“So, then, it come to be said in all those card-club’ that my father he’s try to buy Fortune so to marry her.  An’ by that he had a quarrel with one of those young Lefevre’, who said pretty much like his mother, only in another manner, pretty insulting.  And, same old story, they fought, like we say, ‘under those oak,’ Metairie Ridge, with sharpen’ foil’.  And my father he got a bad wound.  And he had to be nurse’ long time, and biccause all those shop’ got to be keep she nurse’ him more than everybody elze.

“Well, human nature she’s strong.  So, when he get well he say, ’Papa, I can’ stay any mo’ in rue Royale, neither in that vieux carre, neither in that Louisiana.’  And my grandpere and all that coterie they say:  ’To go at Connect-icut, or Kanzaz, or Californie, tha’z no ril-ief; you muz’ go at France and Spain, wherever ’tis good to study the iron-work, whiles we are hoping there will be a renaissance in that art and that businezz; and same time only the good God know’ what he can cause to happen to lead a child of the faith out of trouble and sorrow.’

“So my father he went, and by reason of that he di’n’ have to settle that queztion of honor what diztress all the balance of the coterie; whether to be on the side of Louisiana, or the Union.  He di’n’ run away to ezcape that war; he di’n’ know ’twas going to be, and he came back in the mi’l’ of it, whiles the city was in the han’ of that Union army.  Also what cause him to rit-urn was not that war.  ’Twas one of those thing’ what pro-juce’ that saying that the truth ‘tis mo’ stranger than figtion.

“Mr. Chezter, ‘twas a wonderful!  And what make it the mo’ wonderful, my father he wasn’ hunting for that, neither hadn’ ever dream’ of it.  He was biccome very much a wanderer.  One day he juz’ chance’ to be in a village in Alsace, and there he saw some chil’ren, playing in the street.  And he was very thirzty, from long time walking, and he request’ them a drink of water.  And a li’l’ girl fetch’ him a drink.  But she was modess and di’n’ look in his face till he was biggening to drink.  Then she look’ up—­she had only about seven year’, and my father he look’ down, and he juz’ drop that cup by his feet that it broke—­the handle.  And when she cry, and he talk’ with her and say don’ cry, he can make a cem-ent juz’ at her own house to mend that to a perfegtion, he was astonizh’ at her voice as much as her face.  And when he ask her name and she tell him, her firz’ name, and say tha’z the name of her grand’-mere, he’s am-aze’!  But when he see her mother meeting them he’s not surprise’, he’s juz’ lightning-struck.

“Same time he try to hide that, and whiles he’s mixing that cem-ent and sticking that handle he look’ two-three time’ into the front of the hair of that li’l’ girl, till the mother she get agitate’, and she h-ask him:  ’What you’re looking?  Who told you to look for something there? Ma foi! you’re looking for the pompon gris of my mother and grandmother!  You’ll not fine it there.  Tha’z biccause she’s so young; when she’s grow’ up you’ll see; but’—­she part’ as-ide her own hair in front and he see’, my father, under the black a li’l’ patch of gray, and he juz’ say, ‘Mon dieu!’ while she egsclaim’—­