Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-03-19


patient reader will decline to take any inte-
rest in such reflections 50 1 will simply
state, without explanation, that my host and
l grew to be very friendly before we parted
that night; that walked over from Dowd
again next day, and persuaded him to go
back with me, and eat return dinner that
became very intimate with him, and pro-
longed my stay in the neighborhood in con-
sequence and that he told me his history.
1t was the story of lawsuit For three
generations the Musgraves had been throw
ing away substance in their race after
shadow, until the family and its scres had
dwindled down to this one member, the old
ruinous mansion and few roods of grass
land about it. Lawyers had devoured the
rest,-honest lawyers, look you; for the
shadow appeared very tangible, and | be-
leve that the cleverest of them had bona
f1e confidence 10 pulling his client safe
througa. The bone of contention was free
hold ground in a thriving city,-a very nice
bone, with plenty of meat upon it. The
MusgraVes could not make their title clear
neither could the Contremusg"aves make
their title clear and so the property re-
mained unproductive. The houses could not
he let, nor PULLED down, nor patched up.
The Musgrave claim was admitted to be very
strong; but one link in the chain was want
ing-a certain deed which was known to ex-
ist, but could not be found anywhere. The
provoking part of the matter was, that it
had been discovered once by the present
claimants grandfather but at that time
other necessary legal evidence, since collect
ed, had not been got together; and the old
man, who was queer from the effects OF hope
deferred, combined with that of a pistol
wound in the head, he had received in duel
arising out Of the suit, had slowed the i'm
portant document away in a sale so carefully
that no one since had ever been able to find
it for be was struck down by fit and died
without having the power to communicate
the hiding place to his only SOD, who was
hurriedly summoned to his dying bed A
minute description of the document, together
with an account of how he obtained it, was
found in his will and in the next legal tus-
sic this put in with some confidence,
that, combined with the rest OF the case, it
would be accepted as evidence. But after
deal Of learned argument, and some heslta-
tOn, the authorities who had to decide the
matter declined to take the will for the deed
and the case kept for benefit OF fresh set
of LAWYERS, at that time not out of their
dinners and articles. Thus the Musgrave
property remained bleeding. My friends
father got pretty we'll the last drop out Of it,
and then married, not for love, but partly in
hopes of an heir to carry on the suit, partly
because the lady had a little money to be
sucked into the chancery qulcksands. He
did get an heir; he did sink the money.
Fortunately for her. the wife died before it
was quite spent. The g0odly Musgrave es-
tates were now all gone, as has been said, the
house and homestead being alone retained.
This last bit of strand was stuck to tena-
ciousIy, because it was pretty certain that
the iron safe, with the coveted parchment
inside it. was somewhere about the premises.
But where 1t is needless to say that IL had
been we'll hunted for, experienced detectives
having been well employed in the search
and, indeed, the ruIn0us state OF the house
was in no small measure. owing to the ruth
less manner in which some OF these investIga-
tious had been conducted.
Happily, not quite all the money of Wal
ter Musgraves father went to the lawyers
some of it was spent in educating him IN
manner befttiDg the position he would ho!d
when the lawsuit was over, and the valuable
house property at his disposal. But his ia
ther died. and the funds gave out before he
had finished his intended course, and he
found himself in the queer, tantalizng, pow
erty-stricken condition in which discovered
him when photography and thunderstorm
brought US together.
W hen he first commenced his cOnidences.
was bevond expression disnayed. = Oh
my prophetic soul, his great grandfather -
mentally exclaim ed, when be opened with
a ST ort biography of that ancestor. But by
degrees | grew interested; his account was
a. 10 and bp had
firmatory documents to show for everything
he advanced. At last | was able to conceive
how it was possible to keep him out of what
seemed SO undoubtedly his own; but then
was not lawyer.
Nevertheless as soon as we were intimate
enough for such liberties, | talked reason to
him. urging him to throw the losing game
up, leave the ruin to the care of Molly and
Dabble, and look about for some method of
earning bread and bacon for even as an
unskiled artisan he would live better than
he did al present.
He let his remaining patch OF grassland
for forty pounds year; he got about ten
pounds for the apples in his orchard, and
half more for the hay that was cut in it. Dab
bic, who was an arrant, but not se!f-seek-
ing p0acher, occasionally brought in a rab-
Dlt OF a ISfcT6t anu LkidL was NI!dt bUt ideI
of the Musgraves lived on He owned tn at
it savored OF lunacy to go on like that; that
his best course would be to sell what little
homestead remained to him,-wbich be
could do at a fancy price, as his remaining
in possession of 1t destroyed the cOmpactness
of the remainder of the estate,-and make
a fresh start in the world but said he sim
ply could not do it.
" Surely you could make one vigorous eff
fort, ;" said |.
"Of course could,'' he replied, - if that
were all 1; but after it was made,-a week
after or month, or a year, or five years
after,-I should be drawn back into this in
herited struggle; and if | then had to bear
the reflection that | had thrown away a
chance, feel certain that a sentiment of re-
morseful regret would drive me mad. No !;
you might as well tell LAGOON to make an
effort, and wrench himself free of the ser
pent-folds. If he could, they would twina
round him again when he was weary"
So [ never annoyed him with common
sense again; and indeed, after a little
while. [ caught the chancery infection my
self. Of course, it was in mild form, as
had no property of my own at stake; but
had it sufficiently to alter my ideas entirely,
and sympathize with the persistent struggle
with fate in which my friend was engaged.
To tell the truth, was in an unhealthy state
of mind at that time, having been recently
jilted,-a misfortune which, till they grow
accustomed to it, often makes young men
sulky with the world in general. My sulks
took the form of isolation tempered by
photography and residence at Dowd with
a man bound to 90 crazy, a witch and an un-
canny black cat for my sole acquaintance,
exactly suited me just then. There is free
masonry amongst the forlorn in love which
enables them to recognize one another and
| soon learned that Musgrave had met GER
tain Mary, the daughter of a poor clergyman
who had acted as his private tutor, and that
he had INDUCED in day-dreams of taking his
degree, going into ,orders, and leading life
| of married hiss in a narsoUaoe on a hundred