Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1888-02-19
PETER GRANTS VOOING.
lLonsman.l
"pe.er, You must marry"
- .s.othari Whv9

why marriage was expedient for him,
and il was easier to arrange her little
preyarication when his honest straight
forward ewes were not fixed upon her
own.
"Woll." she said. covering the hesita.
tion Of her answer by the pretence OF
finding the worsted which she feigned to
have mislaid -"for several reasons. FIRST
of all, there's the farm. >
"Oh. the farms going on all right. l
don't expect to make fortune, but L
make living out Of il.
"a living! Mrs. Grants tone ex-
pressed the contempt she felt. Your
moor uncle wouldn't ha' been contenttb that
nothing more than living should be
made ont O. what he'd stinted and starved
"Ah. poor old chap" and Peter
SIGNED "if I'd had a voice in 1t he
should never have done that for me, toll
ing and scraping together what he never
lived TO enjoy; if he'd took life easier
he'd have been alive now, dareSay.
"Ah. well what pleases Providence
70 do don't concern you nor me we
amt cot the making nor the marring o
things: If we had you'h ha' bin the last
who'd ever ha' touched farthing o I'm
Gle Sans bit Of property Peter nod
ded assent rather dismally. How
ever" continued Mrs. Grant bnskly,
"tbat amt here nor there the farm S
yours. and the laws given IT to You, and
now your business is to make money out
OF it,"
Gan very easy TO talk Of, mother, but
how's it to be done -,
Just so; they were coming TO the
point now, aud. in anticipation of gam
ing it. Mrs. Grants needle went IN and
ont swiftly: she did not miss thread,
tbongh She was q woman of firm pur-
pose. and her hand, like her resolve. was
steady. =,
"Lasten. Peter; I'm getting old, as
there isn't much need for me to tell you.
No need to shake your head II You
don't see il Others do and it's high time
there was a proper missis here.
Peters sigh sounded so much like a
groan that Mrs. Grant felt lrrltated by IL,
"Oh dear oh dear " she said ~
YOU call the dead back again | shouldn I
saw no moro about 1t but with poor
Millv in her grave for the last four wears.
why, for goodness gracious sake. should
yon keep a widower?"
Peter made no answer what was tne
good of speaking when his mother could
not understand The bitterest enemy his
dead wife had had was her mother-ln-law.
By his marriage Peter had not only gwen
displeasure. but had forfeited ell hope OF
ever inheriting his uncle's property, the
old man declaring that he had clean
strucl him ont of his Will for being fool
enough TO tako for wife a slckly, doll
faced thing, without single penny or the
strength to earn one.
BY virtue of this will-which nervous
ness and indecision kept him, and always
had kept him. from ever making-Uncle
Sam contriyed to hold good many peo-
ple in order. That handicapped hint
that some day they'd find he had re.
membered them acted as a wonderful
"open sesame" to hearts and hands.
He was half-fed out of this eXpectant
generosity. and. it being about Christ
mas.tme when he suddenly died, the
seasonable presents which came pouring
IN furnished the baked meats for his fu-
neral feast.
Peter Grant at n distance-working
hard 10 support himself and his mother
less bov-had not even received an lnvl-
tation TO the funeral. SO completely had
his uncle ignored him that he had gone
clean out of other peoples memories
until. no will being found, no will being
heard of. it gradually dawned on those
present that Peter, the dead mans only
brothers only soE. was the next heir and
riehtful owner OF the property
Not very much as we might view 1t,
but things are measured by comparison,
and to those who are labonnC for Others
little bit of land OF their own, though
numbering no more than two hundred
acres, seems very enviable possession.
Pick holes as they might be in Peters
past disobedience and present ignorance
for he had chosen a sailors life and knew
very little about tarming-no one could
say his head was turned by his uneX-
pected good fortune. He took posses
SION in such an humble way that he
seemed to be apoloeizing to those around
him. and if it had not been for his boy
he would have been disposed TO sell the
farm and share the proceeds with those
who openly declared they had better
right to il than he had.
With an accurate knowledge of her
sons disposition Mrs. Grant had made
a long Journey to see him installed IN his
new home. She prided herself on never
Sinking her duties, and while deplonng
the necessity of leaving her own com
Portable little house, where she lived
surrounded by her three well.to-do mar
ried daughters, she gave 1t as her H.
tention TO remain at Wlnscott, her son
farm. until she saw him comfortably set
tied and married.
Already her eye was fixed on the
right wife for him TO have, and only
waiting until the place was in proper
order. She had sent an invitation to a
certain second cousin. who, as good luck
would have it, was buxOm widow, well
disposed to take another partner. The
widow had a nice sum of money at her
own command, besides which she was
I mistress of a comfortable little roadside
inn which she said she found tiresome 10
manage, and wished that IN its stead she
had a farm to look after.
This wish decided Mrs. Grant. Know
ing that the wish would be repeated to
her she viewed If as an overture. and as
Mrs. Pollard lived but twenty miles away
she sent message begging that Cousin
Selma, as she called her, would come to
Winscott for few days stay.
Mrs. Pollard accepted the invitation,
and the visit paid in the early summer
had gone off famously.
Peter. quite innocent OF the motives
which had brought her there, welcomed
her most cordially. She was a bright
eyed. good looking woman. and though
close upon forty bore her years so well
that she looked Younger than Peter, who
was ten years her junior
Like all sailors, Peter had very win
ming manner with women, and Cousin
Selma, little prompted 10 it by Mrs
Grants well dropped hints and sugges
tons, began TO think seriously of the
matter.
She went into the capabilities Of the
land with business-like precision, and
finally decided that. with the help of bel