The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1884-03-08

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ton with the other presents" sale
Alice, incredulously.
"Of course I SHALL" said /.
And I did. And the girls neve
knew of the little private "cry" hac
all by myself when they thought wa.
selecting the prettiest flowers to deco
rate the big bride-cake: for 1 had ex
pected something nice from the rich
old bachelor uncle whom I had never
seen, and somehow the bundle of stri
ped red carpeting was disappointment
But the eventful day came, with it:
white satin bows and order of hot house
| flowers and rustic of silks and laces, and
Uncle Jehoram's rag carpet occupied &
place of honor among the silver teapot:
and china services and embroidered so.
ia pillows and countless pretty gimcracks
that burdened the "present table,"
We had been married for about an hall
gss saaaaf hssa gga5KK.
gratulations from my friends, when q
queer little brown faced man, in faded
wig and a suit of clothes that exactly
matched his complexion, walked up to
me, bowling low.
"Wish you much joy, Mrs. Mon
teith," said he.
"Thank you SIR" said l, trying to
remember who he was, and failing al
together.
But 1 had made up my mind he must
be the eccentric Methodist minister
who lived around the corner, and who
was in the habit of going where he
pleased, whether he was invited or not.
'1've been looking at your wedding
presents said he. "Curious thing,
that bundle of rag carpet" pointing to
it with his nobby walking stick. Should
not have supposed you'd have put that
among your pretty gimcracks.
cit is rather strange gift" said my
husband, "particularly as it came from
a rich old curmudgeon who"
But l checked Harry with look.
From a dear relative of NINE" said
1, "whose kind remembrance gratifes
me beyond expression"
"Oh!" said the little brown-faced
man, looking from Harry to me with
keen, bright eyes like those of bird,
"you are pleased with it, them"
"More pleased than | can express, "
l answered earnestly.
"Humph!" commenced the little
old man. "Would you object to have
it lifted down and unrolled? I've
some curiosity to look at the pattern. "
1t was strange request, but we did
not know how to refuse it, aud present
ly the gay strips of the rag carpet were
unrolled on the floor before the aston
ished eyes of our wedding guests, yard
upon yard, backward and forward until,
from the very heart of the tightly pack
ed cylinder, out fell small black
leather box.
"Eh!" said the little brown man,
bouncing on it more like bird than
Diamonds in good truth. The scin-
tillating blaze of necklace-the gilt
ter of solitaire ear-drop that nearly daz-
zled my eyes.
"Uncle Jehoram! 1t is Uncle Jeho-
ram!" cried l, the scale suddenly fall
ing from my mental vision.
"Niece!'' said the little man, as he
tremendously hung the sparkling chain
around my neck, ''if you had scornful-
ly rejected the old mans homely pres
ent and sent it back to him, as some
young women would have done, you
would have discovered the secret of the
old family diamonds"
"Niece, you are sensible girl, andI
congratulate your husband on the pos
session of treasure more precious than
rubies."
And on this Uncle Jehoram Johnson
made curious little bow, like jack
knife shutting itself up, and disappear
ed among the crowd. And from that
moment to this have never seen him,
although he writes me kindly letter
visit us.
81 am best by myself" he writes.
"When die you will find that l have
not forgotten you. Until then let me
live on like the solitary old oyster l
have taught myself to be-"
And the rag carpet covers the floor
of our second guest chamber, which is
furnished after a substantial style, and
the diamonds are the envy and admlra-
ton of all my female friends.