The herald. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1905-1953, 1913-08-14
AMiser 'sHoard
By Nj. QUAD
Copyright. 1913, by Associated Lit
crary Press.
By NJ. QUAD


I'm the village of Noblestowh ana
brought his reputation as miser Win
him He bought an old shack OF
bouse and paid spot cash for it ana
then opened business.
Once a week Moses bought ABOUT
20 cents worth Of meat ana groceries
He was surly and had little to say 10
men.
Nv and by Moses Taylor became
fixture and belonged to the town. NO
one cared whether he lived or dled'
and il was generally believed that ne
had no relatives. The speculation
about him and his hoard never dled
ont His wealth had been placed at
500 600 in gold when he first came. III
il ever showed signs Of reduction
wire fence man would come along ana
say:
Gentlemen. don't you fool your
selves. Moses Taylor has at least
hundred thousand in bright yellow
bows planted in his cellar"
Then there would be Il 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
neichbor with the old man, they got
into the habit Of keeping track or MN.
They looked for the smoke of his chin
ney in the morning and for the dis
appearance of his lean candle at an
early hour in the evening. 1t was
sort Of guardianship without meaning
to be. 1t had gone on for years and
wears. when one November morning
there was no chimney smoke. Moses
had been seen the afternoon OF the
day previous. and il was noticed that
be was very feeble.
After a wait Of several hours men
went over to the shack and pushed
open the door and found the old man
dead in his chair AS if he had plan
ned the thing to be a bit dramatical.
his stiff fingers held two dollar bill.
The proper authorities We're notified
and took charge. At the cOrOner'S IN
quest the doctors gave it as their opin-
| ion that the old man had died from
the want of proper food and care.
If Fourth Of July and circus and
a presidential election had hit Mobiles
town on the same day there would
have been no more excitement than
| over the taking off of the old miser
| Explanations and suggestions and
/ comments few fast.
"He must have made a will" OBJ
| served Rev. Barnes. land ] have hopes
that he left a legacy to my church to
| pay off the mortgage"
The Rev. Barnes had collected sew
eral hundred dollars for the heather,
| but had never carried old Moses so
| much as q 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 at cost upon an Occa-
sion. and he moved about whispering:
Those old miSerS never forget one
who has befriended them. l think
can count on at least S4O0-I think
can
! 1t had geen taken for a certainty
that Moses had no relatives; but, land
alive. how they came tumbling over
each other as soon as the newspapers
got to work
1t took the full force of the sheriff
Of the county to hold the people of
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 find the will.
No will-nOt even an old letter. no
even a memorandum. If will there wa.
or had been one of the two lawyers il
town must have drawn it, as old Nose:
had never left the town after his ar
rival.
Neither of the lawyers had drawn I
will.
There was more talk about graft, an,
one or two were bold enough to sa,
that the searchers had found the will
and pOcketed it.
Now for the hoard 1t was estimat
ed by the villagers at $4,000 and b,
the relatives at S25OOOO. Six or sever
fisticuff fights took place before tn,
crowd compromised on 100000.
No gold, No greenbacks!
But there must be-" yelled the out
siders.
I'VE have made a careful search an,
found only the 50 he had in his han,
when he died.
1T must be hidden in the walls"
, Then come and find it,
Not a man got into that house with
out being thumped. and not man go
, out until thumped some more. Th
searchers We're searched. and then tn
shack was torn limb from limb. so (
A, say. Not Il dollars not Il shilling-no
, even Il copper penny.
But where has IL gomez was do
manded.
The answer didn't come then. but
I year later. when Il stranger visited y,
[ blestown who had known Moses Taylo
70 for years and years. Moses had abou
: $500 cash after buying the shack. II
! had lived on the sum all the long year,
and the 81 was the last of it,