The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-04-18
FULLERTON, OF HlLLERTON.

1anu tn1s II Is tnat puzzles me
And many wiser men.
HHLERTON, OF HlLLERTON.
There is, perhaps, no more pictur-
esque spot in all Virginia than the old
Hill rton estate. For nearly two hun
ed years it has been known as one OF
che most hospitable homes in the south.
1t has passed, for generations, from
father 10 son. and has experienced
many of the chances and changes ma
turaly visiting SO venerable land
mark.
Indeed, it was only preserved to the
family, at the close of the rebellion, by
an occurrence so singular by many
considered supernatural that it should
be d emed wor by of record.
am by no means-I beg pardon, /
should say was by no means-a b =
iiever in the supernatural to that extent
which Permitted of individuals, who
had dden this worlds ia ewell, walking
abroad in al the peaked and ru led
dignity of I'VE olden time" or any
other time, and disturbing honest mems
repose. / had never fancied that a
lady or gentleman. arrayed as they
were in the old Colonial times. would
appear to advantage in our modern
drawing rooms; or roaming aimlessly
at unseemly hours, those roosting
places of the n:neteenth-century dwell
ing-house misnamed bed chambers.
There d always be n a want of har-
mony b, tween the thought of such visi-
tants and my daily surround ngs; so
this phase of the supernatural had
never received much encouragement
from me.
In the year A. ID. 1865, toward the
close of bright autumn day, found
myself slowly approaching the
ancient home of the Hillertons.
When the massive and irregular,
though picturesque. arch lecture of the
mans on burst upon me, as l turned
sharp ell We in the road, the thought
came with it, Ike flash: "Here, at
least, the spirits of the past can dis
port tn. mselves in their shadowy fin
err with pc feet propriety anu in keep
ing"
This started me upon a train of id
thinking-raking up whatever | had
heard of the II llertons, and putting
this a: d that together, l dis oveTed l
was able to recall several odd stor-
les, abo. an ancestor or two, es eel
ally concerning old Sir Guy Hillerton,
The founder of the family in Virgin a.
1t was reported he brought great
treasure with him from England vi n
his descendants had enjoyed little of
al -
known to have been seen by any one.
much lie 5 found. Its reputa ion was
handed down, h wever.i the form an
oath, used by the .eScendants of the
doughty old knight in lieu of many a
worse exp ess on: By Sir Guy's
Treasure" standing sponsor for numer-
Gus explosives more torcible than ele-
giant
there also was a singular doggerel
carved somewh re in the house, re at
ing to this my FERROUS treas re, which
left the reader as mu h in the dark as
ever, if not little more o.
1t wa. l remen bered. rendered into
plain English, as follows:
''He who grips my hand in love,
And with fraternal pressure;
He who clasps with CLASH of three,
10 ann VIII 90 my trta>urs
This was an extremely liberal offer
from Sir Guy, mere handshake and
his wealth is yours; but his stout right
hand ~as probably as inaccessible as
his gold.
At this stage of my bordering came
= dim tradition that one of the family,
during the Revolution, being hard
pressed for cash, and thinking great
deal too much abo this provoking
stan a actually made an inroad upon
the family vault in the hope of having
= loving handshake with ir Guy. The
only reward for his trouble was bad
case of b'ood-po;soning. whereby lie
obtained the privilege of clasplng the
hand of his worthy ancestor some score
of years before he otherwise would have
done. As this atality had been the
only known result of attempting to
carry out the spirit of Sir Guys poetry,
the old gentleman, for the future, was
allowed to rest In peace, secure from
any ESSAYS of familiary on the part of
his posterity.
was now within few moments of
my journeys end, and my heart was
oppressed by the sad errand which
brought me as guest to Hillerton. /
came as the attorney 'or parties who
were not at all friendly to the Hitler
tons. but who held mortgage bonds
aga; nst the estate for large amount.
Some Of this mortgage money was due.
and my inst u tons We're to demand
payment as wei as to adjust several le-
gal matters OF importance.
These duties would have been I'M
plea ant ones under any circumstances.
They were d ubly o in this case. Col
-ontl Charles Hillerton and 1 had been
-classr ates at the nivers ty of irginia,
and l wei knew his love and devotion
to the home of his fathe S. was aware
what the answer to my demand would
be. The war, lust closed, had left the
in uential family of Hillerton, as it had
left many others, penniless.
The welcome met with was touch
ing and cordial; for an advance post had
brought note from me explaining the
disagreeable nature of my visit, and ex-
pressing the hope that. whatever its
outcome, the friendship SO long existing
between US might remain unchanged.
/ found Colonel fullerton, the head
of an interesting little fam ", q devoted
father and husband. ! nited in him
were those sterling quaiiti OF head and
feart which had made i'm beloved of
his classmates and college associates;