The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1870-01-27
THE JASPER sIGNET.
sFaZ HEaH no
BY R. b. sF9DpARD.

--z----------A
BY R. H. sF0DDARD.
sA.Is Jas 2 ---------------a------ ---------- - a------G
1t was the dusk ofa summer evening
1 sat in myachamber, putting my cigar,
and gazing listlessly into the street. 1
saw the fitting figures of the passers-
by and my neighbors over the waywith
their children playing around them.
The air was full of confused sounds
fragments of conversation, the patter
of feet, and the rumble of distant
wheels. r 1t was not an unpleasant
evehing, owned, but / was n OF in the
mood toAenjosIit. I took up my pis-
tol, which lay on the table before me,
handling it curiously, wondered if
4 anything y would Yleyer I drive me to
shoot myself.
1t was dark time in my life-the
darkest, thought, 1 had ever seen,
was out 6fmoney, o1t OF friends, out
of hope. And, worst of all, my child,
my darling little Ambrose was sick.
He lay in the next room in raging
fever, the folding doors between us
were closed, bsthis low means reached
me, and struck pang to my heart,
From tinaeste time through The Gay
1 had sat by his bedside, holding his
bufhing hands, but when evening
came, could bear it no longer; l was
sick with pitX.g I't0ok oksqp. q. book to
forget myself, but l could not make
sense of what 1 read; my mind
would wander off in the middle of a
paragraph. How, indeed, could for
get the child, when everything in the
room reminded me of him? Within
reach stood his rocking-hoise; his
toys were scattered over the sofa
Under the edge of a bookcase I saw
the toes of his little shoes, and on the
ftable; lay witheredl posy, which he
had gathered day or two before. II
was only bunch of wild flower and
1hegWefe withefed and dead, but ]
Fcould not t brow them away 1 would
have preserved even a weed, if Iii:
hand had touched it,. +. ~ =
1laf sat and smokedauntfiiit grew toe
dark to see distinctly. The neighbors
withdrew to their houses and lighted
the lamps. The sounds in the streets
died away, butJfhe affttB8as nofsiel
than ,eyeEI fors innumerable crickets
were chifping. All! well!'' said 1
with a sigh, " there is no, use in my
sitting here idlesany longer; may al
well go to work."
i 1 turned on the gas and drew my
table up to the light. 1 have no
fmentf6ned, a believe, THAT. was al
aqther, butas Lssaids I was poor the
acute reader may have guessed it
Yes, l was an author then, poor au
thor, miserable literary hack, turning
my pen to everything. 1 was equally
\ good (or bad) at prose or poetry.
| wrote heavy articles for the reviews
and light paragraphs for the journals
to say nothing of sensati on romance
for the weeklies and poetfyfor ever!
thing l had g. poem to write tha
| nigfit4a comic poem ; the cuts will
which it was TO. be Illustrated, ant
(which were supposed to be dIa avn TO
it (of course atssa great expehse) la
itbefoFe mo i,Aot yet transferred from
Pme1h iouching the ffaaiae5d faaia5d dowers 0
my si5k Child. I pressed the posy t
q fmy lips. and breathing prayer 70
his recovery, took up my PEN and be
II gan to write. gFhe contrast betwee
my circumst ances and what 1 wa
Z wfaingLa panegyfie5aon wealth.
ld shaEpenea my witsros4 srioted in
world of autasticefeations, scatterin
Jokes and puns broadcast. g There,
d said [, afteg one of my brilliant corus
!, cations, s.: 8: That will delight the edito
ID of thed Barbaniass. .ssTheszp poor ma
s s thinks me funny % remembered tn
I Hast poem that 4 had offered him, an
Z smiled bitterly. 1T was Stately an
noble piece ofthought, Set1se decline
.tita and ordered the,AFash which WI
then writing. ,uI RoHld mot hay
touched it but for my little Ambrof
4 but a Sick ehildahaast havesa ply ysicia
i; and nurse.---ss'i Audi happy shall I be
q = thought f sti if il mi r. r. YValkiI
out that day had seen a'olittle cofi
in the window of aalYundertaker hal
. by, and now itcame back to my men
A1Uy, and filled me with solemn for
- bodings. imagined that l saw it {
"A the table; with my child init, holdir
'ii the 3 witheredd MOWERS in his fold'
handsl / laid down my pom al
listened, but I eepld not hear hil
1Perhaps he is dead" l ,whispere
THE thpnght gave me q shock, apdt
tears rushed 10 my eSes.asI was 81
- tainly in fine trim for writing a CON
Of .pcsmf I ,IMII
nl.l s,tAJ ihatimoment there was o tap
. the door. i'@''H 80 .sa4a@ st1os5' I'D 4
= 'Va CONF I'M, said ], drying my ey