The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1913-07-19
.ANIiser sEIoard
ByM QUAD
Copyrisht, 1sl3 by Associated Lit
erarx Press
B NJ Quad

over fifty years old when he arrived
in the village OF Nobicstown and
brought his reputation as a niserwith
him. He bought an old shack or
house and paid spot cash for Il and
then opened business.
Once a week Moses bought about
80 cents worth of meat and groceries
BE was surIy and had little to say to
men.
BY and by Moses Taylor became
fixture and belonged to the town No
one cared whether he lived or died.
and it was generally believed that ne
had no relatives. The speculation
about him and his hoard never dieu
out. His wealth had been placed at
SIC, 600 In gold when he first came. II
1t ever showed signs of reduction
wire fence man would come along ana
say:
SGentlemen, don't you fool your
selves. Moses Taylor has Mt least n
hundred thousand in bright yellow
boys planted in his cellar
Then there would be higher respect
for Moses, and the wire fence man
would be looked upon as sort OF
hero.
The miser's shack was in suburb.
The nearest house was forty rods
away. While its inmates did not
neighbor with tho old man. they got
into the habit OF keeping track OF him.
They looked for the smoke of his chtm-
ney In the morning and for the dis
appearance OF his lean candle at an
early hour in the evening. 1t was n
sort of guardianship without meaning
TO be. 1t had gone on for years ana
years, when one November morning
there was no chimney smoke. Moses
had been seen the afternoon OF the
lay previous. and it was noticed that
ne was very feeble.
After a wait Of several hours men
went over TO tile shack and pushed
omen the door and found the old man
lend in his chair AS if he had plan
nod the thing to be n bit drnlnaucnl.
mis- sim fingers held two dollar bill.
The proper authorities were notified
and took charge. At the coroners In
uuest the doctors gave It as their opin-
lon that the old man had died from
the want OF proper food and care,
If a Fourth OF July and circus md
n presidential election had hit Mobiles
town on the same day there would
have been no more excitement than
over the taking of of the old mlser
Exclamations and suggestions and
comments few fast.
HE must have made Will" OBJ
served Rev. Barnes. land have hopes
that he left legacy to my church to
pay or the mortgage
The Rev. Barnes had e0ilected4sev-
eral hundred dollars for the heather,
but had never carried old Moses so
much as cracker
A schoolmaster expected at least
$500 because he had once bowed to the
old man.
: A certain widow expected that much
or more because she had looked over
her gate at him as she passed.
One of the merchants had sold Moses
a pair of shoes ut cost upon an occa-
sion, and lie moved about whispering:
Those old misers never forget one
who has befriended them. ! think /
can count on ut least $4Oo-I think
can"
1t had geen taken for certainty
that Moses had no relatives: but, land
alive, how they came tumblinG over
each other as soon as the newspapers
got to work.
It took the fun force of the sheriff
of the county to hold the people or
while the proper officials searched the
old shack.
A three room shack. almost without
furniture, is soon searched. OF course
the first thing was to ind the Will.
No will-not even an old letter. not
even a memorandum. If will there was
or had been one of the two lawyers in
town must have drawn 1t. as old Noses
had never left the town after his ar
rival
Neither of the lawyers had drawn
will.
There was more talk about graft, and
one or two were bold enough TO say
that the searchers had found the will
and pocketed it.
Now for the hoard. 1t was estimat
ed by the villagers ut $4,000 and by
the relatives at S25OOoo. Six oil. seven
fisdcun fights took place before the
crowd compromised on 100000.
No gold. No Green5acks.
''But there must be-" yelled the out
siders.
1--WE have made careful search and
found only the 81 he had in his hand
when he died"
1T must be hidden IN the walls"
"Then come and lind it."
Not man got into that house with
out being thumped. and not man got
out until thumped some more The
searchers We're searched. and then the
shack was torn limb from limb. so to
say. Not dollur-nOt a shillinS-not
even copper penny!
but where has 1t gomez" was de-
manded.
The answer didn't come then. but n
year later. when a stranger visited No |