The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1882-03-29
"Lucy L. Cecil"

ITO my dearly beloved wife, Lu
t cy l.. Cecil, all my real and person
al property of whatsoever kind ant
nature, after the payment of all
my just debts and 1 hereby com
NIT to her guardianship my only
child, Mabel Cecil, for whom there
shall be made such allowance ant
. maintenance as to my beloved wife
may seem fit.
"And l hereby appoint Lucy C
Cecil my sole executrix of this my
last will and testament, hefeby re
voking all former wills by me made
I'm witness whereof I have here
unto set my hand, this third day O
November, A. D. 1S7-."
81 suppose you will understand"
| undertook to explain, ''that this
will vests all of your husbands prop.
erty in you, and to leave his daugh-
ter's allowances at your discretion
is to leave her at law nothing in her
own right. The provision il in short
meaningless, except that it shows
that the testator had her in his mind
when he made his will, and so far
makes it all the more binding"
Exactly" she spoke with anina-
ton. Its his wish-and | shall
see that you are well paid for your
trouble and counsel-the carriage
will be here very soon." And she
had gone as quickly as she had
come. That remark about payment
had entered a threadbare coat and
struck right home.
But it's too mean all the same,
pay or no pay" l growled, to cut
that girl off that way without a cent.
But it's the old story, and l can't
help it," and l sank back with a
philosophical smile on my face.
tThen-just in sport, in a fit of ma
lignant satisfaction-I took up a
second sheet of legal cap, and scrib-
bled thereupon, with a formal OPEN
ing and close that this said Robert
E. Cecil gave all his property to his
dearly beloved daughter, Mabel Ce-
Gil, and left the lady of the veil
where the law found her.
"But such is the history of the
world" concluded solemnly, 'ever
such and what a gulf, deep, impass-
able, between what ought to be and
what is. How 1 should like to
bridge it over" And | buttoned up
my coat and walked to the window
imagining that | could see through
the darkness the coming Of the car
riage of Madam Cecil.
The time dragged slowly, very
slowly, and / never felt more genu-
inc relief than in hearing heavy
wheels grinding through the mud
and slush, and a knocking at the
door to notify me the carriage was
ready.
l sprang into the carriage and
away we dashed through such dark
ness that could not for the life of
me discover to what portion of the
town l was being driven. But in a
very short time we came to a sud
den halt, and the carriage door open
ed. The coachman conducted me
up the brown stone steps, where the
open door was already awaiting me,
and l stepped into the dimly light
ed hall.
As l did SO, lady, whose figure
and manners told me was Madam
Cecil. glided from a side room, and
with a little plaintive smile, bade
me follow her at once. But in that
instant l had read her face ana per-
haps her character. She might have
been thirty-five, only she didn't look
it, with brilliant black eyes, pearly
teeth and elegant manners but be-
hind all these / read the positive
force that turned to good may save
a country, but given over to evil
would sacrifice everything to sue
cess.
Noislessly she glided over the
heavy carpets, and as silently l fol.
lowed her. She passed into the Ii
brary, and from thence, as instinct
lively felt, into the chamber of fdeath;
even elegant furniture and costly
paintings and embroidered coverlets
are not to overawe our destiny.
"Mr. Cecil, the lawyer has come"
she softly said, as she stopped over
the face of the silyer-haired man.
"What? Who ," said he starting
from a seeming stupor, and looked
wonderingly at me from his sunken
eyes.
"He will read it TO YOU now, Mr..
Cecil" she added in a low tone, 'he
is sinking rapidly | fear you must
hasten"
felt that / must. l seated my
self at his bedside, and as | did so
l saw his lips tremble, and l believed
they were breathing name ! i'm
agined it was "Mabel."
Our boldest moves are born upon
the spur of the moment.
"Mrs. Cecil may | trouble you for
a glass of water ?" l asked, as i took
out the will she had drawn.
"Quick, sir, quick !" said ], as L
noticed his sunken eyes watching
her Fastening footsteps. "Do you
want your daughter to have allyour
property save what the law gives
your wife ?"
He started from me rs if he could
not trust his own senses, or was
doubling whether to put confidence
in me /; but he seemed to feel the
necessity of doing so, and suddenly
the dull eyes frightened with mo-
mentary gleam of relief and joy as
he clearly answered
"Yes, yes And God bless you
And l, too, was thanking heaven
for the whim that had led me to
write two wills so very like in
strength and appearance, and it was
only the work of moment to make
the exchange and just in time.
With Mrs. Cecil came the house
keeper and man servant, and in
their presence the dying man trem-
blingly wrote his name TO the second
will and they witnessed it.
They had gone and l started to
go, when the old man pressed my
hand and / saw the tears gathering
- ~, oyoc Az turpad IN M 7 in