The Exeter Times-Advocate, 1944-10-19, Page 7■I
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THE TIMES-ADVOCATE, EXETER ONTARIO, THURSDAY MORNING, J9, 3944
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CHAPTER 1 (continued)
"I?” "The bright eyes danced and
sparkled, "Well, I have thought
of that. At first I dwelt op King
Carol and his friend, Madame
Lupescue. I thought I should play
Magda to youi' Carol,” She grinned
fiendishly as Rudolph crimsoned
and busied himself with the coffee,
slowly and ultracautiously. "That
is out. You are definitely not the
romantic type. So I shall be your
housekeeper.”
"But, madame—”
"Stop making objections. This
place is like a museum and it’s dull
as a morgue and it is the mercy
of the good God that has caused
.Some excitement to happen. It will
be good to have these
There is no reason in
that they should ever
were the butler. We can
man in the morning, I’ll phone to
Gabriel Follet at once.”
"But will it not be cruel to de
ceive them, to let them think—
“No!” screamed madame, slosh
ing coffee into her saucer, “No!
No! No! But it would be cruel to
have them learn, after being bomb
ed and torpedoed and frozen and
starved, that they are very likely
to be at least frozen and starved
again, my old one.”
"There!” She lowered her voice
as she saw the hurt, the trouble,
the defeat in Rudolph’s pale blue
eyes. After all, he had dreamed of
greatness onse, of the high places,
•of ease and opulence. “I did not
mean that you would be unable to
maintain them, but three is quite
a number and children need so
much! Believe me, too, you will be
doing a kindness to a lonely old
woman. Not in years have I had
the prospect of such fun or looked
forward so much to anything. You
must do as I tell you, Monsieur le
Baron. I must begin calling you
baron.”
Rudolph stared at Madame Fabre-
Lusignan, comprehension coming
like a slow dawn into his eyes. He
moistened his lips with his tongue
and made an, involuntary move to
ward the wing collar that had sud
denly become too tight. He blinked
his eyes fast and his voice was a
bit unsteady when he said, "There
are no words, madame—none that
I know in any language, to ex
press—”
"There may be some in Siwash,”
said the old lady, biting on a roll,
"but skip it. Rudi. When do the
young ones arrive?”
"I should judge from the little I
have digested of the press account
that they will be here on tonight’s
train. They know the name of the
station, St. Didier des Montagnes.”
"They speak French? English?”
"I do not know. But I think it
is likely that, apart from their own
tongue, they speak Swiss, perhaps
Austrian, with little French or Eng
lish.”
"It is well then. They will travel
in ignorance, even were there any
to tell them you do not
(Chateau Philibert.”
"Some day they’ll
madame.”
"Oh, baptism; Tell
lost it in a poker
little ones,
the world
know you
have a new
have
o-
of them had any suspicions about
her. She was the housekeeper,
Madame Laurin- She had" left oft
the usual ghastly makeup, donned
a black silk dress and white cap
and looked the part. She was a
great actress, madame,
Rudolph’s eyes glistened when Tie
saw the way she curtsied in the
great entry hall of the chateau as
the princess and her little cousins
walked up the wide steps, He wor
shiped her then, as always in his
staid way he admired the old rebel.
Ah, but she was une grande dame,
a noble woman, this Mimi Fabre,
whose father had been a poor cob
bler in St, Antoine Street long ago.
The new staff gave their respect
ful salutations, genuine^awe in their
eyes. This was indeed a princess.
True, she wore an old tweed Bur
berry that had seen many storms
and a fawn felt hat that was bat
tered and out of shape, but her hair
was like Marguerite's and when
she uncovered her head the thick
braids of it lay coronet fashion like
things woven of golden sunbeams,
and her mouth, though red and
soft, was imperious; the blue of
her eyes was deep and fearless.
The blond little boy, Pol Martin,
stood on one side of her, Rosine
with long straw-colored curls and
great blue-black eyes, clung to her
hand.
They looked about them and sud-
I denly Meridel’s mouth twisted and
she flung her arms about Rudolph's
,u a...
everyone a double helping. They
will think it’a the custom of the
country, Sometimes, when I go to
a restaurant, I too think it should
•be.”
She
where
range
a sad
them she had come upon Michel’s
photograph—Michel as he had been
three years before, a few days pre
ceding the time he had said, "Dam
it, Tante Mimi, I shall go to France
if I want to, I shall lead the life
I choose, I shall be a painter, a
poet, a tramp—anything I like; and
I don’t care if I never earn an hon
est penny, I’m tired of your dic
tator ways. I won't
any longer. Roger
seemingly, and he’s
I’m off.”
And away he was
night, even though she had risen to
magnificent heights of invective,
threatenings pleadings. He
went to. her new quarters
already she had begun to ar-
her things. There had been
moment when going through
should never have a cent of her
money—-he didn’t want it. His
brother Roger should have it all, h<
was welcome to it. He was the
most ungrateful of nephews—he
wasn’t but she was the most arro
gant and overbearing of aunts.
Madame had flung Michel’s pic
ture in a trunk that night and tried
to put him forever out of her heart*
She had heard no word of him in
the years between, nor had his
brother, Roger, who was now with
the air force; nor had anyone else.
If he had gone to France as he'd
planned, perhaps they would never
know what had become of him.
Wild young devil anyway; volatile,
hot-tempered, reckless and devoid
of any fear of self-consciousness.
The old lady had set his picture in
its chrome frame in her dressei
and had taken it up to look at It,
holding it close to her, when she
heard Roger's step on the stairs.
She put down the picture hastily,
but Roger’s dark eyes found it at
once. "Forgiven him, Tante Mimi?"
"None of your business.” She
gave him her cheek to Kiss, "Ana
why are you sneaking up the back
stairs?”
"You told me to, over the phone
—don’t you remember? I’m
housekeeper’s nephew now,
is all this anyway?”
"It’s Rudolph. He’s the
Rudi de Morpin. The princess
niece. He’s been letting everyone
in this silly little country of his
think he owns Philibert and is
worth a million. I didn't have the
heart to tell these poor, hunted chii- ('HAinA’lS---'FOLDI('K dren that he’s only the butler. I ,
Roger, it would have been cruel to marriage of Evelyn Grace,
do so. Had you seen them when)daughter of Mrs, Follick and the
they first walked into Philibert this) ^^L^Foiilcjk^St. Marys, to
evening--’*
"I can imagine,” said
slowly. He sprawled out in an easy chair, a tall, elegant figure in the United
uniform of a flight lieutenant. He ^?v« ’ , .......
had been ovei* and back twice J ^Uss Grace Webb, of Bandon, was
"Pm glad you did. it, Tante Mimi.,‘BQioist and H. S. Urstadt, of Galt,
It was like you,
such a thing,
mess of the situation,
Mike ’are the ones who think of
the fitting thing to do.
you’ve forgiven Mike-
time you brought his
mug out of the ash can. He was
always your favorite, wasn’t he?”
"That ungrateful, headstrong, ir
responsible—”
Roger held up his hand. “He’s
you all over, that’s why the two of
you were
derneath
Lusignap, your eye HI , Hi.
harder you yelled at him, the loud-’
er you swore at him, the more you)
loved him,”
(CONTINUED NEXT WEEK
......... Frederick Denney Charles, son. of
Roger I Mr. and Mrs. F, S. 'Charles, of
1 Georgetown, was solemnised at the
[ Church, St. Marys, with W, E. Aidworth officiating.
' BIHIW Rinm, ««** w*
.. I’d never think pfjws at the organ,
T*r4 Tto’trrx vv» «□ rl rx O 1 . .1*4 have made a)
You ana
Pm glad
•it’s about
handsome
•5345.
Dublin Cucumber Riant has just
completed
i Approximately 245 tons of cucum*-
bars were purchased by Libby, Mc
Neil <& Libby, which was almost
double the production of 1943.
always fightins. But un
it all, Madame Fabre-
Mike was the apple of
and you know it. The!
own the
to know?
then youthem
game. Now I
shall talk to that sly lawyer, Gab
riel 'Follet, on the telephone and
have him send a .staff. I’ll also
tell him that "my home is now th*
house of my guests, the Baron Rudi
de Morpin, the young Princess of
Gratzen, the royal cousins.”
"It sounds like a dream,
dame.”
She smiled up at him over the
white telephone, like an old pixy.
“I begin to live again, Baron. I
must also call my nephew, Roger
Fabre, and tell him the same story.
He would be one to come blunder
ing in and spoil things. I take it,
Rudolph—Baron—it would ruin
everything if the pretty
hnew—”
ma-
Meridel
CHAPTER U
think,”
she is
danced.The black eyes
it was then her mother for
the gold-,
’'She was
madame.
in the
"She would not stay, I
Rudi shook his head. “If
like—
"Ah!”
"Ah,
whom you vowed to build
en castle.”
Rudolph nodded slowly,
born for a castle.”1
“All women are,” said
"Though most see theirs
smoke from the kitchen stove or
the steam from the wash tub. Ah,
you, Follet, my old spittoon, how - ■ - - ■ 1 ’ me
en-
my
nor
me
goes it? I want you to send
Some servants at once. I am
tertaining royalty. Oh, no,
smart friend—hot Napoleon;
am I Cleopatra, You listen to
and keep quiet.”
St. Didier des Montagnes, is only
three hours by car from Montreal.
Gabriel Follet who of late had ob
jected little to madame’s most ex
travagant whims, sent the required
domestics up to the mountain cha
teau so quickly that, it savored con
siderably of Aladdin's lamp,
“The man always reminded mu
of Cagliostro or Dr. Faustus,” mut
tered the old lady as she inspected
the how cook, maids and butler,
The chauffeur had already gone to
meet the wheeay old train that ar
rived at St. Didier every other
night. The baron, the subdued but
stately Rudolph, had accompanied
him. These people, madam® had
stipulated, must know nothing 01
her status at Philibert and she had
jprobed -sharply to be sure that none
a very successful year.
*?ca
she flung her arms about Rudolph's
neck and hid her face against his
shoulder, the little ones came shyiy
close to him. They were like near
ly exhausted swimmers in
sea,
last
And
God
"If
a wild
mused madame, who have at
reached the safe and solid land,
in that moment she thanked
that she had done this thing.”
it please Your Highness,”
said madame in slow French-—Ah,
how la divine Sarah would have
applauded'her acting in this scene,
•—"I shaR show you and the little
ones to your, apartments.” With a
nod she dismissed butler, maids
and cook. The chauffeur had en
tered with the meager luggage.
"The Princess understands and
speaks a little French, Madame
Laurin,” said Rudolph. "Likewise
Pol Martin and Rosine. You may
be sure they will learn fast.”
"We shall have good teachers, hein?” Meridel’s slow, sweet smile(
warmed the old lady's heart,
wanted to embrace Meridel
these little ones, tell them,
were safe from the terror
away forever from fear and
ger and hate and misery,
could read in their faces some of
the story that was theirs; some -of
the haunted horror was still deep
in their eyes that had a too wide,
too wondering look, as if they had
gazed upon things beyond the ken
of mortals.
"Come on, Bonhomme Fricot,”
said little Rosine to Pol Martin.
The old lady stared. Meridel
laughed, a gay, silvery laugh. "It
is a nickname from a game they
play. Bonhomme Fricot is a hero
of theirs. He is like the Pied Piper.
In reality he was some queer old
one who did much good in the vil
lage in France where they refuged,
these little ones, after 'Gratzen was
—was trampled into the ground. I
was in Paris then. By luck I found
Pol Martin and Rosine among the
homeless thousands.”
"Bonhomme Fricot,” said Rosine
gravely, “was shot dead by a Ger
man soldier. We saw the soldie,
go into Bonhomme Frlcot’s (house
and come out and we saw Bon
homme Fricot’s poor dead body ly
ing there in his hut and then we
all had to run, for the Panzers
were coming into St. (Como and-—”
"Please come, Rosine,” said
Meridel. "And try to forget those
things.”
"We will not forget Bonhomme
Fricot,” said Pol Martin. "Not
ever. When we were starving he
gave us chocolate. Everyone in St.
Como loved him. He used to teach
us games when we hid from the
Stukas—'and he taught us to sing.’
He sang the ancient roundelay
that madame herself
childhood, Us they
stairs. Ah, how small
mused madame, that
can link nations and
tions
warm
the boy’s clear soprano and the
little girl chiming in! Not in more
years than she cared to think about
had the Chateau Philibert heard
such pure and lovely piping as this.
The thick door of madame’s own
suite closed on the childish voices.
Madame stood in thp hall with Ru
dolph and looked at him a moment
and smiled and nodded.. “It is the
best play I was ever in,” said old
Mimi Fabre, “and the loveliest., role
I ever enacted.”
“And I, madame,” said Rudolph
with a deep and" humble bow, “have
never before witnessed such superb
acting.”
Madame had moved her intimate
possessions, Iter clothes, her count
less knickknacks and photos to tlj.e
housekeeper’s apartment in the
north wing. Now she made a swift
descent on the kitchen and rigidly
Inspected the -dinner preparations,
No nonsense for these hungry
young ones—plenty of good habi
tant pea soup, of roast chicken, of
rich pudding and strong coffee.
Those little bones needed a groat
■deal more firm padding before
} mooting the Quebec Winter. “Ah,
I good,” she told the new cook, “Give
She
and
they
now,
hun-
One
had s.ung in
marched up-
is this world,
a little song
biqd genera-
tdgether! How dear and
and human it was to hear
THE PICK OF TOBACCO
. It DOES taste
good in a pipe
What would you do if you were
in my shoes?
"Polish
Baron
is his
the
Whatbe regimented
can take it,
welcome to it.young
stand: "Young
what an oath
"I sure do, I
you when you
too, that very
I®®®®}
Magistrate, speaking to
man
man,
is?”
used
were
pany’s crew.
on the witness
do you know
Young man;
to work for
the boss of the electric com-
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