Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-02-28
JEWELS.

It's 50 very, very lonesome here "
sighed Isabel Darling.
And to one who had been brought up i'll
the very heart of busy, busting New
York it might well have seemed lone
some in that solitary ravine Of the hills,
with only the sound of moaning pines
overhead and the rattle of a mountain
stream, rs it fled foamirg over rock and
bovlder, to people the weird silence.
Grandmother Kelsey had lived there all
her life. To her there was companion
ship in every stately tree and shuddering
clump Of bushes. The sound of wind
shrieking down the huge stone chimney
WAS swceter. IN her ears, than Nilsson :
dearest notes.-the cracking Of the shut
tiers ut night was the voice of some gossip
ing companion! How could Grandmother
Kelsey, at 10, and Isabel Darling, at Il, be
expected to view life from the same plat
form?
Lonceomew echoed old Mrs. Kelsey,
Oh, iiddlestick Get your knitting, and
then you won't he lonesome"
And. reluctantly enough, Isabel obeyed
Nightfall had long descended upon the
solitary homestead among the hills. Here
and there star glimmered through the
ragged rack Of clouds that were scuddiug
from the northwest, and the wind was
holding high carnival among the tree-tops,
in the glen below. Mrs. Kelsey sat before
the fre-with such Il generous heap of
blazing logs Us that no auxiliary candles
were needed-and her queer, brown,
wrinklcd face looked like that of fairy
godm,ther IN the rudy shine. Isabel
sat opposite, her soft brown eyes mirror
ing the blaze as it flashed and fickered,
her dark hair shining like bands Of satin.
Isabel Darling w;ts very pretty-So pref
IL, in sooth, that her thrifty parents, who
had five other feminine "darlings" to DIS
pose Of. considered that her rosebud face
ought to buy her a fortune and Indignantly
bundled her oil to Grandmother Kesley's,
among the Adirondack hills, when the
first soapcon leaked out of lover who had
no more money than he himself could
earn, ut his artist craft Of wood engraving.
"Our Isabel, to throw herself away on
Fred HensIeyp cried Mr. Darling. "And
With her face and the education we've
given herw
"Of course it's quite out of the ques-
ti)nr' said Mrs. Darling, who had just
such keen eyes and wrinkled brow as her
mother might have had twenty-five years
before-a worthy descendant of the line OF
kesIevs. 1--WE must send her to Grand
mother Kesley's at once"
GRANDMOTHER Kesley had written back a
favorable response to the letter of inquiry
that was at once dispatched on the subject.
Let her come, said Grandmother Kes-
ley, with very suffering quill pen on
paper that was fashionable half a century
ago. " You needn't worry yourselves
about her lover. Lovers aren't in my line,
snd this Henslcy chap may have her il
once he finds his way inside my doors, and
Welcomew
Aud it was in answer TO this trumpet OF
defiance that poor Isabel Darling was now
wearing her heart out, in the solitude OF
these Wild Northern hillsl
Grandmother kesley was kind-hearted
too in her way She had done her best to
enliveu the pining prisoner-had brought
down packet Of musty old novels, Clar-
lisa Harlow" Charlotte Temple" "Alon-
10 and Melissa" and the like-furnished
Isabel with materials to work sampler
exactly like that which hung framed above
the restroom" mautel, memorial of her
own school days. and even undertaken to
show her how to spin. Could any mortal
however unreasonable, ask more Yet,
with all this, Isabel Darling still dropped
Tonight Grandmother Kesley had new
entertainment provided. She had seen
Isabel covertly crying once or twice in the
course of the day, and her heart grew soft
within her
Isabel" said she, s. they sat .ete-a-tetC
in the twilight, al never showed you my
box of Jewels 2"
" No, grandmother said Isabel, list
lesSly
Would You like to see EN- ?"
Yes, grandmother" still without any
thing of interest in the tones.
GRANDMOTHER kesley went to a curiously
e,amped old hair trunk that always stood
snder the head of her bed, hidden by the
yoluminous fall of the patchwork quilt
and with a great rafting of rusty keys
drew forth small square box of some arc
matte smelling wood.
Isabers ewes opened in spite of herself
"a the old lady held up glittering string
of ancient gold beads.
a had them when | was a gal o four
teen" said she, nodding her becapped head
Father-that's your great grandfather
Kesiey, child-give 'em 10 me when l I'M
ished my first set O shirts for him. AnC