Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-11-20

4 august Q, 1856. Jessie, hd, hd ! JESSIE
| DR.. Hutton looked, with puzzled air,
from the scrap of paper, which he turned
over and over, to the countenance OF tnt
banker.
I 81 can make nothing of this, " he de
elared. s1t is merely sdste, with the name
of your lost daughter. II tells me no
thing.
fENor did it us, at first, said Mr.. Pre-
bic. ssrhen that name and that date,
with the demon laugh connecting them,
set US TO thinking. A whole year we ago
nized over the dreadful problem, and then
we received another message, which you
shalls
4 He thrust a second slip of paper, iden-
teal in shape and appearance with the
first, before the gaze of DR.. Hutton, who
read it aloud:
| aAueust ., 1856 Your Jessie stu ii0es.7
The physician started, as If electrified
] 'sAhi this is something defnite-some-
thing decisive, y he muttered. sit con-
WINGED you that your daughter was still
living"
Eyes, doctor, . said Mr.. Preble, ''and
! every anniversary of that day has brought
us some message. The disappearance of
/ the ibid, mysterious as it is, does not
seem to me half so strange as that the
villain who took her away could cOntrive
to communicate with us every year since,
and always On particular day-the an
niversary of that on which she was
stolen-witheui our being able to discover
who he is. And a still greater wonder TO
me is what can be his motive. Ii seems
incredible. If it was stated in novel
many people would not believe it. But
truth is stranger than fiction.
Mrs. Preble drew from her husband s
4 breast-pocket his notebook, opened il &c
! the proper place, and presented il to the
! physician.
DR.. Hutton adjusted his spectacles,
glanced over the page, and then slowly
read the group of entries aloud. The
entry the first year is as follows:
esAugust 8, 1879. Jessie, Ia, Ia Jessie -
And the next year it is
ssAuguSt 8, 1s5G. Your Jessie stiH Ices -
| And the next
ssAugust 8, 1887. she is il, good hands -
| And the next
esAugust 8, 1853. She Is 'ocR as eoey n
ssAuguSt o, 1859. sa,s he, yesterday ''
| And the next
1.Ausust 3, 1850. She's grorci,,g rapidly r
4 And the next
ssAugnst 3, 1861. She continues 70 do rel r
| And the next
.'August 9, 1862. Tee seen her agaial
| And the next
ssAugust9 8. 1868. She's JsooD,jaga ,oo,nGa'"
| And the next
ssAugust 3, 1864. Your child is thirteen ~
4 fhn
ssAugust 8, 1865. She's lorslier than euer p
4 And the next
s.August 3, 1866. She's really charming ~
| And last year it is
..August 8, 1867. ny re,oard is at hand p
And what shall we get to-day .
! The. physician looked up and fixed his
thoughtful gaze upon the bereaved hus-
band and wife.
"How did these messages come to
| you ~ he demanded.
Invariably by post replied Mr.
| Preble. " Usually.tO the house, but sOma-
times to the Office"
"And you have never seen their au-
thor?"
"Neverl"
"The last of them is dated, l see, a
year ago today
eyes, yes faltered the banker, :" and
the time has come for another message.
! This is the 9th of August, 1857
q see, said Dr.; Hutton. And this
is the secret of your terrible excitement
You are expecting TO receive to-day an
other of these strange messages ~
There was a brief silence. Mrs. Pre-
ble's hand fUtterea in its task, and her
face grew very spale; The banker
breathed gaspinglys The physician re-
garded them both friendly sympathy.
eve shall hear q her again to-day, u
said Mr. Preble; land what will the
message be p
The mother averted her face. Hell
brave heart faltered as that question
echOedin her soul.
''The writer of these letters is uIfqaes-
tionably the abductor of your child y
said DR.. Hutton. ''Have you any suspi-
cion as 10 his identity?n
'ENot the slightest, said Mr.. Preble.
eve have puzzled over the problem fol
many years, but we cannot guess who he
is
''Think, said the doctor. ''Have you
no enemyl l do not mean people witt
whom you are not friendly-eyery stirring
man has plenty of these-but downright
enemy Is there no man whom yol
knew in the East who hated youl NJ
one against whom you were called upoI
| to testify-no one whom you possibly in
jured 2"
The banker shook his head. He ha(
asked himself all these questions repeat
edly.
II have no such enemy, doctor" h
answered with sincerity of voice and man
ner.
"And Mrs. Prebleln suggested the doc
tor, turning to her ''Have you no re
iected sutton who might be reyengefu
enough to desolate your home!'
"No," said the lady. 81 was married
early. Morton was my first lover J"
This is strange--very strange !" NUT
tered the doctor ''YOu not cOnsciOu
of having an enemy in the world, and We
Won have an enemy-a hidden fOe-a fen
in human form-who is working on
against you a fearful hatred! And 20
have not the slightest suspicion as
whom he is?"
'eNot the slightest" declared tn
banker.
'Not the slightest" echoed Mr..
Preble. 'My husband had step-brothe
who might have been careble Of thi
infamy-but he is dead !"
! ''The handwriting is not familiar q
'No. 1t is merely a rude scrawl, g
YOU see, said the banker. 1T suggest
, nothing-except that it is evidently di'
2 guised !"
Again there was profound silence.
''Our child is II years old now" ;
length murmured Mrs. Preble, her voiC
b trembling ''She is out on the threshol
of womanhood No doubt, during q
these years, she has yearned for u
wherever she may be, as we have yearrnt
I for herlo
sBut where is she?" asked the phys
cian-and now his voice was broken
=, his deep sympathy with the agoniZed p
4 rents. "Where can she be2'
Y "Heaven only knows" answered Il
! mother. 'Perhaps iF San Francisco
e perhaps in some rude hut in the interiO
IS with some obscure farmer, and under
name that is not hers / think her a
e ductor would have carried her TO son
p lonely region in the interior, among Il
/ valleys and mountains. Yet l never s
!, a yong girl in the strdets without turnil
n to look al her. l neyet hear a girlish vol
without listening eagerly, half fancyil
,f that il may prove the voice of my 10
Jessie
4 ''Oh, plying Heaycnl' sighed Dr. HI
ton, dashing a flood of tears from his eye
' ''Wil this long agony never be Over2"
r. 1--WE hope so, ard even believe so
,e answered Mrs. Preble, with the firmnC
Sc of an unfalteriDg trust in Gods mere
a ''The last message We received from o
enemy seems to point to some kind of