The Republican journal., 1885-08-27

title. The lady-for she looked like a
born lady-never made any friends with
the neighbors stayed in the house near
ly all the time, though once or twice a
week she would take the little girl out
walking. They boarded with the gro
Gerry storekeeper's family. The man got
work as a clerk for one of the compan-
les, but his health was bad and he was a
hard drinker. Whenever stranger
came to the town he always seemed
frightened like, and | kind of suspected
| that his vein was not altogether
straight One night lie had been drink
| ing heavily, and as he was staggering
home he fell, struck his head against a
| stone and found him unconscious. Me
and couple of the boys carried him to
| his quarters. He never recovered. Brain
fever set in, and in a few days he died
His poor widow took his death awful
hard, for she was mighty fond of him,
| although he had treated her so roughly.
After bis death she became sickly Why
didn't she leave here? | don't know,
unless twas because she was too poor
to pay her way and too proud to take
money from us, though there was not a
man in the village who would not have
helped her. For while she did sewing
for some OF the folks near Wilkesbarre,
but, poor thing, she got consumption,
and got weaker and weaker. and it soon
became certain that she could not live
long.
One day | went up to the house to
take her little jelly my old woman had
made. She was very weak, but called
hand the tumbler of Jelly to the little
girl at the door. | went over to her
bedside. She told the child to bring her
a paper tied with ribbon from bureau
drawer. She then gave me the paper.
On 1t was written marriage certificate.
She was about to tell me something when
she was seized with a hemorrhage. As
she tried hard to speak to me the blood
gushed from her mouth. | ran for a
doctor, leaving her in charge Of the gro
Gerry mans wife. but when | returned
with the doctor she was dying She
tried again to speak to me, but was too
weak, and IN few minutes she was
dead. Well, the boys put in and raised
enough to buy a coffin and bury her,
and, being as had no children, and we
did not know how to find the little ones
friends, | took charge of her. This is
the gal, Mister and the old miner put
his arm around Jennie's waist and drew
her to him.
But the garter he continued Il
must tell you about the garter-no, no
Jennie must tell YOU
In hesitating voice the girl then re-
lated how her mother, when first taken
Ill, had given her the garter and told her
never to part with it.
Yes; and | would never let the lass
wear it, said the Old man, Excepting on
high days and holidays; because |
thought it might bring her good luck
some day
Clarklns then showed Norton the mar
rage certificate, which contained the
proper record OF the marriage of Lemuel
Merker and Nora Hastings in Liverpool
The miner also had photographs of the
couple, which corresponded exactly to
those III possession of Norton.
The young correspondent then told
the miner and his adopted daughter of
the death of Jenne's grandfather and his
will, leaving to her mother or to her
children all Of his fortune. After eau
lloHlhS llt young uelIeSS ana the OlQ
miner to keep secret what had passed
between them until he had consulted
lawyer, and could make arrangements to
take them to Baltimore, Norton left the
house in a delirium of Joy.
lie had been away from the Old Fort
about two hours or more, but though it
was near three in the morning, the rev
elry had not yet ended On entering he
found his companions i'll very worried
condition of mind over his sudden de
parture and mysterious absence They
plagued him about the miners daughter,
but he made some excuses for his alb
sence, and they knew Frank Norton too
we'll to try to pump him. The next
morning, Christmas Day, Frank slipped
the boys again, caught an early train,
reached Baltimore in the evening, and
the next day the paper with which lie
was connected published an account of
the finding of the young heiress, under
big display head, the first line of which,
in big letters was