Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-01-16
The Daily Story
A CLEVER DEvICE-BY ESTHER vANDEvEEF
Copyrighted. is1s by Associated Literary Bureau

\ huSDduu Wutu Ne tdIut uOUS
business. what do you supposeT'
What do I suppose? Why, 1 sup
pose I'm to have a good dinner. I'm
certainly hungry"
Aunt Cynthia is coming to live with
us. You know she was at our house
till father died. Then she went to live
with Ellen Stone"
whats the matter with Ellen
StoneT
Aunt Cynthia thinks she doesn't
care for her except for what she can
get out of her. Miss Stone is very ex
travagant-runs up bills and has thers
| sent to Aunt Cynthia. You know Aunt
Cynthia is very well off,
81 didn't till you told me. How do
! you know which is at fault, your aunt
or her niece?''
81 don't. 1 have never seen Ellen
Stone"
What are you going to do about TAX
ing your aunt in?''
THAT depends upon you
mo, it doesn't; decide it for your
self"
Mrs. MacKnight was one of those
women with whom any one could
! get on. She was kind hearted and
would like very much to give her aunt
home. Mrs. Cynthia Withers, a
widow, would pay a good round sum
for her board, and that would be a
benefit to Mrs. MacKnight, who, on
her husbands salary, found it diff
cult to make ends meet. John Mac
Knight would rather have had Old
Nick come to reside in his house. but
he knew that pecuniarily it would re-
lieve the strain on his wife, and he
consented for her sake.
Mrs. Withers came and seemed
much relieved to get out of Miss
Stones clutches. The old lady was a
good deal broken down, and Mary Mac
knight devoted herself to building her
up. In this she succeeded, so far as
any one could succeed, having a sooth-
ing effect upon her and taking great
pains to minister to her comfort. The
aunt had been much attached to Mary |
while the latter was child, and 1t
seemed now that she could not get on |
with any one else.
Mrs. Withers had a son who was of |
a rowing disposition. He was not fit |
ted to take care of his mother nor |
would she have been able to live with /
him, owing to her nervous condition.
A year after she came to the Mac |
Knights, she received news that her
son had died abroad. After his death
she said to Mary:
I'm going to make a new will.
While was living with Ellen Stone |
think she must have hypnotized me,
for one day when 1 was Ill she asked
me to sign a paper, and l did as she
bid me. She had provided two wit
nesses, and this makes me think that
the paper 1 signed was a will. If SO /
have no doubt that 1t cut off my own
son, to whom had left all my proper
ty except a legacy to you. When L
got better 1 asked Ellen to let me see
the paper l had signed, and she said
that, since my recovery, it was of no
consequence; fearing that 1 was GO
ing to die, she had simply had me sign
instructions with regard to my funeral
and giving her authority to draw the
necessary funds. When 1 insisted on
seeing what L had signed she said she
had burned it."
The new will executed by Mrs. With
ers left Mary MacKnight all her prop
erty. The aunt showed the document
to her heir and told her that in case of
her death she would find it in an an
tique writing desk in her room in
which she kept all her papers.
Not long after the execution of this
will Mrs. Withers was advised by her
physician to go to a sanitarium, where ;
she would escape the noises of a city
and have such trained attendance as ,
she required. She did not wish to go,
nor did her niece wish her to go.
Though she was great care, Mary =
lad become accustomed to minister to
Ter wants, and since she was Mary's =
,nly living near blood relative Mary :
lad grown every year more attached ,
o her. Mary went with her to the :
anitarium and regretfully left her
here. q
1t was hoped that the invalid would q
fter rest be so restored as TO war .
ant her return, but she gradually be- =
anne more dependent on doctors and =
Iurses and remained in the sanitarium =
s long as she lived. n
Que day in February John Mac :,
Knight put his wife on a steamer and r
emit her to the Bermuda islands. The a
winter had been long, and Mary had
OF stood up under it very well. While
he was away John slept at home, tax n
lg his meals outside. !.
1t happened that the day Mary re- v
1rned. her husband was unable TO
leet her at the dock, being detained b
t his place of business by a matter m
Importance. Mary arrived at home OF
bout O'Clock in the afternoon, and. 1
aving duplicate key with her, let
erself into the house. Going at once sc
pstairs she was about 70 enter her IL
'om when she heard something that th
FUNDED like the rustic of skirts in an
.her chamber formerly occupied by
er aunt and which had been kept to
ist as the old lady had left II in ex
nctation that she would return to IT,
Mary entered the room and there
TO conceal herself behind
10 window curtains, was woman.