Santa Rosa High School - Echo Yearbook (Santa Rosa, CA)

Page 5 text:

| | GERTRUDE’S DISCOVERY By Carrie St. Clair. T was a summer evening W in one of the swampiest Vy) marshes of the South. Y) V There was very little to be SJ a sd YZ found in the region, but LSE very often tourists came through the country and remained a few days. Why a man of wealth should build a mansion in such a desolate place was the marvel in the eyes of the surrounding neighborhood. But this was just what old Colonel Wharton had done. Now the old man was dead and the estate was left to his only son, a prominent lawyer in Atlanta. W Y On this particular evening, a party of young people were seated on the veranda of the only hotel which the country could boast. The Wharton mansion could be clearly seen in spite of the fact that it was about half a mile away. They had been singing to the accompaniment of the hum of mosquitoes, but were now idly talking of the stories in which the village abounded. In nearly all these stories, Colonel Wharton was the central figure. He had led a most interesting life. Much against the will of his English father, he had married a poor but very beautiful Italian girl and had mi- grated to America, where he had chosen this place for a home. Their one son had all the beauty of his mother, but sustained the dignified character of his father. The Col- onel had fought in the civil war and had come back to find his homeplace almost de- serted and his wife dead. He was never the same after that, His beautiful place was neglected and his son was sent to col- lege to study law. He had never come back until his father’s death and then only re- mained long enough to see his old father laid to rest by the side of his beautiful mother. Gertrude Reid, one of the company, was rauch impressed by the stories, and proposed a walk up to the mansion in the moonlight An old darkey, who had been listening to the animated talk of the young people inter- posed at this point, advising them to wait until morning, because the old house was said to be haunted by the Italian girl every night. “Pooh,” exclaimed Gertrude, “If we be- lieved all the superstitious signs told us by these ignorant people, we could never do anything. I, for one, intend to go up to that house. Now, who’ll come with me?” One by one, the company assented and went gaily up to the house. It was not an un- common house, for there were many of them before the war, but in the moonlight its de- serted hallways and rooms looked very ghostly and wierd. As they were silently moving from room to room, examining the various cupboards and shelves, a strange light suddenly fell across the bare floor. The girls screamed and the young men were very much surpris- ed. The light disappeared as quickly as it had come. The party started to leave, but Gertrude Reid, ever curious and adventur- ous, exclaimed, “I intend to find out the meaning of that light. If you don’t want to

Page 4 text:

OUR ADVERTISERS PEIMOTICAN ISRKCLY: 6 oe sics sss scas'e 208-210 Fourth St. N. Bacigalupi Son, Groceries..... 203-205 4th Sto Belden Upp, Druggists.............. 443 4th St. F. Berka, Building Materials............ Wilson St. Brooks Clothimg Co., Clothiers.......... 509 4th St. California Oyster Market and Grill......... 4th St. Cordingley’s Cyclery ....0.00. Native Sons’ Bldg. Crystal Cleaning Dyeing Works......721 4th St. Dixon Elliott, Hardware...... Third and D Sts. Elite Hair Dressing Parlors..........3.. 630 4th St. Eugene C. Farmer, Druggist............ 701 4th St. Flagler’s, Coffee and Teas......... 420-422 4th St. Gardiner Bros., Furniture........... 709-711 4th St. Pred: Grohe; WlOrist (2.5. vicc ss cisisie.0s » McDonald Ave. Hahman Drug Co., Druggists....213 Exchange Ave. Hodgson-Henderson Co., Men’s Furnishings iets ieiniptebsistalots tela igs sieivrolalernieie 6 eral 517 Fourth St. MONT [EOOUy a) CW EIED wig acorns 05 8,6, S stielsiete)s s o. Big Clock W. S. Hosmer Son, School Books..... Fourth St. Jacobs’ Candy Store, Candies.......... 529 4th St. Juell’s Drug Store, Druggist............ 621 4th St. Keegan Bros., Clothiers... .iic6s.s 9.00 4th and B Sts. Kopf Donovan, Grocers..........00s%. Third St. Lambert Sisters, Millinery.............. 314 B St. I.ee Bros. Co., Express and Draying..Fourth St. Luttrell’s Drug Store, Druggist........ 3827 4th St. J. C. Mailer Hardware Co., Hardware...Fourth St. R. C. Moodey Son, Footwear......... Fourth St. MM... Moaek, Jeweler... 3.6. 505 r 0eenwene 534 4th St. New Method, Clothes Cleaned............... D St. Rose Brand Flour.......... Santa Rosa Flour Mills Santa Rosa Furniture Co......... Fourth A Sts. E. BR. Sawyer, JOweler...c.-secsersevsss 529 4th St. Schelling! Gara wens 37. ya sve rw aialeteceiateta alee re Fourth St. Temple Smith, Stationery.............. 611 4th St. Sonoma County Fruit Produce Co., Inc. hie 5 potas ea alee ere tioal wat ote caL8 Fourth Wilson Sts. Az sD. SSKInKI6,- Candies. saic0s.ce 4 aleperes Fourth St. St. Rose Drug Store, Drugs......... 4th and A Sts. Sunrise Shoeing Parlors, Blacksmiths....Fifth St. TNE MWC, FLOWS 505 ei 0icce sa4 0 cities Fourth B Sts. Cc. A. Wright Co., Bookselle rs....615-617 4th St. Professional Cards Dr. G. W. Mallory, Physician and Surgeon.... EPS OU Od ic telat Exchange Bank Bldg. Dr. P. A. Meneray, Physician and Surgean.... dur des Salay cae aces Santa Rosa Bank Bldg. Mary Jesse Hospital. .cs.5..csecceae ms 815 Fifth St. H. H. Moke, Funeral Director...... 418 Fourth St. Dr. RB. W. Nelson; Dentist.. ...... 509A Fourth St. Dr. Jackson Temple, Physician and Surgeon.. RAs dioiy ain Gite oeern (ih oteevuen ee Union Trust Bank Bldg. Dr. 8... Wyland, 'Os-=te-o-path: 55 ins. ans as CER Oe ee ae Santa Rosa Bank Bldg. '

Page 6 text:

THE ECHO. f ES come, you can go back to the hotel and wait for me!” Silently, her dearest friend, her brother, and his chum followed her towards the place from which the light had come. The rest of the party left the mansion and hastened to the foot of the hill to await developments. Meanwhile, Gertrude and her friends were crossing the house when the light was again thrown in their faces, and as quickly remov- ed. Quickly, they stepped to a window, which looked out on an ell formed by two portions of the house, and saw a great, burly African, who, with his back turned, was busily examining something in his hand. He was wholly unaware of any pres- ence. On one side of him was a powerful light, which, if he moved was thrown a great distance behind him. Soon two evil-looking men came around the corner of the house talking inaudibly but excitedly. Their faces shown plainly in the moonlight. The men came over to the negro and, after giving him a few hard knocks, handed him a box and told him to go at once. The negro stopped to examine it and with breathless interest, the four, now very excited young people, watch- ed him handle the contents which looked very much like gold and silver. The negro started off around the house and the evil- looking men started back. “Counterfeiters,” exclaimed Gertrude’s brother, Jack Reid. The two young men, now thoroughly aroused, left the two girls, crouching near the window and quickly and softly followed the big men, keeping ever out of their sight until they came to an opening through which the men had disap- peared. “What shall we do? There may be half a dozen men like them and they could easily overcome us. We had better go back and get the sheriff and some of the fellows and investigate. It will be a great discovery if that is what they really are.” They went back with the girls to the foot of the hill, where they told all they had seen. The girls were anxious to go back, but of course, that was out of the question. The sheriff, who thought it was some prank, refused to go until aroused by the earnest- ness of Jack Reid. He got out of bed, dress- ed and accompanied the men, well armed. The girls, very excited, eagerly awaited the return. They discussed the episode over and over and made the girls tell all about the big African and the evil-looking men. “Will they never come back?” asked Ger- trude. “They may all be killed. Those men looked like hardened criminals.” “Tt will all be due to you, Gertrude, if the counterfeiters are caught. We would never have gone up there, would we, girls, if she hadn’t insisted?” said her friend. Suddenly they heard the men returning and eagerly ran to meet the crowd. Ger- trude’s brother came up to them and told them they had found them to be a band of bold counterfeiters, for whom the State had sought in vain for three years. They had known the Colonel lived alone and securing aid from one of his servants, by offers of money, had been making money in an un- used portion of the old mansion, partially underground. Gertrude received many congratulations for her part in the discovery and announced it the most exciting experience in which she had ever taken part.