The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-06-02
A Wild Goose
Chase
r. y. Mitchell


S5~G.lrs. died leaving daughter
who .a~ ,l-.r-yd TO Thomas OrmSby,
youu- Mau ,# whom the testator APP
proved. Mi. Suaugler was considered
very SINGULAR parsonage. and his will
bears ont the opinion.
Relieving that between husband
and wife the one showing the greater
thought. resource, ingenuity - indeed
those faculties which go to make up
smartness-s should rule, | bequeath my
fortune either to my beloved daugh-
ter Imogene Spangler, or to the man
she shall marry, the inheritance to be
decided in the following manner:
My property, consisting of twenty
bonds of 5000 each, is buried in the
state of Florida. They will be found
either on tie right bank of the St
Johns river, at its junction with the
ocean, or at GlencOve Springs, TWEEN
ty miles northeast of st. Augustine
The finder of the bonds-either my
daughter Imogene Spangler, or her
husband-Shall be their p0ssessor."
Surely, Tom" said Imogene after
reading the will, father must have
been delirious when he signed his will
You'd better go to Florida and visit
the two places named in the will.
Quite likely you'll find pointer in the
one where the bonds are buried"
II think you had better go with me.
We can make it bridal trip"
every good Name the day"
Imogene and Tom were duly mar
ried and preparations made for the
wedding journey. The evening before
their start ImOgene went into her late
fathers library, where the old gentle
man had kept many atlases-for he
| was much interested in geography
| with a view to locating the points
where they We're to hunt for the bonds.
| Mr.. Spangler had set great store by Il
| revolving plaster globe four feet in
diameter. Imogene found st. Angus
/ tine on this globe, but not Glencove
| Springs, 50 she got down an atlas con-
| tanning a sufficiently detailed map and
located the points exactly.
! The couple left the next morning for
the Flowery State, passing gradually
from winter into summer When they
reached st. Augustine Tom proposed
that they put UP at third rate hotel
or a cheap boarding house. He did not
approve of spending money freely until
they had found the money to spend.
But lmogene said that, being on her
| IL oh rnI - fNn
! like bride. Tom was overruled. and
! they went to the most expensive hotel.
After a few days rest from their
| journey Tom proposed that they should
proceed to look up their fortune. lmo-
| gene seemed to be in no hurry.
Pm comfortable here" she said
Suppose You 90 to both points"
But in case | find the bonds | shall
be the owner of them"
Suppose you are? That won't make
any difference to me. | think the hus
band should have the money anyway
Papa was like most men; he thought
that power in the family Is lodged in
the one possessing the funds. He
should have known that women dom
work that way. Their power lies be
You'd dollars and cents. You 60 ahead
and find the bonds"
Tom was puzzled. For him to go of
to hunt for a fortune on such mcagel
information as he possessed seemed
ridiculous. He showed a disposition t.
give up the matter
"Oh, go onr' said his wife. You'll
get mighty tired sitting around witt
me long before the honeymoon is over
Quite likely you'll find clew. Father
wasn't such fool as to hide fortune
where no one could find it."
She kissed him and patted him OF
the back and sent him away. He wen
first to the Springs, where he spent ;
day looking for sign. Finding none
he proceeded to Jacksonville ant
, thence to the coast. But never "A sigI
, did he see. As for digging anywher,
without a sign, he was not so stupi'
as that So after three or four days
absence he returned to st. Augustine
He expected to find his wife disap
. pointed at his failure, but she met hin
with smile.
"You don't seem to be much de
, pressed at the loss of fortune" h
remarked.
Isn't 1t wife's duty to cheer he
P husband in times of adversityf" sh
replied
II hope you'll be able 20 keep 1t u
; when the bills begin to come in
Brush your hair and get that disaI
pointed look off your face, Things ar
! not so bad as they appear. | hay
, something to tell you. The night b,
, fore we left for this place l went int
fathers library to look upon his globe
and maps where these places you hav
, been are. Something in the word
, Glencove Springs sounded suggestiv,
Springs, springs kept saying. VIII
| did 1t l don't know, but | presse
my thumb on the globe at the poir
where Glencove is and broke throug
the surface, Taking knife, | bega
to dig and found the bonds. Hell
= they are"
+. Going to her trunk, she unlocked
: and took out twenty per cent 81
: edge bonds.
Tom kissed her enthusiastically
Then suddenly the smile left his fac
, and he said:
II "This makes you governor of Il
household"
u "Not at ALL l expect to defer
e you in everything" was the comfor
ing reply.
But she never assigned the bonds
. him, and he learned in time that h
q father was not SO crackbrained as W
supposed