The Argosy — page 114: what you’re looking at

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

102 Edina. asked himself. And, even if he were willing, and the work pre- sented itself, (some charming, rose-coloured vision of a sinecure post, would now and again present itself indistinctly to his imagination) how would he be free to fulfil it, with those wretched debts hanging at his heels? 3 _ One little matter did surprise Charles—he heard nothing of Huddles, ‘He had fully expected that within a day or two of that worthy man’s departure, certain sharks of the law, or—as he seemed to prefer to call _ them—tigers, would attack him. But nothing of the kind occurred. The days went on and on, and Charles was still not interfered with. About a fortnight after the death of Major ‘Raynor, a letter arrived from Mr. Street. And, by the way, talking of the Major’s death, what a grievous farce his will sounded when it was read. Eagles’ Nest was bequeathed to Charles, with liberty to Mrs. Raynor to reside in it for the next ten years ; after that, if Charles should deem it expedient that she should leave with the younger children, he was charged to provide her with a home. The Major. recommended that a portion of the lost money, when found, should be put out to interest, and allowed to accumulate for her benefit. Quite a large sum was willed away in small bequests. This much to one child, that to another; some to Edina, some to Frank—and so on. The horses and carriages, the linen, some plate, ornaments and trinkets, with sundry other personah ‘things that had come to him with Eagles’ Nest, were left to Mrs. ‘Raynor. All this, when read, sounded like a painful farce, a practical joke. These things were all George Atkinson’s ; and, of the bequeathed money, the poor Major possessed not a shilling to bequeath. Lawyer Street wrote to say that Mr. George Atkinson was come, and had held a business interview with them. Mr. Atkinson, he hinted, was not inclined to deal harshly with the Raynor family, but leniently. He gave them one month in which to vacate Eagles’ Nest, when he should himself enter into possession of it; and with regard to the money spent in the past twelvemonth, which did in reality belong to him, and . to the mesne profits, he made no claim. Let them go out of his house quietly, and he should say nothing about arrears. The conditions were, perhaps, as favourable as could be expected from a man of the world, cruelly hard though they sounded to the Raynors. Zey thought, taking all circumstances into considera- tion—his own wealth, which must be accumulating yearly, and his non- relationship to the former mistress of Eagles’ Nest, and consequently non-claim in justice to inherit it—that Mr. Atkinson should have quietly resigned it to them, and left them in undisturbed possession ot it. Frank, once hearing Charley say this, shook his head. AH should have done this himself, he said, were he George Atkinson; but he feared the world, as a whole, would not; we did not live in Utopia. And now came in the practical good sense of Edina. After allow- comicbooks.com