The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1895-03-15

N ASy ~8JSt
aye, and l suppose you all thought me
dead long ago." ratified on the old gen.
tleman. Never troubled to write to
any one, you see. How's your mother?
Well, l hope. But, bless my soul. you
don't seem over pleased TO see mel" For
Reginald had maintained a freezing ST.
lence. That's the worst of surprise
visits" muttered the old man in an az.
grieved tone. land yet your mother
ought to have received my wire from
Plymouth. That scoundrel of a porter
never sent it off. l suppose. Shouldn't
wonder If my luggage didn't turn up
either, and l with just enough cash left
to pay my cab here. However, / dare
say my transfer to the bank of New
South Wales will arrive tomorrow, and,
meantime. / think l may rely upon my
with the little l want till then. eh, boy?
He won't lose by it in the end, you may
rest assured" and here the worthy
traveller looked somewhat anxiously at
his nephew, who continued to regard
him with a stony gaze.
Don't mind me-" at length re-
marked Reginald, you cant be fin
ished yet, go through with it. You are
| doing well-best I've seen yet, " and he
smiled ~sardonically upon his visitor.
What do you mean, sir?' retorted
the old gentleman in a decidedly pep
perry tone lis the boy mad? What do
you take me for? BY the jumping kanga-
roo, this is a nice reception for a man
who returns to his native land after a
quarter of a century's hard and honora-
BILE work and with ESQ, 900 to his credit
at the bank. Answer me, sir. What
dye mean by it,"
Capital, capital, replied Reginald,
with the same expression on his face.
II couldn't have done it better myself.
But why, oh, why didn't you make it
el00, 900? Sounds much better, you see.
Quarter Of a century. too-very touch
ing, very touching indeed. / see it all
in my minds eye-the long passage by
sailing ship, the chill disappointment
on landing, the early struggles, the rush
to the goldfields, the first nugget, then
millions of sheep and cattle and vast
acres, wealth pouring in on every
hand, then the desire for home, the re-
turn by a fast liner, the surprise visit to
the humble and expectant nephews, the
warm welcome, the temporary loan, the
mysterious disappearance of the uncle
gone to fetch his mythical luggage. You
Internal old scoundrei," continued Reg
gle, assuming his sternest tone. "do
you imagine l don't see it all? Do you
suppose I've lived in London all these
years to be taken in by such a palpable
old fraud as you? Why, I've got it all
down here, " and he patted his favorite
volume, and many more ingenious lit
tie plans. No, you don't catch this
young man from the country mapping.
Mrs. Plaggs, send for a constable
By this time Uncle John had found
his~Hoice. well, of all the impudent
young cornstalks / have come across
this ones takes the banana, as the
Queenslanders say. This beats anything
/ ever heard of between the Murrum-
bidgee and the Darling. John limbs a
olnmon swindler! Young man. you
shall suffer for this. Where's my hat?
l<b IuO SCe u u tiiS. Soiih LILA Va
Windsor Plains a fraud and a sharper.
By the hopping wallaby, somebody will
pay for this, " and it was II very angry
old gentleman indeed who stumped
down stairs.
He carried it off WE'LL" reflected
Reginald, who did not try to detain
him, almost we'll enough to make one
think l might have made a mistake, but
what nonsense! Everybody knows Un-
Gle John died years ago, and this is some
miserable impostor, who may have
known him once and ferreted out his
connections in the hope of making a lit
tie money. A very ordinary dodge, and
yet, as Reginald sat down, he didn't
feel exactly comfortable.
Shortly after l came i'll rather hur-
riedly, for / had had a wire from moth
err to say that the long absent and almost
forgotten Uncle John was due to arrive,
and that he might find out our address
and call before going home.
Anybody been here:" l asked sharp
ly, because l did not expect Reggie
would have been in SO soon.
"Oh. yes, serenely replied the cock
sure ole, another of 'em. Dear Uncle
John this time
You don't mean it"' l shouted.
"Dut You surely weren't fool enough to
let him go:'n
'.Oh, l didn't try to stop him." airily
responded tho imbecile. HE didn't take
me in, though for real, downright act
ing that last inspector chap wasn't in
it with him"
'Of course he wasn't" l yelled.
you've done it this time. Turned your
only uncle out of doors and mortally in
suited him, l suppose. A man, l expect,
worth his thousands, and nobody to
leave it to but ourselves"
Fifty thousand bank credit alone"
here the idiot family CALCULATED.
That settles it," / said. Come ont
and get measured for that straitjacket. "
And l leave it to you to say if he
| didn't deserve it.-London Tit-Bits.
The Widowss Secffan-