Morning journal and courier., 1891-05-30
FORTUNE FOR A MISSING HEIR
A Scion of a Southern Family who
 was Cast or for Wedding n Poor

Scion of a Southern Family who |
 was Cast or for Wedding a Poor |
 Girl. From the San Francisco ChronicleI
 A romantic story of disinherited scion | of one of the most aristocratic of South | Carolina families, which contains the ele- | ments of the popular tale of fiction, with | the thread lost in San Francisco, has just come to light.
 The Lees of South Carolina trace their ancestry back for couple of centuries One of their great -grandfathers planted his cotton seed and tobacco with the pioneers
 of the Carolinas. Each generation added
 to the family possessions, until thirty years
 ago the possessions of the Lee estate ex- tended for miles on either side of the old family manor house and the planter count ed his slaves with three ciphers. Then the
 war came. The Lee gold was contributed generously, and the Lee blood flowed free ly in the cause of the confederacy- When the end came the Lees, though their mag nificent estate had been sadly diminished, found themselves still rich, but, crushed by the failure of the cause for which they | had sacrificed so much, they retired to their country home and lived in exclusiveness of the world encompassed by the boundaries | of their plantation. The years went on,
 and D. McCord Lee, the eldest son and the
 hope of the family, grew to manhood | There was great future intended for the | handsome boy, and money was spent lav- | ishly in his education.
 l All went we'll until he met and loved
 pretty Gretchen Flemming, young Ger
 man maiden of the neighborhood, who had
 nothing but her beauty and a warm heart
 to exchange for the patrician name and
 wealth of her suitor- Young McCord told
 his father of his attachment for the lowly
 child of the people, and there was a scene.
 The elder Lee stormed, but to no purpose.
 The son was obstinate and refused to yield
 to family prejudice. There were stoler
 meetings and delicious rambles for month,
 untfl McCord, finding he could never gair
 his fathers consent, boldly married th' girl in the little village church. The mes
 alliance was the last straw to the fsmjl!
 pride of the Lees. The son was disinher ited by his father, and the doors of hi , childhood home were closed upon him for ever.
 Young Lee determined to make star
 in the world for himself. and, with hi | young wife, came to San Francisco. Tha [ was twelve years ago Finely educated bu : totally unsuited to the ordinary ways 0 g gaining livelihood, the struggle for exist V ance was hard. Then domestic trouble e began, and the home of the younl l. couple was far from happy. FOu Il years ago separation was agreed upon J. Mrs Lee returning to Germany, where sh 2 soon after died.
 ,, During all of these years not word ha I. | passed between the estranged son and an e member of the family. The father keT r. well his word, and the son was too prou F | to SeaE a reconciliation
 s, After the separation from his wife Le ,f disappeared, leaving no clue by which hi IS future could be traced. A few days ago i'd lady of this city, who had been intimat ,e with the family since her childhood, r I. ceived letter from the missing man fit brother in South Carolina stating that tt Id father and mother had died leaving the e at tate to the children, and asking that tt I. lady should make every effort to ascertai ,h the whereabouts of D. McCord Lee. At h. vertisements were at once inserted in il of newspapers and everything possible is b NV ing done to that end, but as yet withot ,l. | result Lee, if living, is about 40 years { he age and is described a man of distil 1g guished appearance. His share of the e es tate would yield him @ comfortable incon Id for the remainder of his days.