The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1871-11-17
ONLY KNOT OF Blue RIBBON.
By PAUL pLU ME.

piece os knotted and. faded blue RIB
bon. The sight of it caused, the rec
objection of thirty odd years to eome
freshly up to my memory again.
l have taken it out to-day, appe
more to gaze upon it, and it lies before
me on my desk rs write these lines.
Need say that my mind is now wan
dering away in the mazes of retro
spection
What u, singular life is ours? How
many hopes tail, us. how many bright
anticipatiqns meyer even budded to re-
alization But, must not moralize,
,Yhere intend only to tell 4 story OF
days gone by.
Ralph Moulton and myself were the
sons OF farmers. Our fathers prop
erty joined each others. We were
born III the same month ard year, and
almost upon the same day. We grSw
up together as playmates and school-
fellows, and by II strange coincidepcc
we both went 10 the city and entered
the same commercial house rs clerks.
This pleased our parents and was Il
source Of great satisfaction To our
selves. Our intimacy had never been
interrupted through long years, even
by the most trivial circumstance. Now
that, we were settled in the city, we
took n. room in common in our baard-
ipg,hquse We had no secrets from
each, other, and unrescryedly opened
our hearts with all our hopes and
,Ih,2pghts. We were happy. When
VACATION came We went to our old
hQNes. and at the expiration of onr
leaycs. refurned T. our duties. ard look
up our abode in. the same. anartcrs.
Two years, rolled away, and va, hal
made ourselves pretty profcieRt in
the business Of Dur employer, and. i
think he regarded us as two young
men of wore than ordinary. promise
in mercap;ile matters. AT least this
was the tenor OF n. letter he wrote t.
opr delighted fathers. | don't mem
ton this in u vainglqFious way, ioril
think ,we meritcd the esteem pf our
employer, for (of all the clerks We
were the. most regular and punei.aal at
our. desks.
Ralph never visited n place of
amusement that | did not accompany
him. Ills .acquain;ances were mine
also. and so We literally had things i'll
common. There WAS, perhaps, moth
ing unusual in this, considering the
manngr of oT former lives. and j
only mention ii pow when recall our
subsequent estr:.ugem mt.
1t was in the beginning of orr third
year in BUSINESS, that first discov-i
cred Ralph slipping away i'll his, walks
| experienced. and it gave me pain
but concealed my slighted emotions
and bore up under it rs best | could.
We still roomed together, anf when
in each others society were as, cordial
as of old. We got along this way
pretty well. and were il not for al oc-
'casional twinge Of conscience to re-
mind me that there was some littlel
matter changed between us. we might
have been contentcd and happy in the
old-time way.
In the course OF my visits made
the acquaintance of Julia Hobart
She was the daughter of a gentleman
largely engaged in the grain business.
She was a spriehtly, black, eyed girl of
eighteen years, but her grehtest charm
lay inlher powers of conversation; in
this respect i preferred her to any
Young lady had ever met.
/ | had been visiting Mr. iIobarts
,house for several months., and only by
accident discovered that Moulton was
visitor there also. One evening |
retYFpef home rather later,thap Usual
from visit to Miss Hobart, and was
SURF rised to find sIoulton pp and read
ing book.
II have heep to 1lIobsrt,s tonight,
Ralph" | said, throwing myself intp:a
chair. I wished tppotice the effect,of
my speech, for as yet not word had
passed hetweqn lis as TO our mutual
acquaintance with the Hobart family.
ESQ ! supposed he quietly remark
ed.
.@Why did yqp suppose so 2" !
asked, for ! did pot exactly like the
cool way in which he spoke.
because you go there a great deal, /"
he answered, in the same tantallzlng
| manner.
''Oh, is that all:' Ire2liel.
"Yes, that's about all" he Igi9mea.
Il don't understand one thing, how
ever 1 continued, land that is why
you never mepti0ned to ppe that yop
visited Miss Hobart? What motive
could you have for concealing it y
"If you will answer .me 3 question,
he said, II will tell you"
go on" ] replied, what is it?"
"Why did yom pever pfoFm me
that yom were visiting Miss Hobart
What motive could you haye for con
ceaIing it,
! could not help smiling at Ais in
genuity, for | plainly saw the matter
would work both ways.
Indeed, ] do not know" I replied.
Nor do l." be answered. "Let us
therefore drop the subject, and be sat
isfed that we know 2 smart girl with
plenty Of brains"
Months passed away and we meyer
alluded to julia Hobart. ] still kept
up my visits, AND he did likewise. We
soon began to understand each others
visiting nights, and although we had
no agreement on the subject, we pev
erthelcss arranged oqr visits so tha'
we should not be at Mr.. Hobart's
house at the same time.
| During all this period not 2 word
escaped Ralph that would have led lae
to suppose he was more than ordina
rily pleased with Julia Hohart's SO
ciety, and for myself looking back,