St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-01-26

court, at the public table, you put such a
question 20 me!''
''Ohl" replied the prince, "you need
not make any verbal reply. 1t will be
sufficient for you to give me some pledge OF
your affection. / see there on your hand
small ring, whose possession would make me
very happy. Give 1t to mel"
'What do you think off Here in the
presence of a hundred speetators!'
''Ah, 1t can be easily done without being
seen by anybody. Now we are chatting so
quietly with each other that there is not one
among the guests who suspects in the least
what we are speaking about; press the ring
into morsel of bread and leave it on the
table. will take the talisman and nobody
will notice it,
1.-The ring is really a talisman."
81 expected so. May hope to hear its
historys"
"Why not? My first goyerness was
Swiss lady by the name of Wildermatt. Once
she went to Switzerland in order to enter
upon an Inheritance which had been be-
queathed to her by a distant relative. When
she came back to Berlin few weeks after
wards she showed me quite collection OF
pretty and costly jewelry, which formed a
part of the Inheritance. This is curious
ring said I to her as put this little old
fashioned ring on my finger. Does it not
look queer and cummings Perhaps it is an
old relic or talisman, and may have been
worn centuries ago by pious lady who had
received it from her knight, starting for the
Holy Land tried to take the ring from
my finger again, but could not get it of;
for was little feshier then than now,"
said Charlotte, smilingly. "My governess
insisted on my keeping the ring as a souv-
enir. l accepted the present, and the ring
has been on my finger ever since. Some
time afterwards, when was contemplating
its strange workmanship, 1 succeeded in
pulling it from my finger, and was much
surprised at seeing engraved on the inside
some words, which, though nearly rubbed
out by the wear of time, were still legible.
Now, your Imperial Highness, what do you
think were the words engraved upon its l
think when you hear them you will take
some interest in the ring.''
"Ah! and pray, what We're theyg'
''rhe words engraved upon the inside
were Empress of Russia This ring had
undoubtedly been presented by an Empress
OF Russia to the relatives of Mrs. Wilder
matt for l was told that both this lady and
her mother had formerly belonged to the
household of the Czarina, your august
grandmother t'This is really remarkable"
SAID the Grand Duke, thoughtfully. ~ am
quite superstitious, and am really inclined
to regard this ring, If should be happy
enough to receive it from you as pledge of
your love, as an omen of very suspicious
significance"
In answer to this second and even more
direct appeal to her heart, the Princess took
small piece of bread, played carelessly with
it, and managed to press the ring into the
soft crumbs. Then she dropped it playfully
on the table quite close to the plate Of her
neighbor. And after this adroit exhibition
of her skill as an actress, she continued to
eat as unconcernedly as if she had performed
the most trivial action of her life.
With the same apparent GOODNESS and in
Offence the Grand Duke picked up the bread
enclosing the ring, took the latter out of its
ingenious envelope and concealed it in his
breast, for it was to small to tit any of his fin
gers. 1t was this ring-both the pledge of
Charlotte's love and suspicious omen of his
own elevation to the imperial dignity-which
Nicholas wore on golden chain around his
neck to the very last day Of his life, and
which, if we are not mistaken, has de
scended with him into the vault of his ances-
tors.
Three years afterwards, in 1917, Princess
Charlotte, then only 10 years Of age, and in
the full splendor of beauty and happiness,
made her entry into st. Petersburg by the side
of her husband, whose eye had never looked
prouder and whose Oympian brow had never
been more serene than at this happiest mo-
ment of his life. AS he looked down on the
vast multitude who had hocked together from
all parts of the vasl empire to greet the young
Princess with shouts aud rejoicings, and
then again upon his fair young bride, per-
hads the inscription upon the ring required
to his mind; for, bending his head close to
the ear of Charlotte, he whispered IN ow
Empress of the heart, and some day, per-
haps OF the realm"
AT this moment the procession reached the
main entrance Of the Winter Palace, where
Alexander the First, the Emperor, came to
meet his beautiful sister in-aw and conduct
ed her into the sumptuous drawing rooms of
the magnificent palace of the Cars.
Who would believe that eight short years
afterwards the brilliant young Emperor had
breathed his last, and that Nicholas and
Charlotte would succeed TO the throne OF
Russia9 Truly the inscription of the engage
ment ring had proved prophetic.