Geoffrey's Victory by Mrs Georgie Sheldon — page 112: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

108 A LONG AND INTERESTING CONVERSATION. “No, nothing of any consequence; all that he could re- member of his previous life was that he had lived with some people named Margery and Jack, and that his name was Geoffrey Dale——” “Dale! Dale!” repeated Mrs. Mapleson, with a start. “There used to he a family of Dales living near Vue de PEKau before I was mairied; at least there was a widow and her daughter, a girl named Annie. They were poor people; they lived in one of those cotteges near the old mill, and after the mather died the girl suddenly disap- peared, and was never heard of again.” “Mother, what is this you are telling me?” eried young Mapleson, a strange Icok flishing over his face. “The gir] went away and never came back ?” << V ec.” ‘“Where did she go? She must have had some especial place in view when she started.” “She said she was going to Richmond to serve as gov- erness in some family ; that was the last I ever heard of her.” Everet Mapleson’s eyes glowed, “Aha!” he thought; “who knows but what I have af last found a clew to the fellow’s birth ? ‘Dale, Dale,” he, too, repeated thoughtfully, “ wasn’t.” that the name of that queer old codger who was to have had Uncle Jabez’s fortune, if you and father didn’t fulfill the conditions of his will?” : “Yes, Robert Dale. He wasa cousin of Uncle Jabez, and considerably younger than he, and I suppose he would have had all the money, if your father and I had _ been contrary.” “Tt was the most eccentric will I ever heard of,” said Everet, musingly. “Tt was indeed.” “What could have prompted him to make it?” “Your father was his brother’s only son, and the last of the Maplesons. J wasa favarite niece, the daughter of his sister, and I suppose he did not wish the wealth which it had taken so many vears to accumulate, to be divided, yet. he desired to have it benefit his relatives, and so took this way to accomplish it.” A little sigh escaped Mrs. Mapleson as she con- cluded. Her son noticed it, and shot a searching glance into her face. “Mother,” he said, as if some strange thought had sud- comicloookks.€