The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1913-10-28
THE LUCKY OLD RING
Ithaca. y. Y. Jan. q, 100.
By JOSEPH e. SMITH.

you how II happened.
Of course it's Jim's sister. You re
member Jim. He was one of the
boys in the old frat back at Yale. |
You know we were both on the elev- |
en- for old Eli, and it made it no end
jolly that when l got it for coach
here he should get it for trainer, toe.
At first l liked Edith because she
was Jim's sister. l took her to things
and tried to give her good time.
Pretty soon, got to like her for her
own sake. and then finally it hap
pened-only after / had made a thou
sand fools of myself
You see, since Jim and 1 were such
chums, l got to know Edith pretty
well, and we became great friends.
If it hadn't been for the ring, It
might never have happened. 1t was
a heavy Egyptian scarab, with an en-
graved setting. 1t was a particular
thing in the frat. and you know you
couldn't let girl wear it unless you
were engaged. A scarab is supposed
to bring luck, and mine certainly did.
One night l had come back home
from taking Edith to a reception. l
glanced down at my hand and saw
that my ring was gone from my lit
tie finger. 1t upset me considerably.
Not that the ring was valuable, only
fellow hates to lose anything like
that. l could not see any way that l
could possibly have lost it. After /
had hunted everywhere / gave it up.
l was out of town for a week or so,
hI1f 10 ax-f 7
can imagine what l felt when I saw
my ring on her finger. 1t knocked me
fiat with surprise. At first I couldn't
think of any way that she could have
| gotten it, until at last it came to me,
| that the night of the reception she
| had asked me to hold her muff for a
moment. My ring must have slipped
| off in it then, and the next day she
! probably found it.
1t was the fact that she wore it
that gave me courage to speak at
last. AS long as she was Jims Sister,
! | knew that she must know what it
! meant for girl to wear that ring,
and so l was in a fools heaven of
| happiness.
1t was good weather for sleighing
| and so l took Edith out the first
chance | got. Nothing seemed to
come right to bring up the subject
until she took her glove off, for some
reason or other. 1t happened to be
on the hand that had the ring on.
looked at it and said:
You know what that ring means,
don't you, Edith?"
of course
We were way out in the country
and 1 guess my happiness went to my
head and made me all kinds of a
presumptuous fool. She pulled her
hand away with jerk The air had
brought the color to her face, but it
was not the air which made it deepen.
She did not say word, but just
looked at me.
But the ring" I stammered.
What has the ring got to 10
with"
Why, you know what it means,
and | thought you understood"
!, She stared at me incredulously.
Jack, what do you mean? l don't
understand at all
1t was my turn to stare at her.
"Why. didn't you find my ring in
your muff?"
Your ring in my muff! How
should it come there?"
4 lost my ring the night Of the re-
ception, and when l saw you with
that on, l thought you had found it
. Your wearing it gave me hope for
; something | had never dared dream
Of You must know that /"
: Edith looked at me a moment and
then she laughed.
: This ring? 1t has always had q
. fascination for me. | have tried tc
. persuade Jim to let me wear it and
he never would. So when l found il
. on his dresser last night / appropriat
. ed it"
Then all of a sudden it came ovel
. me what a fool I'd been. | nigh
have known it was Jim's, but l wa:
so ready in my conceit to think i
was mine that l never stopped to con
slider anything else.
q don't suppose there's anything
can say. l am sorry to have made ;
fool of myself and have spoiled every
! thing.
There was a long silence after
had headed the horse around.
thought of all the things l might say
and didn't.
1t must have been the courage o
. despair that made me ask:
!. Cant we keep on being friends
only in another way?'
And then it happened. I could hard
" believe that Edith could care for
fellow like me.
But, Dad here's where I come t
the. joke of the thing. The next tim
l had on my evening coat, it was col
J. and l dug my hands deep into N
pockets to keep them warm. Dow
in a corner l felt something cold an
hard. I flshed it out, and what
Won think? That lucky old Scara