Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1919-01-17
Spark
and finder
(cOpyrIght, ls1s. western Newspaper Union.
By WALTER JOSEPH DELANEY

Ralph Walters was the finder,
touchy, easily aroused, a perfect vol
cano of wrath when he started In.
The spasm passed, he was moody, stub
born, a man Of few words, too proud
to acknowledge his fault and seek to
make amends, but sensible of the fact
that he had been irrational and de-
served censure.
His wife, Mary, was the spark. She
had bad family advisers and flew to
pieces whenever her technical rights
were invaded in the slightest degree.
Only the trifles of life interested her
and her husband as fully ignored
them.
you think so much more of your
relatives than you do of myself, you
had better go and live with them"
81 shall do just that" snapped out
his hysterical h%elpmeet, and she die.
OF course her family sided with her,
and Cousin Felix Barclay, who was a
lawyer, saw self-interest in litigation
and called upon Ralph.
You can tell Mrs. Walter that If she
does not return to her home within a
week there will be no home to come
to-" and he spoke the truth. He sold
all the household furniture, realized on
the personal property, accumulated a
little over a thousand dollars, and sent
it to Mary with no word accompany
ing it. Then he disappeared from
town and no one knew whittier.
A year went by; it was a hard one
for Mary, for time and memory had
opened her blinded eyes. Cousin Felix
Invested" the greater part or the
thousand dollars and lost it. Mary's
mother died. Her married sisters in
Dictated clearly that they could not
support her, and Mary was compelled
to work to earn enough to keep body
and soul together in a wretched little
room, and did penance for her treat
ment of a man who had more than
catered to her expensive whims.
At the darkest hour of her poverty
and struggles Mary received a strange
letter. 1t %purported to come from
Phineas Marks, a lawyer in Arizona.
He informed her that he had been au-
thorized to remit her seventy-ive dol
lars monthly. 81 am instructed not to
divulge the details of this %bequest," he
wrote, "but you may consider it as
appertaining to the estate Of your dead
uncle, William Barr"
Now William Barr had gone west
four years previously and had never
been heard from again, outside of a
rumor that he and a number of others
had persisted in a snowslide in Utah.
Mary at once arrived at the conclusion
that some property Of her dead rela-
tive had in some way been discovered,
and was truly thankful to receive sutfi-
cient to keep her from drudgery and
the grinding domination of poverty.
She rented a neat little cottage, took
two schoolteachers to board, and life
seemed again worth living, except
when she thought Of her absent hus-
band. She made some efforts to locate
him, but without the slightest success
One day there came a knock at the
door. Mary opened it to reel back
with a cry Of CONSERVATION, of terror
Older, thin, ragged, supporting himself
on crutches, was Uncle William Barr
Don't you know me, Mary?" spoke
the poor wreck Of humanity piteously'
Eyes, but-but you died!" gasped
Mary incoherently.
"No, 1 didn't" said her visitor. u
nearly did several times. Pm going to
soon, and, Mary, I haven't a penny OF
a roof to shelter me. What can you
do for me?"
"You are welcome to stay here
Uncle William" replied Mary plying
ly. for time and trouble had developed
her real compassionate nature. -
haven't much, but I will share what
have with you. But the money that
has been coming to me from your
estates"
'My estate?" repeated Uncle VIII
liam vaguely, and this led to expla
nations all around. II never sent you
n money And you're not living
with Ralph? Oh, Maryl I see it all
The lawyer out west-did you say his
letters came from Warrenton, Ari
zonaT"
Eyes, Uncle William"
'Then 1 guess the truth 1t is youl
husband who has been sending you the
money. He worked me in so as tt
hide his good, kind soul. Mary, he il
a noble man !"
Mary cried as though her hear
would break. Then she began to ex
patiate on Uncle Williams theory. One
week later Mary started out to follow
the clew as to the whereabouts Of the
husband she had always loved Sc
deeply-how deeply she never realized
until nOw.
She located Ralph, working fourteen
hours a day in a great factory in order
to provide for her. She was enabled
to view him from a distance and noteo
how patient, yet hopeless, his face had
grown in its expression. n went tt