Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1892-04-28

INDUCED my hilarity freely at my
friends expense. "A lawyer tool" l
cried, when | could speak. Your repu
tation in my eyes is ruined forever"
~ have no excuse to offer. 1t was a
dreadful slip, Miss Harlan"
1.-The slip was objectionable of course,
but it was an accident. No, what l re-
fer to, Mr.. Chelm, is the marvellous in
vention by which you sought to conceal
it. fully expected to see the floor open
and some d mon carry you off amid
smoke and sulphur."
81 never stick at trife like that"
laughed he. "But didn't do the thing
we'll? He believed every word of it. And
what is more, Miss Harlan" he added
seriously, sit would have been a great
pity to have let him decline He is a
likely young fellow. | smell wedding
cake In the air already"
"You forget, Mr.. Chelm," answered,
"that am an eccentric maiden lady of
sixty five. You have ruined any ma
terial there may have been out Of which
to manufacture romance"
This turn of affairs took place few
Aunt Agnes occurred to which | have
alluded, and | found that it absorbed
my thoughts and tended to counteract
the dependency produced by her dis
pleasure and the injustice of her friends.
! All through the remainder Of the season
! awaited with eagerness the monthly
reports sent by Mr.. Prime. He was es-
tablished, and cautiously feeling his way.
But necessarily there was little to tell q
fortune cannot be made In minute.
| However, cherished every word of en-
| courI gement as so much vindication Of
my faith, and came by degrees to feel
| ms though Mr.. Primes new enterprise
were my own business, and that my
reputation for sagacity were dependent
rpon his success.
And yet. as | have already implied,
| Mr.. Prime was nothing to me except so
far as he represented an instrument of
my will. 1t was not in him that | was
interested half so much az in myself. In
order to satisfy my curiosity l even
planned in the spring a trip to New
York with Aunt Helen, and delighted
my eyes with glimpse of the sign board
! over the spacious offices of Francis Prime
and Company. But on that day it was
veritably glimpse that got, for | was
too timid to take deliberate scrutiny OF
what | had come to see, owing to the fact
that every one | met stared at me; and
then, too, i was momentarily upset by
perceiving over the way just opposite
in great gilt letters, the rival sign, as il
| ~ 90 I1o1 20 10,
and Broker"
Mr.. Dale | had not seen for severa
years, but knew that he was living il
New York, where he had not long be
fore married an heiress of obscure ante
cedents, according to rumor. That i
was he ! had little doubt, and though
the fact of his having an Office in the
same street could not Of course affect
either for evil or otherwise, the interests
of my protege, had an indefinable feel
ing of dread at perceiving they were 81
near to one another. 1t was Therefore
doubly necessary for me to be careful il
my subsequent expeditions down town
not only to dress in such a quiet, I'm
fashionable manner as not to attract tn
attention of passers, but so as to escap
recognition from my former ad1nirer
After the first impression of unpeas
antness felt little added zest on &C
count of this element of risk, especiall
when on inquiry learned that Roge
Dale was rated as one of the most sue
cessful and enterprising of the younge
banking firms in the city. / saw his al
. vertisements in the newspapers, an
gathered from current talk that he wa
doing large and lucrative business.
was glad to know that he was happy an
prosperous at last for he had failed one
, before leaving home, though | neve
heard of it until long while after, an
under the influence of this mood an
vestige Of i'll will that may have beel
lurking in my mind died away, and
came to regard the rival sign with pei
feet equauimity from behind the thic
veil by which | concealed my feature.
lnstigated by a spirit of caution to max
, my disguise as complete as possible,
5 purchased at a cheap clothing store som
, garments that did much toward render
ing my personal appearance the very OK
} posite of stylish.
5 even tried to give them a soiled an
\ worn aspect by means of experiments {
/ home, 50 that might pass for a femal
clerk or needy bushel woman, and |
g free to pursue my investigations unol
served. In this guise | spent numbe
8 of days In wandering about the bushes
I streets of the city, attentive not only t
1 what went on in the Offices of Franc
8 Prime and Company and Roger Dali
but to the countless sights and sount
: Of busting trade, which experience
t now for the first time. At first did NJ
' dare to appear too frequently in tt
street which was the center of my int
est, but dangerous fascination led IL
. to become holder and more adventurou
as l became familiar with the SURROUND
: lngs. From under the obscurity {
arches and from behind pillars | note
9 daily who entered the doors of the ne
! firm, and endeavored to get an idea of tt
amount of business that it transacted.
= In this respect was somewhat disaI
r pointed, for although customers were b