The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1898-02-17

SYLVIA HAS THE FATAL K.
good story and was going to ask her to
lend it to me, when 1 got a look at the
title and saw the wheels and the dia-
grams and things"
After this every body said that Sylvia
was "queer, but many of the girls lik
ed her in spite of that, for she was uni
form1y kind and obliging.
The one relative that interested her
self particularly i'll Sylvia's peculiari-
ties was her Aunt Hester. This lady
did not like them, and every now and
then she told Sylvia S mother that some
thing must surely be wrong with the
girl. Mrs. Ringgold was inclined to
make light of the matter.
'tYou are mistaken, Hester,'' she
would say to her sister, 'there is moth
ing the matter with Sylvia. She is just
like other girls, except perhaps trifie
more studious.
lis she studying her lessons all the
time when she's alone up in the gar
ret?'' Aunt Hester once asked.
Every likely she is, or perhaps read
ing story. Sylvia wouldn't do any
thing wrong. She was always SO good
and quiet.
If Sylvia had been boy, her strange
reserve would have been readily under
stood by her family, and she would
never have been permitted to remain SO
long undisturbed in the garnet. But
how could they suspect that a girl
would be afflicted with the family craze
for inventing something? This passion
for studying mechanical devices had
survived through three generations of
Ringgolds, and it had cost them great
deal of money and much sorrow and
disappointment
Sylvia knew the family story. Many
a time she had heard about Grandfather
Ringgold's pulley, which had never
been completed. Then, there was her
Uncle Alexander, who repeated her
grandfather failure, spending money
but gaining nothing. and finally there
was her Cousin Dick, whom half the
people in town called Crazy Dick Ring
gold, because he walked the streets try
ing to interest rich men in his imprac-
ticable patents.
The women of the Ringgold connec-
ton, one and all, had a horror of pat
ents, because they had suffered SO many
deprivations from the failures and losses
incident to them. No one knew these
things better than Sylvia. That is why
she guarded her secret, that is why she
felt SO guilty when any one asked her
why she acted so strangely.
How could she tell her mother, or her
Aunt Hester, or her father, or any one,
that her mind was ON fire with the
spirit of invention, and that she was
trying now to solve the mystery OF
grandfather pulley?
But the day of discovery was at hand.
1t was housekeeping time, and Aunt
Hester, while in the garrett, came upon
remarkable mechanical continuance OF
I springs, and wire, and cords and bits
of wood, and brass, and steel. She die
not have to look twice to know what il
meant She gave vent to her feelings by
little scream of surprise and dismay,
which brought Mrs. Ringgold running
up from the story below.
'Oh, sisterl'' cried Aunt Hester trag
ically, pointing to the young girls
model. "Looki Sylvia has the fata
fever in her blood-the curse of the
Ringgolds. -
Mrs Ringgold was quieter, though
| it was plain that she was vexed. She
| looked the continuance over, and theI
covering it up, said sadly:
| Poor Sylviar'
| After awhile Sylvia came in from
school. She knew, in moment, tina
something had disturbed the family Sc
| renity, and intuitively guessed what i
washer model had been found.
| By the way the Ringgolds talked al
outsider might have supposed that Syl
via had done something reall, wicked
or had contracted DAM srous disease
She even fell into this mood herself ant
cried little, but her father-tried t
| comfort her.
"Never mind, SYLVIA he said, "w
are going to let you make visit to Un
Gle sJerold's. When you get out there
| you ii forget all about this nonsense
Girls can't invent, and they shouldn'
try it, especially when the men of tn
family fail"
'sI'll try not to think of it. - said Syl
via.
The next day she was taken out to tn
country to see what a change of seen
would do for her. Uncle Jerold lived o.
a small farm that had formerly been
part of Grandfather Ringgold' 8 estate
Sylvia had never visited them before
and she found everything very interest
ing. Her aunt took her out for lon
ramble through the woods, and the tw
gathered autumn leaves and lichen
and punches Of bright red berries In
secluded corner of the woods Sy1vi
noticed tall iron construction, whic
she thought resembfed the observator
in the park at home, and she aske
what it was
"Oh, said Aunt Rebecca with a Ii
tie sigh, that is your poor grandfs
theirs derrick. He had it erected that b
might experiment with bis pulley. Des
mel If your grandfather had let inven
ing alone we MIGHT all be richI,'