The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-08

wandering from town to town could he | hope to meet success, and he gaZed earnestly at all the faces that came be- fore his eyes.
 Fortune telling and quack medicine I succeeded juggling. Melchfor was fer | tile in ideas, the country side was hunr | gry for wonders, and the beauty and | genius of Nattee helped them when 1 ever they engaged in bigger opera tions than their ordinary ones, The excitement and constant change made l time pass fast, and a year went by al- 1 most before they realized 1t.
 Then one day mysterious messen- ger came to Melchior. bringing news which evidently excited both Nattee and him exceedingly. That evening Mel
 choir told Japhet that he and his wife i were forced to leave the tribe. He made fair division of the spells of the last campaign. Japhet told Melchtor that | he wanted to take F1eta away from | the tribe and put her in school. Mel | chior looked startled. Then, after con- sidering for a long while, he agreed,
 making the condition, however, that news of her be sent to an address which he gave to Japhet, and assuring hum further that he would furnish funds at any time if they were needed.
 When they were ready to go Nattee came to Japhet secretly and gave him long chain of coral and gold beads for Fleta. Do not let Melchior see it, said she, land take good care of the little girl, for would not wish her to come to harm"
 | Japhet took her to a private school near London. and, this care taken from his mind, all his ideas tended to- ward London. What a fool I was. ," said he to Timothy. q expect to find my father in the very highest ranks of society. and the paths we took Jed us into the very lowest! We must go to London and appear as gentlemen"
 Very good" said Timothy. But We have only upward of three hund- red pounds, which, to be sure. is a great deal of money, but still won't last long if we are both set up as gentlemen. Now. listen to me. Japhet You were christened after the Honor. orable Abraham Ney1ands and | was named after the workhouse pump. You were a gentleman fuondling, pre- senting yourself with 6 hRty-pound note and good clothes. I made by ap- pearance in rags. Now, 1t will be much cheaper and much wiser for you to set up as a gentleman while I Het up as the valet"
 Japhet cried out against the plan, but Timothy was stubborn for once 1 in their relations and carried his point l triumphantly, so that a few days aft erward a most elegant gentlemtn of
 fashion accompanied by respectful
 servant In irreproachable livery alight-
 ed at the Piazza Hotel in Covent Gar den, London. and ordered the best
 apartments in the place to be prepared
 for him.
 Japhet had hardly been in the hotel an. hour before a note was delivered
 to him. He opened 1t to find that 1t
 was from the famous Lord Winder.
 mear and that 1t was intended for
 some one else. But he found in the
 envelope a letter to e Mr. Master
 ton, instrueting him to deliver a seaI-
 ed packet to the bearer, and the note l itself referred to a secret.
 l So set was his mind on his search I for a father that he suecumbed to the temptation to learn a secret thatImight I give him power over a great family
 and so help him to enter fashionable
 society.
 He found that Mir Masterton was a
 lawyer who was generally credited l with possessing the secrets of many Il great families. The lawyer received the letter without question, and from
 his words Japhet perceived that he T was supposed to be nephew of Lord Windermear. who had been abroad
 since infancy.
 He turned over the papers and Ja-
 phet took them tdl his hotel to read
 They disclosed a secret involving the
 honor and reputation of a most dis tinguished family. The question was whether the man whom Japhet had personated would relinquish certain claims so that there would be no need . to drag scandal from oblivion.
 Soon after he had made himself mas.
 ter of the secret Lord Windermeal
 called on him. He was not surprised
 to find his supposed nephew hearing thu
 name of Japhet Newlands for MT
 Masterton had advised that when thu
 young man arrived from abroad h.
 should. bear a fctious name till every
 thing was settled.
 What a handsome fellow you havt
 become;" cried Lord windeNmear. e shall be proud of my nephew" Then, lowering his voice. he asked ' anxiously: Have you read the pa pera. What is your opinion7"
 When Japhet answered that ht agreed that everything should be kep secret. the old nobleman shook hii z hand again and cried that he wal l proud to see him possessed of sucl good feeling.
 5 'I will establish credit for you a , my bankers for a thousand poundl t in your name of Newlands." said he l and I will give you a letter. to m! , friend and kinsman. Major Carbon
 nell. asking him to make LendoI [ agreeable to you. I shall tell him tha you are my particular friends8" When Lord Widsrmear had gone i Japhet said to Timothy: 'of course
 we cannot touch the thousand pounds , That would be swindling. Besides 1T
 a few days at the most the req f nephew will be sure to turn up, anC f we will be found out. But Lore i Windermear will not dare then t.
 withdraw his protection from me. fol
 know his secret. I shall remain il society and shall find my father" Major Carbonnell had long sine squandered all his money. He owne' , nothing except some jewelry and tn 5 house in which he lived. But he hal 5 a distant hope of a peerage and h ! was the undoubted arbiter of fashion Z He made 1t a point to tell everybod. l that he would not pay his bills or hi
 gambling debts. His frankness mol I lified his victims; and his very con : siderable skin at whist permitted hin q to keep himself in ready cash, for h 2 took great care for his part not t, a play with those who would not o could not pay their gaming debts.
 Major Carbonnelrs introduction wa , suficient to open the doors of the bes ! society to Japhet. Within three week . he was as gallant a buck as any 0 them, and the founding who had be f gun life as an apotheca and con tinued 1t as a juggler was soon bend l ing over the hands of duchesses fl a London drawing rooms and, 1t must b, confessed, playing his part as a gen
 tleman of fortune fully as well as h, , had played his part on village stage i before rustic gapers.
 i Lord Windermear discovered the ina posture soon. as Japhet had expected A He relented, however, when Japhe