n and
orange. She stopped in front of me and stared at me, and I stared at her
queer little dress, which was a cheap imitation of the costume of one
of these contadine. At last I looked up at her face, and said to myself,
'Bless me, what a beautiful child! what a splendid pair of eyes, what a
magnificent head of hair! If my poor Christina were only like that!' The
child turned away slowly, but looking back with its eyes fixed on me.
All of a sudden I gave a cry, pounced on it, pressed it in my arms,
and covered it with kisses. It was Christina, my own precious child, so
disguised by the ridiculous dress which the nurse had amused herself in
making for her, that her own mother had not recognized her. She knew me,
but she said afterwards that she had not spoken to me because I looked
so angry. Of course my face was sad. I rushed with my child to the
carriage, drove home post-haste, pulled off her rags, and, as I may say,
wrapped her in cotton. I had been blind, I had been insane; she was
a creature in ten millions, she was to be a beauty of beauties, a
priceless treasure! Every day, after that, the certainty grew. From that
time I lived only for my daughter. I watched her, I caressed her from
morning till night, I worshipped her. I went to see doctors about her,
I took every sort of advice. I was determined she should be perfection.
The things that have been done for that girl, sir--you would n't believe
them; they would make you smile! Nothing was spared; if I had been told
that she must have a bath every morning of molten pearls, I would have
found means to give it to her. She never raised a finger for herself,
she breathed nothing but perfumes, she walked upon velvet. She never
was out of my sight, and from that day to this I have never said a sharp
word to her. By the time she was ten years old she was beautiful as an
angel, and so noticed wherever we went that I had to make her wear a
veil, like a woman of twenty. Her hair reached down to her feet; her
hands were the hands of a princess. Then I saw that she was as clever
as she was beautiful, and that she had only to play her cards. She had
masters, professors, every educational advantage. They told me she was
a little prodigy. She speaks French, Italian, German, better than
most natives. She has a wonderful genius for music, and might make her
fortune as a pianist, if it was not made for her otherwise! I traveled
all over Europe; every one told me she was a marvel. Th