The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-08-23
Two Ghosts.

\ member OF Tue baf IL Si'o''S -
roam. y said my friend, the lawyer, VINO
Nod ss little faith Ia ghosts at one period OF
t;s III. ss any man that ever lived"
Nv friend paused, and l said, loIr re-
>,ar;. c,rrics the inference that the gentle
,,,on has changed his views on the sub
icct." ..,o hos ord -
,.,,, NIL, nct usc any names I'll tell you how
il came about
nromised net to use names, and my
friend went on: 49,
:" some eighteen or twenty years ago the
Gentleman to whom | al!ude was IN part
nershin with friend They had been To-
rether for years. and rs is customary IN
legal firms each had his particular line OF
business The firm had very important
case in hand. and the elder, partner-not
the gentleman present-had exclusive man
agcn,ent OF it. 1t had gone through great
many series and was approaching very
i'm portant criSis-the trial OF the cause.
inst at this juncture the senior partner
died. and on the other gentleman all the I'M
finished business OF the firm devolved, the
conduct OF the case referred to among the
rest.
"The surviving partner went TO work 70
make himself thoroughly conversant with
all the details. The deceased lawyer had
taken very deep interest in 1T, and the
partner found all the papers prepared with
great cXactneSs and elearneSs. In prepar-
ing the evidence to be used on the approach
ing trial the surviving partner discovered
that a small but very important document
was missing. This was none other than
letter which completed chain OF evidence
that most thoroughly established the case
for my friend, the gentleman now in this
room. He hunted high and low for it, but
it was not in the Office. Then he went to
the late residence Of his deceased partner
and searched there for the letter; but his
exertions were all in vain. The paper was
evidently gone beyond redemption
..Wbat was to be done. Without the
document my friends defeat was almost
certain. and the labor OF months would go
for nothing. Besides the letter had been
intrusted to the firm by their clients, and TO
confess that so important document was
lost would be humiliating. ii not ruinous.
After a second and third search, during
which every place was ranSackcd ana the
Dapers at the residence OF the dead partner
were again carefully examined, my 1rlend
gave it I'D as a bad job, and returned home
one night after the last vain quest utterly
d;spirited and crestYallen. He went to bed,
but he could not sleep for thinking about
the unfortunate position in which he was
placed.
At length he dozed of into an unquiet
slumber, but was soon aroused by tue con-
seriousness that some one was in the room.
Rising from his reclining position he saw
his late partner standing by the bedside.
"My friend experienced no fear, though
somewhat startled. Fancying that his senses
deceived him, or that he was in dream, he
stepped from the bed to the floor. The
figure was still there as plain as in life, and
the old familiar voice was heard once more.
"Dun't disturb YOURSELF it said. Il
came to tell you where you can find the
missing letter. Go to my private desk at
the house and examine carefully bundle
of Dapers marked 80 and so. You will find
the letter there ..,,
"Then the shape faded away, and my
friend, nothing disconnected, returned to
bed, and fully satisfied that he would find
the letter next morning, went to sleep and
slept until daylight.
Next morning he went to the house OF
his late partner and searched where the
midnight visitor had told him. There, sure
enough, folded inside deed which had no
thing whatever to do with the case, was the
missing document"
ANOTHER LAWYER GOES ONE BETTER.
"Tbat's a pretty good story" said an
other lawyer, "and l don't see why we
shouldn't believe it. Now, il you've no
objections, Tll tell you one which also IN
wolves a missing document, but beats that
just all to pieces. .,
When / was young man lived with
nv mother and sister in one OF the river
counties Six months before the time l
speak Of my father, who was supposed 10
be wealthy, had died, but without Will or
any document which could aid us In DIS
covering what he was worth or where MS
funds were placed. All that we could lind
out was that few days before his death he
had drawn a large sum from the bank and
sold q quantity OF stock. Beyond that all
was in the dark.
"My mother was left in comparatively
Door circumstances, and heavy mortgage
on the farm and homestead was about to be
ioreclosed. hy mother had often urged my
father to lift the incumbrance, but he had
always answered that when the time came
there would be ample funds to redeem it,
and that in the mean time he could turn the
money to advantage.
"Now, however, the time had come, and
there was nothing in prospect but the loss
OF our home and poverty.
"We had a very particular friend, captain
OF an East India tea vessel, VINO maze
point of coming to see US whenever he ar
rived i'm port. He had been away for
twelyemonth, and knew nothing OF my
fathers death. He arrived here in October,
/ think, and soon afterwards made his way
to our place. After cordial welcome he
said to my mother:
".As was coming along South street
this morning, on my way here, l saw your
husband standing at rs store, and he
asked me to give you this
"He handed my mother letter, but she
was so astounded that in the act OF mechani-
cally reaching out her hand for the envelope
which Captain A. extended she fell in q
swoon.
"My sister and myself were equally sur
prised, but our self-pcssesSion did not fail
us. The Captain stared with dazed ex-
preston OF countenance, and lifted my
mother to couch. need not explain the
process Of restoration, or recite what fol-
lowed When the Captain heard that my
father had been dead for nearly six months,
it was his turn to be astonisbed. He sug-
gested, however, that we should open the
letter, and did so. at once recognized
my fathers familiar handwriting, and the
document inside proved to be an acknow-
ledgment from Il. & Co., OF $4,000,
loaned them by my father to aid them
in a speculation In tobacco. The matter
was put into the hands OF discreet and
acute lawyer, and we got every cent OF the
money back with interest. But for the myS-
FERROUS letter, ! don't suppose we should
ever have known what became OF my IA
fhpr1s money