| Show THE BLUE HORSE Prom irom the French r WE were anxious that year to find something different for his New Years Year's gift He had already received so many and broken so much our Charlie It was not easy to surprise him In the evening over the embers we had dreamed of it while the youngster slept tucked up in his trundle trundle bed If If we are going to look again in the shops of the great street street said my wife Arm in arm we went to 10 find it The shops sparkled in the dark night under the awnings up to the windows of the great street and of the new way market-way there was a crowd like that found in the public park on Sunday people almost el elbowed bowed each other to enter the store of Siverin the toy merchant Once there our trouble began How Howin in the world could w we choose among all those things From top to bottom the wall was adorned with toys cases of soldiers theaters menageries magic lanterns mingled with jumping Jacks and puffy elephants ts of gold beaters skin reached in stories to the ceiling Look Nothing but green blue red yellow gold sparkled on the fringes on the laces on the dresses of the puppets and dancers All blazi blazing g all reflecting the varnish of the soldiers the steel ot of the sabres the tin dishes of play dinner sets Oh my eyes my ears The tops hum the little bells ring the groan the hermit winds his clock the rabbits beat the drum cym players cymbal trumpeters horses dogs each trying to out-do out the other in making making making mak mak- ing this hubbub We would have remained standing there indefinitely without knowing where whereto to go if Mr Siverin had not come up smiling under his spectacles This way gentleman lady the new toy the toy of Paris The toy of the year was too expensive this one too frail that one not suited to Charlies Charlie's age and the other he had last year In short nothing was t our liking But Siverin was not discouraged he went came climbing stairs plunging into cupboards dusting toys with the back of his sleeve opening and closing dosing boxes and smiling all the while To see him thus all aJl out of breath and so obliging touched me with pity and tired out I would have taken the first toy that tha t came But that was not Louises Louise's way she pretended to go and immediately there was Siverin at our heels If the lady has her heart set on the Ithe sheep with rollers rollers My mind was a hundred miles from this sheep but women and merchants have a way of their own of understanding each other at a half This was not without difficulty however they argued the price until we were in the street At last I carried the sheep away triumphantly triumphantly and a few moments later was installing it in my room for the surprise of the next day Next morning Charlies Charlie's kisses woke me before it was da dalight l light kisses and many of them with wishes for a happy new year stuttered through his laughing Half dressed his hair in papers curl-papers he rolled himself in my quilts then stopped short waiting spying something Then when the great blinds were opened he saw the package on the table The parcel brought you should h have ve seen his impatience in breaking the threads he worked at it tooth and nail but the knot snarled Open it papa open it Then when the sheep was unwrapped all white with gilded horns and ornamented with blue ribbons what an outburst of rV r cries and capers The white fleece mingled with the fair hair and the rosy t lips with the vermilion bridled nose a P Suddenly the sheep began to bleat bleat bleat- it was so natural natural another another surprise but terrible this time more than a surprise k a shock And his little heart began to beat the pretty lips outlined a pout s Tears had not come but he was already accustomed to it the mechanical ba-a-a ba 2 r ba-a ba a it was quite pastoral But amid the music and his kisses A r Charlie was at last washed curled and f. f dressed in his pretty blue velvet blouse a and d we were setting out for the New x r Years Year's gifts Th There re were many of them themon t on this day and arid we had much to carry carryon on our oui way back Charlie in advance marked time with his uncles uncle's clarion then came Marion loaded li like e a donkey I then I ornamented with Aunt drum and last my wife who carried carried I nothing We had just reached home and ere were rl mounting the stairs Who knows said Louise what cousin Jacob Jacob will bring j Cousin Jacob was a poor relative an ani anold 4 old bachelor who lived alone in an i isolated house in in the suburbs among h his bullfinches and his rheumatism rheumatism- It each making him forget the other He appeared on holidays very carefully y dressed looking like a dandy of years nears gone by ny From the long tails of his r frock coat he always drew some surprise 5 F f for r Charlie harlie a a. a silver piece six sticks of ofiN iN licorice a trifling something wrapped t- t doubled and tied with pink or bluejr blue jr- jr cords f Such an excellent man It was just here that we waited on the place landing-place of ot the stairs if Jacob and his inevitable ble Sunday coat his little gray head curled a la Titus r s which in bowing to us plunged into his cravat After having saluted us all he began 11 on one of Jacobs Jacob's sentences cut by the ther r it 1 r t d same pattern as his coat one coat one never saw the end Fortunately Charlie cut his words short with II Anything for me today Jacob all the while pulling on the old oldmans mans man's coat tails They opened and from their depths cousin Jacob acob drew a little horse of blue cardboard and such sucha a blue At the bottom of what shop at what wha what auction had the cousin run across tl this this' strange trinket Heaven only knows but wait I felt fearful of the end I was afraId afraid that Charlie would pout This is his tenth horse thought I II and the ugliest of them all From the first sight of it the blue blu bluehorse bluehorse horse had turned the head of the little man Good bye sword and drum sheep and all the rest With a bound he went went f straight to the ugly toy raised it took took it from Jacobs Jacob's hand and carried it away a My look stopped him in m the thedoor the thedoor door he understood and returned T. T Drawing Jacobs Jacob's white head toward him he implanted in the furrows on the theold theold the the- old face two great hearty kisses The Th emotion cousin J f l of the did not often reach such a pitch What a joy for the heart of the old man He did not noe return The There e were a few stifled words L a flow of tenderness checked in the throat a whole pathetic pantomime of of- arms raised to the ceiling t From this day began the friendship of op Charlie and the blue horse of blue Cocoas Coco Coco- as he lie called it Ah Ali the famous pair of of- friends they made Companions at play bed fellows bed fellows they were ins inseparable parable Their great amusement was walks without end Blue Coco rolling at one i end of a string Charlie pulling at the thet c other his head half turned and saying II Get up there Blue Coco II j jI I heard them below my study and only for a time I forgot the dull grind of life to listen to those little trotting feet With a swelling heart 1 I turned toj tOi tot e Ii- Ii f ri my my papers Dig old man thought r I it it is for Charlie When he lie had enough h running it was the time for grooming He lie curried Coco brushed him and rubbed him down with a wisp of stra straw w. w The blue bluehorse bluehorse bluehorse horse grew paler every day Then he made him a bed of cotton and good goodnight goodnight goodnight night At other times tines if Coco was not sleepy they sat in a corner Charlie in his little chair and the little horse on the knees of his master and then there were were were-in in inthis this pretty baby talk talk long long stories nursery songs j then for a moment sudden quarrels kicks s slaps aps great disagreements followed by that blued the lips and moistened the cardboard He was a confident so discreet Blue Coco and an an adviser so obliging Was it necessary to go to ro bed or say his lessons Blue Coco doesn't want to If he lie wanted burnt almonds Blue wishes it shared everything sweetmeats and nd medicine especially medicine When Charlie had the croup what would we have done without the blue bluehorse bluehorse bluehorse horse to make him take those bitter drugs He pushed them away at first then Blue Coco came and the horse drank rank drank his part wi with th good grace II Look son son I Half by will half by force he too had pad taken his share k Poor little boy hoy I think I see see him still till the day he was so o ill pale delirious delirious delirious II ious ious the violets of death on his lips his wasted fingers grasping the mane of r the the he blue horse which pranced on this bed of pain with the tragic bearing of of a t. t steed steed of the Apocalypse Years and years have passe passel passed since then Charlie has become a man and a handsome man man Mr Charles Dumont under lieutenant of the Ninth Caval Cavalry y I who wished to make t 1 ta a lawyer Hof i f him The Ninth is m moreover moreover the finest regiment of the army and Charles the handsomest man in it his comrades add II the the best boy He sent us the other day his photograph photo photo- graph He is in dress uniform and on ona hor horse horae It is a e. e there before my eyes and when I look at it is it the effect of the falling day clay or tears that blind bEnd me I do not know but little by hy little the lines become confused the contours grow indistinct t and in the place of ny my officer I seem to see the tousled appearance appearance appearance ap ap- of Charlie on Blue Coco Virginie n |
