The Argosy — page 281: what you’re looking at

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

° 260 Winifred Power. pathetic object, and put the crown to Winifred’s misery. Twenty- four hours passed in this way, and then one afternoon the two girls were surprised by a visit from Claire. The fleuriste was generally too busy to make calls, and Winifred had hardly seen her since the day when, through her, she had found out Miss Freake. She went forward in some surprise and pleasure to receive her, but without waiting for any greeting, Claire exclaimed : “You have been anxious about Monsieur Richard? Ah, yes! I knew it. But, chere mademoiselle, he is safe. ‘Thank Heaven he is safe—but he had been heroic. My—gratitude—my ——.” And at. this point Claire, rendered quite speechless by a breathless com- bination of smiles and tears, sat down, nodded intelligently at her bewildered listeners, and went on volubly again. Monsieur Richard was an angel of goodness. Claire had met him on the very last day but one of the fighting. Avec son petit air calme—you would have thought he cared no more than a graven image what was happening. But he had a heart of gold under that English exterior : Claire had always felt it. He saw her looking sad; he asked the cause; she had poured out the whole story. Her young brother, a child of fifteen, had been led away by some friends of his to join the Federals. And at that very moment he was fighting, she was sure, on the barricade in the Rue He would be killed fighting, or taken prisoner and shot, and Claire would never know a moment’s happiness again. Monsieur Richard had no sooner heard this story than he said quite quietly, ‘‘I will go and see if I cannot save him ;” and almost before Claire could seize the sense of the words he was gone. Mais quoi! she almost laughed on recalling them; he had meant nothing: she could not have heard aright, or it was a mere way of speaking. The days went on—and Réné returned not. She was sure he was killed—the vision of him lying in his blood haunted her. She went to the police, to the hospitals, to the Morgue even, but found no trace of him. She could not eat, she could not sleep, she was crazy. And at last to-day, just as she felt that she could bear it no longer, a stranger came. Réné was alive; he was getting better of his wounds; and it was Monsieur Richard who had saved him. ‘But how ?” cried Winifred and Dolly in a breath, as Claire again pa'ised from mingled emotion and exhaustion. Monsieur Richard had gone to the barricade, and reached it just as the fight was raging. ‘The Communards had fallen back for a moment, leaving several prisoners in the hands of the Versaillais. Among them was Réné. Oh, heavens! that child. Monsieur Richard recognised him, The fédérés rallied, and made a fresh charge, Monsieur Richard with them, for he had picked up a musket that fell from the hand of some wounded man. ‘They rescued the prisoners, but Réné was struck and had fallen ; he would have been crushed ; but Monsieur Richard lifted him up, and, carrying him in his arms, ran with Gomicbooks (EC) m