The Penn's Grove record., 1885-10-31
AUNT BETSY'S LEGACY.

"Well Fanny" said Tom, laying
down a letter and looking at me across
the table, ''this is run startF'
"IIow?n l asked. ignoring TOMS
way of expressing himself, which is
always more forclble than elegant.
WHATS the matter now, dearP"
"yVhy, here's a letter from your
aunt, Miss Betsy Clayton, inviting her.
self to pay us a visitl'
Nonsense, Toni
'SoIemn fact, l assure you. But
here-read the epistle yourself, and
then perhaps you will be convinced, y
he added, for my face expressed not
only surprise but incredulity "You
know the writing of course?"
eyes" | replied with a nervous lit.
tie shiver; sand | would just as soon
attempt to decipher Chaldean. Be-
sides if | remember Alright, the sub
stance of Msis Betsy's letters used to
be Just as Grabbed as the penmanship.
Read it for me, Tom."
Tom, my husband, is a lawyer and
supposed to be able to decipher the
most uninteiliglble scrawls.
''The .etter is short and very much
to the point" he said, taking it up
again. Then he read
".Nephew Thomas Carroll (since
YOU have married my niece, Frances
Clayton, l suppose you are my nephew,
if there is anything in marriage)-l
purpose leaving my home, the Crags,
on the twenty fourth of this month,
and visiting my nieces, Martha Scott,
Ellen Warburton, and Frances Carroll
In turn. / intend staying one week
with each; and during that time l pur-
pose usil g every means in my power
to discover their true characters and
dispositions, with a view to ~bequeath-
ing to one of them the small sum of
money | have been able to save from
my in~hospitable little estate Of Crag-
lands. My will is made, only the
names, for which l have left blanks,
remaining to be filled in on the conclu-
sion of my visits, Please inform your
wife of my ~iLSention, and that on her
conduct depends the prospect of in
heritIng the savings of her aunt.
"'BETsY CLAYTON.
sep. 81 have sent copies of this
letter to my nieces Martha and Ellenl''
swell, it certainly is an extraordi
nary letter, Toni AS far IS / know
Aunt Betsy has not left her crags and
mountains for twenty y~ears-not even
when my father, her only brother, died
and now to think of her starting off
first to Devonshire, then to Norfolk,
and then to come to us in Loudonl
wonder ii the old lady will ever reach
the end of her pilgrimageY 1t used to
be her proud boast that she had never
set foot in a steamboat or railway train
or darkened the door of any house but
her own for twenty years. Whatever
shall we do with her, TOMB"
"Why. my dear, bid her welcome, of
course establish her in the best bed
room, find out what she likes Tor din
ner, and otherwise endeavor to deserve
the legacyl"
81 don't want it, and l don't want
her." l said a little impatiently. "You
have no idea what a horrld old lady
Aunt Betsy is. Mamma was dread.
fully afraid OF her, she used to scold
her so a d find fault with the house.
keeping and cooking and everything.
Pm certain she will go rummaging
through all the closets and drawers,
poking her nose into the kitchen and
larder, and then Jane will give notice,
know she will-she can't bear being
interfered with. Besides, aunt Betsy
always dimes at half-past twelye-think
of that. Tomb
"Why, that's nothing, lassiel Have
breakfast a little earlier, call luncheon
dinner, and dinner supper-what's in a
name? If 1t pleases the poor old lady
we must try to manage it," said Tom
cheerfully.
That's all you know about Aunt
Betsyp' / retorted, with a childish in
clination to cry; ''she always scolds and
finds fault, nothing pleases her, and
she so rude, Tom. We sha'n't be able
to ask a soul to the house while she's
here!'
"Come, come, Fanny; it's not like
you to make a mountain out of a mole
hole. I've never seen your aunt; but ]
take it she's a solitary unhappy old lady
who has been seized with a sudden
longing to see some Of her relatives
Not having a very high opinion of hui
man nature, she thinks it necessary tc
hint that she has 1t In her power to re-
pay any kindness that may be shown
her. Never mind the legacy, Fan; just
make the old girl comfortable if you
can, even though it does entail a little
self denial; remember. you have pleas
ures of which she knows nothing. CONF
look up, little womanl Why it's three
weeks yet before she will reach us"
And then Tom hustled off to the
city just as cheerfully as If no cross,
grumbling fault-fnding. exasperatine
old maiden aunt existed. OF course he
did not know that Aunt Betsy had
worried poor mamma almost out OF heI
life, and never ceased railing and revil,
ing because she had no boys, but only
girls-how she regularly wrote twice a
year abusing papa because he was the
last Clayton Of Deene n threatening
vengeance on the three useless little
minxes who would doubtless some day
marry and hand over Deene to stran.
gers Nor did Tom know how furious
she was when our old house and estate
were sold after mammals death. and
the proceeds divided among us children
She vowed then never to look upon one
of us again, formally disowned US; yet
now here she was cody inviting herself
to pay us a visit. Still, IL Tom had
known all this and of every other &C.
centricity of Aunt Betsy'she would have
said just the same, for he Is the most
easy. good-natured fellow In the world;