A ROMANTIC STORY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1127, 28 July 1883, Page 3

A ROMANTIC STORY.

The follow in? remarkable narrative comes to ii 3 from Dublin. It seeing that in 1809 a buouet, who lived in the Midland Cmin: ; es of England had two sons, t'te e'der of whom became enamoured of iiis lather's cook, and at length secretly mu'iied her on November 15th, 1859. The pair proceeded 10 Dublin, where early in the following January, she gave birth to a daughter. Beiug apparently desirous that the fact should not become known she determined to desert the infant, and accordingly on the 24th of that month she went to Kingston, made enquiries, and ascertained the name of a person who had the reputation of being a good-hearted and well-to-do woman. The mother returned to Dublin, and went again to Kingstown in the evening, carrying her baby wfth h,er, and. at lialfpast 6 o'clock she left the chUd on the doorstep of the house of the person whose address she had previously ascertained. The infant was well wrapped up in two complete outfits of clothing, and concealed in one of its wrappers wag a purse containing 50 sovereigns and a Testament, The mother rang the house bell violently and ran some little whence she could still see fhd door qpen. Qn the following day she and her husband crossed over to England.. -From that time and during the succeeding twelve years their doings have not transpired, but in 1872 they went to Rome and continued to live there. In the early part of 1877 the baronet died, aud left his entire possessions to his heir, the estate being worth between $13,000 and £14,000 a year. The inheritor of his wealth was, however, in delicate health, and both he and his wife died suddenly at their residence in Rome on 17th October, 1877. As it was not then known whether the deceased had any issue, the disposal of his property was deferred by the executors. His brother, who was a colonel in a cavalry regiment, having learned from the deceased that there was a child of the marriage whose whereabouts was unknown, determined to trace her. He could not, however, obtain any clue to the missing giri until about four months ago, when he found among his brother's books and pnpors «t Rome a diary belonging to the wife, in which wore entered a number of facts connected with the birth and subsequent desertion of the phild, ancj of her own actions subsequently. Among other items, it contained an entry, dated 24th January, 1860, after she had left the child at Kingstown, describing the place were she bad left it, and lier own proceedings on that day, besides giving some other important information. Possessed of this clue, tho colonel in Decern, b,er last, pjaqed the matter in the hands of a detective, whom he instructed to spare no trauble in the search for the missing girl. Ultimatoly the whole story of the girl's career from the time of her

.desertion, litis been obtained. It appears that after remaining for two years and seven months in the house of the person on whose doorstep she had been left, the girl was sent to Eathdown Union Workhouse, where she remained for nearly four years. She was then sent into the country and placed in the care of a foster mother, whence, after being trained in the ordinary duties of a domestic servant, and after receiving a fair education, she was sent out to service, and until a few days apo she was employed as a servant at a gentleman's house in the neighbourhoood of Dublin. Immediately on the proofs of his niece's identity being forthcoming, the colonel hurried to Dublin, and brought all the certificates he had in reference to the case with him, and he at once took steps to have her removed to a position more befitting her new station in life. To mark her gratitude to the colonel she offered him half her fortune, but that gentleman declined the offer.