Show ANNIES LOVE AFFAIR dy GEORGE MUNSON when ben jim maine blaine went eat after any tiny taing he went after it tooth and nail that was the spirit in which he went after miss allas bl artha croes crowes property martha cro e bad bad hod the deputa lion don of a miser but nobody it imagined that in addition to the cottage in which ebo she and miss alias annie her niece by ty marriage dwelled ehe she had nine thousand dollar dollars in the ban bank k the fruit of 0 hoarding and clever investment and the will ill that old maine blaine produced gave him everything evera thing except the cot tago and the I 1 land d on which it blood it waa as annies engagement to tom clanin claflin that pro provoked joked the old womans mo malla rage annie annio bad had been a drudge ever since her aunt adopted her tier at the aso ago of ten fifteen years before no tody lody had thought that the plain quiet girl would eier marry hut but clanin claflin tho young la ia er saw sau underneath the plain exterior saw tho heart of gold and the sterling character and loving nature long subdued and repressed but not kill killed d annie had longed to lavish her tier tenderness oi ot the crabbed aid ad woman moman then after cars of vain diffort to m win in her love tom had come hodg and claimed her when the Int merly old woman oman heard of f it she ex pressel herself in characteristic terl te a tic f fashion As hi on not one penny of my money A will ill you get you ungrateful child it you leave me in ray my old age she said but aunt we me u want ant aou ou to make your home with us protested the girl that only fanned the old omans womans wrath she lent sent for maine ho ile was nas her only friend he ile was as an elder in some primitive tabernacle and miss martha belonged to it the con grega lion tion were narrow fanatics belf righteous Ph pharisees arisen who ho thought all aurban love an abomination beet best stay with bour our aunt and give that claflin follow fellow the shake leered old jim he lie was mas the 44 e a G k I 1 t lopo it tikes a big man to cross cros ss my win WIM richest man la hc the village and had a reputation for 9 little got through his fingers the pair of 0 them thera stormed at tb girl anu unu sho she fled to her room in la terror she had hoped to escape into a larger world with ith her marriage to tom but th thu plea of duty to her aunt broke her resolution she gave him up at least she would bae hae given him up only the week following her aunt died suddenly she died in the midst of one of those scolding fits that made the girls life call gall and wormwood and then tom came and put his arms around annie and told her that she aa was his just tho the same and that he had hd taken no notice of her letter because he knew that was jut just lle itice tom he alwayn understood and they meant to be very happy together but tom was as poor as a church mouse and marriage would have hare beba out of 0 the question but for the money you must take it tom insisted the girl tako take it as a loan it you like to help you in our profession you will have clients galore in a few years dont make us both unhappy b refusing tom before tom alahn hd h d decided jim maine produced a will written ritten by the old woman a month before she died and signed by witnesses it left all I 1 hat iss martha a money to bm him mating t that on account of her inget ingratitude tude annie was to get only the cottage that wae waa worth two or three thousand b but bt t tt 1 only 21 share in the comfort comfortable ablo estate tom came to anal annie that will is a forgery my mr dear he said those witnesses are tren who owe maine money they am ar la JA his power and ere are 0 ot f reputable disreputable character we shall fight light it tooth and nail aunie annie protested she did not ft ant to fight about the money eho she eald said maine blaine was as welcome to it and eho she hated scandal besides that phe ba knew know her aunt had borne her lie love but tom persuaded pd her he lie inea that the girls life had been an unhappy one though he she had never told him bo he lie knew that the will was as forged and he meant to send maine blaine to prison the case came up before the burro curro gates court maine had defied and threatened tom but the young lawyer saw that the roan man was in a frenzy of fear still he could not keep bis his fingers off the nine thousand dollars and his witnesses were stanch to him on the day before the trial the young lawyer lauyer received a visit from a fellow lawyer la 3 er in the next town to n 1 I heard about your our case Cl chatlin atlin ho he eald said 1 I think this puts a new light on the transaction it and he threw thre a document upon the table tom picked it up it was an other will ill of miss marthas she made that about a month ago eald said the visitor came over to sta fo to do it I 1 guess so that nobody in this ton town A should know of course conrad it tho the will you are lighting over but claflin sat long in thought that evening tom torn wont aou ou mith withdraw draw at the laut last moment pleaded annie in court the next morning dear we have ane cottage and after all that will mill icay bo be genuine tom said nothing but clasped her hand in his and anlo tunic resigned herself to bar lovers in the matter when the cabe u was mas called however he amazed the court and spectators by saying we do not accept this will ill as ine your honor but in deference to the wishes of my client we e are willing to accept the sworn statement of mr maine and his witness to the effect that the will ill Is genuine and to withdraw and the will wa was admitted to probate maine was as flushed with triumph he ile was not the man to lemuell let well enough alone ledone the revulsion from his feare of prison proved too strong for hie good sense he ile came up to tom ic the court room atte the court had adjourned wall he sneered 1 I guess you on did the wise thing in withdrawing young man ba hae bae e lost bour 5 our case and id bae hae had aou a driven out of town towa too VJ it takes a big man to cross my ft u ill 1 I hope aull enjoy your property said paid tom but why you on take the cottage too while you nou were ere about it you threw araa ana two to or three thousand dollars there and you might just as m well ell have bad had it it if you had had had the nerve what do you ou mean bellowed maine truculently i I 1 meu meo said tom thrusting his face forward and looking the other squarely in the ea e e that it you been a thief and a rogue you would have got everything here is miss crow os will and it leaves 3 ou everything cottage included 1 ho lie thrust the document under jim maines face it does does it roared maine then ill have it IL no you wont answered this will ill was mas executed three days before the forged one that has been admitted to probate copyright 1914 by bv v G chapman |