Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1897-07-31

uusnlnS Ittle. IDTee nundreQ, SAID
the professor, his mouth hardening.
The third bidder had become silent,
and the fight was now clearly between
the two. At the end of table the girl
stood, looking earnestly to the auctioner
and the bundle of letters before him; at
the other the man, looking angrily at
the girl. Within me was hope that
she, and not he, would be the last to
speak.
-Four hundred"
Five hundred"
"Six hundred"
There was q movement of interest in
the room. The offers were not large-a
picture had just before been sold for
several thousands, but they seemed
large for the few sheets of faded writing.
They came, too, the one more quickly
following another than in the other
sales. There was no delay of calculation
and doubt. The excitement of those who
watched was very natural.
IA thousand
"Fjfteen hundred.
"Carbara wins" said my friend
"The professor will go but little high
er. How angry the man looks"
1.-TWO thousand.
1.-TWO thousand five hundred" said
the girl.
"Two thousand five hundred" said
the auctioneer and waited for an ad-
vance.
1.-TWO thousand five hundred, he re-
peated, looking questioningly at the
professor.
A shake of the head was the reply.
and people knew that the fight was
over. With an assumption of indiffer-
ence the professor moved his glasses yet
more forward and began anew to turn
the pages of his catalogue.
''Two thousand five hundred" said
the auctioneer again, and in a moment
after the sale was finished. Jetta Tete-
rolls letters had passed to Marie Carba-
IA, and Jetta Teterol had been dead 100
years.
One of the assistants took the bundle
to carry it to a side room, and the auc-
tioneer began to speak of the next num-
ber, and again, as if in impatience, the
girl fell to buttoning and unbuttoning
her glove. But suddenly, still in impa-
tience, she ceased, and, putting out her
hands, said:
Pardon, but if I may 1 will have
them now. Will you give them me,
please? Here are notes for the amount
two of thousand and one of five
hundred. There is no objection?"
''There is no objection" replied the
auctioneer smilingly. "It is not quite
usual, but there can be no objection.
Then to his clerk he said: "Take the
notes, please, and give Mile. Carbara
the letters. Mile. Carbara we all know
and admire. Certainly she may have
them.''
AS the girl took the bundle and loos-
ened the string which bound it there
was probably none in the room who was
not gazing at her. Most, like myself,
were amazed at her eagerness. One or
two Were a little contemptuous. The
professor was resentfully frowning.
Nearer to her than some stood, and so
better than some I can tell what in the
next minutes she said and did.
There were perhaps 20 or 80 letters.
The uppermost one she unfolded and
read. Quickly from beginning to end
she read it, then placed it again with
the rest. then said, as if to herself:
His heart is a suspended harp,
which, if one touches it, responds" and
then looked irresolutely from side to
side.
But little time did she SO stand.
Pardon, she said and stepped past the
man next to her, and Pardon" again
and stepped past me to the room cor
ner, where was a duly burning fire. AS
l moved to give her space began to un-
derstand what now she would do and
ondered and watched.
First she took the letter she had read
and glanced ut it again, and then with
sudden movement thrust it among the
Goals. Then, one by one, she took the
others and dropped them, so that one by
one they touched the flame and were
alight. Then, when the last yellow
sheet had 4 to blackness, with her
foot she clt. . it and the rest to pow
der, then sailed and turned toward the
door.
There had been silence during the
time-it was but minute or two that
this was doing-and now as she stepped
across the floor there was whispering
only. But as she neared the door men
began to understand what she had done
and they had seen. There had been SEN
timent, there had been poetry in the ac-
tion. The spirit had been the spirit of
love. A sudden noise of clappings filled
the room. For moment she paused as
if startled, then smiled and bowed and
went on into the treet-Cornhill Mag
azine