The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-11-13
A BIG FIND
Bot 1t Proved to Be
a Burden
BY REGINALD ID. HERON

understand that | could have no
daughter of his that if | persuaded
Edith to marry me without his con-
sent he would never recognize either
nf us any more than If we were stran-
gers to him. and that the results Of
our folly and Edith's ingratitude must
he endured without any assistance
whatever from him.
What kind of young man are
you" he Numbered, for a gentleman
to give his daughter to? As poor as a
church mouse, you have come here in
hired carriage to see me-"
Yes" | retortcd, "and I'll go away
in the carriage in which came"
And hope you'll stay away"
We turned our backs upon each 9th
or. he to go into another room, | to
go out and get into the cab. l saw
Edith at an upper window with a
panied expression on her face. She
kissed her hand to me. and | waved
mine to her. Then l got into the cab,
shut the door with a bang and was
driven away.
AS it happened | sat down on the
left side of the carriage, whereas 1
had come ON the right side. The seat
was uneven, but | was too hot from
my recent interview to notice ii for
some time. Presently without getting
my mind off the latter endeavored to
arrange the former. The hump re-
mained. | arose and lifted the cush
ion There lay a package about seven
inches long by three wide, the wrapper
being brown paper. | was not so alb
sorbed in having been refused the
girl ! loved but that / removed it and
revealed package of bank bills. The
one on top was Of the denomination of
500. The next was $1,000, the next
500, and so on of mixed denomina-
tions to the end counted $50, 900 in
all
Here was a find-a big find-a deuced
big find. 1t would be impossible to
give the confusion of thoughts pass
ing through my mind. l had stumbled
upon the wherewithal to recoup.
Edith would vet be mine Would the
owner of the bills turn up? What
few of the flashes upon my brain. but
give only faint picture Of the tur-
moil there. | can only say in justice
tn myself that almost instantly all
gave way TO the fact that the money
was not mine and its owner must be
found.
During the next few days | bought
every newspaper issued In the city
where l lived and had found the bills
not doubling that their loss would be
advertised. When the next morning
after ] had found them | saw no no.
tice Of them | was surprised. When
on the second morning no notice ap-
peared was astonished, and on the
third morning, having gone through
with a dozen newspapers without find
ing what l looked for, was amazed.
On the morning of the eighth day
received a telegram from my college
chum, Henry Harker:
Come at once. The position Is vacant
and cannot remain so forty eight hours
This was in response to a letter
had written few days before to Har-
keT, who had succeeded his father as
president of II large manufacturing es-
tabliShment, asking him to give me a
job. | am not one to go back on my
proposition and began at once my
hurried preparation to leave. But
what should | do with the bills / had
found! Acting on the principle 'the
least said the soonest mended" / had
kept the matter to myself and the
money under lock and key, | being the
only one who knew where. | must
act at once. | thought of depositing
the bills in bank No; that wouldn't
do at all. Fifty thousand dollars OF a
strangers money in ones possession
involved danger. 1t might land the
finder in Jail. TO give it to a friend
for safe keeping would require deposit
ing the secret with him at the same
time.
| spent hours turning over differ
ent plans and finally settled on the
following: | went to a safety deposit
company and rented box. 1t was the
last thing | did before taking a train,
and | was in dreadful hurry. My
plan was to use an assumed name, but
in the hurry Of preparation | had not
settled upon name. When the Gus
tOdian, an old man. took out his book
and asked What name?' | gave him
the first that came into my head-Gus-
tavus Hall Williams. He wrote it
down; handed me the key to the box;
went with me to the vault. | put
away the bills, turned the key and for
the first time since | had found them
felt relieved.
Harker put me in a position that l
had not been prepared to fill. He said
he knew | could learn the duties as |
went along. | did learn them, but my
mind was fixed on them to the exclu-
sion of everything else. | thought Of
the fortune locked up in the safe de-
poslt company once in awhile, but
since there was nothing concerning il