New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-02-28
HE HUNTED FOR GRlDEYs
THE ECCENTRIC LIFE-woRK OF Alan
OF THAT NAME.
lie SEARCHED OUT A GRIDLEY WIFE. WAS An
RfED by GRIDIEY CLERGYMAN. AM
CHRIsTENED HIS BABY GRIDLEY.

ing the flying landscape when her reverfe watut
short by the entrance OF her husband from thN-
rection of the smoking car. bringing with hiie
handsome man about thirty-nve. with remS-
ably earnest pair OF dark eyes.
my dear" said the stronger half. ''let me 3.
sent Mr.. Gridley to you. have Just had
pleasure Of a. little talk with him In the smok
and know you will be interested In hearing.
his Network"
The Pullman car passenger took up her DO.
and lost the opening sentences of tie convers.
ton, but her attention attracted by an e.
clamaton from the quiet woman.
do you mean that you do nothing bit 80 abot
and hunt for Gridleys" %
Not exactly that travel for pieaaire; I a.
very fond of 1t, but when find that b going
little out OF my way can meet new +ridley.
gives me the greatest pleasure to look hih up"
do you always find them-nice?"
II have yet"-this was said with the greatest
fervor-"to find an undesirable member OF my
family. May I ask madame. IL you have any
connections by my name? have already aked
your husband. and find TO my regret that we eauos
claim kinship"
Il have Grdley relatives" The lady's %
did indicate any deep regret on her part
ITS a great pity. On this trip haven't fou
a single cousin; and when | went to Lower Ca
forna last winter. following up what seemed to
an excellent clew, / grievously disappontN
/ have been telling your husband about my effort
in the way of family research. and he seemed t.
think that you. too. would De interested Snah
begin at the beginning?"
Without over-enthusfasm the quiet neighbor said
that he might and he sailed In. full canvas"
my earliest interest in the matter was aroused BY
the fact that my mother by blood. though not BY
name, Grdley. and that by singular and
most fortunate accident-but can honestly call II
accident?-my first school teacher bore our hon.
ored patronymic. During many conversations with
this teacher a very charming fellow-he is the god
father OF my eldest son-I had established the fact
that he cousin OF the ninth degree. and
became so absorbed in my researches that made
up my mind to make the study OF my family my
first object In life My brother and I were edu-
Gated together until II came time for to go to
college when we separat 4. John going TO Iar-
ward while I carried the family name and ira
ditons TO Yale We were forced TO adopt this
course because there had been Grideys at both
universities since their foundation" (Let here
nterpolate that / had to turn my head TO assure
myself that the man not reading aloud so
steady ceaseess and unbroken the flow Of
his eloquence)
my fathers death. just after vas graduated,
giving well-invested fortune er me free 10 fol-
low out my own wishes. finished ny law studies,
and then after my admission to the bar. went
abroad While there I was engaged in a corre-
spondence the subject OF the Grdleys with all
the genealogical societies both In tbs country and
England and came home with gooc deal Of salts
factory Information. Ny mother hd died. and
the nrSt year tndt ndu the Oiu HOuocUpeH-l must
mention by-the-way. that am a Pennsylvania
Grdley-I had the pleasure Of having seven
ms more less near. to spend thee or four
months with me- am sorry to say tat, though
l got on delightfully."- with all OF them. SINE OF the
cousins quarreed among themselves n way
that caused me great pain.
Il occupied with my pleasanttask that
I did not think of matrimony until vas about
twenty-eight years DID, and then. to my reat dis
tress. 1 found that among all my new-fond rela-
tiyes there was not an unmarried girl undo thirty
l was about to offer myself. am ashame' to say
rather reluctantly TO a sost worthy cous> about
seven years older than myself, when foud that
I'm North Carolina there a branch Of thdamy
which l had entirely overlooked. and tht the
head of that branch was the father OF three eugh-
ters ranging in age between twenty and tNnty-
six.
II wrote to him once. presented my Credentials
and asked permission pay my addresses 10 ne
Of his daughters. or course. / could not presu1e
to make a choice at such a distance. but So
gested that II he did object might go dow
and spend few weeks with him. getting TO kno'
the young ladies. and thus being able to make
choice-and letting them do so as well
"He answered my letter at once, saying that he
hardly knew how TO respond-as victim OF the
war; from which he had never recovered financially.
he not so situated as TO ask me to visit MN,
could he make any promise for any one OF his
three daughters. but there was good MOTEL within
mile or two and If was so minded tney would
be glad 10 make my acquaintance; left the next
morning my quest for vile. Madam, the SodS
favored me; three ovelier and finer young women
never lived than my three cousins
of that time was most happily betrothed to my
middle cousin. Then very serious question arose
mony performed by a Gridley, and the idea was
pleasant to my hancee though she did not t .s
as | could discover. there was not clergyman.
sy ng am msaH US we in 1he pasof the
searched in every direction; | put advertisements
in the leading papers or this country ana Great
for Information in regard 10 a clerical
Cirdley. matter of what denomination set
most in despair having spent year and half in
the search 1 found that there was a recently or:
named John Gridley. Imagine my relief | tee-
graPhed the good news 10 my m d ana she zen
course at my expense 10 perform m my
on 5ne fa ba or second
! started for Engand l found that the young
WINGED that the whole thing was hoax. even after
seeing me. At last l convinced him OF my SIN
/ got him a leave of absence and found him
most charming travelling companion
to persuade my brother and fayorite eoGsin-a
Boston Gridley-to make 1t triple wedding; gu!
they both engaged and couldn't be induced
When our son was born my wife and I had our
first quarrel-not a lasting one for she yielded
She wanted to call the boy Robert for me-"
And what did you want TO call him. inquired
What? Madam. there but one name-Grid.
SNot Grdley Grdley? You never thought of CIV
ing the poor baby such a name as that a.
Il not only thought OF II. my dear madam; did
1T. My cousin John got another leave and came
over to christen him. Ii memorable occa-
sion. The father and mother Gridleys the s2on'
Gridleys. the officiating clergyman Gridiey;
all the guests Grideys | hatter myself mat u
positively unique. One hundred and twenty,
nine Grideys some OF them meeting for the nrst
time about the christening bowl of the youngest
living Gridley."
rs he dead?" "
MY son? Little Gridey? Here is his photo
graph. Does he look dead?
He pulled out a picture of lovely baby boy:
two or three years Old who seemed fully AS awe ans
other photograph in the same case OF the childs
mother. very pretty but weary lookins ySans
At that moment the Pullman passengers
destination reached. and she did not hear INC
last OF the story of the Grdleys Oddly enough nal