Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1886-07-02
THE PAPER WEIGHT.
1t Figures as the Savior OF Hu-
man Lives.

1t Figures as the Savior OF Hu.
man Lives.
In one corner of the long library there
stood an ebony secretary which wa,
old and stained with use when the pre-
sent century was yet unborn. No one
knew where this antique desk, with It.
ogrc-likc back, goblin arms and gnarleG
and knotted legs which ended in great
carved claws, had como from original
ly, The master of the house hat
picked it up in little unfrequented
inn In Roumelia. Ii had stood in hi,
bed chamber, where it served aS dress
ing-casc, lavatory and clothes-press
During the night its grim presence, sc
oddly out of place, like tombstone In
drawing room, had given to hi.
dreams II strangcncss and vividncss
that made an impression upon him
which the bright sunlight of the sue.
ceedng day utterly failed to remove.
So he bargaincd with the tayern-keepel
for it though the medium of his valet,
so rs not to excite the old mans cupi.
dity, and finally bought il for an amount
much larger than its value, and had
it shipped to his residence in this
city. This Is the story he tell,
to those OF his guests who are attracted
by its grotcsquoness, but the servants
and who, by tho way, knows so much
about the house us the servants?-tell
n different story. The valet who bar
gained for ii relates weird tale Of
murder in the old castle among the
Balkan mountains where the secretary
is supposed to have originated, of q
missing will. OF secret drawers under
the goblin arms, of trickery, of a
charming hcircss and of an eventual
clearing up of the mystery to the in
tense enjoyment of all. This is the
ta.o of the servants hall, and in the
hands of the glib valet it thrills his
listeners and adds not little to his
fame as q hero, for Wallets aro only hu-
man after all. But whatever il came
from. whatever was its age and how
ever romantic its past history may have
been, its present is Certainly common
place enough. In one end Of the L.
brary, on a Parisian rug Of great rich
ness of color and depth Of pile, il stands
the mute and unmovable attendant
upon five O'Clock teas, evening musi-
Gales and whist parties, where its his
tory is as little appreciated as though
II were planted in drawing-room on
the planet Mars.
Upon the shelves in the back of the
secretary there are various curios of
varying degrees of value and uglincss,
also picked up in odd places in the Old
World and valued chiefly for their use
fulncss and rarity. Among these is a
vase prettily shaped, for a wonder, and
delicately coiored. 1t came from the
Orient, where several hundred years
ago some patient Celestials spent days
and weeks compounding and mixing,
with pestles and mortars, shaping and
reshaping, burning and glazing, until
this article was turned out perfect
one of its kind. This vase is very proud
of its rarity and its value. In the cata-
logue which the owner has it is do
scribed in whole page and its cost is
marked in large figures printed in very
black type. The amount is ten thou
sand dollars, and connoisseurs declare
1t is rare bargain even at that. On
either side of it are other vases not SO
pretty, some antique pots and mugs,
and various other articles of vertu
which with saucers rough and cracked,
and plates long since used, go to make
up an Industrious amateurs collection.
On the desk below these shelves there is
some writing paper, magazine or
two, paper knife of Japanese manu-
facturc and a plain-shapen, iron
paper-wcight with a turned knob
handle. 1t is clearly more for use than
ornament, and the presence of any
thing useful among SO many ornaments
often gives rise to talk, for bric-a-brac
will gossip as well as people, and with
as little Judgment too. On this oc-
casion the library was very quiet The
guests had gone down to dinner, the
lights were turned down low and the
ornaments felt in more talkative
mood than usual.
well" observed the Japanese Pa
per Knife to the Chinese Vase. "You
have had praise enough to-day to salts
fly any one who is not disposed to be
greedy. Which, of course, you are
moi" it added, with cutting irony.
Yes" replied the Vase languidly,
for it learned that all fashionably peo-
pie were languid-the more fashionable
the more languid they were-and il
was an apt scholar. "Yes they seemed
TO think that / am very rare and very
At thin remark the Egyptian Idol at
the farther end Of the shelf smiled with
exceeding contemptuousness and added
not ailittle to the hideousness its maker
had given it. u
Beautiful, indecdr' it itchuckled, ma
liciously. "Why, only last wear thew
called me beautiful"
lhut was Joke, my dear Idol"
broke in the knife, sharply. They
occasionally do get off joke now and
then by way of divcrsion.n IN
''Thoy never called you beautiful"
rctorted the Idol, rudely.
NO" responded the Knife, II am
useful"
"Wcll, so was l, for that matter"
the Idol. "Several thousands
Of years ago, when l was young, pre-
sided over tho destinies of q Kingdom
and l was consulted about every thing
that was done"
Il dare say" snapped back the
Knife, "and whore, l may ask, is that
nation nowP"
"What makes you so valuablep"
asked the Paper-Weight of tho Vase.
ttI am eO rara " nauarad tho n,,,o