The Argosy — page 400: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

378 Aunt Félicté, [Tm amcosr. The soup-plates were gone now, and instead appeared a cold chicken and the salad. Madame was seriously measuring and pouring im the regulated quantities of oil and vinegar, varying her employment by occasional chops at the wasps, when they came too close. “It 1s waps—you call this béte in English, Monsieur ?” Seton tried to teach her the true pronunciation, but she shook her head and laughed. “Ah! ma foi, non! Je vous en remercie. Your accent of your language 1s too much of trouble. One of your countrymen try to teach me long times ago how it is you call poulet. I will show yon I can speak Engleesh, but it is necessary always to sneeze. Monsieur, may I have the honour to carve for you a little of’—(here she made a prodigious attempt to sneeze)—“tschicken? There!” she added, tm- umphantly, “is it not with justice that I call it avilain language—a lan- guage where you must go through the trouble of sneezing if you wil ask even for a bit of—tschicken ?” Seton laughed heartily, and, as a crowning proof of favour, the old lady touched glasses with him. ‘There was no wine, but the cider was potent, and she rattled on in one incessant flow of talk. A dish of peaches from the garden, and some macaroons, ended the little feast. Geneviéve had eaten, by her grandmother's orders, at the buffet. Seton could not see her face, but he remarked her perfect silence. Was she angry; could she think he was paying too much court to her aunt ?—well, he would soon undeceive her. He had never seen anything so lovely as her apparition in the door-way, her litde straw hat just shading her face, and the plate of mussels in her hand. He had decided on his line of conduct. Félicité would leave the room presently, and he should persuade the grandmother to let Gene- vieéve sit to him for one of his contemplated pictures. He would not have gone on chattering so gaily to the aunt, if he had seen her niece's face. Poor little Geneviéve! she could not eat any breakfast; there was a great lump im her throat which threatened to choke her if she tried to swallow. She had been so glad, so wild with happiness, to see him there seated beside her grandmother—she had been ready to wait on him, to do anything for his comfort or enjoyment ; but why did he not speak to her—why had he so much pleasant talk, and such a devoted manner towards la tante, and not one word for her? ‘“‘T want to speak with you a few minutes, Genevitve,” said the low musical voice of Félicité at her elbow. ‘Come to my room with me.” The girl felt a new strange rebellion in her till now docile heart. She was not at St. Roque. Why should la tante take so much upon herself in the grandmother's house? She followed slowly; and just as she went out of the door, she looked behind her. Arthur was waiting to meet her eyes; he knew they must seek his before she left him, and COMIC SOO KS. COM