Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1919-02-07
Aunt James
Request
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BY JANE OSBORN

Ue<.>S>$S<SSe<SzeSS
Copyright, 1913 by Mcclure EewspapeT
Syndieate-)
Madge had talked II over with the
station agent In fragmentary CONVEX
sation during the hour that elapsed
after the arrival Of her train and the
departure of the stage that was to
carry her to the old Durham estate.
Madge wanted to find out what peo-
pie around there thought Of the will.
so she did some tactful pumping with
out. Of course, letting the station agent
know she was Madge Durham.
To be sure, old Miss Durham had
oeen an odd character, all the Dun
mans were little queer. she was as
sured by the station agent. but no one
expected she was so paisley mean as
all that. She looked good-natured
enough in spite Of her old age-and
she was nearly a hundred when she
died, and seemed to have her wits
with her, too. in most things, though
she surely had shown weak-minded-
ness In that will. She had left the
entire fortune-and 1t was lot more
than folks ever thought-to her niece,
Elizabeth, and Elizabeth Durham al
ready possessed property that brought
her an income about ten times larger
than she could ever want.
was there any one else who might
have had itT asked Madge with an air
Of only half-hearted interest.
To be sure there was-there was
grandniece and a grandnephew-
lived a good ways of. Stanley Taylor
was a professor and the old maid was
q school ma'am, and they were both
as poor as church mice. They ought
to have come In for some Of 1t, but
the old lady had cut them of. People
knew that, but they hoped she had re
Tented. Might at least have given a
little to the Old Ladies' Home.
Didn't she give those poor rela-
dves anything7" asked Madge.
The station agent chuckled. Well,
yes, there was a sort Of provision foT
them. They had been left the old lady's
library, a whole lot of old books that
wouldn't sell for enough to pay the
trip they'd have to take to get them.
The books were to be divided equally
between the two, and they had beer
sent for by Elizabeth Durham now
who was executrix as well as practi
cally sole beneficiary, TO come and So
lect them.
81 wonder" unused Madge, "whether
there was any reason why the old lad
left them out Of her willf'
The station agent lowered his voice
THAT there was. Most folks dom
know IT," he conflded, "but the OLD
lady had set her heart on having he
niece and nephew married. and she
couldn't get them TO do II, and thai
rolled her up so she never had any
use for them. She had them out at
the old place some Is years back and
tried to make a match, but somehow
the Teller he wasn't Of the marrying
kind. and the girl-well. guess she
was cut out to be an old maid"
Madge colored slightly. II had taken
an hour to get this much information
from the local informant, and she took
her seat in the stage to continue her
trip to the home Of her late great-aunt
with an ever increased feeling of re
sentiment toward her. What II she
was cut out to be an old maid-hadn't
Aunt Jane herself been an old maid
and wasn't Aunt Elizabeth an old
maid? Even a very little fraction az
the fortune would have seemed Tx,
wealth to her, and instead all she got
vas half of lot Of dusty old books
that would have to be haggled over
with Stanley Taylor. Madge felt
somehow that If Stanley were at al
considerable he would waive his claim
to the books. But no such good for
tune was In store for her. as he had
arrived the day before and was al
ready established In the gloomy OLE
book room in the Durham homestead
making up his mind as to which Of
the books he would claim.
The only hospitality offered t.
Madge when she came was that of al
old housekeeper. Aunt Elizabeth NIGH
have come over from her near-b,
country place to have made matter,
little more cheerful for Madge ant
Stanley. but she had merely left wore
with the housekeeper to provide fol
their temporal wants and to ask then
TO proceed with the division of tn,
books and to say that the lawyer
would be over the next day to settl,
any legal phrases Of the arrange
ment"
And they got right to work at tn,
books. They at least agreed, appar
emily, on a lack Of disposition to so
liability.
II have been doing what coult
without you" remarked Stanley a,
soon as they had got together in tn,
back room. II made a pile Of book
here that could not possibly interes
you. will take them, and over Their,
are some that could not possibly in
| terest me-"
Madge looked at the first pile. Their,
was an old edition Of Fielding, Smol
lett and Richardson, a stack Of Frencl
poets and philosophers and som,
heavy tones of history that had ap
parently never been opened to tn,
light Of day. In the other pile coul,
be seen bound volumes OF the Ladies'
World for the past % years, a rath
er complete set Of cookery books, tn,
works Of George Eliot and Mari,
EdgewOrth.
But detest George Eliot-and tn,
rest isn't worth the freight to TAX,
then home" insisted Mndge, and Stan
ley was really embarrassed, for he ha,
frankly thought that his cousin woul,