Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1877-06-30
FATHERS AND CHILDREN'S WILLS.
A Tale of breaking and Mending.

A Tale of breaking and Mending.
In the DAYS when all the world was
romantic. and no one was ashamed of it,
txo gentlemen of England conceived
the preposterous, but fashionable idea,
thnt, because they were friends, their son
and daughter, then infants in their
cradles, must love each other when they
grew to be man and woman. Conse-
0uentlv each made will, and matters
were so arranged that. if either of the
young people declined the hand of the
other, tina; young person would be pen
niless, and his or her estate go to the
other young person who was willing.
After some years, the gentleman whose
child was a daughter left his native
England for America, while the other
remained in England; so that the ocean
rolled between the romantic friends.
The English resident was named Ed
mund Harrington. The American,
Charles Seabright. Both were wealthy,
and both brought their children up care
fully. As they grew older they per-
mitied them TO correspond with each
other, but each detested the task so,
that the letters were actually written by
lie elders themselves. Once, at the
aye of IA, when news came that little
Harold Harrington had fallen from a
tree and broken his leg, Elsie Seabright
WAS desired to reply that she felt great
r.gret. and send her best love and
wishes for his speedy recovery; but the
girl, who could never listen to the boys
name with any thing like patience. re-
fused to write one word of this amiable
spistle.
81 wish he had broken his neck, so
thnt might never hear any more about
him. she said, with a stamp of her
aippered foot; "and l won't write
fibs."
So again mamma wrote the letter,
having first locked Elsie up in dark
pantry by way of punishment.
"And / am sorry to find child of
mine so unfeeling," she said. "a
broken leg causes a great deal of pain,
and may make one lame for life.'
"a nice thing for me that would be
if am to marry him." said Elsie.
Indeed, ii she had been as sympa-
thetic As her mother desired her to, Elsie
would have had opportunity enough to
exercise these feelings, for her young
betrothed was always in some pickle,
and had nearly drowned and nearly shot
himself dozen times, TO say nothing of
ordinary tumbles.
1t WAS tit for tat, at all events, for,
VIXEN Elsie had the measles, Master Har-
old received the information with a con-
tenptuous indifference amounting to
heartlessness, and had indeed said that
he did not care. He hated girls, and
this one the worst of them all.
So, with the ocean between them, the
young people grew to maturity, and the
year approached in which they were to
inset.
But meanwhile all sorts of sad things
happened Elsie lost both her father
and mother, and away in England Mr..
Harrington died suddenly of apoplexy.
So the two men, who had looked for
ward for so many years to meeting
when their children were married, never
nj again. But for those obstinate wills
H whole matter would have been drop
pod, for the last thing the young people
desired was to meet each other. But
tie young man was OF age, and the
young lady also, and the property must |
Be settled, and could not be until the |
untch was either on or off. The old
lawyers in whose hands the affair rested
knew the feeling of their wards, but
.hey Judged that q meeting might mend |