Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-12-28

| tcIo tL WIS ~ liz hluo Optu III TIC DIuoll =
l picked 'em up and I've got 'em here. -
He slowly took the letters from his
pocket with one hand, while he dragged
the chair on which he was sitting beside
the master But with quick flash of
Indignation Mr. Ford rose and extended
his hand.
"These are my letters, Dabney,' he
said sternly, "stolen from my desk E.
| Who has dared to do this?''
But Uncle Ben had, as if accidentally,
| interposed his elbow between the master
and Seth's spoils
''Then it IS all right?'' he returned de-
liberately. 81 brought 'em here be-
cause 1 thought they might give an
idee where my wife was. For them let
tiers is in her own handwrite. You re-
member ez told ez how she was scol-
lard. -
The master sat back in his chair white
| and dumb. Incredible, extraordinary
and utterly unlocked for as was this rev
citation, he felt instinctively that it was
true.
~ couldn't read it myself-ez you
know. l didn It keer to ak any one else
TO read it for me-you kin reckon why,
too. And that s why 1 IN troublin' you
Tonight, Mr.. Ford-eZ a friend. -
The master, with a desperate effort,
recovered his voice. "It is impossible.
The lady who wrote those letters does
not bear your name. More than that -
he added with hasty irrelevance, she
is so free that she is about to be married,
as you might have read. You have made
mistake, the handwriting may be like,
but it cannot be really your wife s. -
Uncle Ben shook his head slowly. cts
her 'n-there 5 no mistake When man,
Mr.. Ford, hez, studied that handwrite-
heyin so to speak, knOwed it on " from
the outside-from seem it passin like
between friends-that man s chances o
bein mistOok ain t eZ great as the man s
who on y takes in the sense of the words
that might b long to everybody. And
her name not bein' the same as mine
don 4 foller. Eff she got divorce she ID
take her old gals name-the name of
her famerly. And that would seem to
allow she did get a divorce. What mOwt
she hev called herself when she writ
thiS?'
The master saw his opportunity and
rose to it with a chivalrous Indignation,
that for the moment imposed even upon
himself 81 decline to answer that
question, - he said angrily. 81 refuse
to allow the name of any woman who
honOurs me with her confidence to be
dragged into the infamous outrage that
has been committed upon me and COM
mon decency. And | shall hold that
theft and coundrel-whoever he may be
-answernble to myself in the absence of
her natural protector.
Uncle Ben surveyed the hero of these
glittering generalities with undisguised
admiration. He extended his hand to
him gravely.
"Shake! Eff another proof was
wantin Mr.. Ford, of that bein' my
wife's letter. he said, ''that high
toned style of yours would settle it For
eff thar was one thing she did like, it was
that sort of pc try. And one reason why
her and me didn't get on, and why 1
skedaddled, was because it WASH t in my
line. Ell all in trainin'l On y man
eZ had the fourth reader at his fingers
ends could talk like that. Bein brought
up on Dobell-eZ is nOwhere-it sorter lets
me out of you, ez it did Outen her. But
allOwin it ain t the square thing for you
to mention her name, that wOuldn t be
nothin' agin my doin' it, and calm
her, well-Lou Price, in a keerless sort o
way, eh.'
81 decline to answer further, - replied
the master quickly, although his
color had changed at the name. 81
decline to say another word on the
matter until this mystery is cleared up
until | know who dared to break into
my desk and steal my property, and the
purpose of this unheard-of outrage. And
| demand possession of those letters at
once. -
Cncle Ben without a word put them in
the master hand to his slight surprise,
and it must be added to his faint discOm-
future. nor was it decreased when Uncle
Ben added with grave naiyete and pat
ronising pressure of his hand on his shoul-
der-''In course ez your takin' it on to
yourself, and ez Lou Price ain t got no
further call on me, they orter be yours.
Ez to who got 'em outer the desk,
reckon you ain t got no suspicion of any
one spyin round ye-hev ye?''
In an instant the recollection of Seth
Davis's face at the window and
the confederation of Rupert s warning
flashed across Ford s mind. The hypo-
thesis that Seth had imagined that they
were Cressy's letters, and had thrown
them down without reading them when
he had found out his mistake, seemed
natural. For if he had read them he
would undoubtedly have kept them to
SllON " NlNSSF lhC NOilIpIC[A NillpllOHS
that had disturbed the master on the dis
cOvery of Uncle Ben s relationship to the
writer of the letters were resolving them
selves into furious rage at Seth. But
before he dared revenge himself he
must be first assured that Seth was ig-
nOrant of their contents. He turned to
Uncle Ben.
81 have suspicion, but to make it
certain | must ask you for the present to
say nothing of this to anyone. -
Uncle Ben nodded. ''And when you
hev found out and you re settled i'll your
MUD that you kin make my mind easy
about this yer Lou Price, ez We'll call
her, bein' divorced squarely, and bein'
so to speak in the way o. getting married
agin, We might let me know-eZ Il friend.
l reckon L won't trouble you any more
o-night-onless you and me takes
another sociable drink together in the
bar. No? Well, then, goodnight. -
He moved slowly towards the door. With
his hand on the lock he added "Ef yer
written to her agin, you might say ez
now you found me lookin' well and COM
fable, and hopen she s enjyin' the same
blessin'. so long,
He disappeared, leaving the master in |
hopeless collapse of conflicting, and it
is to be feared, not very heroic emotions.
Situatio which baA So