The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1891-04-24

next took her right hand, whicn hung
by her side, with his other hand. Hers
was very pretty hand, and he most
pleasant thing about Il, to the captain,
was the tinnicst suspicion OF responsive
touch.
What he had to say as he placed the
ring "n"" sc-: :...s.I was so interesting
that she did not interrupt him.
They returned to the hotel long after
breakfast time.
Before entering, the captain said: 'By
the way, darling, why did you look 30
surprised when placed the ring UPON
your finger? | should think that you
must have expected something Of the
kind all along"
Miss Mcrrick had fora aotten all about
the incident in the pleasurable excite
ment Of the captains proposal. But
now she took the ring off her finger,
examined it carefully, and spoke: "Per-
cy, dear, don't be offended, but this has
always been my ring. lost it five years
ago in Newport, Il. J., and / can tell 1t
to he the same ring by II tiny flaw in one
of the stones, aside from the initials"
And now comes the atrangcst part OF
this narrative, to wit: The story Of the
wnndcrings Of Miss Mcrrick's ring. 1t
took two years to ascertain all the facts
about it, but the captain insisted upon
establishing :. clear chain of evidence,
which would begin with Miss Merrick
aud end with himself, or rather with
both.
The loss Of the ring had FIRST been no
| ticcd by the young lady on her return
from shopping toar in Newport, where
| she was spending the summer. She
would hardly have suspected that the
| elegantly dressed man who had assisted
J her into her carriage had dcftly slipped
the rin. oil her finger while doing so. IL
was Handy Bill, probably the most cx-
pert pickpockct and sneak thief in Amer
| icn. Mr.. Twygg, the celebrated dctc0-
| tive, lupprncd To see the theft because
| he had n"cn Watching the man. lnfor
iuna,cIy, Mr.. Twygg,s busincs, i'll New
| port was of 50 delicate II character that
he could not allow his presence to be-
come generally known by urrcsting
| Handy Bill, and therefore did not modest
| him for the present. Some two weeks
latter Un opportunity offered for con-
| hdrutinl chat with the thief the outcome
| whereof was that he delivered the stolen
| ring to the detective and left town the
morning following.
Mr.. Twygg carccssly put the trinket
into his pocket and-rcturncd to New
York.
One day not long after Russian de.
tcrtivc called at the office of his Ameri-
IAN conIcrrcc. Paul ScrgloiT's mission
to the United States was to deliver GER
tain documents to the Russian Minister
,ud to gather information concerning n
NihiliSt agitntor sojourning in Canada.
II 50 happened thnt his first point in
prospect was Newport, where the Rus
sinn envoy WAS spending part Of the sum-
| mcr.
As Mr.. TwySs searched FOR IL match in
his pocket with which to help the Rus
sian to fire for hs cigarette, he felt Miss
Mcrrick's ring. What Could he more
natural than that he should ask his visitor
10 deliver il mp To its fair owner, or that
Srr,,ilof should rouI.cously assent!
But Miss Mcrrick had left Newport,
md in the excitement incident upon tho
RECEIPT of ripcr telegram recalling him
10 Russia ut once, the Russian forgot to
with him to St. Petersburg.
One morning they found him there,
! icad, IN II narrow alley.
! \ bullet wound in his temple showed
| the manner of his death, and the cause
for il was evidenced 10y the circumstance
that the entire front OF his vest had been
partly cut and partly torn away.
The deed WAS done by Nihilsts anX-
i"t,, 10 secure certain papers that Scrgil-
al was supposed to carry in his inner
vest pocket.
! \ few months later the murderer and
some brother Nihillsts were arrested and
| underwent the farce Of Russian trial
| for political offences. The murderer was
hanged aud his comrades went to 81
IBERIA. 10 one of them he had given
The ring before being executed.
What fearful days and weeks and
months of weary travel those We're for
the unfortunatrs destined for the lead
mines!
The exile who had the ling concealed
IN his boat managed To escape between
two stations.
No pen can describe the adventures
and hardships of the fugitive journey
through country in which the natives
hunt escaped cNilcs ns they would wolves;
no word" can do Justice to his sutfcrings
as he travelled alone through th" Yas:
| solltlhlcs.
On the edge OF the khirgiH-Steppe lie
joined one of the large caravans of cs-
capped convicts that conticually travel
| eastward.
-. l., 4, go
,uce in Samarkand, or, for that matter,
most anywhere in Central Asia, although
ii is, or rather was extremely difficult for
traders to enter the territory.
la Samarkand the ring left the hands,
Or rather the boot of the owner, and
was traded for an outfit that would dis