The Elbert County tribune. [volume], September 23, 1910, Image 6

About The Elbert County tribune. [volume] (Elbert, Elbert County, Colo.) 18??-1920

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SERIAL
n STORY ev
Archibald’s
Agatha
By
EDITH
HUNTINGTON
MASON
Aetbor et
“The Real Agatha”
(.’o|>Trl|tht I DIO. by W. O. Ctmi’inan.
Id Urwl Britain.
PART ONE.
CHAPTER I.
I found my wife and told her all
about It. "You see. Agatha." I said,
“it’s going to bo rough on old Arch
If he doesn’t. After all, she's always
promised him the property; it should
go to him."
The secretary, that Is. my wife—l
sometimes refer to her in that way
In memory of a certain six weeks I
and my friend Terhune once spent at
Castle Wyckhoff, during which she
bore that title and I fell in love with
her—my wife put down her sewing to
answer me. She was doing me a
knitted tie, by the way. green, with at
least six different stitches in it. Aw
fully clever at that sort of thing, my
wife.
“Yes. I see." she said; "but, Wilfred,
Isn’t It r little —a little sudden? How
can he expect to get married in so
short a time as ten days?”
It was sudden, surely, and unusual.
But for the matter of that, the whole
thing was out of the ordinary. You
see the point was that an eccentric
old aunt of my friend Archibald Ter
hune, a Mrs. Georglana James of Es
sex, had written to acquaint her
nephew with the fnct that she intend
ed to leave a certain piece of property
■which she had long ago promised him
to a third cousin of hers who lived In
America if Archibald did not immedi
ately get married. In fact, she gave
him exactly and oply ten days from
the receipt of her letter in which to
accomplish the holy estate, or. rather.
In which to get himself engaged. The
actual ceremony she would leave to
follow as soon as possible when the
rroper order of things should permit.
Arch, when I saw him in London
that morning, was in the wildest state
of mind Imaginable. He had only Just
received the letter, and he’d be bless
ed if he’d take unto himself a wife at
all, merely to humor the Impossible
whims of his Aunt Georgy, much less
accomplish the deed with any such In
decorous haste. She had always
badgered him to death on the subject
of getting married, and now he sup
posed this was her way of punishing
him for his systematic disregard of
her wishes.
"Wants to Jolly well push me to the
wall and force my hand!" he told me
Indignantly. "She’d do anything to
get her own way, that old woman!
And the reason she says she's bring
ing things to a climax now 1b Just be
cause I’m forty years old today! She
aayß that if I don’t get married soon.
I’ll be so old no ojie will have me!
Fancy that!" His tone was positively
■brill with spleen and disgust. "Just
as if that were so very old!" he went
on, twitching about on his chair and
plucking angrily at his eye-glass
string. "Why, lots of men don't even
begin to think of marrying till they’re
forty-five!”
I smiled. The old boy's weak spot
Is his love of admiration, and I often
feel convinced that if it were not for
bis delight In being considered one
of London's most eligible bachelors,
and his pride in being one of the most
popular dinner guests in town, he
would long ago have entered the
bonds of matrimony.
“She says," ho continued, Jerking
over a page of the closely written let
ter that he held In his hand and glanc
ing down It as ho spoke, "that al
though she has always looked forward
with pleasure to leaving that piece of
property which represents the bulk
of her fortune, to her nephew, that she
cannot allow herself to do so unless
he complies with her wishes and be
comes a married man. To bestow so
rich an inheritance upon a single man,
she says. Is like putting a premium
on selfishness!" Terhune snorted with
Impatience when he had read that last
sentence, but I couldn’t help but ad
mire the old lady for it I thought she
must have been .something of a char
acter to express herself so forcibly.
"She goes on to explain,” said Arch,
resuming his reading after letting his
eye skim down the page to the close
of the letter, "that the reason she
limits the days of grace in which 1 am
supposed to persuade a girl to prom
ise to marry me, to ten, is because
■he thinks I deserve to have to hurry,
having thwarted her wishes so long,
and that a little anxiety will do me no
harm." His face was a picture as he
read this, and his voice trembled so
with a sense of outrage that he could
harAly go on.
"She concludes by saying that I will
be more likely to achieve the result
she desires, if I am put under a cer
tain amount of pressure. She knows
my procrastinating habits only too
well!”
His glare was so vindictive by this
time that 1 could hardly keep from
laughing at him.
"It’s no laughing matter!” he growl
ed. "She means every word of it.
She’s gone and notified the third
cousin in America about it, so there’ll
be no possibility of changing her
mind!"
"Is he married?” I asked.
"Nine children.” returned my friend
gloomily. "And she's even instructed
her solicitor," he added, "Old Barnes
of Barnes. Willoughby & Sons to call
upon me and be with me at one
o'clock ten days from now, when the
period expires, to see that every
thing's fair and square about the pro
ceedings and that 1 do not overstep
the prescribed time by so much as a
minute!”
"Capital!" I cried unguardedly, full
of an 111-timed. I fear, enthusiasm for
the business-like methods of Mrs.
Jameß.
"You'll have to invite him to lunch!
Why, it’s as good as a play! What
an old sport your Aunt Georgy must
be!"
"O, hang my Aunt Georgy!" ex
claimed Arch peevishly, not appre
ciating my point of view. "Meddle
some old busybody!”
j "And that reminds me," I said alert
ly, "how old is she. anyway. Arch?"
i "Eighty-two,” he snapped; "old
j enough to know better!”
"Old enough to be thinking about
making her will, at any rate," I Raid
meaningly. And of course Arch had
In reality too keen an Interest In hJs
own welfare not to appreciate that
fact without needing me to emphasize
It. He was not the boy—l thought—if
I knew him at all, to sit sulking in n •
corner when there was only a little
thing like getting a wife in ten days
between him and a chance at a for
tune! If he did. he could not certain
ly be the same Terhune that had
proved so earnest an aspirant for the
millions of the Hon. Agatha, a sum
mer ago. And I was right. It was not
long before he’d forgotten his disap
proval of Aunt Georgy’s methods and
was excitedly discussing ways and
means of obeying her behest. I
thought myself the thing didn’t sound
so hard. I thought at any rate that it
would he n regular lark to have a try
nt it. But he was much less optimis
tic, much more downhearted. Not be
cause he doubted his ability to get
some girl to marry him. for he felt
quite sure on the contrary that his
only trouble would be In making a se-
”A Nephew is Much Nearer Than a
Third Cousin, You Know!"
lection. But it was the shortness of
the time that stumped him. He
couldn’t seem to see himself an en
gaged man in ten days, his imagina
tion somehow failed to sum up the
picture. I did my best to cheer him
up and pointed out that the property,
which was a sheep farm in Australia,
formerly belonging to Aunt Georgy’s
brother, now deceased, and yielding a
yearly income of about $20,000, was
worth having a try for. And as I Bald,
it might have been much worse. Aunt
Georgy might have insisted on his
actually attaining the married state in
ten days’ time, instead of merely get
ting engaged, and that I thought
would have been well nigh impossible.
Girls are so queer about that sort or
thing. They must have a' trousseau,
and bridesmaids and churches and
fusH and feathers of one kind or an
other. He would certainly have had
trouble in pulling off the wedding in
such short order. He was Inclined to
agree with me. He thought it more
than lately his bride would balk at
such unceremonious haste.
But, by Jove! I know a girl who has
no such foolishness about her—
When 1 married Dearest —who had
been the Hon. Agatha Wyckhoff, you
know —she did not make me wait for
anything. We were married at the
unfashionable hour of seven in the
morning in a certain little well-re
membered chapel in the village of
Wye. with Mrs. Armistead, her aunt,
as our only attendant. And then—
but 1 forgot—I am not telling our
story, but Terhune’s. Poor old chap!
"If you could have seen nlm!” I said
to Dearest, throwing myself on the
terrace at her feet. "Never saw him
in such a state! He was in the wild
est Jiurry to begin his record-break
ing campaign for a wife, but didn’t
know how to go about it at all. And I
couldn't blame him really. Twenty
thousand dollars a year would make
all the difference in the world to
him!**
CHAPTER II.
"And to the cousin in America, with
nine children!” said Agatha.
"Not so very much," I said. "He’s
very well off. they say. All those
Americans are. Besides that, Ter
hune’s really got more right to the
stuff than he has! A nephew is much
nearer than a third cousin, you
know!"
"Not if he isn’t married, apparent
ly,” remarked Dearest, but I knew she
only said it to tease me.
"O. come, now!” I expostulated;
“you know you aren’t going to stick
up for a wild westerner from the
American backwoods."
"Wherever they may be,” put in
my wife, who has spent the greater
part of her life in the states and is
fonder of that country than 1 think
she should be.
"From the American backwoods," I
repeated, "that you've never even
seen, against poor old Terhune! Why,
he probably wears a scalp lock and
brandishes a tomahawk, for all you
know!"
She smiled pityingly at my primitive |
notions of American civilization.
"Which?" she said, "Terhune or the I
third cousin? You’re very ambigu
ous, Wilfred. Besides, you know lots
better than that!”
I hung my head In well-affected con- 1
fusion and admitted that I did.
"Don’t be a silly!" she admonished,
though I could see she thought my at- !
titude a good one, and tapped mo on j
the head with her thimble. It hurt a
little and I pretended to be very angry J
at the liberty.
"Just you stop that!” I cried, sud
denly flinging my arms around her
and pinning her so tight to her chair i
she couldn't speak. "And don’t pro- 1
tend you’re not going to agree with i
me about Terhune! It’s a serious mat- ]
ter, and you know it! The old boy’s
In a bole and I want to help him out!” j
"And you expect me to provide the j
method of exit, isn’t that it?" asked ;
my prisoner as soon as she could get
her breath.
> “Exactly!” I said, setting her free
and settling myself in another chair
that was conveniently close to her.
"Pitch in and tell us how to go
about it!” And I leaned back and lit
a favorite pipe of mine for which I
had long ago gained permanent par
don from Lady Vincent. Which title,
by the way, explains the fact that my
older brother Edmund had died short
ly after our wedding trip, making me
Lord Vincent instead of Ixird Wilfred,
and at the same time my father, the
duke of Totten’s, heir. At length my
oracle ceased puckering her pretty
brows and spoke. “I think." she said,
"we might manage it if we gave a
small house party and had two of the
Agathas who stayed with me a year
ago during the time when I was car
rying out the conditions of my fa
ther’s will and friend Terhune as the
only guests.”
I withdrew my pipe from my mouth
and my gaze from the broken roof
lino of Wyckhoff castle and the tops
of our famous Wyckhoff oaks, which
was all my lazy line of vision held,
and sat up.
"I know it’s an idea," I remarked,
"but I can’t seem to get the inner
significance o/ it —a house party for
a week with Just two Agathas and
Terhune for guests. How—”
But she interrupted me. “Yps," she
said, "so far you’re quite right. But
don’t you see. Freddy, dear, that the
Agathas I meant to invite are Agatha
First and Agatha Sixth. In the first
place, they are the only Agathas of all
the six yet unmarried, and in the sec
ond place, they just happen to be the
two girls Archibald showed the most
interest in at the time you two men
were guests at Castle Wyckhoff for
the first time."
"Of course," I cried, "I see It now!
And you think he’ll have more of a
chance with them than with strange
girls he’s never seen before?”
The secretary, I mean ray wife —
as I say the other name will slip out j
occasionally sometimes when I’m
talking of old times—smiled indulgent
ly. "As I argue it,” she said, "it will
be his only chance. He couldn’t hope
to accomplish anything in ten days,
in regard to a girl he doesn’t know,
and if you will remember, Agatha
Sixth showed a marked liking for him
at that time! A most important point
in favor of his speedy marriager"
"Then why not ask Just Agatha
Sixth? Why have Agatha First, too?*’
I Inquired innocently.
Dearest allowed the most delightful
little expression of pity for my lim
ited masculine intelligence to dim the
brightness of her eyes.
(TO BE CONTI NX? ED.)
Knew the Remedy.
"I’ll be durned if I didn't have to
laugh good an’ hard at one uv them
there gutty-lunatic, although I didn’t
feel much like sjiiekerin’ at the time."
said Farmer Cblnfuzz to the other
soap-hox warmers In the cross roads
store; "an’ here’s the answer: On
my way down to the county seat the
boss balked good an* stubborn fer a
spell an’ In the midst uv my rippin'
an' snortin’ along comes a big red
auttymobile with a -real friendly fel
ler behind the goggles. When the
feller found out that my outfit wui
stationary fer the time bein’, what do
you s’pose he up an’ done? Grabbed
a monkey an oil can an’ a
hammer, crawled under my wagon,
made a nolso like a b’iler factry, an’
may I be tetotally honswoggled if that
there boss’ mane didn't stand up like
a porkyplne’s an' he made tracks so
fast Im thinkin’ uv trainin’ him fer
the ring speedln’ at next county fair,
b’gosh.”—lllustrated Sunday Maga
zine.
He Had Reason.
In illustrating a point he wished to
make at a political gathering in thv
west, a noted politician told of an epi
taph which an Indiana man had caused
to be inscribed upon the monument of
his wife, who had died after a some
what tempestuous married life. 'Pile
legend read:
"Here lies a wife. Tears cannot
bring her back. Therefore her hus
band weeps.”—Harper’s Magazine.
Next to a lecture, advice la about
the most useless thing.
In The Limelight
IN CHARGE AT WEST POINT
T Maj. Gen. Thomas H. Barry, U. S. A., who has
become superintendent of the United States Mili
tary academy at West Point, is what Supreme
Court Justice O’Gorrnan recently termed "a typ
ical product of New York city." He was born and
reared In the old First ward, and thern are now
in New York men who will tell you that "Tom”
Barry was the handsomest boy In the old ward,
and that when he came from West Point
on furlough the younger boys were wont to
point him out as their hero.
General Barry was one of the popular cadets
during the four years he w r as at the academy. As
- an athlete he stood In the front rank, and he stood
£ high as a student. In June. 1877, he received hlB
B diploma, and as a second lieutenant was as
signed to the famous Seventh cavalry, Custer’s
old command. After three years in the Seventh General Barry was trans
ferred to the Infantry arm and assigned to the First infantry as a first lieu
tenant. Two years later he was promoted captain, and after that passing
through every grade until in August, 1903, President Roosevelt made him a
brigadier general. In April, 1908, the same president promoted him tb his
present rank, the highest under the present law that an army officer can
attain.
General Barry as superintendent at West Point is the second officer of
his rank to hold that post since West Point was founded. The other was
Lieut. Gen. John M. Schofield, who was a major general when appointed
superintendent in 1876.
No officer in the army has a finer record than General Barry. In the
Spanish war he was an adjutant general, and after the close of that war he
saw hard service In the Philippines. When the Cuban government failed to
make good several years ago, with the result that the Americans had to
reoccupy the island, General Barry was designated by President Roosevelt
as commander-in-chief of the Army of Cuban Pacification, as it was known,
and in that capacity he did his w’ork so thoroughly that when the island was
for a second time turned back to Its own people to rule General Barry was
accorded when he left an ovation such as few officers have ever received at
home or abroad.
FEDERAL CHIEF OF MINES
Three great delegations visited Washington early In the summer to urge
the appointment, the managers of sixty collieries Joined In the laudatory
chorus, and sixty-two senators put their names to a petition In his behalf.
All this recognition was won by Dr. Holmes while serving as chief tech
nologist of the technological branch of the geological survey. In this capacity
he was carrying on In a minor way the work which he now will develop to
the fullest extent. >
While the operations of the technological bureau have not been wide
spread, because of. lack of funds and authority, still the men under Dr.
Holmes were able to diminish mine disasters. They personally saved the
lives of many imprisoned miners by going to their rescue In the face of dan
gers which would have meant death to less experienced men with poorer
equipment.
The work of making mines safe has occupied the attention of Dr. Holmes
for years, and he has made rapid advancement In the finding of effective
means to the end which he has sought. He gained the confidence of labor
and capital, and it Is well known here that his subordinates are loyalty itself
to the chief.
WOMAN WHO COST A MILLION
agreed, and Leeds, also a married man, became
infatuated with her. It Is said that Leeds paid his wife one million dollars
for a divorce. Mrs. Worthington also secured a legal separation from her
husband, and three days later the wedding took place.
Leeds made his new bride the present of jewelry worth over a million,
a steam yacht, and a two million dollar palace in New York city. While on
a visit to Paris, Leeds bought his wife a $200,000 pearl necklace. She wore
this on several occasiohs, had them unstrung and they were exported In a
bag to the United States and entered at the custom house as loose pearls.
Then began her battle with the treasury, which has become celebrated.
Although the pearls were apparently imported by a Paris jeweler, the cus
toms authorities considered the action a subterfuge and demanded the CO
per cent, customary duty on a necklace. Mrs. Leeds insisted that they were
dutiable at 11 per cent, as indiscriminate pearls and won the day and Inciden
tally some $50,000 which otherwise would have gone to the government.
TO HEAP THE GOULD FAMILY
working early and late and has gone over every foot of the 9,000 miles of
the system, meeting the managers, foremen and even the laborers and study
ing the conditions. There is hardly a mile of track in the whole system with
which he Is not familiar.
With the prospect for a continuation and Increase in good times Mr.
Gould says he is entirely satisfied. Conditions In the southwest are very
promising. The only possible deterrent Influence Is a political one and he
believes that will disappear after the fall elections.
In the appointment of Dr. Joseph A. Holmes to
be director of the new bureau of mines It Is con
ceded in Washington that probably the best
equipped man for the position In the United
States has been gained for this Important post.
Ever since congress passed the bill creating
the bureau and giving It authority to Investigate
mine disasters, make experiments and suggest
means whereby accidents may be decreased and
the yearly casualty list shortened, efforts have
been made by hundreds of interested persons to 1
have Dr. Holmes selected as chief. The indorse
ment of all the coal operators' associations has
been given, every prominent mining engineer in
the country, including John Hays Hammond, has
made his plea for Dr. Holmes, and the miners’
union has added its efforts In his cause.
The series of exquisite gowns worn by Mrs.
William B. Leeds of New York, Newport and Lon
don, has been the feature of the season at the
ultra-fashionable watering place of Deauville,
France. She Is reported as having had great so
cial success and has ..given a succession of de
lightful entertainments. Mrs. William B. Leeds,
it will be remembered, Is the woman who cost
her husband one million dollars, and who refused
the importunities of royal and noble suitors who
were after her fortune, estimated at thirty times
that amount.
Her maiden name was Nannie Stewart. She
was the daughter of a wealthy Cleveland banker
and was said to be the handsomest girl In Ohio.
She married George E. Worthington. They dis-
One of the sons of the very rich who does not
believe that his life should be given up to idle
ness and sports is Klngdon Gould, the eldest of
the seven children of George Jay Gould. Klngdon
Is only twenty-three years old, but he knows a
whole lot about his father’s Interest* and, for
that matter, about the interests of the entire
Gould family. This is as it should be, for he la
destined to take his father’s place as the head
of that multi-millionaire family. He Is a well
educated man without evil habits and with a love
for work. This week he left to join the rest of
the Gould family In Europe. He would have gone
with them last spring, but he felt that he wanted
to familiarize himself with the Gould railroad sys
tem in the Bouthwest. So Instead of lolling about
the various resorts of the old world he has been
OUT OF THE QUESTION.
Fred —I hear George and his wife
never quarrel now.
Maud —No, you see they’re ODe now,
■nd It takes two to make a quarrel.
FOR THE SKIN AND SCALP
Because of Its delicate, emollient,
■anatlve, antiseptic properties derived
from Cutlcura Ointment, united with
the purest of cleansing Ingredients
and most refreshing of flower odors,
Cutlcura Soap is unrivaled for preserv
ing, purifying and beautifying* the
■kin, scalp, hair and hands and, as
sisted by Cutlcura Ointment, for dis
pelling itching Irritation and In
flammation and preventing clogging
of the pores, the cause of many disfig
uring facial eruptions. All who de
light In a clear skin, soft, white hands,
a clean, wholesome scalp and live,
glossy hair, will find that Cutlcura
Soap and Cutlcura Ointment realize
every expectation. Cutlcura Reme
dies are sold throughout the world.
Potter Drug & Chera. Corp., sole pro
prietors, Boston, Mass. Send to them
for the latest Cutlcura Book, an au
thority on the best care of the skin,
■calp, hair and hands. It la mailed
free on requesL
She Took No Chances.
A happily wedded matron is the
principal of an odd Incident, which
one of her "dear" friends relates.
Before the matron’s engagement to
her present husband was announced,
she met her "dear” friend on the
street. The new matron was hurrying
toward one of the large jewelry stores
of the city.
"John gave me an engagement ring,”
she explained, without a shadow of
embarrassment, "and I am going down
to see how much it cost. You see, I
got the Jew'eler’s name off the box,”
and she hurried on.
The same friend said that another
bit of Information the matron got was
the commercial standing of the pros
pective husband, which she secured
by paying for a special report from
a commercial agency.
Confusing.
Craig Biddle, at a dinner In New
port, was describing the changing
odds on the JefTries-Johnson fight at
Heno.
"Eight to four and a half on Jef
fries —nine to six the other way about
—three to one and a quarter—lt’s
rather confusing, isn’t it?” he said.
“In fact, it’s almost aa confusing as
the two girls’ talk about a secret.
" ‘Mary,’ said the first girl, ‘told me
that you had told her that secret I
told you not to tell her.'
" ‘The nasty thing,’ said the other
girl. ’I told her not to tell you I told
her.’
" ‘Well,’ said the first girl, ’I told
her I wouldn’t tell you she told me—
so don’t tell her I did.’ ”
Tribute to Hold-Up Artist.
“The train doesn’t stop at Crimson
Gulch any more.”
“No,” replied Three-Finger Sam.
“I’m afraid the town doesn't get
much respect from the railroad.”
“Respect! Why, that railroad Is
clean terrified. Ever since the news
got around that Stage Coach Charley
had settled here that train jest gives
one shriek and Jumps out of sight.”
Uncle Allen.
“If you’re getting old and don’t
know it,” philosophized Uncle Allen
Sparks, "you’ll find It out when you
go back to the town where you grew
up and look around for the boys you
used to play with when you were a
kid.’’
Let Us
Cook Your
Breakfast!
Serve
Post
Toasties
with cream or milk
and notice the pleasure
the family finds in the
appetizing crispness and
flavour of this delightful
food.
"The Memory Lingers”
Fob turn Cereal Co., Ltd.
Battle Creek, Ml oh.