The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1876-07-20
Concluded from last week.
Jack StebbinS' Story.
Told by Himself.

Told by Himself.
It was a black lookout, and If 4
badu't been for Molly j thInk.I should
have been tempted to jump into the
river aud ppt an end TO it all. What
| went through that week, soul anC
body, trying TO raise the money, NJ
tongue can tell. Seventy-five mil
lions wouldn't pay me for the misery
j suffered, and bow any man can take
up stealing for 3 trade has been 6
mystery to me ever since. For, mind
you, it was only the disgrace Of being
found out, aud the straits / was put
TO in scraping the money together.
A fellow finds Out-When he loses ii
1-that his own self-respect Is worth
more to him than anything else in
life. I'd have sold myself for bad
experience in those days, and pitied
the buyer. ze
/ Yet i had to keep stiff upper lip in
the Office, and before the bOarders at
the table, and especially before Molly
land the old felix's. To have let them
guess what had happened would have
killed me. So hid my trouble the
best way could but MOlly's eyes
tender and watchfnl eyes they were
found out presently that / had q
trouble to hide.
"You'Te not like yourself, Jack :"
-she said one night. you've some
thing on your mind that you don't
| foil and II fal fhnk 7
don't think It is kind"
at wouldn't be very kind to bother
you with my troubles, suppOsing l
had any In particular | satds "But
/ there's nothing the matter, Molly, as
pEe told you befOreE
20 yes! knows you've told me,
Jack, but ] don't believe it.
She had Der knitting work again
1.-The same white, fiHfy stuff that
made her haRds LOOK so pretty-and
the pHrple stone ID her ring shot and
isparkled as thsy flew to and fro. A
sndden thought struck me as watch
ted the nimbie fingers; aud the gleam
Of the amethyst in the freight. A
rascslly, mean thought it was, but l
was in q desperate condition. The
week OF grace was nearly ended, and
I had raised, by dint Of actual beg
gary, the sum Of forty dollars. had
written imploring letters to my rela-
tIons, I bad dunned to distraction
every body that owed me 8 cent 1
had gone on my knees, pretty nearly,
to everybody knew that had cent
to lend; and the sum total of nay
scrapings was forty dollars.
1t was not TO be expected that Mr..
Blackjack would accept any such half
payment as that. He was known for
hard man, and 1t was q great deal
for him to give me the chance at all.
l knew what had to expect IL fail
ed and yet where in Gods name to
look for another dollar didn't know.
I can only say, to excuse my mean.
ness, that I WAS desperate and the
sight of that ring flashing in the fire.
light made me think OF the money I.
paid for it-more thEl that, made me
wonder If couldn't cOntrive to turn
it into money again. And, just as
the thought was passing through my
mind, Molly gave little, quick jerk
at her knitting needles-there was q
snarl in her woodland the ring flew
off her finger.
''There !" she cried, as il tinkled
down on the hearfhstOne, and I
stopped to pick it up; ''that's the
third time to day my ring has drop
ped of. Something is going to hap
pen, Jack, and 1 know it,
Something is always happening,
amt it ?'Hsaid L. "The rings too big
for your ridiculous little finger;
that's what's the matter"
"That's isn't my fault" she answer
ed, demurely. at wasn't l that
bought It." -
"Well, it's got to be fixed or else
you'll lose it some day. Pll take it
back to the jewelers. and make him
put s little band inside. YOd can
spare il for a day or two, can't you ?p
"Well-yes, if you're sure he won't
spoil il, and if you'll be very careful
not to lose it, JACK"
hDon't you be bit alarmed And
/ stole kiss from the pretty, saucy
lips that pretended to pout at me.
'1f L lose it Tll get another"
"But I don't want another-anOth-
er wouldn't be the same thing at all i"
she said,
"Ail right, then, / went lose it."
And I didn't intend to, il / could
help it. only meant to make her
believe ] had, poor little Molly after
i had sold Il 30 pay my debt. was
the first customer at, thai Broadway
jewelers. next morning, and the clerk
who hadsolu me the ring came for
ward, polite enough, wanting to
know what he could show me. He
changed his tune when / told him 1
hadn't come to buy, but to sell. What
difference it makes, don't it, You
60 to buy thing and how it's crack
ed up for the most perfect thing ia all
creation Take it back to the same
place and try to sell it and you're
made to feel that It and you, too, are
meaner than dirt.
It'Twenty-five collars you paid for
this ring ?'i says the clerk, picking it
up as If it were beneath his notice. 80
yes, I dare say. But prices have
come down since then. II wouldn't
be worth anything like that now,
YOU know, even If it wasn't seeOh9-
handed"
USecond Hddlestiek ~ says I, in q
rage. "The ring was bought q week
ago and the store shine amt of it.
Tou can see that So wen as 7 can"
"But it's marked and that's enough
4 ~ LnonC ~ GOOA AoA A-CNhAhEI DNCA ~
l il hadn't been used Rt all. ~
'Pretty ieweler you are, IL you
can't scratch out 4 couple of letters"
snesred at him. II know what
you're up to but let's make an end
Of it. What's the highest figure you'll
put upon it ?n
"Well, we don't want it at all, you
know, but, since you're anxious to
sell, lll see what Mr.. So-and-sO
says"
Aud Mr.. So-&nd-so, after two or
three minutes whispering, was good
enough to offer me-seveR dollars for
the article had paid him twenty-five
/ for little more than = week ago. Pm
| glad to remember that I told him I'd
see him hanged first F; and I walked
out Of the store with Moily's ring safe
in my pocket again.
No use to try % 2 luck with it any
where else, so 1 went down to the
Office and pitched into work with all
my might. Anything to keep from
thinking.
at lunch time HIgeinson and 1
went out together; and with q kind
Of forlorD hope HigginsOn being q
kind-bearted fell0w-I told him that
l was in serape and wanted some
body, sWfully, TO help me out of it. /
hadn't ssid 3 word bsfOre to any of
the fellows in the office partly be-
cause I knew how poor they all were,
and more because dreaded rousing
any curisosity thai might end in sus-
piciOn. Joe Hoxie had such 3 nose
70 scent out things, and he vas eter-
EnRlly gsbbing Ebo1t that check, any,
how, and betting on Blackjack But
lHigginsOn was different, and | knew.
be would hold his tongue, at least, If
he could help me.
So told him q trumped-up story
that my lsndisdy was down on me
for board bili-had locked me out OF
my room and coudscated my traps.
4 / couldn't get so much as q clean
shirt or handkerchief unless I paid
her up, and what in thunder was / 60
ing to do?
/ HiPRiDson Whistled