Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-04-14

nauve Tor Une racKIng cough ana nau
given instructions for other simple
treatment | went downstairs again
with the mother.
You saw the penny and the ring,
doctor" she said, "and you wondered.
Is it not sop
! confessed that I had felt 4 little
curious to know its history. And
here is what the old woman told me;
The old ring had belonged TO Elsies
great-grandmother. It bad once been
a thumb-ring. Elsie looked upon ii rs
q sort OF heirloom and had carried ii
with her as sort of talisman since
childhood. One day, after she had
known Mr.. Wilmington a few months
before they were engaged to be mar
ried, the young man had laughinglv
pulled from his pocketa penny through
which some foolish person had bnrrd
a hole. Elsie was just about TO a.
pear in a new character. 50 Horne. j..
fun, remarked: Then take this penny
and keep it for luck; you viii never
fail in a part so long as YOU keep it,
Elsie entered into the spirit of The
thing and said: Now, if | could Dniy
get my own taliaman split I would
hang the penny onto it."
"That is easily done, said Horace,
as he took the ring in his hand aud ad-
mired its chasing. Il will take it to
Evans in Sheffield and have it split. :"
Accordingly he took the ring and in
few days returned it With the penny
hanging to it. Elsie fastened a ribbon
to it and wore it around her neck.
Alas. that ring and that penny were
the parallels of the characters of the
two persons to whom they had be-
ionged. The one pure gold, refined
and chased by a master hand. des-
tined to be broken by the owner of
the blser metal which entered the
golden heart and broke it in two and
left it.
When she went to London Wiling
ton followed Elsie and there, amid the
follics and eXcitements OF Tho great
Babylon, he came out in his true col
OrS. constituencies, loveless scoun-
drel. 1t seems unnatural and untrue
that man could deliberately Law
plans and take years to mature them
for the ruin of a young girls life. But
SO it was with Wilmington and elsie
UHderhill.
Plenty of people there are living vet
who remember the success of the
young actress on the Princess boards
and who remember with sorrow her
sudden departure and death.
Wilmington succeeded in his designs,
then left her, us it was afterwarG
known he had left others, to drnop
and die or to &C from bad to worse
He cared nothing.
Elsie's sensitive nature was too high
strung. She could not survive the
disgrace, even though it was apparent
only to herself. Her heart broke, and
in the early weeks Of December, when
the narrow little Church street and
the roofs of the neighboring cottages
were covered with snow; when the
timid robin had become SO tame as to
fly to the windows of human habita-
tiOns for the food of charity; when the
world was beginning to prepare its
annual festival of peace and good
will toward men," the poor little act
ress, who was delicate flower in the
midst of life of nettles and brambles,
NlLnefeu anu passed away, TO De
transplanted in the garden that is
kept forever beautiful by those angels
whose duty it is to soothe and COM
fort those poor waits of humanity who
are not strong enough to overcome
humanitys blows and Bullets.
What became of Wilmington? | have
never heard of him since. Some
where, probably, he holds an hon0red
position on earth, for he was rich, and
wealth on earth covers innumerable
sins; but surely, when his time comes
to 90 to that bourne from which no
traveller ever returns, he will be met
by the dark-recording angel with Il
page not yet blotted out, on which he
will be shown penny suspended from
a pure gold ring.-Irocey L. Robinson
IN ~. Y. Recorder.