Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1895-08-15

VEINS ana plenty OF romance IN MS
heart. At last, in spite of gossip and
opposition, they were married, and then
instead of settling down, as the happy
groom had hoped, to life of welded
bliss in one Of his country houses at
Dordreoht, Lady Van Tromp insisted
on spending her honeymoon in Paris,
There they went, and the very day OF
their arrival the bride resumed liaison
with beggarly count, who, not being
an actual criminal, yet was written
black enough in the books of the Paris
police and for whom the countess had
as warm an admiration as one of her
cold, calculating nature was capable of
feeling.
Van Tromp speedily found his dream
Of bliss blown to the winds, but no was
not SO blind as not to see that his wife
not only did not love him, but was false
TO him as we'll Poor old Van Tromp
felt he had made his last throw for
happiness, and, hoping against hope,
dreamed she in time would learn to ap-
preciato his devotion and would love
him, and so tried TO persuade himself
Vi lltI L III AAAoN NINA NNAeAAAg VI
the marriage found them at Baden
Baden, aud there the unhappy husband,
thinking to give his wife pleasant
surprise, ervered her chamber at an un-
usual hour, bearing diamond necklace
for present and found her in posi-
ton which could no longer leave any
doubt rs to her faithlessness. Selling a
chair, he folled her companion, who new
er stirred again, but the shock was too
great for the husband, who himself fell
10 the floor and instantly expired, the
doctors said Of heart disease, and think
they were right. This event was only a
few weeks old The will had been read,
and it was found that he had literally
loft everything to my wife, Elizabeth "
Here my friend, the chief of police
and distant relative of Van Tromp,
came to the 'front.' determined quietly
ON his own account to investigate Lady
Van Tromp. He found this last was at
least her third venture on the stormy
sea Of matrimony. He had fancy that
some one of her husbands might still be
living and undiscovered. If this could
be proved, then her marriage to Van
Tromp was no marriage and the ducats,
dollars and diamonds bequeathed by
Van Tromp to my wife, Elizabeth,
would instantly melt into air--into very
thin air so far us the countess was con
oerned, provided, OF course, they had
not actually passed into her clutches In
fact, they We're legally hers, for the will
| had been admitted TO probate Those of
/ the family objecting could offer no val
/ id opposition, and she had been put in
| possession, but by u strange neglect on
her part left everything intact, save u
deposit OF 500, 600 gulden in the Bank
of Amsterdam, which she secured and
set out for Naples with new lover
The detoctive-whom will call Am
stel-discoyored that she had first been
married when only 10 years old to a
young Swiss in Geneva, who soon left
her and fed to America, He had subse-
quently returned TO Europe, hut Amstol
was unable to discover his whereabouts
or if he was living He suspected that
the Swiss was not only alive, but in
communication with the countess, and
that she, in fact, might be his legal wife.
He had followed the countess from Ma
Piles to Paris There she left her lover
and was now on her way to Nuremberg,
as Amstel believed, TO meet her first
husband, but she had arranged to re-
main few days with some old friends
Of hers. Every movement she made
there would DO watched, while Amstel,
going ON to Cologne to look up some
clews, intended to wait there until in.
formed that she had departed, and when
the train arrived ut Cologne he proposed
to enter it aud follow my lady ON, hop
ing to witness u meeting between her
and the much hoped for husband. Hap
PLY we had arrived in Cologne at THU
point in the story, and as Amstel wa
to ROMAN here we had TO say goodby
but for the whole 20 minutes of my
stay we walked up and down the plat
form talking eagerly of the case. l hat
become much interested, so deeply in
deed that had had leisure 1 certainl,
should have turned amateur detectiv,
and joined Anstel
The train started, and promising {,
write mo in New York the outcome o
tho case, we shook hands warmly an,
parted. He wrote me twice, and the fol
lowing year returned to Europe an,
met Amstel at Brussels. We had vor,
delightful timo together, during whicl
he told me the sequel Of the Van from
episode. Instead OF one, the COUNTIES
had two husbands living, hut tho VA
Tromps preferred to buy Oh tho woma
at good round sum rather than have
public scandal
Amstel interviewed the countess an
gave her the choice between arrest an
full release Of all claims on the Va
Tromp property for the sum OF 100, 90
gnlden. She made hard fight, but u
last gave in gracefully. But my ehapte
has grown too long already, and / vii
close it with the remark that mysel
met the lady at wiesbaden in 1871 an
became acquainted with the brillian
adventures She win appear again i
the sequel
The last face that saw at the Cologn
station was that Of Amstel, lit up wit
smiles as no waved his hand in adieu
Sitting oozily in the corner of the cal
riago, eager TO sea all that was TO
seen, found, as oil tourists do, niue
to charm and delight But my thought
were ON the bonds had to SELL and
was glad enough whom at 3 o'clock on
stot,, .l,.,s,- ...e,s H.. 49,