The Daily Alaska empire., 1933-06-03

make 1t as brief as can make it, for
 1t isn't pleasant story.
 My mother. as 1 told you, died
 here last year. My father. in Amer
 lea, died some months ago. too. They
 had been estranged for years-since
 l was three years old. Mother had
 lived here and there. and I've al-
 ways been with my mother. That
 was one of the-agreements. My
 brother remained with my father.
 He was four years older than when
 our parents separated.
 My mother" she paused and ftook a long breath as If she'd
 reached the most difficult part of the
 story-"my mother was an extraor- dinary person. MT. Sundean. 1 didn't
 know-and 1t doesn't concern this,
 why they separated. but whatever the reason was. my mother held 1t more important than anything else in the world. More important even than that l should ever see my father"
 You mean to say you never saw him again?"
 "Yes," she said quietly. "I never saw him again. My mother was very bitter and remained so. My brother was to stay with my father, l with my mother. My mother Lad a small income, but during her illness we were obliged to use up most of the capital.
 "She refused to the last to hold | any communication with my father or brother; 1t was not easy for her to do that-but she was-she had | extraordinary command over her self" She paused thoughtfully and then continued in a brisker tone:
 At any rate, my father was a wealthy man when he died. He wanted me to have half his estate to share it with Francis.-that's my brother And-and this. of course. is the kernel of the affair-when my mother went away he gave me a. a small-"
 She hesitated and glanced at me and said: I'm not to tell anyone what 1t was exactly. And. anyway. 1t doesn't matter. because it has no in- trinsic value. it's only its signIfl. canoe that counts. had part and my brother had part. and probably there are no others identical with those we have in the world You see, of course. what 1t was for" !
 Identification, said.
 YVES. My mother being what she
 A was. my father knew that she would take steps to loose us from any possible connection with him. And that's just what she did. We went under various names, 1 think, tor while. though l don't remem- Der much of that; all I remember about those days is the continual going here and there.
 "Well-the point is that my father 1idn't keep in touch with us-my mother was determined that he should not. After 1 reached an age to notice things we used our own name. of course. and 1 knew the whole story. Mother had not been we'll. and l felt closer to her than to ny father. Then she-died."
 She paused again, and l put an- other small log on the fire and gave ler little time.
 "She gave me. of course, an envel- ope with her marriage certificate md my birth certificate and various .hings of that sort in it. And at last she told me to find my father. After , time I wrote: he was dying.
 Francis. my brother, replied. He 'aid there would be the matter of Identification. It seems that my ia. -her had finally advertised and hey'd had number of letters from girls who said they were Sue Tally. de'said that birth and marriage cer- ificates could be faked. but that if
 were really his sister there would )e one means of tifica ton.
 'I knew. of course. what he meant. But l wrote in as guarded a fashion as he had written. saying ,nly that 1 had 1t and not what 1t was. Then my father died; there vas business for Francis to see 10. Francis sent MT. Lorn-the detec- i've, you know-to see me. He evi. lently reported that l appeared to Dc actually Sue Tally. And Fran. ,is-" She smiled a little wryly. Perhaps I'd better read you the let .er MT. Lorn brought me from Francis"
 She unbuttoned her velvet coat. Under it was some kind of black rock through which there were ylimpses of white. She reached un- Ter the laces and brought out a let .er. Then she leaned over and held the letter toward me.
 lCopyrtoht. i9ss. Mionon c. EberhartJ
 Sundean reads, Monday the