Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1907-10-31

He said "when am gone" with con.

He said "when I am gone" with con-
ventional solemnity, having no desire to
go or any expectation Of going. The
verb to 60, used in this sense, Is not
disagreeable, because personal appli.
cation is never made. Yet Mr.. Will
loughby Capel had to go--only a fort
night later he had to 50 in the most un.
expected manner. 1t seemed that he
had heart disease. and he fell down
dead in his room.
Katharine thus became an orphan.
Uncles and aunts and cousins she must
have had somewhere, but she knew
nothing of them. She had understood
when quite child that she was never
to ask her father about her family.
Some there are who would cheerfully
surrender all their cousins. Katharine,
who never had any. did not greatly de.
plore their loss; but at this juncture
even Tom could not replace the lost
cousins, because Tom, you see, knew
no more than herself about her fathers
property, and there was not scrap Of
paper to show what this was, where
situated, or whence derived.
It really was a strange thing; not
single scrap Of paper with so much as
a note to show who were the deceased
gentleman's lawyers; not line to tell
who were his people; in fact, not n
word about himself. or his income. or
anything. We speak Familiarity OF
mans desk, Of his diaries, of his pa
pers"-everybody is supposed to be pos
sessed of these things. Well. the late
Mr.. Willoughby Capel had nothing. In
his chest Of drawers were his clothes,
and these, so far as could be gathered,
constituted the whole Of his property.
except the sum of thirty pounds in
gold. This man had lived flfty-five
years in the world, and he went out OF
it leaving nothing behind him but I'VE
or six suits of clothes. Could these be
held up as the record OF n useful life!
Were these all he had to show for good
works? Perhaps they might pass. be-
cause good works, we have been told,
are but rags.
"Katharine," said Tom for the twen-
tieth time, "this Is wonderful. Do you
know anything?
Nothing, Tom. Once he told me my
second name belonged to several OF the
women of my family, and that Is all l
ever heard about my family.
katharine Regina. 1t isn't much to
60 upon, is it?"
Tom put an advertisement in the pa
pers calling OH the relatives of Will
loughby Capel, deceased. to commuT-
cate with the advertiser. Nobody re-
sponded. Then he thought that some
business letter might arrive which
would give them the information want
ed. But none came.
When man like Mr.. Willoughby Ca
pei, of good manners, evidently born
and bred among gentlemen and gentle
women, separates himself from his fell
lows and lives in obscurity and main
tains silence about his antecedents,
there Is one conclusion which 1t IS I'M
possible to avoid. Tom, the most char.
table of mankind, was fain to draw
that conclusion, He made no more In
luiries. and Katharine, Just to tide over
the time until her marriage, went to
live at certain institution or home for
ladies' who have to maintain them
selves. 1t was only temporary refuge,
and In her llghtness Of heart and in the
selfishness Of her happiness she
laughed at it, and called 1t the House
Beautiful, or the Earthly Paradise. or
Lucky Lodge, seeing at first only tho
outside Of things, and as vet ignorant
Of the things that lay hidden beneath
that ridiculous outside.
And then the Inheritance fell in. On,
brave Uncle Joseph! And very soon
the lessons would be given up. and the
House Beautiful would be exchanged
for the house in Russell Square.
Yes, the Inheritance fell In. Oh. good
Uncle Joseph! And for week there
was happiness inexpressib!e. The cup
was at the lip; and then-then---