Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-09-29
STRANGE. BIT TRUE.
Queer Voyage Of Fit of NoOd-The
Tale OF Mis-. NuNweIts Ring.

or. Macleod. in Good Words
Writers Of fiction are the recognized
holders Of briefs for the improbable, if
not the impossible. and yet there are r."
persons who. II they take the trouble TO
note such matters. viii not find occur
rcLces In actual life stranger than the
most unlikely dreams of tn novelist.
Rider Haggard has Doubtless lively
Imagination. and even Louis Stevenson
sometimes puts a strain upon fancy.
but / am about to relate some incidents
which ar not ictions but fdcts-thinss
which came within either my own OBJ
sorvatlon or that Of persons for whose
good faith | can YOuch; and when are
vet as extraordinary and rs injrluslcilly
improbable as any dream OF romance.
Robert Thorn. Esq. the pres mt proprie-
tor Of the Island Of Gamma in the lar
Hebrides, can. with many others. guar
antee the truth Of the following curious
coincidence:
In September. 1899. the daughter Of the
blacksmith I'm Gamma was wandering on
the shcre. gathering driftwoOd for fuel
when I'm a small pay about one hundred
wards distant from Ter fathers house,
she picked up "a niece of wood bearing
the inscription. .ut witf q knife: "Iach-
Ian Campbell Hilboa March p, l>g
on taking il 10 her mother. she became
much concerned, as this was the name OF
her own son. who as boilei-maker
in Spain. and, as would b. the case
with most people-certainly with High
landers-she could not get over the SUI
perstitlous dread that this message from
the sea was the harhinger of evil tidings
regarding her son. The family OF the
p~op4ietor ala their best 10 calm her ter
ror. exhorting her TO wait for an eXpiana-
ton when writing to her son she told
him of what had happened, ana was
greatly relieved on receiving reply as
surfing her OF his well-being. bat was
astonishcd 10 learn that he perfectly
remembered how when on holiday. he
had written. as ascribed. on a piece Of
wood and had idly thrown it into the
sea from a rock near Bilboa. We all
know the power of ocean currents, and
need not be surprised at this
piece Of wood having been car
ried for six months. but the mar
vellous and. except for undoubted evil
dcnce-the incredible circumstance in this
case IS that this piece OF wood after its
long wandering, should have been washed
on the shore within one hundred yards
Of where the writer's mother lived, and
that IL should be picked up by one Of his
novelist dared 10 picture message de-
liyeTed as this was by means Of an ocean
current every reader, and certainly every
critic would have denounced the outrage
Gus demand on faith. And yet the APP
parently impossible actually occurred in
Gamma.
Mr.. David r., a well-known merchant
I'm Glasgow. was several years ago travel
ling in Canada. on q Sunday evening.
far away in the backwoods, he was inter-
ested by hearing from a humble "shanty,"
the words OF a Scottish 'paraphrase,"
sung TO a familiar air. After a little he
thought he would visit thlD countryman.
whose family worship had thus recalled
to him other scenes. After chatting for
a while the man asked where he was
from. ON being told that he was from
Glasgow he asked his name and on
being Informed he became much excited
81 always expected some one of your
family TO come. My name Is" As
my friend had never head OF his name
he asked for an explanation. and the
man proceeded TO tell him that he was
the clerk who had stolen considerable
sum from the firm 10 which T.. belonged;
that he had been miserable ever since
feeling sure that at any hour he might be
discovered. that he was now doing well
and that il was his intention in "A short
time 10 repay all that he had taken. My
friend had been in the West Indies at the
time the theft took place ana IL was not
I'LL after his return 10 Scotland that he
learned the particulars. Ii IS. however
somewhat disappointing 10 hear the state.
ment with which he used IL end the re-
cital Of The strange story: IN spite Of
his promise, We have never yet read Of
any payment
Andrew Maxwell another wen known
merchant In Glasgow. was In the Island
OF Arran some years ago with his mother
ana sisters. The weather was Unusually
warm, and his venerable mother suffered
80 much from the heat that her hands
became swollen, and, as her marriage
rug was frettng her finger. one OF her
daughters after no little coaxing. per-
suaded her TO allow It's removal 70 the
dlsmay Of the daughter, the ring was
lost. but she procured another so like
the old one that the change was not
noticed when IL was placed on her finger
Next year the family went back TO the
same house. and in the autumn when the
farm-serYant In a neighboring building
having boiled potatoes for the pigs w3s
crushing a potato In her hand. she felt
something hard, and. on looking al this
thing inside the potato she exclaimed to
one OF the Naxwelrs servants. who was
beside her: Here's ling In the pota-
to- and showed a thin, worn marriage
hoop. IL believe" said the other III is my
n,istress's ring and we can find that out
because her initials were inside the hoop.
ON examining il there were the initials.
and The lost ring was idcBtinsa! II had