ANASTASIA.

Observer, Volume 7, Issue 158, 22 September 1883, Page 10

ANASTASIA.

b|ba.i4| *e^iphfi i a|> |^t|;fch%'||reet.!^hiphi uliderl twb (b^^rinj;:^^|/|^^^rp.ral, o&' $/az£| di aft d^feian^fetiilitiel, v ' who^ siM^c! gieir ciSflMega^mlS^^^^^anpid t BBsusmt-. ap^ ? apti^tfa^p{^\^f^ ¥ fp'nie s;oil^u||'itaiian spend a dreary half -hour in one of Jthe curiosity' shops' aroiind the palace, admiring\witii one ejre an ancient snuff-box* Or cameo, and; f J itvith ! the ptlier casting' furtive glances > toward^ Hhifneerest;' itrfeet-cofher'.' He nattered- himself; Hhat : his conduct was'th'e perfedtioii of diplomatic.; "-^liplicity, ifa yet there was* hardly a tradesman tne Vio ! della Fbritanella di Borghese who had j not long ago guessed his transparent secret. r; Ariastasia's appearancehlid undergone a marked "change since the : day wheii'he first ; met her. Her "dress, though yet' simple, wafc- beginning to show. * '.pccasional touches of prosperity i a modest little, 'rbund'hat took the place 'of the unpretending red' :I> |tncl yellow kerchief, and bits of picturesqiieness, 'lieatly disposed with aview bothto economy and effect, and pathetic imitations of fashionable 1 novelties, indicated plainly that her courage and hope were reviving. There was even at times a %aintr suggestion of colour frr her' pale cheek, and the unearthly glow in her eyes was quenched or | receded out of sight ;' } theh a touchingly childlike, expression of happiness would beam out of her *co : u|tenanc s e; at&fsW would? chat^fti a gay^b'ut eubaued fashion, %hile she bent over the caftiva& or stood off to measure an effect, by looking with narrowing eyes over 1 the. back of her uplifted hand. r Ai such moments Houston would find her dbsolutely bewitching. If he succeeded in, making her laugh, he felt so pleased with himself as if he had made a witty repartee at a: dinner-party. There was in her whole personality something hushed and "subdued^ from which he> inferred that she had been tyrannised over and; needed tenderness' and' cautious encouragement before she could bloom out into her natural self. Their talk was usually about art and artists ; but .sometimes, . when t^. opportunity seemed 1 favourable, he would i^dfilge «$ |n auto'bip-; graphical retrospect, and relate to hei scenes and incidents of his early life, hoping thereby to beguilfe.her. into siittilar- disclosures. But in these, efforts 'he was signally unsuccessful. Slhe seemed; to feel hpi^^r^^J^^,Bwi^irn.' .^confidences, and listened t^-^Mi^^ih^^^m^^^^tefa]. interest whichJwalvtp^P^^^ffilMfi'-butishe never' volunfieerl^i^^^mffl^mgej from her i own eXpe^p^^llpP^MSp^ihow to interpret thisi^Ht(^u|t^seWe \osjm£i in; all things I relating t^^ppl^isO^aljfiisi^^jffpLe was at first I inclined tfy'sjsi|bii£|s ft^ex^ssWeimodesty ; but the reeollffß^4W^^ Wy s ¥^M*^ sifc to Moneig-; nore sppn|ffyj^(||^^|d- ; ;tli^;:8^ secret tq £uard|whl^|^pi^^^^i^(i iiori^Kt to pry into. She did not know, o rewrite, T'thaf Vittorio in his w^tbhad betrayed, their true relation to Mpnsienore, and Houston was.notthe man to allow her to suspect that her efforts at concealment were of no avail. At the end of five weeks the picture was com-, pleted. It was a delicate and conscientious piece s,f»f minutely studied, exquisitely correct, and jet lacking witnal the joyous Pagan spirit of the Benaissanee. As a piece of colour it was ad- I mirable. The beautiful and allusive chiaro oseuro was rendered with a skill which was fairly astonishing, and the difficult modelling displayed a feeling and a delipac^of ,|jeatmerit whicli were jfar.jbeyond anything wJndb/ Houston had dared to* expect; and, f,or all that,, it was easy to disjCOyer tililt the picture in- its. tout ensemhle ]aad *iem'ained a ri^d% to the fair copyist. . . ■+ " Tell me, Signorina," said the American, as he stood before the completed picture, congratulating himself on the excellence of his ihvesthient^ if where and how did you learn to paint ?" " I went for four years to X3rigi's and learned to dm%" she answered in her usual hushed voice. "' I went for two years more to the Academia .di San Luca." '^Pardon me," he said, with a kind of appealing tenderness, " but you need hot answer me unless , jpu are perfectly willing. I supposed you were very poor, Signdrina." " So we are," she' replied, with an effort, while a deep blush spread over her cheeks. "It was Monsignore who pent me to the drawing-school and to the academy." He felt as if, the first personal confession were an indication that he had made a great advance in her favour ; aiid then for the first time it '•o§c,urred to him that he had during these .five (although he had played , the. part of a patron) been assiduously endeavouring to establish himself in her confidence and friendship. He was astonished at his ojvm energy and perse■verance. He did not belong to the type of man who % conquers by dash and bold assumption of superiority ; he had not the slightest pride in his appearance, although he was a refined and fairly good-looking fellow; he rather relied upon his intellectual advantages in which he did take a little pride, and his conquerable kindness and good nature. They lingered for more than an hour before . Titian's Earthly and Heavenly Love, not so much because the picture interested them as because they w.ere loth to part. There were no other, visitors in the gallery ; only the custodian walked up and down on the floor, shaking his keya impatiently. , v , t " I may have chosen an\ inopportune naojnent ,:(;Q;&f>aij|hg yonc,"^said. Houston; "but now the pictilceiLs mine.'^kd, tinless you allow me .to come to yoiiEJhtyUse^ I rll|iv ; iieyer see you again." He. handed' her^gve hundred lire in Italian pWjsei?£ .-'i**' •' - S|' ■■■>.''<'' *-.' 7 . ■.'■■,, .'. : '. " That is top much .of a golden rain!" she ex-; claimed, smiling with "an embarrassed air. "I oajwiot-. consent to take., so much, . Signore. - Myl picture is not worth it." /: ..,._■? '. "It is worth ten times.^ that, amount to me,") replied he, with ardour. " Your money is weilj •fea'rriedj' Siti&ifinß,. '•' Taike it) and enjoy-it.- lonlyi regire^xnaf by payirig* T yo)i Ijlose my rasfc L tiold\ipon^ you. I shg^hayAe no excuse for going to see joni

She took the crisp bills half reluctantly, folded them deliberately jj&rid put thpnv into, her boepray At the gate they; sfflook- hand! and parted. She' had never yet allowed him to escort her through the streets, and the way in which she ignored his desire to accompany her was sufficiently/ pointed to amount. to a dismissal. ■" ' " : The rest of. that day was intolerably long to Houston- He played, but even Beethovan seemed trite and meaningless. , He began to read in an exquisite little vellum-bound copy of Tasso', but Tasso was dull, and his sonnets seemed point? less. To kill the time he went down to the American banker's, on the Piazza di. Spagna, stared blankly at the newspapers, aud now and !tten"exlhan|ed#vapid',remark e.pYnwho found that " Eome was a fratid," and that the Coliseum and .the ..Forum had been v : ery much over-rated. He lounged for an hour in the bronze shops of the Via del Babuina, drank a cup of chocolate at Nazzari's, and fin illy went to Spillmann's to dine. Here he met two,Axneri?A cat- friends, who persuaded hiny for '' want of better occupation, to spend the evening ';m}t\ them at a cafe chantant, whetfe the,la|feslf French and Italian songs were warbled, py'y^ung ladies in a variety of airy costumes. -„& was about nine, o'clock when they entered. The cafe was crowded with Italian officers arid f&reign pleasure-seekers. Houston sat down with his companions at -one of the small round tables,, and listened languidly to the shrill and jerk| me|odies — «« To Vadoia gondola, vado a Venczii. \ ft La mia amaro'sa'^yado n trovar." ; , . Just as the song at an end_ and 4|e_|(|9. ! risen to go, he heaird ypices in ■vehement .ajteß^ ■ tion in the next rcfpmw'' '"' '_■■;. ; jr : "Wif^ , • " Let us stay ang'eiif&y the fun,-?' pri&l.one df his comrades. "I/et üßgo'and see what the rumpus is." . V In -jolly humour tfchey pushed through the crowd and forced the dopy, open to a smaller apartment, where a dozen 4nen were gathered about, a gaming-table. O^e.yoiing man; in whom Houstan instantly recognistdJhis'Me^d, Vittorio, had clutched a handful of banknotes' in lib^lfjffc • hand, while with the right he was,, gesticulating furiously, shouting all the while at "the~ top,..pf , his voice. The tears flashed in his brilliant eyes as he demonstrated to the bystanders how his opponent — a small, sullen-looking man — had cheated him out of his hard-earned money, and . ineaut to snatch the bread out of the mouth of his poor mother (upon whom he lavished . endearing and commiserating adjectives) and his feeble sister, whom he was supporting by the sweat of his brow, &c. He was just in the midst of this touching harangue when his eye suddenly caught Houston's glance; he grew pale stammered, and cleared his throat with a confused expression. Then, precipitating himself again into the midst of the argument, he advanced boldly toward the American, and shook his" hand with extreme cordiality. " This gentleman here," he said, " can vouch for the truth of what I have been saying. He knows that I am an honest and upright man." The daring ingenuity of this stratagem quite ,to6k Houston's breath away. ;, f? " The question is not whether you are honest or not, Vittorio, he said. . " If you have lost your money to this man, you must puy him ; and, as I was not present, I cannot tell who was in the right. By the way;" he went on, after a pause, " allow me to look at those bills. I shall return , them to you on the. spot." ■ j " And why do you .want to look at the bills, pray ?" " Just for curiosity. I suppose you had put them up as a stake." " And how does that concern you, Signore ?" " It might concern me more than you thinkj Signore Vittorio." " You shall pay dearly for that, Signore Americano." A menacing glance slaofc forth, from under fclae thick, Italian eyebrows, and Houston, having lost all inclination to act as umpire, slipped out through the crowd and into the street. He had no longer any doubt that Vittorio had stolen his sister's money. They were the same bills, all in fifty- lire notes, which she had received from him that very morning. • • Frederick walked rapidly down the Ripetta toward the Tiber, crossed the Ponte Sisto, and plunged into the labyrinth of the Trastevere. The streets were almost deserted ; only now and then some stately figure in rags would come stalking out of the darkness, loom up for an j instant in the rnoonlighfc, and again vanish in the dense shadow. The house in which Anastasia lived was situated in a narrow vicolo, which ran down to the river, and terminated abruptly in a steep embankment ; this embankment had once been surmounted by a low stone wall, of which yet some few scattered fragments remained; underneath, the current ran swift and silent, except when a swirling eddy swung in toward the shore with a fierce «erpentine whisper. From the upper part of the street, where Houston was standing, meditating whether he should venture to rouse Anastasia, he could hear the hissing sound of the rapids, as they whirled and seefched and boiled, and then rolled out into the middle of the hurrying current. His indignation was still burning in his veins, and no sobering second thought or conventional sense of propriety could convince him that it was not his duty to see Anastasia at once, and reveal to her her brother's villainy. He went to the gate and pressed gently against it ; with a. rusty creak it swung open. In the little court-yard the stately Commodus was still stretching out his arm with an imperial gesture toward the uninviting -hen-coop. The moonlight flooded the narrow enclosure, and lent its radiance toother sombre* stone walls and the earth-stained marble of the emperor. Houston mounted the well-worn stone steps, and knocked gently at the. door. Light footsteps were" heard within, the door was opened, and Anastasia appeared, barefooted, and with her black hair rolling down over her sboulders. " Holy mother !" she cried, r drawing her gown "vp 1 around Tier neck; '" What do you wish at this time of nighty Signore Americeanb ?" " Do not be frightened, Anastasia," he hastened to reassure her. " I'll do you no harm. Put on your iireVs,^please; and come out. ' I- mustjilie ■ you. I have something very important to relate : ■tb-Voui'^'- -*si ■•-■■:_>. -'Sit.■ :•■> /f ..; .;v> ; ijirt/I 8$ ixcji Bompreliend' youi^ords/ • Signore. s

How can you have any important message for ;'Beliteve t *nae/I v pr.&y yqU> Jbiastasia. Before. God, I would never harm you. I have seen your brother to-night, and what I have to say relates to him." -7; "Ah! "^ittorio," she exclaimed,, wi^h a quick' look of alarm. " I'll be with you in a moment, Signore." Within a few minutes she re-appeared, neatly attired in her round hat and her demure little black gown.. She led the way rapidly into the street, where she paused, and let her eyes wander \ uneasily up and down its dusky, tortuous length.; j "Come this way, Signpre,",she whispered,^as a, j s^bdued|male voice and 'a iitte^of |irls;jrea^h|d' her from a neighbouring court, " this way, quick ! or they will see us." . She seized him gently by the arm, and drew him into a narrow vicolo, which led down to theembankmentTof the river. Then she stood still, [ and her eyes on him, with a gaze of: ahxioiftlhexjjectancy. X "My metsage is not a cheerful one," he. began, fdVditfgJiis arnifcj,and leaning against a projecting fragment <Jf I fear it will grieve you." . " Speak,*'she/:ga9pV ; "is Vitlorio dead ?'*' "No, hVis ribj> dead\ but I saw him an hour ago in a"gambling4i6use£where he was quarrelling ' violently-^--" '**? \ ' "Ah! then, he is . wounded," she interrupted! breathlessly. -' " TeUfine atj: once if it is mortal — ! 'i£' ; it<ii : dangerous ?" •■ \\ "He is not woundesLeithjer," resumed Houston, ■gravely,.: "'■■ ■ •': ' £ I j V i'^Bhe dyew a long breath: of Relief. To her Italian . Jniln'cLtiiej^-'was na misfortunes comparable with 'phyei^lfipjuries. . ,';•■' d "■ •> "What' is ifc, then?" she asked in a lighter tone. , / ' ; ." You must pardon me, and allow me to tell you the whole story."-/ - ' ; And he/described thJe scene at the cafe, and the. part he had Jiiinsel|:tuken in it. " I dare-hardly^ay what I think," he concluded by^sayifig : "Jnit lam positive, Signorina, that the "bills which Vittorioheld in his hand were the; very ones I gave you this morning." "" "And what if they were?" she whispered tremulously.' "Then I should conclude that he has stolen them from you ?" " No, he did hot steal them from me. I gave them to him." . " Willingly, and of your own accord ?" :"N6, lie struck me, and forced me to give, them, to him.', Here her voice shook still more perceptibly, and the the tears gathered in her eyes. "Does Vittorio often strike you ?" "Yes, whenever he wants money, I copy pictures and he smokes them and. sells them as. old masters 1 ; or, if jL, sell the copies, he t&kes my money." She began to sob as if her heart would break.' Houston seized* her hand, drew her up to him, and strove to comfort her' " Your lot is a hard one, Anastasia," he said, tenderly. " I wish I could help you and prbtect you." "' ■ ; " You cannot, Signore. No one can help me." He was about to remonstrate, whe^i he heard rapid footsteps approaching from the upper part of the street. He had hardly time to drop Anastasia's hand and retire to a proper distance (of both of which acts he was inwardly ashamed), when he saw a slender and agile figure . rushing against him with uplifted fists. Houston, by a swift movement, evaded the blow, then laid both his hands on Vittorio's shoulders and held him tightly in his grasp. The Italian, hissing out an. oath, tore himself loose, and with a tiger-like, leap, sprang back toward the brink of the river ; and Anastasia saw something bright flashing in" his hand. She started with a cry, and saw instantly that life and death depended upon her choice. And the impulse to clioose flashed through her mind with terrible distinctness. She flung herself forward with uplifted arms, and Vittorio, being unprepared for an attack from that side, reeled backward, stumbled, and vanished over the edge of the embankment. It was the work of one breathless moment. .There came a stifled cry irom below •, then a low gurgle. Houston sprang to the edge of the declivity ; the brown waters wrestled and writhed as if in dumb pain. Far out in the whirling liquid chaos a white arm rose for art instant — then vanished. A swift, angrily, whispering eddy swept over the spot where it had appeared, and the great river rolled silently onward. A slow shiver crept through his limbs. He' turned sadly away, not feeling where he trod. His feet were benumbed, and hie hands, too, seemed strangely dead to his touch. He had hardly thought of Anastasia ; tbe terrible sight filled his soul to the exclusion of every other thought. He now saw her lying motionless where she had fallen, and with her face down. Stooping over her, he lifted her \\p in his arms ; she clung close to him, as if for protection >£rom some unseen avenging hand. " Vittorio," she whispered hoarsely. "Is Vittorio dead ?" A convulsive shudder shook her slender frame,, and , she hid her face in .the folds of, his coat. There was something shy^ and yet clinging in her manner, and in her fright something abject and imploring which.made him for an. instant shrink from her. She seemed to have lost that coy remoteness in which lay her dignity and hqr chief charm. ' • ; ' - . " Auastasia," he began His voice vibrated through her like an electric shock. - ' "Do not leave me, Signore," she begged piteously. " They will come and kill me. I shall die if you leave me." He stood for a moment pondering. Then, with slow deliberation, wound, his arm proteetingly about her and drew her closely to him. j (To lo couoludcd in our next.)

An anecdote- is told, of Oscar Wilde, who v,\aS' informed that whole tribes of Indians fed o%s,iijfflowors. " Pooi^ s-sveet- things !" said, he.; " feedon sunflowers ! How charming llf I could only ■;] hax.e stayed, and dined, •vvith.thgm,!., 1! > ligiitftirt6' ; Be'"b'itck in Eligrahd''and*Saythatlliave ; actxially been in -a country mhere whole tribes of j men live.oii, s^pflpyers^ sCh|i gre^ippsneas^f it 1 " \