The Kennewick courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914, 1905-11-10
When he was quite satisfied that he


hand opened the paneling at the side
of the fireplace, disclosing the door of
small but apparently deep and Sill
premely strong safe. inserting couple
OF keys. he manipulated them until
the locks yielded and the stout door
swung open. The safe was packed
with little bags of gold, parcels of
notes and bundles of negOtia BILE securi-
ties. The latter papers represented
John Breen's capitalists fathers leg
acy to him-the notes and gold the i'll
terest, less his trif1ing expenses, of
nearly thirty years. The investments
We're as safe as the ma tons credit, and
the owner had never sought to alter
them for others bringing a larger re-
turn. The stream of gold from therl
may not have satisfied him with its
bulk, but at least it was steady, and
he loved to mark on calendar the
days on which he would present his
coupons with the certainty of receiv-
ing the value printed thereon.
This very day he had collected the
ions. and now he brought from his
breast a dark soft leather bag ana
poured the tinkling contents on the
table-f125.
He began to count the sovereigns,
but somehow when he came to twenty
seven he could not proceed.
He tried again. with the same result
His head ached more than ever, but
he made another attempt-and failed
II wish the kettle would boil" he
sighed, laying back YEARLY. "a cup
Of tea will put me right
But when the kettle boiled at last he
paid no attention. The throbbinQ,
which for some minutes had been al
most unbearable, had abruptly ceased,
and sense Of peace had descended
upon John Breen.
His eyes closed. he lay unconscious
lis hard features wonderfully soften
ed. Strangely enough he dressed well,
and as he lay there in the poor light
of the candle and the increa sing glow
Oe the fire, which failed to make clear
the poverty and wretchedness Of his
surroundings, he might have been
taken for well-to-do and rather hand
some elderly gentleman enjoying
nap.
The kettle was dry and ruined, the
fire was almost out, and the candle
was within an inch of its socket when
John Breen came back to life again.
He sat up feebly and looked curIously
about him.
He felt no pain. but he was greatly
puzzled. An expression Of disgust
dawned upon his face when his eyes
caught sight of the bread and cheese,
but being desperately hungry he cut a
piece Of the former and ate a portion.
He was chilly. too, aud felt a craving
for hot food.
Then he beheld his wealth. He began
to tremble violently and tears rolled
down his cheeks.
Awe-stricken, he whispered to him
self, And l might have died tonight.
might have died. and no one. not
even myself. have been the better for
my having lived"
He took the notes, the bags of gold
and the documents from the safe. laid
them in heap at his feet, and began
to reckon his future. 1t was easily
done, for each bag was stamped with
$500" while each bundle Of securities
had a slip of paper attached bearing
its approximate value. Besides, be
found no difficulty in counting now.
The grand total came to a few hun
dreds and odd over eighty thousand
pounds.
II must leave this accursed house at
once" he said suddenly. Il must lose
70 time. or may be too late"
Within an hour he left the house in
a cab with a couple Of ancient port.
manteaus. In his pocket he carried
letter addressed to his charwoman and
containing instructions for her not to
call until notified to do so, which he
intended to post at the first opportu-
nifty. The letter also contained ten Is
notes.
1t was past midnight when he reach
ed the large hotel in Northumberland
avenue-the name Of which had some
how occurred to him as he stepped
into the cab-but he managed to get
fairly good supper before retiring
He slept little, for he had many plans
to make for the morrow Still, he
arose in the morning with nothing
worse than feeling of tiredness,
which, however, seemed to affect his
memory rather strangely. For in
stance, he could not remember where
he had come from the previous night:
and as the day wore on he was occa-
sionally perplexed regarding other
matters Of the past. The bunch of
complicated keys in his pocket puzzled
him, and when he happened upon the
doctors prescription In another pocket,
he could not recollect the visit to the
physician. Most of all. the revolver
in his hip pocket troubled him. He
did not know what to do with 1t, and
he was afraid to unload it lest it dis
charge For the time he decided II