Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1888-12-29
CHAPTER VII.


Mark Frettlby was one of those fortunate
individuals who turned everything he
touched into gold His luck was proverbial
throughout Australia. If there was any
speculation for which Mark Frettlby went
in, other men would be sure to follow, and in
every case the result turned out as well, and
in many cases even better than they ex
pected He had come out in the early days
of the colony with comparatively little
money, but his great perseverance and never
failing luck had soon changed his hundreds
into thousands, and now at the age of 55 he
did not himself know the extent of his in
come. He had large stations scattered all
over the colony of Victoria which brought
him in a splendid income; a charming country
house, where at certain seasons of the year
he dispensed hospitality to his friends, like
the lord of an English manor, and magnif-
cent town house down in st. Kilda, which
would not have been unworthy Of Park lane.
Nor were his domestic relations less happy.
He had a charming wife, who YVES one of the
best known and most popular ladies of Mel
bourne, and an equally charming daughter,
who, being both pretty and an heiress, natur-
ally attracted crowds of suitors But Madge
Frettlby was capricious, and refused innu-
merable offers Being an extremely indie
pendent young person, with a mind of her
own, as she had not yet seen any one she
could love, she decided to remain single, and
with her mother continued to dispense the
hospitality of the mansion at st. kilda But
the fairy prince comes to every woman, even
if she has to wait a hundred years like the
Sleeping Beauty, and in this case he arrived
at the appointed time. Ahl what a delight
full prince he was, tall, handsome and fair
haired, who came from Ireland and answered
to the name of Brian Fitzgerald. He had
left behind him in the old country a ruined
castle and a few acres of barren land, in
habited by discontented tenants who refused
to pay the rent, and talked darkly about the
Land league and other disagreeable things.
Under these circumstances, with no rent
coming in, and no prospect of doing anything
in the future, Brian had left the castle of his
forefathers to the rats and the family ban
shee, and came out to Australia to make his
fortune He brought letters of introduction
to Mark Frettlby, and that gentleman, hav-
ing taken a fancy to him, assisted him by
every means in his power Under Frettlby's
advice Brian bought station. and, TO his
astonishment, in a few years found himself
growing rich. The Fitzgeralds had always
been more famous for spending than for
saving, and it was an agreeable surprise to
their latest representative to find the money
rolling in instead of out He began to in
dulge in castles in the air concerning that
other castle in Ireland with the barren acres
and discontented tenants. In his minds eye
he saw the old place rise up in all its pristine
splendor out of it's ruins; he saw the barren
acres well cultivated, and the tenants happy
and content-he was rather doubtful on
this latter point, but, with the rash con-
fdence of eight-and-twenty, determined to do
his best to perform even the impossible.
Having built and furnished his castle in the
air, Brian naturally thought of giving it a
mistress, and this time actual appearance
took the place of vision. He fell in love with
| Madge Frettlby, and having decided in bis