Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1883-12-07
UNCLE JEMoRAM;

UNCLE JEHORAM;
Mrs. Monteith,s Wedding Gift.
"Girls, girls!" cried I triumphantly,
waving an old-fashioned yellow envel-
ope in the sunny September air. give
rot a letter from Uncle Jehoram!'
"Open it!n cried Nelly Pinkham,
who was my first bridesmaid.
..Do let us hear what he says!'
chimed in Alice Eden, my second.
So l sat down on the big canvas-cov-
cred travelling trunk, with my hair all
down my back. l had just unfastened
it for Nelly to experiment a little with
the bridal wreath-and with the bevy
of girls clustering eagerly around me [
broke the seal of Uncle Jehoram's letter,
and read it aloud with all the e,ocution-
AIRY airs and graces that I had learned
at Madame Benton's "Institute."
y DearNicce, lit said, ina queer little cramped
hand like the characters on q Chinese tea
chest yours Of 2lst instant duly received; Am
glad to hear that You are TO be married to
press send a present which / hope you may
lind useful, and no more at present from your
AffectiOnate uncle,
JEHoRAM JOHNSON.
''There!' cried I. "What do you
think of Mdt?''
Alice Eden clapped her dimpled
hands.
1.-The old darling!" cried she. cts
a real Cashmere shawl, Nanny, you
may be very certain"
"Or perhaps a Persian rug" said
Nelly Pinkham, sail dim blues and
greens and delicious blotches of vel
low"
"The deed of a house and lot" said
Mary Monkey.
diamonds, most likely" interposed
Juliet Grayson, "or real Oriental pears,
each one as big as a tear-drop."
"He's very rich, isn't hep" said
Alice.
"Of course he is" said /, cor at least
I've always heard So"
"And an old bachelor?"
eyes, an old bachelor"
"But he doesn't say whether or not
he's coming to the wedding"
"Oh, OF course he'll come,' said |:
"What is he like?" asked Nelly,
thoughtfully.
l burst out laughing.
III you huOW, SlIlS, Salu 1, "CnaC
i never saw him in my life."
And then Harry came in with a deli
cious little bouquet of white rosebuds,
and Of urs that put everything else
out of our heads. For my hair had to be
twisted up in a hurry, and Harry would
insist on seeing the wedding wreath and
veil on, and an exquisite tete-a-tete set of
real pink Sevres came in from Mrs. Mon
fagu Jackyll, and we never thought of
Uncle Jehoram until the next day, when
there was a prodigious peal at the door
bell, just as we were all sitting down to
a gypsy sort of tea in the old school
1oom-the parlors and dining-room
were in the hands of the co~nfectioner's
men-and Betty, the maid, made her
appearance with a puzzled expression
of face.
"It's a bundle, .ma'am," said she,
"came by express, with Mr.. Jehoram
Johnson's compliments on a card"
l jumped up, oversetting a cup of tea
and a plate OF peaches and cream in my
excitement.
"Bring it here, Betty" 1 cried, "at
once"
"Bless your dear heart, MISS" said
Betty, sit 'ud take four men to lift it.
The eXpressman he swore awful when
he lifted it up the steps, and said as it
ought to be paid double rates."
We looked at each other in a sort of
delightful bewilderment.
lit must be something G valua-
ble," said Juliet, breathlessly.
"a sewing-machine, perhaps" sug-
gested Harry.
"Nonsense!' cried Alice. Gas if a
rich old uncle would send anything as
commonplace and poky as Mdt!r'
"Well perhaps it might help to solve
the riddle somewhat" said Harry,
gravely, 'if we were to 90 out and
look at it." A
At this suggestion we all rushed out
en- masse.
There, in the middle of the marble
paved hall, stood a huge, oblong bun
die, some three feet high and wide in
proportion.
"No wonder the expressman swore!'
said Harry, with a shrug o. his Shout
ders. "It's carpeting."
"Oh, the dear old creaturer!' cried
Nelly. "a real Aubusson, from Paris.
oh. do open it, somebody"
Harry slowly produced from his vest
pocket a tortoise-shell handled knife,
and ripped the coarse covering which
enveloped the parcel. We all started
back.
"a rag carpet!" exclaimed my hus-
band-elect.
"a common, coarse thing, only fit
for a dust-man's kitchen!'' cried Nelly
Pinkham; while Alice Eden, who had
worked herself up into a high state of
narvouS cxnacfation hurst into toor-
"Who eve heard of such a thing?'
said Juliet Grayson, disdainfully. 1.-The
horrid, mean old miser!"
Girls cried I, recovering myself as
best I could, ''you must not talk SO.
Uncle Jehoram meant it all in Kindness.
/ dare say he thought 1 could make it
useful-and / mean to accept it in the
same spirit in which it was offered"
Harry stopped down and gave me q
kiss.
: - go " , ,