The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1914-12-24
CHAPTER XVII.
ENTER M.

lett his card with the pencilled memo
arndum that he would call again Mon
day morning. There was another call
er. who had awaited my return-a tall
u man., with a long mustache,
who introduced himself as Simon w
Morgan, of Usage City. Ia.
Poor Philip Vantine's nearest living
relative. sir" he added. st came as
soon as possible
Ut was Very good of YOU" I said.
Inc funeral will be at 10 o'clock to-
morrow morning. from the house
You had a telegram from me?"
Yes" | answered.
He hitched about in his chair uneasilv
Tor a moment. l knew what he wanted
TO say, but saw no reason to help him.
lie left a will. 1 suppose?" he asked,
at last.
On, yes; we have arranged to pro-
pate 1t Monday. You can examine it
then. if you wish.'
Have you examined it?"
Il am familiar with it's provisions. 1t
was drawn here in the office"
he was pulling f~uriously at his mus
tache.
Cousin Philip was a very wealthy
man, l understand" he managed to say.
Comparatively wealthy. He had Sc
curlties worth about 81, $50, 600, besides
a number of pieces of real property
and. of course, the house he lived in.
lie owned a very valuable collection of
art objects-pictures, furniture, tapes
tries. and such things; but what they
are worth will probably never be
known"
why .not?" he asked.
Because he left them all to the Met
ropolitan museum Of art. Outside of a
few legacies to old servants, he left
his whole fortune to the same institu-
ton"
1 put it rather brutally. no doubt. but
l was anxious to end the interview.
Mr.. Morgan's face grew very red.
He did," he calculated. 'Ha-well,
I have heard he was rather crazy"
He was as sane as any man 1 ever
knew" l retorted drily. And then
remembered the doubts which had as
called me that last day. when Vantine
was lingering the Boule cabinet. But
l Kept those doubts to myself.
"Ha-we'l have to see about that!'
said my visitor, threateningly.
BY all means, Mr.. Morgan" I as
scented heartily. IF you have n doubt
about it, you should certainly look into
1t. And now, if you will pardon me, 1
have many things to do. and we close
early today"
He got to his feet and went slowly
out; and that was the last ever saw
of him. l suppose he consulted an at
torney, learned the hopeless nature of
his case. and took the first train back
to Usage City. He did not even wait
Tor the funeral.
Few people, indeed. put themselves
out for it. There was a sprinkling Of
old family friends, representatives of
the museum and of various charities
in which Vantine had been interested,
q few friends Of his own and that was
all. He had dropped out Of the world
with scarcely q ripple; Of all who had
known him. / dare say Parks felt his
departure most. For Vantine had been,
in a sense. a solitary man; not many
men nodded oftener during a walk up
the avenue. n yet not many dined
oftener alone; for there vas about him
q certain self-detachment which dis
couraged intimacy. He was a man,
like many another, with acquaintance
in every country on the globe, and
friends in none.
All this 1 thought over a little sadly,
as 1 sat at home that night; and not
without some self questioning as to
my own place in the world. Most of
us. l think, are a little saddened when
we realize our unimportance; most of
us. no doubt, would be a little shocked
could we return a day or two after our
death and see how merrily the world
Wa9s on! l would be missed, I knew,
scarcely more thar Vantine. It was
not a pleasant thought. for it seemed
to argue some deficiency in myself.
Then, too, the mystery of Vantine's
death had a depressing effect upon me.
So long as there seemed some theory
to build on. sc long as there was a ray
of light ahead. l had hoped that the
tragedy would be explained and expi-
ated; but now my theory had crumbled
to pieces; l was left in utter darkness,
from which there seemed no way out.
Never before. in the face Of a mystery,
hoJ 7 faIt CO haIn1ncc apI Tho Foo1;1C
took such a grip that it kept me
awake for n long time after [ got tO
bed. IT seemed, in some mysterious
way. that l WAS ~contending with a
power greater than myself. a power
threatening and awful. which could
crush me with a turn Of the wrist.
Vantine's will was probated next
morning. He had directed that his col
lection of art objects be removed to
the museum, and that the house and
such portions of its contents as the
museum did not care for to be sold
ready notified Sir Caspar Purden
Clarke of the terms Of the will, and the
museums attorney was present when
It was read. He stated that he had
been requested to ask me to remain in
charge of things for a week or two,
until arrangements for the remoVa1
could be made. 1t would also be neces-
SCI v ~ GIN 80 ~ 80
collection, and the assistant director OF
the museum was to get this under way
at nee.
I acquesced in all these arrangements
but | was feeling decidedly blue when
7 started back TO the office. Vantine's
collection had always seemed to me
somehow q part Of himself; more espe-
cially a part Of the house in which II
had been assembled. 1t would lose
much of its beauty and significance
ticketed and arranged stiffly along the
walls of the museum, and the thought
came to me that it would be a splen-
did thing for New York If this old
house and its contents could be kept
intact as an object lesson to the ner-
volis and hurrying younger generation
OF the easier and more finished manner
of life of the older one something
after the fashion that the beautiful old
Notwithstanding mansion at Antwerp
Is a rebuke to those ~present-day pub