Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1869-01-07

she come into her drawing-room 10 see
that the fire was bright and ready for her
husbands return. Ii struck her that
the empty hower-yases looked dreary,
and wanted a dash of color to set of their
whiteness; the sun shining in at the
moment, she hastily put on cloak, and
hat, and clogs, and sailed out 10 gather
some sprays of holly, of which plenty
grew on the banks of the Abbot's POOL
Down the slippery garden walk she
went with careful steps, and up the green
bank, more slippery still, which over
hung the deep hollow where the half
frozen waters lay. A shower OF melting
snow fell from a bush as she drew
bough down towards her; and as she
bent forward, shaking off the drops from
her cloak and hair, she saw something
glisiening in the wet grass at her feet
She stopped to pick it up, and il was
ring-a ring of curious workmanship,
with ruby set in it. The sight was a
strange one to her. just such ring had
been one of the few ornaments left her
by her mother, and she had given 1t to
her first husband on the very evening
when they wished each other tnat SAD,
long good-by. The coincidence was
strange one, she thought, and, with
thrill of supersticious alarm, she remark
ed how exact a resemblance IT was; the
shape and size of the stone, the peculiar
ANTIQUE setting: even a little flaw she
remembered in her ruby was repeated
| in this stone. Shecould scarcely believe
that she did not really hold in her hand
the loye-token which had gone down
Into the deep sea on her dead husbands
finger.
| She walked back to the house sadly,
and. when she found herself in the fast
darkening bedroom, was seized with
fit of eerie spectral terror. She flung her
hat and cloak on the bed, and was rush.
ling down at full speed to the drawing
room, where candlesh had just been placed,
when her husband, coming in at the
front door, almost caught her in hisarnns.
She was surprised by the quickness
with which he perceived that something
was amiss, and at the sharp tone, almost
Expressive of some keen anxiety, in
which he asked -
"What is il? What has happened ?'
She told him, as they stood together
by the drawing-room lire; ending with
the very natural question:
as it not strange? Ineyersaw ring
in the least like it anywhere, and this is
exactly the same"
He roughly snatched the ring out of
her hand, exclsiming =
Throw il into the fire,-don't touch
| lit,-throw it away ~
/ Elsie's first impulse, then as always,
was to submit; but in a moment she re-
collected that the ring must belong to
somebody, and that it was of real value.
AS she stopped to rescue it, he held her
back angeriy."
"I won't have you perpetually
barking back to that old story. Every
thing you see, every trifie that happens,
you twist into some recollection of what
you ought never to think of more. You
wrong me in your thoughts, Elsie, every
hour of the day."
Dismayed, astonished, and scared,
Elsie drew back, and hastily barred her
arm, where his iron fingers had left their
purple marks. She looked at the bfuise
with the piteous look of a child that has
received hurt, and presently tears be-
gan to flow. But he was by no means
softened at the sight; with unabated
anger he went on
"What is it you suppose? What is it
you assert? Let me know at once all
you are thinking"
What can 1 think ?" she said, look
ing up in wonder. 81 do not understand
you to-day, Philip. OF course this ring
must have been dropped by somebody ;
but it is so like the ring | gave" She
stopped afraid of again rousing his jeai-
GUS temper and pleaded: ANY one
would have been startled, Philip; you
should not-you should not" And
here broke down and began to cry.
He took several turns up and down the
room, then stopped, close to her, as she
stood leaning on the mantle-piece.
i Elsie, stop those sobs. Stop them al
once, if you do not want to drive me mad.
Crying? Are you actually crying be-
cause have been brute to you? And
I vowed I would never cause you one
tear! o my darling, my darling, forgive
mein
The tears vanished in smiles.
You did frighten me for minute, ("
she said; but it is over now. You take
Everything too seriously, Philip"
Do L? Bear with me, Elsie, bear
with me, for if loved you less l should
take things less to heart. Dry your eyes,
and think no more aboIt it now, my
poor, poor little darling.n
do you pity me?" asked Elsie, all
bright and happy again; "indeed you
need not; and look here is the ring; it
has fallen quite harmlessly under the
CRATE"
Give It to me,u said her husband,
holding out his hand. "I will advertise
it in the local paper. You know Alb
bots Pool has been lion in small way;
but shall put an end to all that now,
and lock up the field.n
Here it is" said Elsie; "surely it is
not hot"
mo; why?n
"I fancied that you shrank, as if it
burnt your fingers
Next day she asked her husband if he
had taken any steps about the adver-
tisement; he curtly answered that he
l had settled it all; and she being wo-
man of yielding disposition and no
great curiosity, remained satisfied with
the answer.
CHAPTER Ill.
"Why any secrete Hove not secret
/ The honeymoon was over and the Or
deal of wedding visits gone through, and
the doctor and his wife settled down into
home life. Philip Denbigh had well said
that Elsie was the only woman in the