The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1917-05-18

specined that the property be turned
over on the LIST OF June, 1900. to the
one person nearest to twenty years OF
age. No one had yet appeared to be
nearer than they to the designated
age. but the property. under literal
Interpretation Of the will. could not be
given to either. $780, IS
Roger Deane and Julia Dodsworth
visited the attorneys with view to q
compromise. They mt first suggested
that the property he divided between
them. But the lawyers would not do
this without an order from the court OF
chancery. Deane took the man Of law
aside and asked him IL marriage would
settle the matter. The reply was that
though man and wife were one In GER
tain respects In the eye Of the law
they were not In all respects. After
much delay the lawyer suggested that
the only way out Of the matter was
for one to lay claim to the estate and
the other to dispute the claim. This
would bring the matter before the
court, who would give decision.
However, nothing could be done be-
fore the LIST of June next, and that was
still three months distant. Meanwhile
Roger Deane and Julia Dodsworth had
common interest. They met quite
often with a view to finding some way
by which they might at least divide
the Inheritance. 1t was suggested that
they hunt up the doctors who presided
ut their birth in order to discover
which had been born at the earlier
hour of the day. Deane was success
full on Ills part. He found the doctor
who brought him into the world, who
by reference to certain notes he had
taken down with regard to his patients
found a record that Roger had been
born at o'clock In the morning of
April 10, 1873. This, the lawyers said.
would not give him the property unless
proof was adduced that Miss Dods-
worth had been born at later hour Of
the day. So there was nothing gained
for Deane. And as for Miss Dods-
worth, it simply meant that by hunting
up her own record she would run
twelve chances to one Of giving the
property to Deane.
By this time this matter Of mutual
interest had drawn them so closely to-
gether that If 1t could have been set
tied by their marriage there would
have been no further difficulty.
Miss Dodsworth remembered that a
woman named Mccain had lived with
her mother as housekeeper or upper
servant for many years. When Julia
was about twelve years of age Mrs.
with them when Julia was born and
might remember the hour Of her birth.
Julia began a system Of advertising
for the woman, and a response was
finally ELECTED. She wrote Julia that
she had kept letter blank book, In
which she had noted important events.
This book was, with other effects, In a
trunk In q garrett of one Of Mrs. Nc
Cams relatives. She would get IL and
see II 1t contained the required infor-
nation.
While waiting for this Julia told
Roger about It, Roger said that If the
book contained memorandum Of the
hour Of Julia's birth he or she would
inherit the acre. But he had a dozen
chances to one Of being the heir. Then
he told her that he had become attach
ed to her and proposed that, whether he
or she or neither the one nor the other
Inherited, they pass the rest of their
lives as man and wife. Julia was Of
the same mind, and they plighted their
troth, their union to take place ire
spective of what by this time they had
come to call the golden acre.
A few days after their betrothal Mrs.
Mccain sent her notebook by register
ed mail to Julia. Julia turned over the
leaves hastily till she came to May and
June, 1873, and there found an entry,
AT 10 o'clock in the morning of April
10, little girl was BORN
Miss Dodsworth construed this as
proof that she had won, since she was
born nearer to the 1st of June, 1900,
than Roger. She sent the notebook to
the attorneys, wrote Roger that she
had made up her mind she did not love
him rs much as she thought she did
and broke the engagement.
This break prevented any further
conference, and when the LIST Of June
came round each received notice to
appear ut noon OH that day at Ackley
e Tborp's Office. They found there
quite a number of descendants of the
original Deane and Dodsworth of va
rious ages. Mr.. Ackley thus addressed
those present:
by the terms stipulated fifty years
ago today by Elihu Deane and Herbert
Dodsworth a certain acre Of land was
bequeathed to such one of their de-
scendants. male or female, who should
be nearest to twenty years Of age on
the LIST Of June. 1900. There are four
persons living who were born near that
date and who are descendants of Ell
ther Deane or D0dsworth-viz, Roger
Deane. Julia Dodsworth. Edward
Payne and Emma Osborne, born May
20. $780, Emma Osborne, having pro-
duced satisfactory evidence of birth.
will undoubtedly be adjudged the heir
by the surrogate
There was an Involuntary hum of
dissatisfaction throughout the assem-
bly,. Roger Deane and Julia Dods-
worth looked at each other and laugh