The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1890-08-28

who lived five miles away, While Pfi@Oe,
the undermaid (who hld never quite for
given Miss Lavinia for once stopping
very pleasant trip which was in view for
a few weeks sojourn in Warnecliffe Bar
racks), deliberately slid heavy and ex-
ceedingly chilly key a-down her mistress
back and took advantage of the gasp with
which she realized the strange substance
to hold large toilet jar of the strongest
lump ammonia under her nose greatly to
the poor victims inconvenience and dis
tress. But it cured the ny stercs, and
when the doctor in due course arrived,
Miss Lavinia was well enough to be or
dered to bed "to be kept exceedingly
quiet" and Miss Theodosia had time to
think about the loss Of the exquisite gold
plate which had been their pride for many
day, and to mourn plaIntively over the
loss of her beautiful rubies.
1.-The finest rubies in Europe, DOCTOR"
she said, when she had told the sad story
to the CHEEKY man Of medicine; Il knew.
of course, always, that they were very,
very valuable, for Streeter, III Bond street,
told me more than once that he hoped |
would give him the chance of them if ever
/ wanted to sell them. They were my
mothers, not Staunton jewels, and they
passed to me, and had them reset when
/ came of age. / was SO proud of my ru-
bies; and Streeter said they were ver1 val
liable, but still didn't know till last seal
son that they were worth quite SO much
The finest rubies in Europe all the pa
pers said. / used to wonder that pap IFS
had never noticed them before, but they
never did somehow; you see things are diff
ferent nowadays papers seem to take
so much more interest in such things than
they used to do"
ooh! you'll get them back again-rubies
are difficult things to dispose Of" said the
doctor. cheerily.
"Never, DOCTOR" said Miss TheOdOsa.
AZ shall never set eyes on them again
excepting perhaps in different setting
when I shouldn't know them again. Anil
Pm the more veXed because L had prom
tsed to leave them to my nephew, Sir An
thony, and only the last time they were
here I said in joke to her, poor thing,
that some day she would be able to boast
that she had the finest rubies and sap
phres in England. For the Staunton
Jewels are sapphires-yes, sapphires."
"And hope her ladyship will be able
to wear BOTH" said the doctor, CALAMITY;
'I hope so with all my heart-with all my
heart"
"Thank you, doctor" replied Miss TheO-
dosia. with appropriate tone and ges ure.
much as she might have returned thanks
for sympathy expressed for her in
heavy bereavement, thanks. you are very
kind-very kind And my sister. doctor.
what do you think of her?' she asked,
anXiously.
The doctor made comprehensive gest-
ure with his out-spread fingers. "Oh!
Miss Lavinia is a little over-wrought, up
set naturally by all this"
ooh, no! it was not this that upset hel
at all, replied Miss Theo1osia, who was
afflicted with an Unsuitable desire for alb
solute truthfulness. "You see they are
my rubies that are gone-nly sisters dia-
monds are in town being re-set-so absurd,
as I told her, to have diamonds reset at
our time of life-and with her the gold
plate is really very secondary considera'
ton. But she was very nervous, fancied
that burglars would get in and-and-
well, and steal her, l think; said she
would have all the men-servants to sleep
up in the guest-rOOms and that was per
fectly cold-blooded to be thinking about
nv rubies when she was frightened out of
her seven senses, and then just because |
told her she couldn't possibly be frighten'
ed out Of what she hadn't got, she took it
as q personal matter and went into hys'
terics over it,"
''Well, but I dare say Miss Lavina
would not have gone into hys cries over
the same remark at any other time" said
the doctor, soothingly. ''And, rs is gen
orally the case with hysteria, she is now
very weak and PROSTATE and must be kept
perfectly quiet for tonight. | have told
Warner that l will send over composing
draught, and in the morning I have nc
doubt that she will be better"
And when the morning came, Miss
Lavinia was better, decidedly better, but
wore the interesting air Of an invalid
Just dashed with martyrdOm. She got
out of her bed late in the afternoon and
appeared in the drawingroom in very
becoming black MORE tea-GOwn with a
good deal of rose-colOred silk and creamy
old lace about it.
There was quite crowd of visitors, the
news having spread round the county and
many OF their friends had driven over to
inquire into the truth of the rumor and
offer their condolences to the sisters on
their irretrevable loss 1t was positively
oNN CAAS
in which matters arranged themselves
She had lost her rubies but it was the frail
bundle of hysteria and nerves in the elab-
crate black and rose tea-gown who com
placently received all the pity and the
sympathy, and at that point, that is when
the idea fairly dawned upon the old lady's
mind, it is safe to say that Miss Theodosia
would dearly like to have shaken her Sis
ter. Indeed believe thatif circumstances
had permitted of such process being put
into operation, the shaking would have
been SO sound and SO thoroughly admins
tered that Miss Lavnia Staunton would
never have had the nerve to indulge in
fit of Mysteries again as long as ever she
lived What pity it is that oftentimes
politeness steps in and puts stop to meas
ures of the most salutary and beneficial
description.
But then in the kind of society in which
Miss TheodOsia and Miss Lavina Staun-
, ton moved such forcible proceedings are
not practicable and so Miss Lavinia con-