The Argosy — page 227: what you’re looking at

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

210 Featherston’s Story. q breath away. Signor Talcke assured us that what she said would be found minutely true. I think he has the strangest eyes I ever saw: grey eyes, with a sort of light in their depths. His features are fair and delicate, his voice is gentle as a woman’s, his manner retiring ; Sir George seemed much taken with him. Later, wnen the evening was passing, he asked if anyone pre- sent would like to have their future cast, for he had cards which would do it. Three of his listeners pressed forward at once ; two of them with gay laughter, the other pale and awestruck. The Signor went into the recess in the small room, and sat down behind the little table there, and as many as could crowd round to look on, did so. I don’t know what passed; there was no room for me; or whether the ** Futures ” he disclosed were good or bad. I had sat on the sofa © at a distance, talking with Anna Bosanquet and Madame Cardiac. Suddenly, as we were for a moment silent, Ann’s voice was heard, eager and laughing : ‘Will you tell my fortune, Signor Talcke ? I should like to have mine revealed.” ea th ‘es ‘With pleasure, madame,” he answered. We got up and drew near. I felt vexed that Ann should put her- self forward in any such matter, and whispered to her; but she only ~ shook her curls, laughed at me, and persisted. Signor Talcke put the cards in her hands, telling her to shuffle them, Tt “Tt is all fun, Lavinia,” she whispered to me. ‘ Did you hearhim — tell Miss Peet she was going to have money left her?” | After Ann had shuffled the cards, he made her cut them into three divisions, and he then turned them up on the table himself, faces upwards, and laid them out in three rows. They were not like the * cards we play with; quite different from those; nearly all were | picture-cards, and the plain ones bore cabalistic characters. We stood looking on with two or three other people; the rest had dis- persed, and had gone into the next room to listen to the singing. | At first Signor Talcke never spoke a word. He looked at the ‘ cards, and looked at Nancy ; looked, and looked again. ‘‘ They are | not propitious,” he said in low tones, and picked them up, and | asked Nancy to shuffle and cut them again. Then he laid them out ~ as before, and we stood waiting in silence. | Chancing at that moment to look at Signor Talcke, his face startled _ me. He was frowning at the cards inso painful a manner as to quite | alter its expression. But he did not speak. He still only gazed at the cards with bent eyes, and glanced up at Ann occasionally. Then, ' — with an impatient sweep of the hand, he pushed the cards together. “JT must trouble you to shuffle and cut them once more, ~ madame,” he said. ‘‘Shuffle them well.” ‘ ‘¢ Are they still unpropitious?” asked a jesting voice at my elbow. Turning, I saw Charley Palliser’s smiling face. He must have been standing there, and heard Signor Talcke’s previous remark. | COMICIOOKS xeon)