LIFE ROMANCE

Hokitika Guardian, 6 September 1930, Page 3

LIFE ROMANCE

MISER’S HOARD IN , NEW YORK. LEGACY FOR SYDNEY WOMAN. SYDNEY, Aug. 28. A cable message published during the week-end announced that the police in New York had accidentally unearthed a miser’s hoard'of more than £2070, which, oh the death of the owner, was intended for a Sydney woman. The curious part of the discovery was that the owner could not he found. The woman, 'who, according to the will found with the hoard, is to benefit is Airs Neva Mabel Kelty, of Granville, Sydney,'.'#K6 was pleasantly surprised when she heard the news, but somewhat bewildered by the strange action of her brother, Fred. Clark, who left Australia 40 years ago. The suddenness of the information left her devoid of any theory as to how he might have accumulated the hoard, ex-, cept that possibly he was putting the money by with the object of returning to Australia.. Airs Kelty’s maiden name was Deering, and she said that was the real; name of her brother, who had been referred to in the cable message. He was now apparently 58 years ol age. He had stated in a letter that his. reason for changing his name to Clark as that he found it much easier to obtain employment in America under that name, than Deering, which sounded rather too English for the Americans. “My brother was horn in Sydney, in Balmain,” said Mrs Kelty. “He was 18 when he left home. He had worked with a solicitor, and later with a bookseller. He was a. great reader, and had always expressed a desire to travel. Though he hated the sea he always had an idea that lie.wanted to see the world. He knew that my father would not give his consent to his going away, so he left suddenly, without telling mother or father that lie was going. One day he set out for his work, but he did not arrive, and nothing was heard from him until a letter was received from San Francisco. He had secured a position as cabin hoy on a sailing vessel, Star of Russia, and had worked his way to San Francisco.”

Airs Kelty said that her brother had been in every important city in America. He had last written from Newark, New Jersey, and had stated that he would be away from that city for a, time, and he advised her not to write until she heard from him again. That was twelve months ago, and she had not heard from him since. His letters up to then had come regularly every three months. She did not know what her brother did in America. He never informed her in his letters. Her last letter to -him was returned, as he could not be found.

Her brother’s disappearance was n great blow to her parents, who hoped that some day he would return. They both died about six years ago, within several months of one another, without seeing the son for whom they had constantly pined.