Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1861-03-21
The Lost inheritance.

at the BtatlOn OF J01Bny, Town upon the
route; and after leaving a few passengers,
again went on. The station, for a mo-
ment crowded with railway porters and
lockers on, was soon deserted by all but
two individuals. Ono OF them was an
old man, dressed in the garb OF well to-
do farmer; the other youth of five-and :
twenty, who seemed to be waiting for
some one to come and meet him. To
this person the old man presently ad-
dressed himself: -.,..
"May Ipresumc. sir" said he, "to in
quire i, you are Clement B?''
Yes, my good man." replied the youth
with a haughtiness Of manner, land l
have no doubt yon are Mr.. Martin" !"
"At your service, sir" replied the
other.
"Well, Mr.. Martin" continued Glenn
ent, in the same tone, 81 began to i'm
agine you intended to keep me waiting.
That would not have been the best man.
ner to have insinuated yourself in my
good graces." .t.a. l.. ~ aa =
The old man, instead of replying, let
his head fall upon his breast as if in deep
affiiction; and conducted the new conner
toward largo, old-fashioned carriage,
to which very rough-looking horse was
harnessed. NJ. .aT.. -
"Here is your carriage, SIR" said Mr..
Martin, "if you will be good enough to
get in, will have the honor of conduct
ing you to the Hermitage"
"That my carriage, sir?" cried Glenn
ent. "Why shall be taken for trave-
ling pedlar." e .. ...r.a ..a
But few days before, Mr.. Clement B.,
who now put on SO many fine airs, was a
simple clerk in a crockery ware house in
Paris, and possessed the reputation of be-
ing quiet, unpretending little fellow
What then had brought about this sud-
den and radical transformation? He had
become, since the previous day, a rich
man, and it may be well understood that
the possessor of an income of twenty
thousand francs year finds it difficult
to retain the modest demeanor of a poor
clerk. On the previous day, while dust
ing the large piles of crockery under his
charge, letter arrived for him by the
post, conveying to him the startling in
teligence that one of his uncles, of whom
he had often heard as an eccentric and
very wealthy old man, but whom he had
never seen, had Just died at his residence
in Burgundy, leaving his nephew, Clement,
sole heir to his estates, to the exclusion
of many other heirs. . .'' F" H
The letter was from notary in the
province, who desired him to leave Paris
Immediately for Joigny. the town near
which his uncle had resided, where he
would be met by Mr.. Martin, an old
confidential servant of the deceased, and
conducted from the railroad to the "Her-
mitage," the name which the deceased
had given to the estate. 'eit --"
Almost driven out of his senses by such
an unexpected stroke of fortune, Clement
fastened to obey the notary's directions,
and, on his arrival at Joigny, Joined
Martin, as we have seen. .-,l '"' e''..
On jolted the queer vehicle. in which
our hero had so contemptuously taken a
place, until, after a ride of several miles,
the occupants arrived at their destination.
Martin offered the honors ofthe Hermitage
to the new proprietor, called all the serv
ants, and introduced them to their future
master, and then conducted the latter to
his own apartment. ..
"This was the sleeping chamber Of your
uncle" said Martin as they entered a
large apartment, furnished in old fashion
ed style. cit was in this room that he
died ten days ago" .' '''' l'.. ~. -'.
But the nephew, instead of evincing
any emotion upon being shown the cham
Der of his benefactor, threw upon him
look of scorn, and cried: Upon my
word, l can't say think. much of the
old boys taste I never saw any thing
SO very ugly in all my life" h'.''
Notwithstanding sir" replied Martin,
ait is the best we have here; and, If you
cannot content yourself, l really don't
know where you will find other lodgings"
"I live here!'' exclaimed the young
man. ''You do not imagine / am such
donkey, I hope For us young fellows
do you see, Paris is the only place; so |
shall sell this old crazy rookery at once,
and then be off,"
"Sell the Hermitage!" exclaimed Mar
tin, "your uncle's favorite place of resi-
dence! Impossible And VIC servants,
who hoped to end our days under this
roof, what is to become of us?"
"Mr. Martin" "retorted the young man,
"let me have none of your complaints, i
beg. Get me some dinner, and afterwards
you will drive me to the notary's." '.A
After having eaten hearty meal, not
withstanding he found the meats insiped
and the wine sour, the legatee, still ac-
companied by Martin, re-entered the car
riage, and the two started off. ''.H'
"If am not mistaken" observed Mr..
Clement, after an hours ride, eve pass
ed this spot this morning; and that"
pointing to building, sis the railroad
station. Do we take the train there?"
' "You alone, will do So" responded
his companion, speaking very gravely,
and in manner which caused the young
man to tremble in spite of himself, " 81,
sir. am your uncle and happily am not
dead! Having heard good accounts of
your conduct, | had resolved to make
you heir of all possess; but, before doing
so, l wished to ascertain If you were
really deserving of my generosity, and !
had recourse to stratagem which thorough
ly exposed your character to me. Good
bye, Mr.. Clement, return to your business,
and remember that your arrogance and