Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1883-05-31

computation
These questions crowded to nv iips.
The awe. the marvel, the mystery of
what was passing confounded me. Nv
only proof of the reality Of all was the
cracking Of the paper grasped in
my hand. That was real, that, and
the cabinet from which had taken
it. Yes; and bark The great bell
of st. Paul Ginning. Real enough.
that. | stood and counted the quar-
ter-chlmes; and then the first for the
hour-One; the second-Two.
As the last echo died away, I rlanc-
ed again at the will. In the act of
doing SO, and stopping my head for
the purpose, | suddenly fell heavily
forward with crashing sound in my
ears. A blow had been dealt from be-
hind, by an unseen hand, and under
the force of it | dropped bleeding and
senseless.
More than a week had elapsed be-
fore the sense of life returned to me.
/ was in my own bed, and BridQet's
kindly face was bending over me.
Pain racked my brow. and was con-
scious of having suffered intensely.
1t was sometime before I was per-
mitted to ask questions, or to receive
information TO what had happened
AT length Bridget gratified my curl
osity to an extent.
She informed me that my patron.
Rodney Gauntlet, had died on the
night to which | have alluded, at
three minutes to two, as nearly as
Bridget could calculate, she being then
the only person in the house except
myself. Her reason for fixing the
hour was. that at three minutes to
two-the time at which the houes clock
gave "warning-she being startled
by strange noise, had gone into his
room only to find him dead in his
chair. While there. a sound over
head apprised her of my fall, and at
the same moment st. Paurs struck
two. On rushing upstairs she found
me on the floor where I had fallen.
as she supposed, in hurrying to the
sick mans aid, and with the back of
my head bleeding.
/ kept my own counsel. I said
nothing to Bridget, nothing to the
doctor when he came. Tn time |
formed this further resolution-I
would say nothing unless my impress
sions received some confirmation
through subsequent events. One such
confirmation they did receive--it was
avery startling one. When Rodney
Gauntlett's will came to be read, It
was found that his fortune exceeded
all belief. He had been money grub
bing and specializing all his life, but
no one suspected that he died worth
three millions Of money. His will
disclosed that fact for the first time.
When | heard the words tainted.
Here was a Confederation Of what |
had discovered in my dream, or what
ever it was, SO strong that it utterly
overpowered me. Unless l had read
it in the paper | took from the Japa-
nese cabinet, how could I have thought
of that sum9 Such a thing was be-
yond coincidence; and when l came
to myself eagerly demanded a sight
of the will. 1t was handed to me.
and one glance dispelIed all my illu-
sions. 1t was not written on the pa
per | had seen, and it contained no
mention of my relationship to the
testator. NV name was there. but
only for an annuity Of three hundred
pounds for life. The bulk of the vast
fortune was left in other ways, a very
large slice falling to the share of the
man 4 detested and had rejected, Hugh
Dimsdale.
Time passed on. I had quilted the
old house. All | have related had
become thing of memory. Bridget
was dead. Hugh Dimsdale had gone
knsw not where-to the Indies,
had heard, but neither knew nor
cared. / was receiving my annuity
and enjoying Q simple country life,
over which the shadows of the past
fell lightly. In the process of time I
had almost persuaded myself out of
the reality Of what had long held as
the mystery of my life.
One Winter evening an adventure
occurred TO me-
I was returning home from a long
walk. Tired. and anxious to reach
my cottage before dark, I took a
short cut through field adjoining a
farm. In that field were several
stacks Of hay and corn, and as [ pass
ed these / saw that q group of per-
sons, evidently from the farm itself,
were bending over some object lying
on the ground. Ny curiosity was
aroused. l quilted the path and
went toward them. As they moved
aside on nay drawing near, | saw that
it was a man who was the object Of
their attention. squalid man 10 the
ragsof beggar. He was Ill, haggard,