The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1884-07-16
Mrs. Bevan and her pretty daugh.

DAVIS work at 4 o'clock.
| Until that hour, Charley pacet
slowly up and down the sidewalk il
front of the tall building where sh,
worked.
They walked home together, anC
Charlie, of course. spoke of the miss
ing deed.
Thev amused themselves with
discussing what they would do with
the reward, supposing they should
find the important document, and
were talking in this ridiculous
strain when they reached Madge's
home.
"Tea is ready" said Mrs. Bevan
greeting Charlie kindly, "and I've
opened jar of my homemade
strawberry-jelly just for your ben
efit.n
While Mrs. Bevan poured ou,
the tea, he removed the cover Of
the jelly-jar. Suddenly he turned
pale, his lower jaw dropped, and
he sat gazing fixedly at the jelly-jal
like one spell-bound.
"Are you i'll, Charlie?" cried
Madge, springing to her feet.
"You haven't come upon one OF
those nasty black beetles ?" ejacula-
ted Mrs. Bevan, suspending the tea
pot in mid-air.
"No, mol" gasped Charlie, after a
time. "It's nothing. l shall be all
right directly. It's-it's-the five
thousand dollars !"
He seized the port of parchment
that had covered the ielly-jar, and
bending over it, began to decipher
the written characters upon it.
witness this, my hand-Andrew
Sharp-witness !" he muttered ; and
then raised his head and turned
to Madge, who was bending over
his chair, with a glad light in his
blue eyes. "I've found it, dear !" he
cried.
"What?"
"a part of the missing deed; and
now if we can trace the rest" he
caied, excitedly, our fortunes made. +"
Mercy on us.' gasped Madge,
beginning to cry, in her bewilder-
ment
"Did you ever!" calculated Mrs.
Bevan, and in her excitement she
dropped the teapot to the floor,
smashing it into bits. ''Madge," she
finally managed to say. 'the rest of
the jars are in the cellar, on the
swinging-shelf."
Charlie dashed down the cellar
stairs, and there, on shelf in the
middle of the cellar, where .wo-doz-
en- jelly.jars, lacking one, each with
a piece of parchment tied over it for
a cover.
Take them up stairs !" he ordered
to Mrs. Bevan and Madge, who had
followed him.
And he gathered up as many of
the jars as he could carry.
When they were placed on the
table he removed the covers.
1t was an anxious moment, and
his hand trembled as he fitted the
bits together.
At last the thing took definite
shape. Not Line was wanting. A
few of the "and whereases" and
provided alsos" were trifle sticky,
and a few of the words had lost a
letter Or two; but the main points
were all there, and Charlie Wilson
fairly danced with glee.
"Where did you get it ?" he ask
ed, turning to Mrs. Bevan.
Il had no idea the paper was of
any value" answered that good la
dy, land | selected it from a number
that 1 found in the attic, because it
was parchment. They were there
when we moved into the house, and
| expect they were left by Mr. Ar
mold, the owner of the property,
when he moved out"
Arnold" began Charlie.
"Yes-Mr. Archibald Arnold.
He owns this house and land, but
the property is managed by an
agent
THAT explains it," said the young
man. Mr.. Archibald Arnold is the
plaintiff in the suit"
swell, I'm. glad it's found, al
though they were excellent covers
for jelly.jars. Sit down and eat your
supper.
Il can'tstop," cried Charlie, reach
ing for his hat.
He put the precious jar covers
into his pocket, and proceeded,
with all possible speed, to the Office
OF Holbr0ok & Hutchinson.
The firm had net yet gone home,
and Charlie laid the disjointed doc
ument before them on the big Office
table.
One glance convinced them that
their student had secured the long
lost deed, and the good news was
telegraphed to their client, who
lived in New York. He came on
the next day, and they told him the
story.
AT its close he drew a check for
five thousand dollars, payable to
Charles order, and the following
week Charlie and Madge were
married.
Mr.. Arnold won his suit, and one
day paid visit to the old home
stead where Mr.. and Mrs. Wilson
and Mrs. Bevan still lived.
They received the rich man very
graciously. and he helped to eat
some of the strawberry jelly.
"That paper" he said, at parting
"was worth a hundred times five
thousand dollars to me-"
A few days afterward letter
was received, addressed to MIR. Chas.
Wilson, including a very kind
note and deed to the old farm
house and the plot of ground in the
center of which it stood, "given," as
the letter read, "in token of my ap-
precietion of the great service you
have rendered me-"
Charlie is quite a distinguished
lawyer now, and every year his wife
sends a jar of strawberry to Mr.. Ar
chibard Arnold.