The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1878-03-16
Major Hammond's Ring.

Major hing.
srWhats thisl"cried zsissHamlnond break
ing open a letter just handed to her by n SER
want .sYou read it, Maggie your eyes are
better than mine"
Small wonder at that indeed, seeing that
Maggie is aged about eighteen, aud the other
sixty-fye at the very least pleasant looking,
well preserved spinster. with a brownr esolute
face and sausage curls over the forehead.
Maggie, a handsome modern girl, sits down
and reads;
MApra-The parishionsrs Of st. Crispin,
Gigglesham, in vestry assembled, have deter
mined 10 rebuild their parish church, pro-
nounced unsafe by he surveyors. Contribu-
tious are earnestly .equested- The alterations
will necessitate the removal OF many vaults
and graves : among others, that of the Ham,
nond family. II is the wish of the church.
wardens torespsctt of survivors and
others in the disposal Of the remains. Any
directions You may have TO give, you will be
rood enough to communicate to tie under
signed. Your most humble aud ohedient ser
wants,
THOMAS ~TEUsCUTr.p church.
WILLIAM BoSNEH. rar2sas,
The two Misses Hammond tMlargaret ard
Ellen are jointproprietors of thccomfUunhlo
estate oil MehtDuIN, hNuE 'hl-EN hltttllis alAl VI
the handsome manson thereto belonging.
Maggie, the young girl, is II distant cousin
although she calls them ''aunt-aud lives
with them, There is also q young man, Rn'ph
Grant, somewhere about tn lace, of whom
more anon,
Old Tom Hammond, tie father of the two
maiden sisters, was born in theyenr l1i0. aud
might have seen the heads over Temple Bar
after the rising of 17i5. He lived till 1850,
7 - -. IL. =. 1sfa a1l Lee aH1rN1.4a
~twodaughters. Thus two generations bridged
over n space oftime generally occupied by
many successive lives as in the case Of au-
other branch of the family, the founder of
which, Major Richard Hammond (the uncle
Of h two old ladies', who had been Mt the
capture of Quebec when General Wolfe WIS
killed, being the reat-grandfa;her OF Maggie
LAuderdaleand Ralph Grant. Major Ham
mond was the elder OF the two brothers, and
should have inherited the Westbury estate
but he offended his father. General john
Hammond, by what was called a low mar.
riaee, and was disinherited in consequence.
Tom Hamm ond hnddone hisbest toramody
his fathers injustice, ne far as lie could with
out iniuring himself and his own, by making
a ~settlementof the estate. infailure of his own
issue, upon the lawful descendants of Major
Hammond, his brother providing that II the
issue of his elder brother should fail, the
estate should go to the issue of a younger
brother Henry, who, by the way, had been
well provided for by the small estate of East
bury. This brother Henry was now repre-,
sented through the female line by n Mr..
Boodles of Doodle Court, who now also held
the Eastbury estate.
1he descendants of Major Hammond are
ae wconfined tothese twoyoung people, Mag
gle and Ralph, They are both orphans and
e.thout means, their forefathers having been
mostly in the soldering and official lines.
Ralph is a lieutenant in the artillery, and his
,.sisryis now in-India but lie is Mt home on
nakIsave; and he has taken advantage of
hb fariough to win the affections of his fair
cousin. Asthe Westbury estate would come
N be eventuallydivided between them, twas
oonsidsred n most fortunate thing the young
people had come toan understanding. Ralph
was 10 leave the servicewhen he married, and
tAks tho home-farm. By-and-by lie would
:sn naturally into his position us country
squire ; and it was arranged that eventually
be sbould assume the name of Hammond
hoping 70 continue the old line.
This preamble being necessary, let us now
return TO the comfortable, oldfashionedd draw.
ing room At Westbury.
What do you think Of that, Ellen? z" cried
Miss Hammond, having read over once more
the circular 10 Observation-Disclosures emphasis.
Miss Ellen was sitting looking into the IRE,
her great wooden knitting pins and bright.
colored woods lying idly on her lap, as she
shook her head while talking gently to her
self.
DO you hear, Ellen +" cried Miss Ham.
mond more sharply. ''What do you think OF
that letter from Truscott: z"
81 don't like the idea at all, Margaret. No,
not at all. Whycan't theyleave our ancestors
alone And ! am sure / always looked for.
ward to being buried there myself"
"Lal don't talk about that. Ellen, and you
five years theyounger!' said Miss Hammond,
briskly land as we can't prevent its being
done, we must make the best of it. Ralph
had better go and see to it."
Every well, sister as you like sait
Ellen. Presently she resumed Sister, V,
been thinking that this would be a goot
chaneeto try to get backUncie Richard Ham
monde ring"
''Uncle Hammond's ring !" repeated til,
elder sister. 81 don't understand"
You musthave heard our fathertalk abou
it. The family ring that ought to have gon,
with the estates-a ruby and sapphire tina
General Hammond brought home from
ceylon-"
daresay: but you were SO much more witt
my poor father, and had more patience witt
his stories.
my father often tried TO get the ring, AM
had offered to give Major Hammond a larg
sumforit- But he was SO vexed with fathe
for supplnnting him, that he vowed he neve
should have it and they say, sister, tina
rather than it should ever fall into his broth
er's hands, he had it buried with him, upor
his finger. Our father always said that if h,
had q chance he would have thecofin opened
to see."
maggie, who had retreated to q sofa, and
buried her head in a novel, reused up at this.
and Joined in: 81 hope you will, auntie. j
do hope you'll have it looked for"
II don't know, ny dear" said Miss Ham
mond. II don't approve of violating thI
sanctity of the tomb"
With the elder Miss Hammond, a phras
was everything; abe delighted to bring
thing within the compass of a well-rounde
phrase, upon which she would then make
stard-invincible. So Maggie threw up he
head in . hind of despair, and ran of to loo
for Ralph, who, when last heard of, VIC
smoking . cigar on the terrace,
'RaIphi /" said Maggie, as soon as she ha
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