The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1889-10-17
A Chapter Of Coincidence
A LARGE FORTUNE WAIVER
IN THE BALANCE.
THE MISSING HEIR.
THE CAUCAsIAN's ORIGINAL STORY
III JULIAN HAWTHORNE.

upon another, VIII go Tar 10
make q man distrust his sanity,
J id to distrust your own sanity
is no better than to be insane.
| once read a story In which d
number of persons conspired to
pnt up a joke on another. The
latter was on his way to market.
with goose under his arm. The
cOnspiratOrs, one after another,
met him, and severally remark
ed Oh the fine pig he was carry
ing. The poor goose man hel d
out that the pig-seers were crazy,
for the first two or three times.
Hut at the fourth he wavered,
the fifth lewildered him, the
sixth terrified him, and at the
seventh shock his reason forsook
her throne, and nothing after
wards could convince him that
he was not a raving maniac.
Now, | always thought that
this man must originally bave
possessed an exceptionally
strong intelligence. Any ordi-
nary person-myself, for ex-
ampie-wOnld have succumbed
at the third miracle. This was
borne in upon me strongly on
the morning Of the third of Ju-
ly, q year ago, as | was on my
way to my office downtown
| lived, at that time, on~fast
= ! Ii Hi y sixth Street, between
Third and Lexington avenues.
My Office ( [ am a lawyer) is in
Trinity Building, below the
City Hall Park. To get exercise,
| am i'll the habit of starting
early and walking the distance.
Last summer a matter of busi-
ness kept me- in town all through
July, and my walk became the
substitute for my vacation. But
on this third of July (the fourth
being a holiday l was going
dcTu just to file away a few
documents, and then run over
to Long Branch for thirty-si4
hours Of sea air. AS | approach
ed the corner of Thirty sixth
street and Lexington avenue,
met an Italian chestnut vender
carrying Oh his head a basket
of chestnuts. AS he passed me
one of the chesthuts rolled out
Of the basket, and ,falliEg,stru
the toe of my right boot, and
bounded off into the gutter
Well, there was nothing very
extraordinary in that. But
mark what followed. [ con
tinued on my way, turned dowr
Lexington avenue, crossed it
and was on the point Of turning
the corner of East Thirty fifth
street, when / met an Italian
chestnut vender with a basket
of chestnuts on his head. A;
he passed me, one of the chest
nuts rolled out Of the basket
and, falling, struck the toe OF
my right boot, and bounded into
the gutter!
1t is not too much to say tina
I never in my life was more dis
agreeably startled than by thi:
apparently trifing occurrence
off that happens a third time,
said to myself, II am a mad
man, that's alp In a sort oI
panic, | ran along the middle o.
the streets to Park avenua.thei
to Thirty-fouith street, and Sc
to Fourth avenue, where
bounced into the first horse. ca.
that came along. / was no
likely to meet any more Italian
chestnut venders carrying bas
kets of chestnHts on their heads
there.
I tried to shake off the pain
full impression on my mind b!
trying to fix my attention OF
the case that [ was conducting
1t was a will case, involving ;
large property. v hen I say /;
will case, l mean that Ambros
Asten had left no will. Hi
effects, therefore, went to tn
next of kin. The problem wa
to find the Latter. He was known
to have had a brother, but thi
brother had not been Leard o
in twenty yeas At that tim,
| (1S6S) he was a convict in Aus
tralia. Probably he was deat
now. The next claimant wa
the child of q married sister o.
Asten's. This sister was knows
20 have married a second time
and to have died a year there
after. The lame Of her secOa'
husband was not Known, and h
had disappeared with the child
Such was the situation. | ha
been at work on the puzzle fo
six months, and had made bu
little headway. AS Mr.. Asten'
lawyer, | knew that he had eI
tertained an idea of leaving hi
fortune to the Manhatten Ant
Fat Hospital, of which he wa
one of the patrons. But he ha
died Suddenly, without effeci
ing his purpose. The hospita
people, however, were trying
get the money; and the late M