Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-04-11
THE FAMILY JEWELS.
Playing for High Stakes and Win
 ming an Old Maid.


 It was clear, still evening in October There had been frost tho night before, and Miss Myra Gaynor had left her house. work to take care of itself since noon, while shc had gone nutting on Bald Mount ian.
 "Chestnuts bring a good price in the market" said she, ''and between the boys and the squirrels, there ain't much chance, unless you get an early start"
 Miss Gaynor was a sharp faced, elderly woman, whose mouth and chin were in close neighborhood, and who was the byword of the whole town for her parsimony. With her lived her nephew Gabriel, gaunt, told young' man of thirty, and Judge Dynevor had been heard to declare that if Miss Myra ard her nephew Gabriel were, by some matutinal mistake, to assume each others clothes some day, no one would be able to tell them apart.
 The Gaynor kitchen was painfully neat, but there was not one superfluous article of furniture to be seen. The tea-lSettle was small, and sang an insignificant song ovef the handful of coals in the stove even the cat sat before mousehole in the corner with green eyes of falnished eager ness.
 "What with pigs to fat, and fowls to keep in good laying order" said Miss Myra,
 
 she don't want to starve, let her catch mice."
 As she put the last of the brown, shining nut into the basket, and closed down the lid with sigh of satisfaction, the door opened, and in walked Gabriel
 "Aiu't supper ready?" said he, loollin 2 about rather blankly. ~-F a
 ''WelL wasn't calculating to give ye no regular supper tonight" !" sad Aunt Myra. "Thc kettles a bilin, and there's some rye bread and hunk O cold pork on the buttcry shelf. We'd oughter get the wagon packed with garden truck tonight, sos to lose no time tomorrow mornin'. If Deacon Eye bright gets his chestnuts to the grocery stores before we getour'n, there'll be clean loss of ten cents a bushel."
 'That 'ud never do" sad Gabriel. "But, Aunt Myra, was thinRin' some O goin' over to Fetherbee'S tonight, arter we'd got the wagon ready"
 ''Tb Fetherbee's! What fora" said Aunt Myra, raising her thin voice to a sort of screech. II haint no sort of ideo O that gig glin', black eyed Mary Fetherbce, brung up in family where they use white sugar in their tea and think rag carpet aint genteel enough for thelr parlor.''
 'Sh-sh shr' soothed Gabriel. "You don't understand, Aunt Myra. I was gettin' my axe ground over to Smiths tonight, when l heerd suthin."
 "Heerd arhat?'
 "Jest hold on aminnit till I tell ye. George Fetherbee was in the store, taliln' sort O confidential to old Smith. But could hear real plain through a big crack in the board sidin', for all the noise the grin'stone made, for my ear was just asin the wall. And says George: Tine jewels is comin' next month And says old Smith: Them towels ;S in,t toh hao fI- e nS says George: You betn says he. And Smith he asks, up and down: Is it settled that they belong to youH And says George Fetherbee, says he: That's about ftp And just then little Sambo stopped grindin', so ] didn't hear no more."
 "Jewels, eh!' said Aunt Myra, whose small, faded eyes had glowed into phos- phorescent luster. "What kind O jewels, now, I wonderl And how much be they worths"
 "Wel, you know," said Gahrel, sthere was a lawsuit, years ago, in the Feather. bee family about a trunk O vaooables as was sent from Uncle Theodorus Fetherbee out West, and got lostIin the Adams Ex press robbery. Nobody knowed exactly what it was, but it was sort O reckoned to be diamonds and nuggets, and emeralds, and sich."
 "Land O Goshen!" said Aunt Myra ss] did hear somethin' about it at the time | remember it now, but s'posed it was only | neighborhood talk. I see it all! You arc | a sensible fellow, Gabe, and I've suspicioneo all along that Mary Fetherbee was partial | to you, and don't think you can do bet | ter than to go right down there and pro l pose to her, before any of the other fellows l cut in.''
 II thought you'd approve of it," said Mir Gaynor, complacently. EE | "And," added Miss Myra, ''Ill pack the | wagon myself. There ain't no sort of occa | sion for you to waste time foolin' with the l parsnips, and the pound sweets, and the chestnuts. Why, Mary Fetherbee I'll be { full lblown heiress, as suro as the world Jewels! We'll, do declare"
 Gabriel Gaynor tied on his best navy blue silk cravat, bought cheap, because of flaw | in tho stitching, ornamented his pale tow colored hair with tallow, and set forth o1 loves errand.
 Mary Fetherhee was village belle, witt her dimples, her red cheeks, and her blacl eyes, and Gabriel was not altogether bline l to these attractions, yet If she had beer Hecate herself he would have married her if the money part of the question had beer | satisfactory
 1 It. was not long walk across the fields although by the high road it was good mll and half between the Gaynor farm ant Mrs. Fetherbee's white house. George Feth erbee himself sat on the doorstep, whiting | new gate-pin. I "Mary in, chi" said Gabriel, somewha awkwardly.
 "Yes, she' s in" sad George, contemplat ing his work by the light of the hall lam that swung within. "But she's engaged.
 s'EagASas"'
 George chuckled q P IT