Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1910-08-30

The clothes | did not consider likely
10 be of much value. but the paper. II
It was In the mothers handwriting.
which was probable. might be of great
importance. showed Hardy the pa
per had found In the bottle. He sug-
gested that so TO Gullford and make
the search. but insisted on bis going
with me. Offering 10 pay his expenses.
he accepted my proposition, and We
set OF together. leaving the child with
his foster mother.
We arrived at Guilford in the after
noon and. taking a cab. told the driver
TO take us to the Carr place. II was
well known In the town, and we had
no difficulty In finding 1t. II was-or.
rather, had been-a ine house, sur
rounded by large grounds. But It had
not been occupied for some years and
was In a dilapldated condition. The
house was shut up. and there was no
caretaker. We left the cab at the
gate and walked to the summer house,
Ii was. rather. an Inclosed cottage.
Having examined the door and deter
mined what tools were necessary.
Hardy went for them. and when he
returned we pried up several boards
In the corner designated. We found a
lacquered glove box. In which were
several papers. One was addressed to
MY Darling Son. aud signed Your
unhappy mother. Julia Carr Garrett"
The substance of The paper was this:
Myron Blake Carr at the time OF
the opening OF the narrative was a
widower with an only child. Julia
When she was seventeen years old
she attended a finishing school. near
which was a mans college. One Of
the students OF the college, Hector
Garrett. met her. The two were pleas
ed with each other. and there were
frequent meetings. One afternoon they
met clandestinely for ride. During
the drive Hector dared the girl TO go
with him to minister and be married
Yielding to an impulse of high
strung nature. she assented. She was
no sooner married than. realizing what
she had done. she was filed with re.
greet She dared not tell her father.
| Had she done so this story would not
| have been written. When she met
her husband again be suggested that
they wait till after he had been grad
uated. when they would both acknowl-
edge the marriage. Thus two months
passed. Commencement arrived. and
they went home. both keeping their
secret.
| One day news came to Julia that
her husband had been thrown from a
| horse and killed. This deprived her
| of her husbands guidance. and she
was obliged to make her Own deci.
sions. She acted as any young girl
might have done who was afraid OF
her father. She continued to keep her
secret. Learning that she was to be-
come mother, she secured permission
from him to go away for a time. os-
tensibly on visit 10 a friend. Where
she went the paper did not state. but
1t told how a negro woman had left
the child. boy. with the name bis
mother had given him pinned to his
clothing. at foundings' home.
Julia Garrett returned to her father
who was still ignorant OF her marriage
or the birth OF her child. The burden
she bore broke down her health. and
her father resolved to take her with
him on trip around the world. The
} young widows health was not improv
; ed by the journey She continued tc
} lose ground, and when on the Other
side of the globe she died. Before bel
: death she must have told her father
OF her marriage. that there had beer
an heir born to his property and tina
she had hidden the paper. This hldin;
of the document took place before sh'
went abroad.
compared the handwriting witt
that which had been attached to tn
I foundllngs clothes. They were iden
I teal Both were written In peculia
r fashion. all the letters being mad
with sharp angles.
The other papers In the box were
g certificate of marriage between def
O tor Garrett and Julia Carr; also eel
b tincate Of the birth Of their son HeC
II tor, signed by the physician in attend
ance
e / told Hardy that there was amp
IS evidence to place his foster son In IN
possession Of such property as ha
e been left by the shlpwrecked hyro
O Carr. There could not likely be a wi
le unless Carr had mailed one from
Ie foreign port before starting on his lai
le water Journey. But since the boy wa
II the only child OF Carr's only child B
would inherit the property as the onl
~ direct heir.
20 Not wishing to act alone In matte
u In which | had no legal right TO act
,e all. persuaded Hardy to go with n
to deposit the papers we bad foun
81 with the proper officer Of the inhe
a itance court. and | hired an attorne
~ to attend to the minor interests. III
10 property was about 100000. III
e fudge after bearing my story ofers
20 TO appoint either me or the child's 10
" ter father his guardian. and Hardy J
~ sisted that would be the better mf
for the purpose He also suggests
~ that the boy who would inherit fo
Z tune should be brought up In
" different atmosphere from that Of
a. plumbers home. | offered to tai
= little Hector and assume his guardia
ship IL Hardy insisted and IL bis wi
:, was willing to give up the child FL
- DIV did insist. and Mrs. Hardy.
what she considered the good Of I
:. child. gave a reluctant consent.
- And SO It was that while lazily cru
nc ing along DER the broad Atlantic
Re came upon that which gave me an
:, loot of interest sud turned the life