r ' in ^(p IPi - ' ! Z'
\ J \ 1 \-? .. iSW
if " -r?' ' V.;. ,V '? * .v ?L.
_____
IN THE TOWN^OF UNION rWy ^ ^ '. OUT?.0? OF TH? OTTV "
r I 11 i j ' I . \ I I I V rl,Tl 11 J^:XTL^rr%K!^g
two Furniture Manufacturing of Court 'al I III .. BLl I I l/l ^ Mill, another building, Gold Mimcerns,
Female Seminnrj, 1'ivc ,.3 ral 9 Bj B 9 W " f* I I I | 1 1 ? *a6t Fumoue Mineral Springe,
Graded Schools, Water Wortre and fcj L:1 | J I J I I I r "' I * I I V I I J L /A Taxable value in end out of town
Electric Lights, Population 7,000. " B_ ^ -i- * -B_ ^ 9 B JL ? B B Ji F^_-/ V #5,000,000.
_____ ^ g
YOL. L1V. NO. 8. UNION, SOUTH CAROLINA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19. 1904. - #1.00 A YEAR:
FARMERS'
We Rive
to the B
and lent
Acceptab
Wm. A. NICHOLSOI
v v ~1
I ! 5>fjWA| Di "
I i wiwuir
DONALDS
! Copyright, lr03, by
jgflj Charles W. Ilookc ?
I CHAPTER X.
TUK MYSTERY OV JIM nUNN.
regard to tho bogus professor '
tbe most reasonable supposition
is tlmt be bad been hired by Kelvin
to "investigate" Donald. Yet
there were objections to this theory.
The man bad come upon bis errand
too openly. If bo lind represented Kelvin
in such a matter, lie would probably
have made some other excuse for
his visit, thus attempting to take Donnid
off ills guard. So far as I could
see, tbe emissary bad gained nothing
whatever, and it was difficult to
f?- Imagine that lie could have hoped to
gain anything by such a method. Altogether
tbe affair was very perplexing
until a new point of view was
Shown to me by Donald.
1 A few days after the impostor's doparture
I left tbe office in the latter
part ouiic noon Iiour. Tlie men were
\ returhiqg from dinrtcr. . There was already
a crowd In the narrow strip of
t shade Vhcside the factory, nnd in the
/ blazln \ sun some of the younger fellows
were throwing ball. With thein
was Donald in his college uniform, and
he seemed to be giving instruction.
There was much pride that summer
In our baseball nine, which had won
against all opponents. As 1 approach^
ed the players Donald was illustrating
some method of holding the ball in^
one's Angers in order to "put a jump
into it," as I heard him say. Beside
. him stood poor little Tim Ilenly, leaning
upon his crutch. lie was looking
up at Donald with eyes of adoration
i and drinking In wisdom which his crip*
pled body would never permit him to
I use.
"Like this," he exclaimed, taking the
ball from Donald's hand and clasping
\tt in his long, thin lingers, while lie
made a feint of throwing it.
"That's right, Tim," said Donald;
"you've got the knack of it."
The cripple flushed with pride as he
gave the bail to the big fellow who
whs the real pupil.
flilttle Tim beholds in Dounld the realization
of nil which bo himself would
nsk of the fairies if they should come
to him as servants of his dearest wish.
He would have but one?to he like
Donald. I had watched this hero worship
for some years, and Its warm sincerity,
matched with the great kindness
and delicacy of tuy boy's response
to it. has sometimes brought the tears
to my eyes.
IJealy's condition Is due to an Injury
which he received when he was
eight years old. It disabled his left
leg and shoulder, stunted his growth
nndin addition made liim totally deaf
^^^peveral years. 1 have always re^^ffetted
that his misfortune was not
brought promptly to my attention. One
overlooks so many of these things.
When-1 learned the facts, at the time
M| ^ of his father's death, I had a good doctor
take charge of the boy's ease, with
tho result that his hearing was, restored,
though there was at flrBt no
HM . - -
nope or u. his uerornuues were Degflbj
. yond cure. When ho had had his schoolJug.
I took him into my employ. lie
1^ W*is some years older than Donald, but,
having lost a part of his youth, he waited
as long as possible to gather up all
. that remained.
r I learned from Dotrald that tho ball
nine "had nil northern New Jersey In
a panic" und from Timothy Healy,
treasurer,'that the finances of the organization
did not require the small assistance
which I should have been willing
to offer. Then the l o'clock whistle
blew, und Donald and I were left to
K* "I've been thinking about the fellow
who wasn't Professor Severn," said I.
"What do you suppose Mr. Kelvin ex
pected to get out of you?"
S "Out of met" ho responded.
0 "Out of whom, then?" said I.
- "Uncle John," he replied, "this Is a
S subject upon which 1 don't seem to get
light I can onlv make a fait
\ ' ' . ' * i/ : '- V-V
^ i'
______ I
BUSINESS. !
particular attention
usiness of Farmers
1 them Money on
>lc Security.
N & SON, Bankers.
l
ng o I rue facer J c.-.J f\p!;naii;n of tiic Seven \
VfurtdrLnr Mnu. In.I in. U i_ *
Iijvivinv IWH 'pwall U Ulil' ?ll.> 'Millie 10
Ihc Putrc end of <n fitjSilh.
Which Is tho Key of the M'un
>0N? J|.
By HOWARD FIHIDING
wild puessos." .
"For instance?"
Donald made some small, mysterious
passes In the air with the ball bat
which he carried in Ids right hand as
we walked along.
"That man was a detective," said he.
"He was paid to find out something, to
do secret work. Isn't it a mistake,
then, to consider th6 work which he
did openly? I think that Ids Interest
in me may have been only a blind."
- "Hut he didn't do anything else," 1
objected.
"lie bad some long talks with my father,"
Baid Donald, "and with you. He
had planned to go driving with you
when he was suddenly called away."
I replied that I could >uot guess what,
the man had hoped to do with me unless
to kidnap mc and hold me for ransom.
Neglc&Llng this Jest/ Donald asked
me If thore were any way In which
my business- could be attacked. He
hud rend something In a newspaper
about an attempt to force me Into a
trust.
"Such attempts have been made," 1
admitted. "I have been approached
soverul times during the past year and
n half, but if any of tliose men dream
that they can coerce me they ought to
wake up at the earliest possible moment.
We have the best machinery in
the world in that factory, Donald. We
hold our patents hard and fast. Attempt^
have been made to undersell us
at a loss and to hurt us with our customers
In various parts of the country,
but we are too strong for them. If we
were in debt or if there were any way
to interfere with our shipping arrangements
the situation would be very dlf,
ferent, but we control this branch raili
road absolutely, and through it we hold
ninety-nine yeaf* contracts' with the
main line, so tliorthere is no possibility
of discriminating against us."
Donald tapped with the bat :;s if upon
the bead of an invisible enemy.
"Suppose that you 'didn't control the
branch," said lie.
"Then," I replied, "it would he all up
with us. The manufaeturer must own
the railroad or the railroad will own
the manufacturer."
"But there are other factories in this
town," ho persisted.
"Because of our great mercy they
continue to exist, my s. a." said I.
"You will observe that n. no of them
is a carpet factory."
"The branch is a stock company, of
courseV" said he.
"It is olDclally knovn as the Tun
bridge and Wells Junction Railroad
company," I replied. "There are hJ.oun
shares of stock of the par value of
$100 each. It is rarely o.i the market,
but the last sale, as I iviucinhcr, was
at 130. The value lias greatly advanced
of'late.* A little inure than a
yenr ago there was quite a block of It
for sale. I bought souse, and your
father and Carl and Mr. Bnnn bought
100 shares each. We gut it at about
105. It was upt?h my advice that the
others Invested In it."
"Wasn't that quite a large purchase
for Mr. ItimnV" cii I llnii'ilil "1
wouldn't have thought that ho could
raise $10.f>00. I'm no? asking for Idle
curiosity, uncle," lie added earneslly.
"Mr. Burnt put up about half the
money," I replie d, "ami 1 made up the
bnlnnce. The hundred shares stand in
my name, but he can have them whenever
ho pays what is due. Meanwhile
he draws the dividends on the whole
lot. I shan't charge him interest on the
money which i advanced. I wanted
hiin to inake a good Investment, you
understand. If left to himself. Bunn
always makes bad ones. That's why I
bold the stock in my name. I'm afraid
he'll sell it and lose the money. It's n
friendly arrangement."
"You couldn't prevent Mr. Hunn
from taking the stock if be paid you
your money, could you?" usked Donald,
and I replied lit the negative.
We were Just cutcriug my grounds.
Donald stopped suddenly ana leaned
against one of the gate posts, as If
overcome by a sudden exhaustion. 1
observed that his face, which had beeu
flushed as a result of his recent exercise
in the heat, had grown quite
pale.
"Wait a minute, uncle," he said, and
I stood stock still, stnring at him.
"Mr. Bunn will do thnt within three
days."
"What do you mean?" I demanded.
'Toy that money? He hasn't got it."
"lie will get it," responded the boy
flrmly. "Mr. Kelvin will give it to
him."
"Kelvin!" I exclaimed. "Why should
he do it?"
"Will you let me nsk you a question,
uncle?" said Donald. "Did Professor
Severn?the fellow who wasn't Professor
Severn?talk to you about the
branch road?"
My memory suddenly began to work
with astonishing clearness and rapidity.
"We were standing by the office one
day,'1 said I. "and lie pointed down toward
the station and mentioned the
curious circumstance that while traveling
in the west he hnd met a man who
held Stock in thnt road. Nntnrnllv T
asked liiin who it was, and ho namedJ
my cousin, Silas Harrington, 'tf ^ery p
agreeable man,' said our proiFBsor,
'l>ut eccentric. He told me that he
never lived more than six months in
one place. What part of the world has
ho reached by this time?' "
"And you told him?" said Donald,
wiping his dripping forehead.
"Yes; I told him that Silns wns In
Colorado Springs the last that I heard
of him."
"How much stock does ho hold?"
I replied that to the best of my
recollection the amount wns 200shnres.
"Wo must telegraph to him," said
Donald.
"Do you mean to tell me," said I,
"that a serious attempt Is being made
to get control of the branch?"
"There is no doubt of it," he responded,
with a groau. "I should bnve told
you before, but I didn't know the
truth until today. It was all guesswork.
But they can't do It, uncle?
They can't really do it?"
"I don't see how It's possible," said
I. "There's the whole llackett inter-; t
est to. reckon with. Why, WilUam
Hnokett and the other lielfs eohtt6t;
almost two-fifths of the stock"?
"I'm ufraid Kelvin has it by this
time," said Donald almost in a whisper.
"My boy," said I very seriously, "ifl
not this nrettv deen wntev? I'm nfmld
you're relying too much upon yourself."
#
"I'm relying upon you, Uncle John,
all that I can," he replied. "I'm fighting
for my life and more than my life.
That's the truth about it You know
that for any trivial motive I would
not take advantage of?make use of"?
lie could not go on, but 1 understood
him. Ilis instinctive knowledge of
these plots against me had driven him
to rely upon his special gift, arid In'the
use of It he knew not how to work In
full harmony with an ordinary man
like me. Much that he knew was
doubtless too vague to bo put into
words, and certainly it was susceptible
of no rational proof. 1 then saw more
clearly than ever before how terrible
a burden this mysterious power might
.be, and I fully understood why those
who possess it deny the possession and
zealously strive to turn the inward eye
away from such revelations.
Yet 1 suspected that Donald was assisted
by disclosures of a more palpable
nature. There was a tangible ex
plnnation of his knowledge of Kelvin's
part in these designs. I could not ask
the hoy to lay bare his soul to me, to
disclose the inner mysteries of an endowment
which I should doubtless be
wholly unable to comprehend, but 1
thought that he ought to cenflde in me
in nil things of the common sort. Therefore
I asked him straight out whether
he had derived any information from
Amy Kelvin In regard to her father's
underhand schemes.
"None whatever," he replied, looking
me straight in the eyes.
"Does this information depend up?n
the exercise of a peculiar power not
possessed by the generality of man*
L-SiwlV co 1,1 I
lie hesitated u moment, struggling
with himself.
"It does, Uncle John," he answered.
"But?but you're nil at seu. You don't
in the least know what I mean. This
power can be acquired by anybody?
absolutely by anybody who Is not blind,
dumb and Idiotic. Yet not five in a
million ever pny the slightest attention
to It. Great heavens! A person can't
throw n ball unless he learns. Now,
please don't ask ine any more questions
or I shall lie to you."
He seemed overwhelmed with that J
shame, as for a deformity, which the
psychic power always seems to carry
with it.
"I will press you no further, my boy,"
said I, "but it would occur to me that
you might perhaps be able to contlde
more fully in your parents."
"I can't! I can't!" he cried. "I can't
bring myself to speak of it I can't
ever help you nny more unless we
cense to talk of the means."
"Then we will cease to talk of
them," said I. "Do your best.-my boy.
Tell mc whatever comes to you, and 1
i will mention it to no que. Meanwhile '
i
In regard to this particular business
matter 1 nui very glad to be warned,
but 1 do not think that there Is much
danger."
In the.hurry of tny thoughts I had
forgotten what Donald had said about
Jim Bunn, though this was the most
shocking and surprising feature of the
disclosure. It was impossible for me
to believe that this man who for thirty
yenrs had served me faithfully would
form nn alliance with my enemies.
He had always seemed to be devoted
to my interests, he had run to ine with
all his troubles, he had found me his
friend in the many difficulties into
which Ills injudicious investments had
involved him, for Bunn was one of
those men whose business judgment is
excellent in his employer's affairs and
persistently wrong in his own. Certainly
lie was bound to me by ties of
gratitude; but, above nnd beyond this,
I believed him to be a man of honor.
Recurring to this matter, I insisted
mat nouaki must be mistaken, yet,
while the words were on my lips, I
had no great confidence in them. In
my heart I believed that if he predicted
this event it would occur. Still he
might redeem his stock from me and
not l>e a traitor. This view I suggcstvxl
to Donald.
"It may be true," said he. "And, at
any rate, I want you to promise me
that you will not let Bunn know that
you have any suspicion." f
"I don't see that, Donald," said 1.
"It Bunn is tempted to sell this stock,
he may not know who is buj'ing it.
Even if he knows Kelvin to be the
buyer and is tempted by a fancy price
he may not be aware that there is a
chance of a successful Gght against
me in the company. 1 can talk hijn
into the right .line of conduct. Jim
Bunn knowp me. He will do what I
say." "if '
Donald looked at me with'an expfcssion
of extreme desperation.
"If I beg of you not to do this," he
cried, "will you take my advice?r .1,
give you my word of^honof tbut
foresee the end of It jill and .that yon-,
will be glad if you follow iny -.way."
"May I consult with anyone?"- 1
asked, thinking of lij^fntherTV- r
lie sei/.cd my hand with u grH> that
^eepao^to pur^lyxe ^rin to the
promise that yon won't."
I looked him in the eyes and gave the
word that he asked. It was,partly su
lie hesitated a moment, struggling with
himself.
perstitlon that led me to do it, partly
my affection for the boy, and both
these influences were modi tied by my
feeling that no harm could come of my
nrnmiiP mwl flint fhnnn woo
adventurous and exciting in this affair?something
that 1 would like to
follow through to the end.
That afternoon Jim Bunn came to
me and told a rambling story of success
in various ventures. He seemed
to be lying, but be had the advantage
of n demeanor always so nervous and
restless that the signs of prevaricution
could not appear upon bim as upon
an ordinary man.
I heard ids story quietly, and when
at the end of It he produced the money
with which to redeem bis stock I made
no comment. It would have been better
to congratulate him, but I am not
a good hand at such deceits.
In snite nf thin rprlfiontlnn nf nnn
aid's prediction I did not believe tbathe
danger was serious. However, l
began an investigation immediately
telegraphing to Silas Harrington and
to other holders of the branch stock.
I discovered that my cousin hnd left
Colorado Springs for parts unknown
and that earnest Inquiry was being
made for him, doubtless In the interests
of iny enemies.
1 learned In the course of a few days
that Kelvin was heavily Interested In
the trust which was endeavoring to
gain control of my factory; that he
had secured options on the entire
nackctt interc-st; that he hnd privately
bought out some of my old friends
right bore in this little town of Tunbridge
and hnd gained a paramount influence
over others so that they would
(certainly vote against me at the meetv.
gbtefesskt;. V .
WE iLR
(TO i
OUR resources are not fabi
,on earth, nor do we d<
BUT we are here among th
ample means for all
enough to take care ol
WE COME, backed up by a good r
made irreproachable 1
WE ARE here to stay and we s<
accommodation consu
Interest Paid on
ilerchants and Plan
ing. The pow.T of the money which
he commanded seemed to surround me
upon nil sides, uud. though my position
was so strong that I had great confidence
of victory, still i perceived that
I might say In tlie words of Donnld-*wortls.
by the way; which had contained
an element of mystery beyond miy.
power i<? solve r.t that time?that^i
was, 'lighting for my life and
than my life." For iudepcndcncc^Bra
man of my. years and long chrfMBMd
habits of thought, was tho/\yfrfl^Mp
sauce of thy existence. T InifcdJ^^VMFuoss
which 1 had ;worked to
hould In? .awnmped and lost In ?Sme
. nj,j,nrjtllWM, UI CapilJll WllUOUt
'apart or."feeling'for It, wutlld have liorn
too heaVy a blow'for me to- Woaf'with
putionc? at my time of lire or even to
bc..r atf u 11. perhtipa.
ciiArrnft xi. ^
UY8TEBY OF JTIE UEAI> JllSF.n'S ITANT).
WFIII.ij f .wns quietly endeovto
sfcfifve us much of
the itrafjch stock as could
i Jsgjiad. Kclvii) made a somewhat
move than 1 had expert
eg of the game. He
' upper, revjtft-.tfcb cilice of the railroad,
;at accomiKuded by \Vil ^anf
tLickett, jtttd the transfer ot the
entire?H'n<i*kett- Interest was recorded
upon the books, it amounted to 3,000
ahiu*v AftSrwfiruIImkett*came
oyerjjp see
me at .Tunbridge-glVd tohl met Rut this
action was in accordance witk.hl* own
less Kelvin would agree, in writing, to
declare, himself the owner through the
usual medium of the siockhook before
a certain date.
"That was very honorable in you,
William," said I. "But I wish you had
given ine n chance nt the stock."
"The deal was proposed to me in confidence,"
he rejoined. "I could not disclose
It to you. Besides," ho added
thoughtfully, "I wouldn't have had the
face to ask you to meet his terms."
This was all that 1 could make him
ay about the price which Kelvin had
paid.
"I knew what he wanted It for," said
he, "but it's a wild Ihiancial nightmnrc.
Kelvin will never get control of
this road."
"He will come mighty close to it,
William," said I.
Upon the same clay at a later hour I
received a call from Kelvin. He came
to my ofllce to see me, and the shock of
that surprise was considerable to n
man of my years.
Kelvin is capable of that engaging
frankness of deportment which characterizes
the man who does not see
anything wrong in lying, ne mentioned
his investment in the branch
stock as if it had been something that
I should be glad to hoar of. When he
moved into a town, he said, it was always
his way to get a property interest
aside from a mere house in which to
live. It made him feel free to go ahead
and take a hand in the town's affairs.
He had bought this branch stock because
It was a good Investment and
because it would Identify him with
Tunbridgc, which, because of its situation,
depended so much upon the railroad
for Its prosperity.
When lie had finished this address,
I perceived that the real reason of his
visit did not lie in that matter at all.
This amicable mention of it had merely
paved the way for something else.
While he wns preparing to Introduce
this other subject, the nature of which
I could not guess, Donald strolled into
the office, and, seeing Kelvin, he was
about to bnck out again.
"Nothing private." said Kelvin.
"Don't go on my nccount. I'd be glad
to have you stay. This is a case where
euperhuman agencies will be welcome."
"A cose In which they would be welcome
to me, sir," said Donald, "would
toe a distinct novelty in my experience."
I recognized a flavor of little Rollo
In this remark which let me know that
Donald was disturbed In mind.
- "As on old resident of Tunbridge,"
aid Kelvin, turning to me, "you will
remember Ezra Walmsley."
I have already mentioned this old
miser whose mortal part?with the exception
of the right hand?lay burled in
Tunbridge cemetery. lie was a most
unpleasant creature, n sullen and brutal
scoffer against all things sacred, and
a man of secret and mysterious ways.
The house In which he lived had long
been viewed with disfavor by the su
perstltious. for it had a history before
Walmsley's day. It was set with a
I garner to the road and had been paint
^ Y
JE5 IIST IT
STAY.)
11I0118, we haven't the largest bank
o all the business of the country,
e good people of the county with
reasonable demands, with capital
' all your wants.
ocortl, that began years ago; a record
)v fair business methods.
>licit your patronage, offering ?y'ery
(tent with good banking.
Time Deposits.
iters National Bank.
ed red In some dim date of old times,
but the paint bad weathered to a dingy
black, upon which. In certain states of
the atmosphere, dull spots like faded
blood stains would appear In curlons
designs. When Walmsley died, his
hoanDproved to be very small, thougb
f there were stories of large Bums hidden.'
What was found the public administrator
took charge of for lack of
an heir.
"Yes." I replied to Kelvin. "I knew
him, but there is an old maxim which
1 'would prevent my saying anything
about him now that he Is dead."
"Don't know any good of him, eliT' T
,responded Kelvin. "Well, I guess there
wasn't much to know. But to get back
to business. My property up here. The
Elms, used to be called the Stouehton
p'nce. Thnt family in this town goes
hack to colonial times. Ezra Walmsiey
married a Stoughton after the family had
lost its nBney and was nearly extinct.
When Mrs. Walmsiey died, she *
was'supposed to be the very last of the
Stoughton blood. Soon afterward, along
in the early sixties. Walmsiey,' at the ' r
heir of his wife, brought suit for this
property which is now mine. He claim- ,
ed that there had been no leyal.fhtns"Thnt
was his contention," satd Liv/?-/
family named Westcott then owned
place. Korman Westcott.the-teafljMMBythe
family, was a colonel li? the Unffo >
armyAnd uflne fighting man. Hecaidie
Cotanfet Wistcott was busy oglm^
dowSi the
tied. The''w^^^ ??MThl^-cnme out,' / v?
so far as I know. It was very much
of a mystery, ns I remember. About
sthat time Walmsiey JoBt his right hand,
nobody knew how. There was a legend
that he had sold it to the devil, but if
so he didn't get his price, which could
hardly have been anything else than
the fine property now known as Kelvin
Elms."
; "What do you suppose the facts
were?" asked Kelvin.
"The facts commonly known," I replied,
"were that the public record of
the transfer of the property from the
Stouf^htons to the Wcstcotts hnd been
destroyed and thnt Colonel Westcott
could not produce any deed, or, to be
more exact, Mrs. Westcott couldn't
produce it. Just what happened when
the colonel suddenly and unexpectedly
appeared no one could And out.
He muy have shown the deed to
wnimsiey ana tnus nave enaea tne
proceedings, but there is another story
to the effect that Walmsley had this
deed himself and that Westcott got it
away from him either by force or by a
payment"
"EIow did Walmsley get It?" inquired
Kelvin.
"The story told by those who seemed
to know," said I, "was that it had been
stolen by thieves who entered the
house, and that Walmsley, who was
generally believed to be a receiver of
stolen goods, bought this document
with the rest of the plunder. That
there was a robbery in the old Stoughton
house I know positively. It was
said tbnt Walmsley lost hiB hand in
a quarrel with these thieves; that it
was so badly Injured as to necessitate
amputation. The name of a doctor was
mentioned, but If be did the work he
held the fact to be n professional secret"
"When I bought the place," said Kelvin,
"1 was aware of this flaw In the
title, but I was assured that there was
not a Stougbton heir nor a WalmBley
heir on the face of the earth."
"1 don't believe that there Is one,"
said 1. "Walmsley had a son, but be
died."
"Can you prove It?" demanded Kelvin.
"No." 1 admitted. "He didn't die
here. Yet I think It Is susceptible of
proof. lie died In early childhood, as
1 remember."
[to be continued.] j
an Far a# ?e Knew.
"One of the comp ;ent parts of sugar,"
said the professor, "Is an essential
In the composition of the human body.
What Is it?"
"I know!" shouted the grocer's boy.
"Sand!"?Exchange.
Knocks the Romance.
To t&ke a trip aboard a ship
Across the broad Atlantic
And sail and sail through calm and gmla
Is said to be romantic.
I But when in pain with might and main
Seasickness yon are flghttng ' .
And long for land on which to stand
The rotnanca goes n-iutlng.
ii. ... V 5 . :'.,V -