Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1882-09-27
A ROMANCE OF REAL LIFE.
A Brother Finds & Sister and a Lover
His Bride, 9hrOugh an Ad-
vertisement.
A Tale OF Three states, which
Proves the Old Adage that
Truth Is Stranger
Than Fiction.

columns OF the daily press furnish
abundant evidence of the fact that
real lie abounds with occurrences
more strange and romantic than the
widest conceptions Of the novelist.
and which have. besides, the added
interest of being true.
On the last day Of the recent mill
tary encampment In this city, Friday.
July z, a respectable looking young
man entered the Times Office and in
CURED for the editor. Being seated,
he said he was a stranger in the city,
and wished to obtain information con,
corning an advertisement which was
printed in the Times a few weeks be-
fore: He produced a crumpled COPY
Of the Times and pointed to the fol
lowing advertisement:
WANTED = reformation concerning a
who left Portsmouth, o., in the fall Of 1850
Q tenslbly to seek employment in I~ndianapo,
lis bat who has not been heard ofsince. Al
dress, -. b." Times Office.
The young man said his name was
Kingman. that he was from near
l%ronton, o., and he had reason to be-
lieve the young woman referred to was
his sister bearing that name, who had
disappeared at that Cime, and under
the circumstances stated in the ad.
vertisement. He stated that she
studied telegraphy in Portsmouth, but
disliked that occupation, and left there
to seek other employment in this city
She never wrote to her friends, and
was never heard OF after leaving
Portsmouth. She had been traced tC
this point, where all trace of her was
lost, and nothing had been heard O
her for more than a year, when a COPY
OF the Times, taken by a neighbor Of
his, fell into his hands, and he wa.
startled to see the foregoing adver.
tisement. His mission there was t
Ind out who inserted it. The infor,
nation could not be given him, as tht
person who inserted the advertisement
had paid for it and lett no name mol
trace Of his identity. More singular
still, there were two answers to the
advertisement, addressed as above
which had been lying in this Office
nearly a month uncalled for. Wher
informed of the fact, Mr.. Kingmar
said under the circumstances he fell
authorized to read the answers, anC
asked to see them. One of them wa
a postal card from East ST. Louis
written by a telegraph operator there
who said a young lady had worked I
short time 10 that Office and left fol-
Kansas. The other was a sealeC
letter, addressed in a lady's hand
writing to y. b." Times office, In
dianapolis, Ind. Mr.. Kingman opened
the letter with some t~repidation, anc
alter reading it over twice handed il
TO the Times man. 1t was written OF
note paper and was as follows:
CLEAR WATER, Sedgwick county
Kansas, June My dear James:-A
friend il East st. Louis has sent me 8
copy Of a paper containing your adyer
tisement, asking for information ofm,
whereabouts. There is no longer an
reason why | should conceal it from
you, much as | desire to conceal i
from my family and home friends. |
you love me as you once did you viii
come to me at once. Perhaps yol
will find additional reason for loginI
me, for there arc two of us now
Little Jimmie is the picture of hi
father. If you wish to give him 81
honored name and make me happy
come at once. l have entered i6l
acres Of land in this county, aud an
comfortably situated. You can ascer
tain my exact whereabouts at tn
postofice or the drug store in Sedg
wick. Yours affectionately,
JULIA"
The letter was returned to Mr.
Kingman, who remarked quietly, g.
shall start for Kansas on the mex
train. The facts revealed by this not
are not altogether a surprise to me
My sister has been unfortunate, bu
she is a good girl. If / find her
think | have a surprise for her" II,
left that night for Kansas On Frida,
last a dispatch came from GreencastlI
saying: meet me this afternoon at tn,
depot in your city. George w. King
man." % the arrival Of the trail
the writer was on hand anC
soon discovered Mr.. Kipgman il
the busy crowd. He was goinI
East by the Bee Line, and there wa
a detention Of nearly two hours. Ii
the conversation which followed h.
gave the result Of his Kansas trip. HI
had found his sister a few miles ives
OF ..Sedgwick, living in a little fran
shanty, on the prairie, her only com
panions being a little infant and
young woman about her own age, who
he afterwards learned, was the daugh
ter OF a st. Louis miller. lhe Ian
had been entered in his sisters name
and the two we're eultivating it. TIL
surroundings were severely plain, an,
barely comfortable. His sister wa
overcome with surprise at his appear
ance, but soon recovered herself. H,
neither ~reproached her nor solicite,
her confidence, but she gave it freely
They talked far into the night. Hel
letter, which he still had, showed tina
~. b." had never received it. She
however, knew where ~. B." was
and gave her brother his address. TIL
next day he t~elegraphed j. B. in hi
sisters name, and requested him I
come at once, In four days he wa
there. The meeting between tn
lovers was very affecting, Almost tn
first words the young man said were
II have come to marry you" II
said he was just recovering from a lon
attack oftyphoid fever, and his appear
ance showed it. That accounted 10
his not calling for the answer to hi
advertisement. The upshot of tn
matter was that the next day the en-
tire party, including the baby, went
Sedgwick, where the lover
we're married by a justice OF til
peace in the presence Of Mr. Kingma
aud the young lady from st. Louis
The surprise which Mr.. Kingman hal
spoken Of as in reserve for his siste
was a check for $1,000, being her shar,
of the proceeds Of the estate Of a dc
ceased uncle. He presented it to he
after the ceremony and had the salts
faction Of knowing that it contribute
in no small degree to the happin ,ss o
the occasion, which, though it had
! elouded BACKGROUND. was brightene,