Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1891-05-07
THE HIDDEN WILL.

LIE HlDlJEN WILL.
On North Broad street, just below
where the tracks of the Philadelphia
! and Germantown railroad cross that
! thoroughfare, stands ruined mansion
house that half century ago was brave
with pillared porticos and quantity
carved doors and window frames. 1t is
today cheap tenement house, inhabited
by half dozen families, and the work
of improvement has left the entrance
door several feet below the sidewalk. In
its halcyon days this old mansion was as
many feet above its surrounding garden
as it is now below the asphalt paved
street. 1t was the home of Jabez Fields,
a hard, stern old man, proud as prince
and as reserved and unsocial as he was
naughty. His only living relatives were
grandniece, Alice Fields, and grand
nephew, John Wilcox.
John Wilcox was a prosperous Arch
street merchant, with a comfortable
bank account and a landed and bond
and stock estate that made him one
of the Quaker City's richest men. He
was not on good terms with his aristo-
cratic old granduncle, who despised
trade and everybody who labored for
living. 1t is therefore not strange that
the latter totally ignored his grandniece,
pretty Alice Fields, who was as poor as
a church mouse and school teacher by
occupation. John Wilcox was as avari-
cious as he was wealthy, and when word
was sent to him one day that old Jabez
Fields had died suddenly he hastened at
once to the dead mans picturesque man
sion and locking himself in the library
began to search for his granduncle's
will. To his joy, in tin box in which
old Jabez used to keep valuable papers,
he found the document for which he
was hunting With trembling hands he
unfolded the crisp parchment, ran his
eyes over the closely written lines and
cry of joy escaped him. He had been
made sole heir to the dead mans estate.
Much chagrined was he, therefore,
when a letter from Jabez Fields lawyer,
James Dunnet, addressed to Mary Smith,
the old mans housekeeper, was shown
him. There was later will, and on the
day of the funeral the lawyer would
come to the old mansion to read it.
Hes probably left good slice to
some charity" soliloquized Wilcox, after
the housekeeper had left the room, and
still confident that what was left would
come to him he nodded pityingly to his
school teacher cousin when they met at
the funeral and mentally resolved to
make her present of ten dollars to buy
a new hat, gloves and shoes, all of which
articles of apparel were very shabby.
1t was misty, lowering day and the
old mansion seemed more than ordinari-
ly dull and gloomy when the cousins re-
turned to it after all that remained of
their granduncle had been laid at rest.
In patience they awaited the coming of
the lawyer, but when 10 o'clock arrived
and he did not put in an appearance the
housekeeper showed them to their rooms
and proceeded, with the assistance of the
butler, to lock up the house. These two
were fixing the fastenings to the big
front door when the sound of carriage
wheels crunching the graveled drive was
heard, and when Mary Smith opened the
door Lawyer Dunnet confronted her.
81 have been detained, Mary Smith"
he said, s'and won't read the will until
tomorrow. Have fire lighted in my
bedroom, for this mist has penetrated to
the skin; and by the way, Mary, send
me up some hot water and a bottle of
the old mans whisky. think punch
will do me good"
The housekeeper assured him that his
wants should be attended to, and the in
huence of the warm punch and the fire
speedily made the lawyer very drowsy.
Before retiring he took the will from his
pocket and laid it on the antique ma
hogany table which stood in the middle
of the room. He was an early riser, and
when he leaped out of bed the next morn
ing his eyes turned instinctively to the
table. He started back with a gasp of
astonishment The will was gone.
"Hai' he cried. rubbing his eyes.
sThat's strange" And, without stop
ping to dress, he examined the fastenings
of the doors and windows They were
all secure, and, although he searched the
room thoroughly, the missing will could
not be found.
After breakfast the servants, Mary
Smith and the two cousins, assembled in
the library and the lawyer took a posi-
ton in the center of the room.
"When reached here last night" he
began, with his eyes on John Wilcox's
face, II had the last will and testament
of my old friend, Jabez Fields, in my pos
session" and then he told of its mysteri-
GUS disappearance. He kept his eyes
fixed on John Wilcox's face, and the lat
ter shifted uneasily and changed color.
"Do you mean to say that had any
thing to do with its disappearance he
blurted out at last.
81 accuse no one," answered the law
yer quietly, and then he asked for the
viii which had been found among the
dead mans papers by his grandnephew.
When Wilcox produced it the lawyer
adjusted his spectacles, and with a.look
of Accommodation directed toward Alice
Fields said: Unfortunately the two wit
nesses to the missing viii are dead, but
think we can prove its existence and
its contents. If Miss Field wishes"--
mo, nor protested Alice quickly.
Not for the world" and when Lawyer.
Dunnet began to read she slipped quietly
from the room. There were tears in her
eyes as she groped her way from the
house and turned her steps toward the
city, but she wiped them away and
walked very fast. When she reached
her humble home she could no longer
keep them back, but threw herself upon
the lounge sobbing bitterly. So violent
was her grief that she did not hear the
door open, but she started up with q
little cry of fright when a strong arm
was passed around her slender waist
and mustached mouth brushed her
cheek.
'sErnestp she exclaimed, starting up.
eyes, dear, it is /" said Ernest Low.
ton, and he kissed away the tears. ~
met Lawyer Dunnet few moments ago
and he told me the whole story, else
would not have dared come. You are
still my poor, hard worked little school
teacher sweetheart, and / want you to