The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-03-24

for hs had disappointing intelligence
10 impart- He found vesta alone ana
the friendly warmth q her greeting
stirred him conside-ahly.
Miss Erill." he said, Il have news
for yea Scarcely agreeable. but IL In
necessary that tell you Of the same
When / went over TO the old-hcms of
Mr. Winated found nothing but q
few worn-out sticks Of furniture. I'm
his safety deposit bsx Mt the baak
there was q mass Of papers that turn,
Cd out to be nsstiy receipts for costly
Jewels. draperSes aAA ether expensive
Oriental fabrics. but no securities Or
other resources There In apparently
not vsstige lskt 81 the large fortune
he was supposed to possess"
Then I am not the rich heiress
have been supposed 30 ber said vssta
simply. and actually with q smile
You seen reconelsd." observed
Harston-
~And relieved adasa vesta bright
~. II shall be glad % get back to ny
own hznble. ordinary SELF II WIN be
Vulnerable new friends and IL win dis
sdpate the extravagant visions Of my
parents."
30 IL was all over. The bubble q
wealth had burst and vesta was altar
al - nobody Swiftly her suitoRs
deserted her, and, although her mother
suffered severe disappointment,
gradually her dreams Of luxury and
social eninence faded away.
To his amazement Marsten had dis-
covered that the cid mansion was
mertgagsd for twe-thirds Of its valve
he began negotiations with q city
agent whs was locking for q building
suitable fer q snail sanitarium. He
called upon vesta frequently to rspsrt
progress and the compaaienshis BE-
came q source q pleasure 10 heA.
At the end q two noaths Narstsa
told vssta Of his love for her and
they became engaged They were nk-
ing a strell one aftsrnosa when he -
marked:
81 an going to look ever the ola
mansion. It is all that In LETT q DE
estate. I understand that the nslgh-
borhood bsys have been making IL q
target for the slungshsts. and N ysu
may eventually get n few hundred dsl-
lars out Of IL we must keep the prsp-
srty I'm m good condition a pessible."
Marstsa let himself Into the house,
and n they passed through the chill.
gloomy apartments vesta chung 30 him
with m eerie sense OF weirdness.
Finally they cane-to the solitary room
old Albert winsted had occupied lar
10 many years.
sWhy, that 10 strange" abruptly
exclaimed Marston.
Some missile thrown through the
window had struck the wan I'm enc
corner Of the rsom- 1t had left gap
ing oridce. and beycad 1t showed an
open space. and, pesring. Marston
made out what suggested a secret
room. Probing, he found that the false
BIT Of wall papsred over was really
doer. He opened this and he and
vesta stood CENTRALIZED, gazing upon q
presentment that fairly amazed them.
The room had no windows and tn
centents were visible only because OF
the light streaming through the Scored
| doorway. At one end was dais with
| gorgeous drapsries. Seated in chair
nc for royalty was wax figure, dusty,
but beautiful Of face, richly apparelsd
Before this evident counterfeit Pre-
sentiment Of the princess bride q old
Albert Wfnsted were vases. salvsrs
dishes, filled with gold, diamonds and
gems of all descriptions.
In a fash Marston recognized that
here was the Winsted fortune. I'm
fermsr owner, imhibing Hindo super
ssltion, half mad, had. made Of his logi
1--we q subject Of alteration. and THU
| great wealth was q donation, saeri
aeial tribute. N 30 SEINE revealed -
| danG.
At q touch the wax image diGfn
tegraSsd win the admission Of ngAi
anA air. The secretsa fortune was -
nsved 10 safe dsposftsry, and to
asabls-Aseling suffers q vssta hnSv
the GsDxAs Of shagrin md envy ne dal
AlvorG IEarstea led ~ yssng hsigseI
- 10 a1tax.