade, acco-lade, Francois. You- would have a right to that title under another Bonaparte." Bona-parte." "I believe so, Alixe." . "And my father believes it. So you must hurry and get well and come back to France and be fit for work when the prince needs you, Chevalier Beaupre. My father has told you that a movement is preparing? He is reckless, reck-less, my father, and it troubles me. It might be unsafe for him to live in France if his part in these plots were known." "Then you could come to Virginia to Carnifax," and Francois smiled. But Alixe flushed. "That is Pietro's estate, not ours," she said quickly; and then she rose and bent over the sick boy. "I must go to my father now," she said, and caught his pitiful piti-ful hands suddenly in both hers. "But oh! Francois, I wish I could tell you how it changes all the world to have you back again" and she was gone. Francois, trembling writh a rapture he could not quiet, lay, not stirring, because be-cause he feared to break the spell of the touch of her hands; feeling within him a rebel hope that yet he would not let take hold of him. Could it be? Was it true? Did she care for him and not Pietro? Was that the reason that in all these years she and Pietro were still only sister and brother? Yet, he caught and choked the thought. Even then he had no right, he could not, would not tell her what she was to him. He would be Pietro's friend always al-ways as he had promised long ago; more, a thousand times more now, when Pietro had given back to him freedom and life and hope. CHAPTER XX. A Social Crisis. On a day the ship sailed into a splendid splen-did roadstead, big enough to hold the j roofs of the buildings over the trees Harry Hampton pointed it out with a : touch of excitement in his grave man-' man-' ner. Then, as one slipped along the ; sparkling water, there w as a sharp bend in the stream, and as they turned it the large silvery green slope of the I lawn lay before them, with its long j wharf and barges lying at the water-; water-; side, and a ship unloading its return cargo from England, j "It is the Sea Lady" called ' young i Hampton. "She is in before us and she sailed so long after." He made a quick movement forward with his pathetic broken step for this only son of the Hampton family was a cripple. There were people gathering on the lawn, negroes drawn up in line; the women In bright-colored turbans, men and women both showing white teeth as they grinned with the pleasure and the excitement of watching the ship come in. Then a white light figure ran down the" broad greenness, and a girl stood, golden curls on her shoulders, shoul-ders, a straw hat. with blue ribbons tying down some of the golden curls, but not all stood and watched and wa-ved an eager friendly hand. "It is my cousin Lucy,"' Harry Hampton said, and Francois, looking at him, saw his eyes fixed on her intently. in-tently. In a few minutes more, leaving the ship with his halting careful step, Francois saw him kiss her cousinly yet it seemed not altogether cousinly j and with that he was saying a word about "My new friend, the Chevalier Beaupre," and the girl's quick handclasp hand-clasp and the warm welcome in her voice of honey, made Francois feel as if a place in her friendship had been waiting for him always. Then, from back of her, from some-wherfe, some-wherfe, towered suddenly a tall man, with large features, and first seized Harry . Hampton's hand and then turned to the stranger with the same air of entire pleasure and hospitality. "My nephew's friend is welcome at Roanoke house," he said, and Francois, with his few words of English, understood under-stood enough to be warmed to the soul at his first contact with southern hospitality. hos-pitality. "It is my uncle, Colonel Hampton," Harry's voice was explaining. They would not hear of his going to Carnifax not for days, not for a month; why should he go at all? Colonel Hampton asked. If he were to be only a year or two in Virginia, why trouble to set up housekeeping alone in that big house, when Roanoke house was here and in order, and only too glad to keep him. So Francois for a week or two stayed. And found himself, him-self, shortly, a notability. Harry Hampton, Hamp-ton, his boyish ambition for adventure and daring denied every personal outlet, out-let, because of that accident in babyhood baby-hood which had started him in life hopelessly lame, was as proud of his salvage from the Austrian bird of prey as if Francois' record had been his own. Much more frankly proud, for he could talk about it, and did. Alixe had told him a great deal, and the episode of the headlong rescue of Prince Louis Napoleon, the capture and imprisonment and final theatrical escape, went like wild-fire about the countryside, and stirred all the ro- r H. klrt.l f 1-. r fr darkened the boy's face and his brows gathered. The colonel went on. "I should make no objection to that. But" again he pulled at the corners of his mustache with solemnity "I must request re-quest you to use your influence absolutely abso-lutely to prevent this parvenu from being placed over you." Harry Hampton put his hand on the table beside him and lifting himself with that aid stood before his uncle, leaning a little on the table as his lame foot made it necessary, but yet a figure full of decision and dignity. "And I must refuse absolutely, Uncle Henry, to do anything of the kind. I am not in question. As you say, I have a misfortune. I shall use what influence I have to see that the Chevalier Beaupre is made captain of the company he has organized and is to educate. This is fitting. I am proud to call him my friend, and I am glad that I am large-minded enough to realize that as large a mind as his is not to be measured by petty standards. If he is a prince or if he is a peasant is quite immaterial, because he is first a very great thing himself." He turned from the astonished colonel, and With his halting step was gone. Shortly the young master's horse was ordered and he had left word with Ebenezer, the butler, as he went out, that he would not be home till bedtime, bed-time, and was off toward Carnifax. "Francois," he began, finding his friend busy over his papers in that same library, at that same carved mahogany ma-hogany desk, where today He the packages pack-ages of old letters "Francois, I want to speak to you about something before be-fore our meeting." "What then? The boy is out of breath. Y7ou have been running Black Hawk again, my Henry that horse will complain of you soon, the strong beast. What is it you are in such a hurry to say that one must race across country so of a good hour of the morning?" morn-ing?" But Henry was too intent to talk nothings. "It is important," he said briefly. "We must have a captain for the company at once, and it must be you." "Sabre de bois!" smiled Francois radiantly. ra-diantly. "The good idea! I can not "My Nephew's Friend Is Welcome to Roanoke House." out acquiring a halo which adheres afterward; it was fairly certain that a military company, originating with the Chevalier Beaupre, would succeed. And it succeeded. Three days later it was started with the cordial sanction sanc-tion of the fathers and the enthusiasm of the sons. Francois was, of course, the moving spirit and the responsible head, and Francois was hard at work calling back the old lore of his schooldays school-days at Saint-Cyr and reading books on tactics and all military subjects. "Henry," said Colonel Hampton one morning after breakfast at Roanoke House, "I want to speak to you a moment mo-ment in my study." Harry went calmly into the dim, pleasant, old room, with its paneled walls and portraits set into the paneling; panel-ing; he had no fear of what his uncle might say, for he was not merely the young nephew and ward living in his uncle's house he was the owner of most of the acres which made the plantation a great one. Colonel Hamp-ton Hamp-ton considered that in his treatment of Harry, and Harry knew it well enough. Moreover, it was an unspoken unspok-en secret that Harry or Lucy had the CHAPTER XIX. v The Sacrifice. Young Henry" Hampton, thrilled to tho coro at this drama, bent over him, as Battista laid him on the deck, and looked up anxiously at1 Pietro. "Is he living?" he asked. He was living, though for an hour or two the devoted friends who cared for him doubted if they had not got him bnck only to lose him. But that last effort ot the change to the ship being past, when consciousness came again he grew strong more rapidly. "i thought the . Austrians would nab me as I came aboard," he whispered, whis-pered, smiling gaily as he gasped the words to Alixe. "It was firm in my mind." And Alixe laughed at him, and told him that they were far out on the Adriatic Ad-riatic now, safe under the American flag, and the Austrians left two hundred hun-dred miles behind. "Even if - they had nabbed me," whispered Francois, "those two days with you would have paid." And Alixe shuddered a little and told nim to go to sleep and stop thinking of Austrians, for they were cut of his life now forever. "My seigneur," said Francois next day when the general took his turn at sitting by his bed, "may I ask a question?" ques-tion?" "Any question in the world, Francois, Fran-cois, my son," the general growled at him, as if the tender words were a defiance de-fiance to an enemy. Francois hesitated. "About Alixe and Pietro." The general shook his head. "Ah that! That I cannot tell you, Francois. Fran-cois. Sometimes I believe that I have been mistaken, that " the general as he stopped looked oddly at Francois and smiled. "Sometimes I believe that even I, even Gaspard Gourgaud, might make a mistake in trying to play the good God. and arranging lives. That might be y?s. In any case I cannot tell" Francois, thinking deeply, hazarded another question. "He loves her?" "I believe so, indeed," said the general. gen-eral. "He cares most to be with us with her. Ah yes, 1 have no doubt that he loves her. But why it goes no farther far-ther sapristi! It Js beyond me that! 1 would knock their foolish heads together, nie but that is not convenient." conveni-ent." "Does she love Pietro?" "Mon dieu! How can a mere man Fay that? She is a woman. 1 do not know not in the least," the general exploded at him. "Hut Pietro levas- her?" Francois asked again, his wistful smiling eyes searching the general's face. "Yes 1 am sure of it." -And Francois smiled. "Xo one could help it," he said half to himself. In a day more little Battista came Into Frr.r.eois' cabin and put clothes on him and wrapped hi::i like a mummy mum-my in coats ar.u rugs, and carried him in liis arms t:p on deck, and there laid him in a hammock on the sunr.y side of 'the ship. And ilie sal! air blew on his face and lie eu'.jad it in, and by and b'y Alixe brought a chair and sat by hint and read to him. and Francois lay quiet and wondered if heaven could be any improvement on this. So, on that long, bright, calm morning morn-ing t sea Francois lay in the ham-ruoct ham-ruoct and watched the million little waes glisten and break for unknown miles over the sunlit water, and listened lis-tened to the voice he loved best in the world, as it told him of those others hom he loved also, and of the places f ton trftsLJji right of strength over weakness in dealing with the head of the house. Obstinacy combined sometimes with weakness, it is true, but yet the two youngsters understood clearly that the colonel was the head only by a graceful grace-ful fiction. So young Henry Hampton felt no alarm at the quality of his uncle's tone. The colonel sat down in the biggest chair, a chair throne-like in its dignity; he faced the lad and pulled importantly at the end of his mustache. "This troop of cavalry about organized?" organ-ized?" he demanded. "Well, that's rather a big name for it, Uncle Henry, but it is going like a streak," answered Henry, junior. "We meet again today, and tomorrow I think we shall begin business." "1 approve of it," Colonel Hampton stated. Harry bowed his head gravely. The colonel went on. "It is a well-bred and appropriate method of amusement. A gentleman should know something of military affairs. af-fairs. But ah the ranking and ah arrangements? Such details are, not unlikely with gentlemen of the first families, as you all are except one to crystallize into a later importance. impor-tance. The man who has been the leader of this company of very voting men will not u:;llkely h", the man thought of as a lender in ah :s flair of greater moment to come. May 1 inquire v. ho is the captnin?" H'-nry lla'.optoii looked troubled, impatient. f "W hy. ncbony yet. I i:cie Henry. j have not got to that. Eut, of course, the Chevalier " Colonel Hampton interrupted him. "Exactly. I thought so. That is what I wish to avoid. The Chevalier must not be the captain." The boy caught up the words hotly. "Uncle Henry, he has done it all. We all want him." "Exactly. But you must not have him. 1 am surprised at you. Henry! Do you remember that this man is peasant-born? Do you want to be led into battle by a person whose rank is not ahove that of our own servants?" serv-ants?" I imagine a fellow more beautiful to be aleaptain than I. Can you?" But Henry was altogether serious-minded. serious-minded. "Y'ou will consent then?" he threw at him. "I did not think of it till this morning, but I see it should be done at once. We shall all want you, of course, and want nobody else." Now Henry Hampton, not having thought of the question till this morning, morn-ing, had no right to make this statement state-ment in a full round voice of certainty. Yet he knew every man in the company, com-pany, and he felt in himself the force Lo answer for them. He answered for them without a hesitation. And with that Francois' laughing face grew grave. He pushed the letters from him and got up and came across to the boy and bent and put his arm around his shoulder as he sat still and stiff. These French ways of his friend pleased Henry immensely, but they also petrified him with embarrassment. embarrass-ment. Francois was not in the least embarrassed. He patted the broad young shoulder affectionately. "My good Henry," he said gently. "What a loyal heart and what a reckless reck-less one! How then can you answer for all those messieurs?" Harry flung up his head and began. "They will if they do not I shall make them" but Francois stopped ihe boid words. "Xo." he said f quietly yet with tone of finality which the oilier recognized. recog-nized. "That will not be iwysory. A:id messieurs are my goed frit ts'i?: ihev will tr'-at me with honor; they will be heller to me than I deserve. I know that well." There were so l'w people in the world who did not, to Francois, seem his good friends,. "But. my Henry, I will not be the captain. I have thought of that, if you have not. Look here." He swung to the desk and slipped out a drawer, and had a long folded paper in his hands. lie flapped it open before Harry's eyes. It was a formal notice to Mr. Henry Hampton, junior, that the Jefferson troop of Virginia Vir-ginia had elected him as its captain. Harry flushed violently and his mouth quivered with pleasure, with nervousness, with unhappiness. The lUclllCe VII L11C 11(11 liruieuuvi ouuuiciii ers. Every house wanted the hero to break bread, and under young Harry's proud wing Francois went gladly to meet all these friends of his frend. As the general had said years ago, his simplicity struck the finest note of sophisticated high breeding; moreover, more-over, he had lived with high-bred people in more than one country; the aristocrats of Virginia were delighted with his young nobleman, as they thought him with his charm of manner man-ner and his stirring history, with the lines of suffering still in his thin face and the broad lock of gray the badge of that suffering in his dark hair; with the quaint foreign'accent too, and the unexpectedness in the turns of his rapidly increasing English. And now he had left Roanoke, and was living in the great old house on Pietro's land, the old house w hich had been lived in a hundred years before Pietro's father had bought it, the old house in which grandchildren of Pietro Pie-tro live today. Something in his odd broken English, Eng-lish, something in his vivacity and energy, en-ergy, something in the warmth of th" hert which the poor souls felt in him none quicker than negroes to feel a heart fascinated the slaves who fell to his unaccustomed nuiiing'-mont. nuiiing'-mont. He had met Hc-nry C'lry and tho proud aristocrats of .Virgiria as men and women, and given them the best of himself; he met these thick-lipped. thick-lipped. dim-soul!d. black people no otherwise, and gave th'vm the same. By' the crystal truth in him the first had been vanquished, and it happened not differently with these other human beings." Pietro's mishandled property grew orderly month by month; Francois, Fran-cois, in the saddle most of the time, riding from end to end of the plantation, planta-tion, found his hands full and his work interesting, and his health and strength coming back though that was a slower progress. The people who do most are likely to be the people who can do a thine He Flapped It Open Before Harry's Eyes. clear-sighted logic. So it,- happened that Henry Hampton became captaiit of the Jefferson Troop, to the eptire satisfaction of all eoncrned. (TO Hi: fOXTINl'i;! '.) My Lady's Mirror. Exercise is a splendid skin tonic. A brisk walk, io matter if in the rain, will freshen the complexion, even a.; it freshen:- the fi.jwers, and a simph-aperient simph-aperient will do wonders for a muddy skin. It remains for all women to preserve such beauty as "they have and to cure the defects whicp are peculiar pe-culiar to them or that time was wrought. Every skin is different and must be treated accordingly, and it takes a reasoning woman to experiment experi-ment carefully and find out tht, proper prop-er method of treatment for her skin. Most women, whether they be fleshy or thin, walk far too little. The woman who tends to be fleshy should walk for at least an hour every day, and do it regularly and systematically. systematic-ally. As she gets accustomed to tha exercise she should increase the number num-ber of miles she walks a day im;il she is doing five miles. Exchange. The General Shook His Head. ships of half the world. Then into a wide flashing river, the James river, tour or live miles wide down there at j its mouth. And up and up and up the j bright river, the narrowing river, be-I be-I tweeii its low green banks, with now , and again a glimpse of a large house 1 and of gardens and lawns green with j June, as one sailed past. ' Harry Hampton told Francois who ' lived in them as they went by Ilar- risens and Carters and Bynis and Randolphs Ran-dolphs strange-sounding. difficult. English names in the ear of the Frenchman. Young Mr. Hampton knew them all. it seemed; uiny of them were his cousins; Francois listened, surprised, interested, to the word picture pic-ture which the Virginian unconsciously unconscious-ly drew, as he talked of every day happenings, hap-penings, of a society and a way of living liv-ing quite different from any the Frenchman had ever heard of. With that they were in sight of RoanoUs bouse one might see the |