Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1888-09-27
CORNELIA'S SURPRISE.

|
birth and education showed it, and he,
manners confirmed it. 1t was no ordinary
lodging house, but a mansion in fash.
ionable quarter, with it's well furnished
apartments filled with gentlemen dodgers,
who had their breakfasts and suppers
sent in from neighboring restaurant
and who ate their midday meals down
town And Miss Bysshe owned the house
and its contents. She kept lodgers, and
she also kept skeleton in the closet.
Most people do. The skeleton of Miss
Bysshe was the Fear of Need He was
kept in the closet as much as possible, it
not being the pleasure of his owner that
he should be seen by men. Not that Miss
Bysshe liked deception. By no means.
She was naturally frank. But the skele-
ton was private possession. That she
had skeleton; that he would come out
OF the closet at times and, despite the
fact that she had several thousand dollars
to her credit in the savings bank, sit at
her table and point his bony right fore
finger at her; that he would enter the
privacy of her chamber and disturb that
slumber which good health, good temper
and good digestion-to say nothing of
good looks-otherwise assured her, made
up distressing fact: but this was no
ones concern but her own, she thought.
In this conclusion she was right
That this skeleton should exist at all
was her own fault, for the house that
Miss Bysshe owned was four story and
| basement double brown stone front. on
| the corner, with an extension to it and a
| huge sub-cellar under all 1t was an
enormous house-a mansion of pretense
1t was furnished in style that showed
the furniture to have been built, not
made. 1t had twenty-eight chambers
There was library in it of over 1000
volumes (her dead fathers delight), which
occupied two large rooms on the first
floor. The apartments were all lofty and,
with the exception of four hall bedrooms,
capaclous. Twenty of the chambers were
rented at an aggregate rental of over
twelve thousand year. She should have
been contented Her surplus income was
large and was accumulating in the saw
ings bank. Why was need to be feared?
Why should that skeleton not be quiet
forever in his closet, like any other set of
articulated bones?
The truth was that Miss Bysshe had an
other cause of fear-not skeleton, for it
was young, plump and pretty-in the
shape of younger sister, Adela, girl
just turned Of 18. There had been four
of them-Cornelia, Grace, Blanche and
Adela. Grace and Blanche had married
unhappily and had atoned their fault
one within year of her marriage, and the
other about two years after-by dying.
Shortly after this their father died. Pre-
vious to his death he made his will, and
having, as he wrote therein, "full conf
dence in the prudence and discretion of
my beloved wife, Barbara" he had left
her all his personal property, in which his
wealth mainly consisted. The only real
estate he had was his fine town residence,
and this, with kis furniture, plate, library
and belongings, he devised and bequeathed
to his elder daughter, Cornelia. She had
an annuity of three hundred a year,
which had come through whimsical bit
of humor on the part of her father Cor
nelia always went to her father for pocket
money. ''See here, Cornelia," he said at
one of these visits; you bother me in the
midst of my reading. I'll stop it. I'll
pay all your bills for dress and such
things, for they come at the right time,
and l know you are not extravaganza; but
I'll buy you an annuity of three hundred,
and you can go to yourself for pocket |
money" and he did.
The confidence of William Bysshe in !
the prudence and discretion of his be- |
loved wife, Barbara, was not justified by |
the sequel. The widow married again |
within year, which would have been a |
compliment to the memory of her dead |
husband had she not linked herself to one |
whose good looks and dashing manners
were his only good qualities. The quiet |
life of Barbara Bysshe was not continued
By Barbara Barton She and her husband |
had "a good time" They spent right
and left until the ample fortune was i'm
paired, and then, in the hope of retriev-
ing the loss, Joe Barton went into Wall
street, and his wife with him, as inveter-
ate a gamester as he. Alas! the bulls
tossed them in air and the bears tore
them, and one fine morning Joe Barton,
having been detected signing name not
his own to a check, levanted and was
seen no more The Bysshe fortune was
no more. Mrs. Barton took to her bed,
where her daughters faithfully attended
her. Dut Cornelia's care and a physi-
clans skill were useless. The mother
died of kind of galloping consumption,
and Cornelia was left with her house, her
and her younger sister. To Adela
she was mother as well as sister, and the
female Benjamin Of the house, her ad-
in life and her rosy future oc-
cupied her mind.
Miss Bysshe's friends suggested that
she might sell the furniture and library,
and on the rent of the house, which
would bring at least $4,000 and probably
$4,000 asyear, live very comfortably.
But Cornelia had different views. The
furniture was good, the house had been
newly carpeted the year before, ,sand she
determined to let her furnished rooms,
which would add at least 30 per cent. to
Ter income. There was something, tco,
hat was attractive in being at the head
# a large establishments fashionable
enement house. She had been born with
. golden ladle in her mouth, and the
poon she found there instead should
t least be gilded. So she advertised
Furnished apartments to let, and they
we're taken UP rapidly. She had nothing
O do but receive her rents and keep o
owing but sharp eye on Adela-
The greater part Of the first floor was
aiken by rich Peruvian, Gen. Juan Mar
inez, middle aged millionaire, who had
made up his mind to spend the rest OF his
ife in the United States. Gen. Martinez
vas tall, fine looking, though bearded
Ike the pard, and of distinguished man.
,ers. OF his great wealth there could be
10 question. He occupied over half OF
he floor, the front hall room being ten
nted by Frank Peters, a young man,
Who was confidential clerk to Scharx q
daneeters. Wall street firm. The gen.
raj had but one man servant. but he en-
ertained good many visitors in quiet
vay, dining them, however, at his ciuo-
Ie took quite fancy to young Peters-
e did business with Scharx ManeeteAs