Rensselaer Union, Volume 9, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 May 1877 — $24,000,000 Waiting for Heirs. [ARTICLE]

$24,000,000 Waiting for Heirs.

A raw specimen of the native Irishman appealed before Commissioner Hoyne yesterday and besought his kindly offices. The man was a laborer of the commonest grade, about forty years of age, although his strongly-marked face and bent figure indicated that he was much older. He was dressed in the poorest stuff. The lower portion of his anatomy was covered with a pair of well-worn pantaloons, which were suspended from his waist by a leather strap. The upper portion of his body was covered by an antiquated coat and a dirty woolen shirt, which lay open at the throat, disclosing veins and sinews brought into prominence by nigged toil. His whole appearance indicated poverty and toil and care, and, as he approached Mr. Hoyne, he did so with a bashful air, as if he was conscious of his own position and he was there to ask a favor. The man told a strange story and told it in an Irish brogue so strongly marked as to be almost as unintelligible to an American as the speech of a Yorkshire plowman. He said his name was Daniel O’Keefe, had been in this country for five years, and was now residing at Calhoun avenue, Irondale, South Chicago. Some thirty-two years ago a brother and a cousin of hi’s named Charles O’Keefe left London for India, for the purpose of “ making their fortunes.” From that time forth the family had only received two letters, one of which informed the Relatives in Ireland that they were doing well, and the other was an invitation to the visitor of Mr. Hoyne to come to India, and his passage would be paid out. The offer was not accepted, ana the letter was unanswered. This was years ago.

Those two young Irishmen sailed from London about 1845. They had little or nothing in the shape of wordly possessions, and landed in India with an almost empty treasury, a wide country before them, good constitutions, and a fountain of perseverance in their hearts. As the dramatist says, we will suppose twenty years to have elapsed, and we find these two Indian emigrants transformed into Indian princes, so far as wealth is concerned. They have settled at Allahabad, own large estates, have troops of servants to minister to their wants, and look forward to the time when they will come back to their native land and in the eyes of the world be men among men. Another ten years elapse, but before they have completed their project they die, are buried by people foreign to them and leave in the hands of lawyers goods and chattels valued atnoless than ♦24,000,000. Where the heirs are to be found is a mystery to them, and they advertise. Daniel, as stated above, came to this city about five years ago, and some months ago the fact was brought to his notice that he was being advertised for as an heir tft this bonanza in American papers. He communicated with his people in Ireland—who are all as ignorant as he —and received undubitable proof that he w T as one of flve who are entitled to the property of the deceased men at Allahabad. Daniel’s relatives are as poor as he is, and he came to Mr. Hoyne in order to devise some way of crossing the ocean, where he can establish his identity. He produced papers showing his relationship to the deceased millionaires, and he spoke in confident tones as to his ability to establish his personality could he only reach Great Britain. After consultation, he resolved to try and raise by subscription tlie necessary amount among his fellow laborers at the rolling mill where he is employed; but he seemed rather doubtful of success in this direction, the mills having been closed for some time. Here js a chance for a speculator! A prospective millionaire begging as much as will pay a steerage passage to the other side of the Atlantic! Think of ill—lnter-Ocean.