The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1901-12-31
THE IMPOSTOR

N~O
contrary Notwithstanding. To be sure,
her presence added life to our little gath
erings, for, indeed, she was a vivacious,
well educated girl, but my heart belonged
to another representative of her sex. l
was really interested in the old man. He
talked most entertainingly on almost any
topic under the sun, and he had an easy
going sort of humor which was irresisti-
BILE.
That he had son / learned from JULIA
who was as communicative and gushing
as she was gay.
"You know 1 have a brother some
where" she once said to me. First
promise on your word of honor that you
won't tell father l told you. But no,
won't tell you anything. You shouldn't
have let me blab that much either"
"Look here Fraulein Hartmann"
said, seriously, eff the matter is really
secret you had better think twice before
you go on"
"That's all right. l am so full of it
must speak about it to somebody. All
want you to do is to pledge your word of
a gentleman that it will go no farther"
l only shrugged my shoulders, but this
must have been interpreted by Julia as
sacred oath of discretion, for she immedi-
ately proceeded to tell me the story.
81 never saw him." she began. "He
was born six or seven years before l
came into the world, when our parents
lived in Cologne. When he was two
years old, the landlady OF the house in
which they lived took liking to him. "A
liking is no word for it. She was all
wrapped up in the boy. You see, she
was childless and a cranky, nervous crea-
ture. Everybody called her a crazy
loon,' and some people said she was ac-
tually out of her mind half the time. Her
husband soon died and she sold all her
property and went to America, where she
had a sister and two brothers. AT that
time my father did not know she was 60
ing away. He found it out when it was
too late. You see, she was so fond of my
brother that my parents had to let her
take him to her house sometimes They
hated to do it, and my mother had fore
boding that it would lead to trouble, but
the widow would beg them so hard they
could not refuse her. Well, the long and
short of it is the crazy woman stole the
boy, and before my parents knew where
she was she had landed in America with
him. She wrote US all about it as soon
as she arrived at her sisters and begged
us to let her keep the child, promising to
bring him up well and to make him her
sole heir. Ny father wrote to some
friends in America, but nothing came of
it. When she found out that he was bent
on getting back the child, she stopped
writing altogether and fathers friends
could not find her. Later on my parents
heard from her in Australia. Again she
assured them that Victor was well taken
care of, but there was no address in her
letter and that was the last they heard Of
him-the last until yesterday. By the
way, Victor was his real name, but she
changed it to hide his identity"
Didn't your father try to get the
child?" / asked.
"Of course he did," she answered test
lily. But all this happened a few years
before l came into the world, so how am
to know what he did and what he did
not in those days? All do know is that
he did not leave a stone unturned, but
that's not what l wish to tell you. You're
inqustive as woman, and | am sorry |
have told you so much"
l must confess my curiosity got the bet
ter Of my sense of dignity. l begged her
to go on.
"Well," she said, with a patronizing
smile, 81 am not going to torture you.
Ny father received a letter from him yes
terday He would not tell me what Vic
tor said nor where he was. except that he
expected to be here In a month or two.
When l begged father to let me see the
letter, he said talked too much and that
he would wait until Victor actually ar
rived and he made sure it was not q
DREAM
1t was no dream; at least at the time
/ was introduced to the man who said he
was Victor we had not the slightest sus-
picion that he was somebody else and
that the real Victor-but then | am afraid
/ have fallen into Julia's habit of "blab-
bing."
He was well built fellow of twenty
nine, with reddish hair and regular fea-
lures. He certainly bore some resem-
bance to Herr Hartmann. and my old
friend was in the seventh heaven. He
was both an Australian and an American,
having spent his childhood in both coun-
tries by turns, but he spoke good German,
and his present residence was in an Eng
fish tow in the West Indies. where he
was established in business, as he said.
One afternoon, in the course of walk
] took with Herr Hartmann, my friend
said to me:
"You must be curious to know the story
of my son." And after going over the
events with which had been made ia
miliar by Julia he went on: 1.-The rest of
1t is very simple. That crazy woman told
her relatives a le She passed my son
for her own. He grew up that way.
Only recently-a year or two agO-he
learned the truth by mere chance. He
came across an old neighbor of ours " 10
told him that the woman he thought his
mother was childless and related the cir
cumstances of her disappearance. He in
veStigated the matter, and from thou
sand details he came to the conclusion
that ii was all true. Then it was he
wrote to me. 1t was all so strange, and
| was as slow to believe that he was my
boy as he was to believe that was his ia
Their, but a correspondence, of which my
daughter knows nothing, established the
truth beyond a doubt That's all there is
to it."
AS he spoke | noticed that his face was
clouded and that the ring of good humor
which usually accompanied his talk was
absent from his voice. 1t seemed to me
as though my friend were worried, as If
instead of being overjoyed at the great
event he looked pensive, wistful, heavy
hearted.
One evening Julia said to me:
"My brother must be in trouble.
know nothing about business matters, Of
course, but | feel that his affairs are out
of shape and that he is a poor man. He
is so bashful and reticent, you know, but
l can see he is anxious to talk to papa
about his affairs and has not the courage
to do so. Poor fellow, it keeps me awake
nights. | am so fond of him, you know.
l wish / could help him. l am sure papa
would but | can't tell him about it.
have tried several times, but my heart be-
gins to beat fast the moment | get near
the subject l can't account for 1t, but
it's no use | know | won't have the
spunk to speak to papa"
81 wish could help you," l said polite
ly.
"You could if you only would" she
answered eagerly. "You are a man.
You can talk business with papa. You
could work the conversation round to my
brothers affairs and ask him whether he
was well off, for instance. l tried the
trick, but made mess of it"
/ had to promise her. When l made
an attempt to redeem my pledge, l expe.
rienced the same sensation which Julia
had described to me. There was some
thing forbidding in Herr Hartmann's
manner when the conversation turned on
Victor He became morose, and he
smoked more than he talked.
Meanwhile the newcomer behaved to-
ward Julia in way which seemed to me