Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1891-12-04
THE FATAL PROPHECY.


time vivacity within the last few days.
Idon't believe in family legends, you
know. Mr.. Herndon. and am panied
to see Melville Blauvelt the gentle
man that he is. under what he calls
the shadow OF portending evil. "
These words to me from the lips OF
Therese Thrane fell upon my ears in
the spacious garden to which we had
retired from the heat of the ballroom.
and while she talked she pulled yell
low rose to pieces and was scattering
the fragments over bed of violets.
Therese was beautiful but no one
loved her. She had come from the
far South, with the hot blood OF the
tropics in her veins and with eyes
aglow with the passion which GIBBS
and flows under the luscious lines.
1t was said, no one knew by whom,
that her father was Cuban insurrec-
Zionist who had fallen before a file OF
Spanish soldIery; but this if true, did
not particularly predjudice us against
her. One OF those bastard letters with
out q name had spread abroad a rumor
to the effect that Therese was mere
advcpturess. and with the report fairly
awing there were many ready TO be-
lieve all that was said.
had heard nothing Of nay friend
Blauvelt's dependency previous to
my ballroom companions words. In
fact i had not seen Melville for sew
-eral weeks owing to my absence. and
when / expressed establishment at
Therese's information she repeated her
request with emphasis
we went home together that night
Blauvelt and !. More than once on
the way approached the delicate sub
ject in nay thoughts but rs often re-
Trained from questioning hinA
II want you to go to my room be-
fore we separate" suddenly said he,
looking sharply at me. Il have found
something which unaccountably af-
fects me. There. don't ask any ques-
tons Claude Let me tell you all "
Once in his room Blauvelt opened
the drawer OF dressing case and took
out n piece of parchment-hke paper.
which no handed to me without a
word
Read for yourself" said he in re-
ply 10 the mute questioning OF my
eyes Yes il is will and curse
And it affects my very existence"
] opened the old document and
glanced at the broadly written name
at the beginning:
IGNACIo MENENDEz,
HIS WILL AND HIS CURSE.
L. III -
coat for the night was warm, leaned
against the mantel and CHASTITY
Wilderness enthroned on his handsome
face. read;
In the Sacred Presence /, Ignacie Menen-
dez, make this, my last will bequeath
TO the children of my chief enemy, the
American Captain Blauvelt, the curse OF
my house have been reduced TO wretch
edness by tho Vaccinations of this man,
and solely because won the love OF lnez
de Castro bequeath to his descendants
eternal ruin through my blood. My
daughter will marry; she will have ohil
dren These will marry in time keeping in
beat the hot tropical blood of my revenge
Several generations will pass away, but
the descendant of Captain Blauvelt who
shall lsve my blood kin shall receive the
benefit of this curse Done on the ship
Isabella, the last of my possessions, this
the 9th day of June, 1909.
IeNAcIo MRSsNDEz.
looked up at Blauvelt and smiled.
The statute OF limitations operates
against that foolish curse" said /.
The house of Menendea may have
been slstted from existence years ago.
Is this the thing which has rendered
yen despOndentP
Blaurett came forward and took the
paper frsm ny haLd.
'"Thh has pierced me like sword. ~
answered he Il am the only living
.desce~aant OF the Captain Blauvelt
mentioned in the Spaniard's will l
love nadly love, the only person in
whose veins flows the blood OF Menen-
DEE. The curse has blighted my
whole Me. What did she say to you
to-nightP Anything about the curseP"
TO whom do you referP" cried ].
forgetting in the excitement of the
moment my interview among the flow
ers with Therese.
Where Is your head, ClaudeP" He
had my arm in his hand and his grip
was vise-like in It's intensity. II can
mean but one woman-Theresei"
was speedily conscious that my
look had become a stare.
Where did you find this docu-
mentP" asked, holding up the old
paper.
1T crossed my path like a serpent
OF evil. My father died twenty years
ago. leaving among certain papers the
one you have just read. found IL by
the merest accident but see in it the
hand OF fate coming out Of the past to
blight the love and the life of the do
,scendant of Captain Paul Blauvelt."
-But ThereseP Are you sure"
was interrupted by the lifting OF
shand.
s'She Is the right person, con-