Middletown transcript., 1909-03-06
CAAEL OAR us fIEIRESS

precious volumes, ana prePaIe IT
Ia examine them moro carefully
than I had had time to do since
I unearthed them from the little,
dark. second hand book shop that
afternoon. There was nothing
remarkable about them; no rare
editions Of we'll known classics,
no long forgotten books, valuable
from their very scarcity; merely
a few bound volumes OF old
magazines and a couple OF the
novels which had delighted me
as a boy, and which from old
association we're more precious
in their original type and polished
leather binding than in the
spruce modern editions. Best
of all was copy of Dickens
Master Humphreys Clock, with
the woodcuts that cannot now be
reproduced. AS I turned them
over. 1 became a boy again, sit
ting in the old apple tree at the
end of the garden at home, de-
vouring the thin, paper covered
installments of the stories; laugh
ing and sometimes crying over
them, as the present day school
boys, well crammed and carefully
examined students Of literature
as they are, are too critical to DO,
adjusted my reading lamp,
drew my chair closer to the ire,
and, forgetting alike the cup OF
coffee at my side and the patient
: whose unusual symptoms had
worried me all day, / lost myself
in the company of Nell and her
grandfather, Mrs, farley, Miss
Brass and the Marchioness, see-
ing them with the boys eyes,
and adding to the pen and pencil
sketches a roundness and com
pleteness of detail drawn from
my Imagination of fifty years
ago, and utterly lacking to my
reading of later life.
When l had gone more than
half through the second volume,
I came upon a large sheet OF
thin paper, covered with neat,
cramped writing. | took it out
and looked at it. A moments
inspection showed me that it was
a will, written throughout in the
handwriting of the testator.
Michael Darcy, and dated two
years before. 1t left interest IN
the farm of Carrignalea, with |
stock and implements, to testa-
tors brother, Patrick Darcy, who |
was also named residuary lega-
tee, while the sum Of three thous |
and pounds in railway stocks and
other investments was bequeath-
ed to "my late wife's niece,
Anastasia Ffrench. Il was, as
far as / could judge-and | have
had some experience in matters
of the kind-properly executed,
signed and witnessed.
It was odd to find an important
document Of this sort hidden
away between the leaves Of
book. Had Patrick Darcy and
Ffrench been left with
out their inheritance in conse
quence, I wondered And pic
ture rose in my mind of an heir
less, elderly woman ending her
days in poverty, because the
paper which would have secured
her independence was not to be
found. II
What an old fool | WAS, to be
sure. For all I knew Michael
Darcy might be still alive, and
live to make half -a,dozen fresh
wills. Or, even if he we're dead,
the chances were that this was an
Did will, revoked by The existence
Of a later one, and of no more
account than any other slip Of
paper used to mark a,book. Why 1
had l not thought of so obvious
IN explanation before? l would i
make some inquiries about the !
matter next day, however; it
would be easy to find out all
lbout Michael Darcy of Carrig- !
lalea. Meantime, the will could |
remain between the leaves of
Master Humphreys Clock.
But the morrow found me fly {
ng along by express train to the S
bedside of my only son, who had
net with a dangerous accident. |
Ind for many weeks / could +
hink of nothing but him, and of G
he best means ofsnatching him t
rom the extended arms Of death. /
Ind when, by Gods mercy, he t
7as as safe as from those clutches 4
s any one of Us can eyer be. D
lichael Darcy, his will, heirs and d
had faded out Of my e
aind as completely as if they P
ad never entered it, and the
a ..