The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1898-12-01

the comforts, and teach them to live
a life after his own ideas. He sci
up sort of a government and left
himself at it's head.
HAS FAMILIES AND FORTUNES.
O'Keefe, they say, has always tax
en- excellent care of his many families
His native wives he visits regularly.
He is said to have at least FIVE. He
is represented on the American con
tinent. When he left there he had
wife and children Every year,
until it passed out of existence. he
sent sum amounting to about
| $4,000 home for the maintenance OF
this forsaken household. O'Keefe
is now dragging on to extreme cid
age and what promises to hasten the
appearance of white hairs in lis al.
ready gray head is the fact that his
possessions are liable to prove an
elephant on his hands There is a Ie
mote possibility of his being unable
to turn over the immense and lucra
tive business he has built up, to
some Of his heirs, who will do honor
to his name by not allowing his
deeds to perish with him. A certain
nephew of Okeefe now supposed to
be in New York, had this south sea
fortune thrown at his feet and refus
ed to accept it.
O'Keefe, so he writes Consul
Williams in Manila, sent word to
this nephew that if he would come
aud live with him until the end of his
days and learn the modus operandi
of affairs on zap island and it's
neighbors, he would place all his af
fairs in his hands and allow him to
rule the fortune at his death 1t
was with much hesitation that the
nephew finally decided to shake him
self free from the rich life of idleness
he was leading in the metropolis
and take passage to the far off Pa
cific region. He babe good bye to
the bloods of his acquaintance and
sailed. He landed at a steamship
port at the Philippines, where he
was picked up few months later by
vessel from his uncle's domain
NEPHEW HAS GOOD THING
The tutelage in Malay politics be-
gan and the nephew was wined and
dined as the successor of the King
OKeefe in the finest society the is
land afforded. IT was rare sport at
hrst for the young swell. The nov
city Of the situation was fascinating.
But the time came when be longed
for some Of his former companions,
just to tell them all about it. And
then cams a longing to spend money
Where could he spend money on
zap island or any other island in the
group? Was not everything he wish
ed for furnished to him at his sign
and without the least expense? A
fish out of his native water will not
thrive and neither did the nephew.
THAI u,ae N about onl Ioo;e;z, ,oto~
view with the good uncle, aud ship
sailed for civilization with a passen
ger bound for America, while the
old man bowed his head in sorrow
The young man has gone back 10 a
place where they spend more money
than they do in Yap, land the old man
is looking for a successor.
Allegiance to his mother country
seems to be of small concern to
now that he has established
himself in country Of his own. Of
course this country has a flag, but
a passing war vessel would fail to
recognize an unknown flag, and I'M
less the craft from the island bore
colors of greater protection O'Ksefe
realized that he would probably lose
his vessels. This probably explains
the phenomena which one United
States vessel reported-viz:
British colors on a certain small
sail boat one day and American colors
the next. Perhaps O'Keefe is
little short sighted and mistook the
United States vessel for one Of John
Bulls At any rate he is being in
ypstiostAd nv Tncla Sam and ona Of