Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-02-22
FORTUNE IN BOOKS.
Queer Whim of a Man in Seeking an
HeiresS.

Queer Whim of a Man in Seeking an
Heiress.
That knowledge Is power has been
universally conceded Tor a long tlHe'
that it brings riches is not always so
true as in an instance recently tur-
nished in the family of a farmer nv
near here Mrs. Meldrew the wlIe Oh
the farmer mentioned, had younger
brother. who from childhood eyinced
an earnest desire for an education, de-
vouring all the books his parents pos
sessed-a scanty store and all he
could borrow. He had reached the age
OF fifteen when he was hired to farm
er living near his home. and at the end
of his service was paid what was due
him, S25
On his way to his fathers house he
met a peddler who carried a good stock
of books, and on thse young Mason eX-
pended the entire sum he carried, and
took his books home in triumph. He
exhibited his purchase to his family,
and confessed that he had no money
left. At this his father, who was an
iliterate man, and who had always op-
posed and sneered at his sons tastes,
SDfdUA 10 HIS lttt III 81 NAOlE4AL III VI
anger, and taking the books, threw
them one by one into the fire, then,
turning on the boy, abused him in no
mild terms for wasting his money, and
with trying to beat his father for his
living
c He finished by beating the boy Sc
verely. Next morning the lad had dis
| appeared leaving a note saying he had
! gone where he might work for and OBJ
tain an Education. For 80 years no
no word of him ever reached his family
| now reduced to one sister. But it seems
| Charles kept himself informed of her
fortunes, for a few months ago there
her a letter from Toronto Canada, tell
ing OF her brothers death, and that he
| bepueathed to her two daughters his
entire property, consisting Of library
of 1900 or 1900 volumes, Is of which,
giving the list, he particularly recon-
mended the girls, his neices, TO read.
If they had no taste for acquiring
| learning the books were to fall into the
! possession of q distant cousin. The
| legatees, girls OF 16 and Is years, re-
ceived the books with widely different
feeling, May, the elder, disdaining
them with the rest of the family, who
! only recalled with ridicule Charles
! foolish fancy, as they considered 1T.
But the younger, Elsie, herself much Of
! her uncles temperament, had always
been much affected by the story Of
his disappearance from an uncongenial
home Partly because of her sympa-
/ thy for him, and partly because she
really loved the books, thegirl applied
herself to master the rs books to which
her uncle had especially called atten-
| ton.
She had read in her leisure hours,
few as they We're, q of these works,
when on opening "Plutarch's Lives. -
she was surprised to find several of the
On these were again pasted bank bill
! pages missing and replaced with sheets
! of tissue paper pasted securely In.
after bank bill of American money.
Scacely able to believe her eyes, the
| girl counted the money, to find that
each bill was for 800, and that there
were 200 Of these. On blank sheet Of
paper pasted before the first of these
was a will Of her uncle's leaving the
money to the one of his neices who
should the books he had accumulated
during his lifetime. SO Miss Elsie is
an iheiress by her uncles singular
whim, and the richer by some volumes
of the best English literature.-Phil-
J adelDhia Times