Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-05-04

Topham. Miss Martha Joyce, spinster,
of uncertain age, sat in low rocking
chair her sweet face clouded, her ten
der heart sore; while her two nieces,
May and Bessie Joyce, twin sisters of
lS, blue-eyed and pretty as rosebuds,
sat one each side. The three ladies
all wore mourning and bore in their
pale faces and heavy eyes the traces
Of recent sorrow; but while Aunt Mat
tie meekly folded her hands and sighed
May and Bessie gave voice to consid-
srable inward indignation.
81 don't care for ourselves" said
Bessie, using the plural that meant
the inseparable twinship; eve are
young and can work, but it is too hard
to have Aunt Matte turned out of
house and home after all she has done
Tor Mr. William Oldfield."
Don't blame your uncle, dear, +"
began Aunt Matte.
"We wasn't our UNCLE" snapped
,ut May.
''He did what he promised to do, I"
continued Aunt Matte.
"And then undid it." said Bessie,
ngrily.
''We are not sure of that, dear"
''Now, auntie He made q will,
.eaving you this house and $40, 900
and $40, 600 apiece to Bessie aud me, +"
said Nay; "but afterward, if he did
not destroy it, where is it?"
eyes, where is it?" echoed her sis
.er. eff it was in the house, surely it
would have been found in the general
turning out of our household posses
sions today"
''Well, dear, it can't be found, and
we must go back to our old rooms and
try to re-establish the little school I
left FIVE years age. We have had a
comfortable home for that time
For the facts of the case were these:
William Oldfield, widower of many
years, possessing large means, had
been attacked late in life with pain
full, incurable sickness, trying to nurse,
distressing to witness and having an
irritating effect on the nerves of the
sufferer. After enduring the trials of
dishonest servants and nurses, incom-
petent housekeep pers and careless at
tendants for time he had persuaded
his dead wife's maiden sister to give
up a small but fiourishing school, by
which she supported herself and her
brothers orphan girls, and keep house
for him.
In default of reg gdiar salary, he gave
l home to the aforesaid nieces, who
supported themselves by sewing, and
promised legacy to Miss Matte, who,
however, hardly expected and never
demanded it. Yet, most assuredly,
she had earned it, for her brother-in-
law, by reason of pain and bad temper,
made her slave to his sick whims,
keeping her actively employed as
nurse, as he grew worse and worse,
till, during the last year OF his life, she
rarely left his room.
Faithfully and patiently she en-
iured the monotony of her life, the
.aprices of her patients temper, the
fatigue of nursing, till death claimed
the invalid and released her. The
promised legacy had been left to her
and the girls in will made year be-
fore William Oldfeld died; bnt the
lawyer said the document was not in
trusted to his care. Failing to find it
in the house, the ladies were notified
that William Oldfeld, Jr., the nephew
and heir at-law of the dead man, would
take possession of the entire property
at once.
1t was we'll known in Topham that
.his heir was by no means the one to
vxyh al 4 b. l.,
property, as the remainder of his es-
tate, after the legacies mentione |,
passed, by the terms of the last will,
to the town to endow hospital.
The young heir at law had been on
Ill terms with his uncle for years, being
spendthrift, a gambler and man adj
dicted to drinking, heartlessly indiffer-
ent to his uncle's sufferings and laugh
ing boisterously when the lawyer pro-
posed to him to make some compensa-
tion to Miss Matte for her services
'The old maid was fishing for my
uncle's money, of course" he said,
"though she is not even a relative.
Let her go back to her proper place
and learn to keep her busy fingers
out of other peoples pies"
So the lawyer, Mr.. O'Byrne, of
kindly heart and great legal knowledge,
was obliged to give Miss Matte notica
to quit the house she had been prom
ised should be her own, giving vent
as he did SO to some opinions of his
own in the matter, not strictly profes-
sional.
"You are sure you have searched
faithfully for the wilf?" he asked.
"Quite sure"
"He certainly had it," said the law
yer. 81 drew it up myself-ten thou
sand apiece and the house and person
al effects and furniture to Miss Mar
tina; the rest of the estate for the use
of the Topham hospital. Dear! lear