Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1899-11-01
We y. " y: "
! A HuD..|,1G TURQUOISE
When Trouble Threatened Its
Owner, 1t Turned Pale.

- Observation-Disclosures:
If it had not been that every other
bed in the hotel was occupied, l GER
tainly would not have consented to
share a double bedded room with a
stranger. AS it was. found when we
reached a city-a considerable city in
Indiana, If the readers curiosity
prompts him to ask about it-that a
big political convention was going on
there. and that was how | found my
self with Mr. John Spears for room
mate.
Not that there was anything in John
to which felt inclined to take eXcep-
ton; on the contrary, he struck me as
very neat. prosperous looking and
presentable specimen of the American
commercial traveller, so much so that
congratulated myself that chance and
politics had not thrown me with any
one less pleasant.
BY the time we both felt ready for
bed John and had become pretty
good friends. and really thought he
must have told me all the stories, good
bad and indifferent. that he had to tell
but there was mistaken.
He was making somewhat elabo-
rate toilet before retiring, that being,
as he told me. Indispensable to his get
ting Il good nights rest, and in the
course Of his additions his arms We're
left entirely bare. Then it was that |
noticed his singular decoration.
Half way between the elbow and the
shoulder John wore a superb specimen
of goldsmith's work. 1t was brace
let. in fact, eXquisitely chiseled in Per-
sian characters, very massive and con-
tanning a turquoise which must have
measured, | suppose, two inches one
way ana an inch and half the other.
He noticed my establishment and
laughed.
"Iou never saw drummer wearing
q gold bracelet hefore?" he said. mo;
it was not given to me by a lady. If it
were not so late, I'd tell you all about
it,
There was no denying that the hour
was rather late to begin another of
his stories, so we went to sleep soon
after this, John sleeping with the fur
quoise and massive gold still on his
arm. But next day he told me the
story Of it.
"The person who gave me that
bracelet be said, was not lady
but very far from it. 1t was given me
by a poor. broken down devil who had
sold or pawned everything else to buy
drink. but would not part with this
| while he lived.
81 needn't tell you his name. We
| met out west, and had several easy
| opportunities of giving him helping
| hand. But he was one Of those eases
where a helping hand can't help. The
man was utterly broken down by
drink.
"When death came-after magnifi
cent spree, ending in fight in whlcl
a bullet intended for some one elst
clipped short the little span of life tina
drink had left him--he insisted on hay
| ing me with him. because, he said.
was the only human being left who
| cared whether he lived or died. Tho1
he said that | must take the bracee
and wear it. just as he had done eve
since he got possession of 1t in Afghan
istan in 1878.
"Ue had been an officer of an Indian
cavalry regiment then and might hav'
risen high in the army if he could on
| In+ ~, | 1x, hntt1Gc n 1Onp
zone Of his native troopers took TIT
turquoise bracelet from the arm of NJ
Afghan warrior whom he had killed
in a hand to hand fight. You know.
bracelet on the arm is Il common 0rla
ment for an Asatic swell to wear. AM
then there is a superstition In the cas-
that a turquoise with a text OF tn
Koran cut into it, as this has. is
charm against all sorts of evil.
"But the eastern legend also say
that when you wear a turquoise OF
your left arm you can always trust tn
stone to warn you of any evil that ma
be threatening you
at was only when he was dying tina
this poor fellow told me how he believ
ed the turquoise had served him wei
and think that his taking that vleN
of it showed there must he some goo
still left in his nature.
"When he went to England on leav
of absence after the Afghan war; h
said, he had made strong resolutio
never again to touch intoxicating spi
it's. He found himself among nun
her of old friends whom he had Know
Mt different times and they were
a very convivial crowd, so he above
himself to join in their carouSihgs TO
certain extent Il to he sociah'". III
. one day as he was dressing - notice
that the turquoise looked vH"T pal
THAT. IL, knew. was the sill OF q" e
coming to him. He thought Tie matte
over and concluded that the DANCE
3 which threatened hin, was nelth'
, moro nor less than the temptation
| drink which had always beeo his bu
: hear and 80. without word ar war;
ING of farewell to his jolly friends
, ,onk ,he train and went of to aho'h'
A mart of the country. where he con
live among associations that Woulo lit
pyDosp him to anything like the san
danger Then. he told me. the coz
. Of the turquoise deepened again. al
\ he felt himself quite safe.
h But it was after that that he Sit
+ the turquoise saved him from som
thiug that would have been the grea
est calamity of his life.
| in love With