The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1877-02-22
"a Perfect Treasure. "

4
One day Frank came home with q
look of triumph.
81 have q perfect treasure for you,"
be said, sin the way Of nurse. Gen.
Gerald Temple, is going to take his
family to Europe, and when he heard
what you wanted, offered to let US
have their nurse, whom they will
not want.
| I heard 3 low sigh, Virginia,
Franks only sister, had been sitting
in q corner Of the drAwinR-room.
She rose now and slipped out.
"HoW could you, Frank 2" / said
following her with sad eyes. 81 haYe
never heard your sister speak OF the
Temples since she has lived with Us
the very mention Of their names
brings back the memory OF Gerald's
brother, and all that sad tragedy
81 am sOrry,n said Frank, "but I
did not know she was Ia the room.
Poor Virginia"
ayes Poor. Virginia !" I said to
myself. But once the loYeliest little
creature / ever knew. It is some
thing Of a story, bat tits an "oEer true
tale,', and will tell it In the shortest
way can: 80 --- ~ --
Virginia and Frank were orphans,
and old Mrs. Chichester, their grand
mother, had adopted Virginia almost
from infancy, The old lady had very
ambitions hopes Of making 8 splendid
match for her beautiful Rrandcbild.
But Virginia thought different and
when she was seventeen, sc the time
of my wedding, she and Langley
| Temple were insane enough to fall
desperately In love with each other
Langley was Franks most intimate
| friend, and the pair met continually
at our house, until Grandma Chiches-
ter found it out. After q while Lang
ley was ordered to his chip (be was in
the nayy); but Frank wGged war
with grandma until he obtained q
viperish consent that the lovers
might correspond. Grandma took
pains not to let Frank know how
! Virginia was tormented and tyran-
niZed over until the poor child con-
sented to 90 out into society again
ana there she met anu made con-
quest Ct the very man whom grand
ma bad intended for her beauty
Horace Kent. Virginia refused him
but grandma said, scornfully, 'tbat
made no difference. She would come
to her senses soon" and to my utter
amszement the preparation of the
| trotsssedu went on, and by and by we
were hidden to the wedding, quite
elegant affair, where Virginia walked
and talked rs If she was frozen,
| Frank and confessed to each other
that night that the business passed
our comprehension, for we had no
idea then Of foul play.
Kent and Virginia were to call for
| Europe within fortnight OF their
marriage and went to Washington
and Baltimore to pass that time.
| Left alone one evening in Baltimore,
/ with o severe headache, Virginia re-
membered to have seen some aromat-
ic vinegar in her husbands dress
inR-case. Kent was peculiar in bis
careful way Of locking up his belong
| ings, and she took her own bunch Of
KEYS to open the box, when, rather to
her surprise, she found the key left in
the box. Some listless, vague i'm
pulse which she never afterward
could account for prompted her to
lift the upper tray, although she had
found the vinegar already. Under
meath, to her surprise, she found
payer, and was about returning the
tray to its place without fDrther ex-
animation when her eyes were
caught by the words "My own Vir-
ginis," in . dear, q too Well-known
handwriting.
When Kent came back that night
he found his beautiful young wife
senseless upon her bed, with two let
ters crumpled between her cold fingers
one, the last letter Langley had
actually written her the other, the
base forgery, in which he asked to be
released from his engagement. Kent
was not at all bad. He loved her
madly, and you may be sure that his
sore punishment began when, after
the physician had got her out Of the
death-like sWoon, the first words that
came to VirginiA's lips, in thst
strange, passionless tone which Is far
worse than anger, were "Remem-
Der 1 will never forgive you-nev-
er rl
They came back to New York for q
single day, but Virginia saw no one
hut her grandmother. The old lady
upon her deRth-Eed raved Of that in
tervieW, and vainly implored her for
| giveness for urging Kent on to his
treacbery. The newly-wedded pair
sailed in the iIl-fated ship which took
fire of the coast of Nova Scotia, and
whose name still carries terror to
many hearts. Virginia was one OF
that handful of survivors her unhap-
py husband fought for her place IN
the boat, and remaining behind him
self perIshed with the snip. The ag-
ony of terror, the long night which
she spent at the mercy Of the waves,
proved too much strain upon her al
| ready-overburdened frame, and Frank
and I were summoned by telegraph TO
her at Halifax, where she lay for days
unconscious with the brain fever.
And then to add to her misery, when
/ recovering she was thrown into q
nearly fatal relapse by seeing seci-
dentAlly that the Tecumseh bad gone
down in the attack on MOBILE harboT,
with every soul on board. The Te-
cumseh was Langley's ship.
| Virginia came to live with US about
two years before the commencement
of my story. She seemed to feel 3
sOrroWful remorse about ber husband,
which vas not grief, and yet it cast 3
shadow over her life. she was treaeh.
erous and false" she said to me one
day, 'iAnd he broke my heart; bnt
what right have got to judge him ?
Harrie, told him / would never for
give him, and be died thinking him.
self unforgiven." OF Lsngley she
never spoke.
Well, the ''perfeet treasure" made her
appearance. She was rather q young
woman, with q pleasant, low voice,
and very coed manners for one OF her
station. / Was charmed. Certainly
this girl seemed determined to please
me: she did her work In q fGultIess,
neat way; she amused and played
with the twins; and baby had more
quiet nights than / had known him
to have for weeks. So, after q months
trial, 1 began to sing Alice's praises
and allowed her full control In her de.
partment, with q good many privH-
eges. ViFginia alone did not seem to
like her. Virginfa had curious way
Of looking ct new f1oes--a searching,
penetrating glance, that I always
Thought had q sort Of mesmerism In
il, all the stranger because her eyes
were 30 gentle and soft. Alice never
met the look fairly, as I remembered
afterward. ~ E
1t vRs In the spring OF '65s The
closing scenes Of the war were crowd
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