The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1915-09-17
THE DEAD MANS WILL
BY HAROLD CARTER.

dying, any more than he had solved
that of life by living; but after the
first shock of the change had passed
away he was conscious that In certain
ways he had acquired increased per-
spective.
Particularly in.this: that whereas In
earth life he had only read the past.
now he could read the future also. He
saw the shadows cast upon the screen
of time, as events ripened and destiny
prepared itself.
But since man has free will, nothing
was actually foredestined that could
not be changed. 1t afforded Manning
infinite amusement TO watch these
phantom episodes prepare themselves
only to scatter before the will OF their
object.
Naturally, Manning's first thought
was for his own. He projected him.
self by power of will to the scene OF
his earthly home. He saw the stately
old house where he had lived so many
years, the arbiter of the small town So
ciety, with his adopted daughter Leila.
He glanced wistfully at the old place,
and, though the remembrance was dim
and dreamlike, he was conscious OF an
intense longing to be back again In
the earth life.
But when he sought for Leila he
could not find her anywhere about the
old place, and there were strange, un-
known faces there. 1t was not until
he had concentrated all his will In
supreme effort that he found Leila.
She was dressed simply in black, for
Manning had been dead only month,
and she was seated In parlor or
second-class boarding house, listening
to a fussy, elderly gentleman who ad-
dressed her.
"You see, Miss Leila, the will was
invalidated by the fact that your bene-
factor wrote of you as my daugh-
ter" the lawyer explained. Il told
Mr.. Manning that he would have to
draw up another will, because the
phrase was incorrect, but he did not
do so, and consequently the property
passed to his brother"
His brother! The last person on
earth whom Manning would have
wished to inherit the estate. He
burned with indignation-for a spirit
retains all the emotions that actuated
1t in life. But
He had been annoyed with Leila be-
cause she was In love with Garden
Hughes, a young physician Of the vii
lage, a recent graduate Of medical
college. He had no objection to
Hughes himself, but he was almost a
pauper, and the peremptory old man
felt that the young doctor was pre-
sumptuous in raising his eyes to Leila.
So bitter quarrel had ensued, and
Manning had ordered Hughes from the
house.
81 shall obey you, because it Is my
duty, father" Leila had said. But
shall never marry anyone but Car.
den"
The old man had watched her with
secret remorse. He had gone quietly
away and made new will, leaving
everything Internationally to Leila.
He knew that he had not long to live,
and he meant her to marry her lover.
He had the will witnessed at the little
country hotel which he frequented,
hundred miles away In the mountains,
and he left it in the drawer Of an old
desk there which he used
In the astral realm matter is so plas-
tic that there one becomes and Gre
ates anything one wants to. No SOON
er had Manning willed Leila to dis
cover the will than the whole Sc
quence of events unrolled before his
eyes. The inn-keeper discovered the
document, learned the identity Of the
signer, and hurried into the town to
apprize Leila's lawyer. There fol-
lowed a bitter quarrel over the valid
ity of the will, after which Leila found
herself again In possession Of the es-
tate.
Mistress of broad acres, wealthy,
she was at once made the object OF
fervent courtship on the part Of many
young men. But 1t was Tom Staple
ton who won her hand, while her low
er, Hughes, afraid to put his fate to
the touch until he had accomplished
more in the world, stayed away, and
let Leila think he had ceased to care
for her. So she and Tom were mar
ried. Children we're born to them. The
estate, growing continually smaller,
was sold at last to pay Toms gam
bling debts. In their old age the poor
house received Leila and Tom, and
their children grew up ignorant Of
their parents names.
That wouldn't do. Manning swept the
whole cobwebby structure away.
There must be better fate for Leila.
For days he haunted her, trying to
tell her that the will was in the desk,
but each time that he got In touch
with her mind the scene arose again
upon the screen of time. And then
Manning realized that It was best that
Leila should never know.
One evening he projected himself
into the shabby parlor, to discover
Leila seated tete-a-tete with young
man-Carden Hughes. Their chairs
Al II.