The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1899-02-10
THE EGJS AND INTELLIGENCE,
BEL AIR. MD. FEBRUARY 10, 1899


in an hour after MY release. These and
other things influenced he tn lead that
way. After getting fairly started on tho
journey l had IL longing to see the o.! place
again and thus became quite satisfied with
myself. Having lett tho town ;ncle lad,
nine years before, had no fear unaU try
one would know me, and, as matter of
fact, no one did Within an hour of my
arrival however, SOME of tho townspeo-
pie who were gathered in the taproom be-
grn discussing the Hiltons, and was as
tonishcd and aggrieved that reports of me
had been received from time to time and
that it was known l had been sent to prison
for felony. They did not know l had been
parloned out nor that had resolved to
lead IL better life, and they spoke SO much
TO my dctriment that i was cut to the
quick. learned from their conversation
that the old house had been empty for
years, and they predicted that the last of
the Hiltons would hardly care to ever
show his face again i'll Wentworth to find
| buyer.
Next day after my arrival I strolled
about the town and finally entered my
grounds and walked about, and then en-
| tered the old house. Windows were bro
ken, doors gone and the roof leaking in
dozen places. The place was simply an old
ruin. AS wandered through the rooms
| the thought of that strange clause in the
will hasAod across my mind. 1t had been
dismissed from my mind when left Went
| worth, nor had it come up again in all the
years l had roamed about l could not re-
call the wording of it now. l only remem-
bered that was to stand at the foot of the
cellar stairs and count something, and that
rf,iy rod
| together. started to descend to the cellar,
| but the stairs had rotted away. AS l
| moved about also heard some animals
stirring down there, and fearing might
get into trouble left the house and tho
grounds. When made inquiries in the
town, found that the old solicitor had
| been dead for years and that his papers ard
accounts had been transferred to firm
| living in o town ten miles away. l de-
| cidcd to 40 and see them and claim my
own, but there was no hurry about it. All
| that afternoon and evening l Kept trying
to remember the cellar-whether it was
one open space or divided. This thing
rrCying ON my mind naturally brought
about the dream which followed. dream
| cd that the cellar was one large room and
| that the floor above was supported by three
| brick pillars. Tho words in the will also
stood cut clcarly-"count one and three
and take two" woke while yet dream
| ing, and lcaping out of Led wrote down
| the words. When morning came, decided
on an investigation of the cellar, and
about midafternCon revisited tho house. l
gained entrance to the cellar by an outside
passage and after driving out dog who
had taken up his quarters there l located
| the SPOT where Tie foot of the stairs had
been. The cellar was one large room, and
| tho floor was supported by three pillars,
| Just as had dreamed. 1t was 4 distance
| of about 40 feet across the cellar, and pillar
| No. 2 was exactly in the center opposite
| tho stairs. Count one ard three and tako
| two." Two was the center pillar, of course
| but why take it? 1t looked exactly like
| the other pillars 1t was there to support
| the center beam on the floor, as any one
could see, and where was the mystery in
| that? looked it over with great care, but
could see nothing different from the 9TH
| ers The architect had planned it, and the
si;mc hand had built the three and used
| bricks from the same lot. 1 was provoked
| with my father for writing the words and
with myself for attaching any significance
| to them, and after awhile climbed out Of
| the cellar and went walking in the town.
| tried to dismiss the whole affair from my
mind, but it clung to me, and an hour
after dinner l was back in the cellar. II
| there was any mystery about the pillar, l
could solve it only by attacking the bricks.
After hesitating fer u long timc looked
about and Glanced upon portion of an
| iron bar, and, removing my coat l began
work. After few bricks had been loosen
| ed the rest wes easy enough. The pillar
was Z feet high and = feet square and was
perfectly solid until was within two feet
Of the bottom. Then found u hollow,
| and this hollow was covered by sheet of
tin. When l reached this point l WAS SO
excited that l rad to stop work and sit
down for awhile, and it was well that
things happened thus. While l was rest
| ing heard People moving about outside
and caught enough Of their conversation
to know that l had been seen providing
around and had aroused suspicion. After
| the people lad departed l Eulled away the
| cover and there was tho treasure which
| had been left to tho last of the IIiltcns.
Tho receptacle was full of guld-cvCry
pound Of it in yellow metal. My GRANDPA
tkcr had rcsurtcd to usury and half starved
himself to leave it to My father, and NY
father had pinchcl and saved for q life
time to leave it to me- / took the money,
and when the hat was full l carried it out
| among the sbrubbcry and cmpticd its con-
tents On the ground. There was G12, eco
therc-G13, 600 and something over, and
some of tho pieces must have Eecn saved
up for over 100 years. That evening l
hired n cart for q couple of Gays, and, Lav-
ing possessed myself of strong leather
bag, transferred the gold from the gar
den to the cart and drove to Shropshire
and put it in safe place. Later OH l
hunted up tho solicitors who had the WILL
and in due time and without returning to
Wentworth came into my own and dis
| posed of the house and lands fer Il snail
sum. Some one who visited tic house dis
covered the work had done there, and the
amount of money l took away las been
variously estimated at from Il, geo to go,
$50. 1t has been asserted that also Sc
cured many articles Of icwelly, but h;Ne
given you the true particulars. At first
they were mystifiCd as to NY identity.
When they came TO know that the stranger
was the last of the Iiiltons, they had it
that escaped from prison and was more
desperate wretch than ever. That you may
do me justice l will say that for years
have lived an honest, upright life, min
Cling with the best of my fellow men on
equal terms, and though the race will die
with me the last of the Hiltons will die
uvith friends RI mourn his lnGs
n