The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-02-28
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ny fer SAFETY Ia her petticeat, gift to
hep at her marriage frunt her own moth
eH Mrs Gears grandmother, and to the
lattee previously at her marrelge from
leg mother, Mira. Gears great-grand-
mother, Tor whom Ii had been expressly
made by London slversmith; the only
set 81 lts design ever seen or heard OF
AZ the words grandmother" and great
grandmother the doctors head nodded
slightly, hut his eye like all other eyes
M the table. even Mrs Gears was on
Wampler's knife.
Wampler shaved away the last bit OF
breast, and raised hts instrument for
the master stroke through the flank
The guests dipped forward little far
Their The knife descended, pierced
then stopped abruptly. Wampler's face
grew red like a burn. Mrs. Wampler's
grew red, too, out of sympathy. You
must have struck a tough turkey, moth
err said he.
Its young turkey protested Mrs
Wampler, and it seemed very tender
when / was dressing it,"
"Iihen you didn't cook it enough" urg-
ed Wampler.
Il had it in the oven four hours" said
Mrs. Wampler.
The other ladies ayerred that, if your
oven was right. four hours was long
enough.
BY pushing and saving like an ann
ateur with a dull blade. Wampler finally
cut Through, and sought to retrieve HIM
self by a special dexter.ty on the other
side. But again the knife, after enter
ing keenly, came to a sudden halt, and
had to be driven on by main force. Wam-
pier finally wrenched off the breast-bone
and resumed his chair in a sweat and a
pant.
There was perhaps more than the
usual movement of relaxing interest
around the table as he finished, but there
was less than the usual outburst of talk.
The serving Of the plates began in COM
paratiye silence. In the course of this Of
I flee Wampler thrust a large spoon deep
into the mound of stuffing. There came u
I metallic click which everybody distinctly
/ heard and again fixed eyes on the host.
4 Then, on bring up the spoon, he turned
/ up with it the handle of another, small
er one, which every body saw. Since
! there could be no concealment, Wampler
4 sought escape from the misadyenture by
/ popularity, and saying, We'll, well, moth
Z
crumbs for your stuffing," drew forth
the spoon and held it up in full view.
Its my spoon, - cried Mrs. Gears, fair
i ly shrieking, the one | lost-my holly
! sprig,' and she stretched out her hand
as if to recover ii, tf need be, by force
'sAt any rate it's not mine," said Mrs.
Wampler. Out of sheer confusion, she
| spoke CURLY: she looked as If in another
moment she must collapse.
20, it's mine, it's mine! I should know
! it anywhere" persisted Mrs. Gears ex-
citedly, and Wampler handed the spoon
over to her
4 sit must be yours said Mrs Wannpler.
II remember the design, and it's not like
any of mine. ] never saw it, unless at
/ your house, until this moment, and the
turkey / dressed and put into the oven
with my own hands"
Even with the precious spoon restored
to her possession, and her ownership Of
ii thus fully acknowledged by Mrs.
Wampler, Mrs. Gears did not wholly re-
cover herself. Until the company broke
up her manner retained tinge of pug
nacity, and she wore look rather hard
and suspicious. The other guests made
a particular show OF ease and gaiety.
They commented little on the ssngu-
larity of the incident, and yentured to
make joke or two upon it, then dropp-
ed it from the talk and were studious
not to recur to it. One and all departed,
however, with it still sufficiently i'm mind,
and more than made themselves amends
ultimately for any self-denial they may
have suffered regarding it in the
presence of their host and hostess. Thus
very soon the whole town knew the story,
and Mrs. Gears holly-sprig spoon be-
came celebrated.
Never did a dinner party leave the
givers of it with heavier spirits than
theirs left Mr.. and Mrs. Wampler Wam-
pier would have been not a little dis
turbed simply at a m.sadVenture in his
carving, and Mrs. Wagnpler at one in
her cooking. But to these occasions of
discomfort the affair of the holly sprig
spoon added or at least seemed to them
to add, the possibility Of putting in ques-
ton their honesty; and the sense OF this
moved them finally to find offense in
the behavior OF Mrs. Gears. The more
they thought it Overland the habit OF
people i'm Osceola was to think over
things good deal--tlhe more offense they
found; so that the feeling Of both soon
came to be as expressed by Mrs. VAN
pier; 'tShe might as we'll have said /
stole her spoon in so many words"
i In point of fact, no such thought had at
that time entered Mrs. Gears mind For
10 days she had fretted continually,
suffering in her appetite and in her sleep,
over the loss of the spoon and the con-
sequent break in the set When the
spoon reappeared so strangely, the sight
Of 1t threw her into kind OF frenzy, and
she felt that she must clap hands on it
at once or it would disappear again. And
when she had got it i'm her hands her
feeling was as il some cruel prank had
been played ON her and she must look
sharp or 1t would be repeated. How
the spoon came to be where 1t was found,
which was the question of first interest
: to the rest Of the company, did not oc-
cur to her until later; and when it did
occur, 1t at first started no doubt, i'm
her Of the honesty Of the Wamplers But
the crazy, duh sense Of having somehow
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