Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-05-21

WITH NE. am deadly tired of it al,
and crit sounds curious statement
am anxious to make away with my
SELF
The lawyer was only Sc, and he start
ed. Professional calm reasserted it.
self moment later, however, and he
echoetd Georges last words in meas
ured tones:
ITO make away with yourself? O.
nonsenseI"
Il am.' replied Collier, .'.but my life
isn't assured. You see the difficulty ?
1 am bound to think of my wife and
child. and they would be practically
penniless."
Assure it," suggested Mr.. Horace
Orkney, with a shrug. ''if you are de-
termined. But, my dear Collier, do
let me dissuade you from entertaining
such a-such a-really, you know" He
Withdrew his monogramed handker-
chief and shook it out daintily, diffus-
ing an agreeable odor of white rose.
"You distress me much"
Il won't trouble you with my argu-
come to discuss the pros and cons, or
to waste your time. My mind is made
up, and I know my own mind better
than anybody else can tell it to me.
You say: Assure it, the point is that
l am unable to do SO, because I can't
put my hands on the money"
"Oh?" said Orkney. ''The premiums
aren't heavy" he added, after pause.
"How much did you think of assuring
for?"
while I am about it I want to make
an adequate provision; 1 want to ar
range so that there shall be an income
of. say, four Or five hundred per annum
1 know what the premium would be on
an amount to yield that from a safe in
vestment, and should pay it for a year,
down!-it would be better. I reckon
it e 800. Now, my idea was"
"Was-what?" asked the solicitor,
blandly, as he hesitatcd.
George was a little nervous. His
gaze wandered.
'My idea was that you might be
willing to advance me the sum, to be re-
payable with interest at my death. L
L am eager to make the proposal as at
tractive as / can. Advance me 500
and I'll have Il will drawn up at once,
and leave you thousand. How does it
strike you? I think myself it's very
fair
gether pensively.
"a company contests the claim in a
case of suspected suicide he said;
you are overlooking that"
81 am overlooking nothing. 1 have
thought it all out, and / know exactly
what l shall do. y cousin of my wife
has cottage in Kent, on the Darenth.
We have often staid there. The lawn
slopes to the rivers edge, and there is
an Indian canoe. No more solitary
place, especially after dusk, could ez-
list. Now, can easily contrive so that
we get an invitation to go down for Il
week. One evening, after working hard
all day, I shall say I am going out for a
breath of fresh air. 1 shall ask what
time they are going to have supper, and
set my watch by their clock, so that l
may not be late back. | shall beg my
wife to remind me of an important let
ter have to write in the morning and
step out through the window in the
gayest of spirits. Well, the canoe up
sets. 1t is known do not swim. Moth
ing could be simpler!"
"But your intentions may alter, my
friend. And, if they do, 1 have adj
vanced you 6 800, and where am /?
In the natural course of events you may
live for 30 or 40 years to come"
81 thought" said Collier, ."of wait
ing to put an end TO my life till the
spring, so as to avert any possibility of
a suspicious complexion. If you think
it judicious, the accident shall occur
next MONTH"
There was another silence.
81 will consider" said Mr.. Orkney,
at length. "Now you must let me send
you away; I'm busy"
Having considered, he agreed. He
provided George Collier with the sum of
6 800 pounds to take out policy. and
George made will by which Mr.. Horace
Orkney was bequathed 1000. The
rest went to Eva, who, to give her her
due, was an affectionate mother.
The weary man was now compare
lively contented. In April he was to
die, and it was already November. To
make quite certain there should be no
hitch in the post norton proceedings,
it had been decided that he should wait
till April. He had had hopes that Orb-
ney would declare it was safe for him
to take the step earlier, but on reflection
the lawyer had pronounced it inadvis-
able, and said it would be wiser for him
to keep to the date he had originally
suggested.
1t was disappointment, but George
was too grateful TO complain of
crumpled roseleaf. He had borne the
sings and arrows so hopelessly that it
was a pity if he could not contemplate
No, he was not unreasonable, and, as
first one week wore away and then an
other, his satisfaction increased. He
felt like an overworl<cd man looking
forward to a, long holiday.
There was a serious epidemic of in
fluenza in London that year. Every
body who could afford to do so was flee
ing to the continent or to the English
and among those who
remained in town, and were laid low,
was Mrs. Collier. This was at Christ
mas.
The doctor did not at the beginning
regard her case gravely, but she got
worse, despite his encouragement. and
after fortnight in bed she sank and
died.
George was ineNpressibly shocked.
he had long since outlived his
illusions about her. she had been his