New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-02-05

another heavy call upon the unfortunate
shareholder Of broken bank TINS dlsas,Io n
bit of property had been left him by ms tather
in all possible good faith, but II was none th'
less a milestone round his neck. when had TO DE-
dragged with every step he took. To be reDeli
ious under this heavy yoke was only natural
and vet such things before now have beer
known to be the resistance that moulds man
character into strength.
If Hester had been a woman OF NaiHer am
smaller mind. his total ignoring Of her mleh
easily have checked the sympathy that was
growing warmer every week. ana beginning ''
take practical shape in her thoughts, but being
by nature both kindly and generous, she ac
cepted the position with a quaint resignation
that saw the humorous side Of 1t. Besides, no"
pleasant it was to have the power OF giving anc
still remain anonymous both in ana out OF
Dulvcrtonl She had proved this again and agar
since her accession to fortune, yet no on'
dreamed Of taxing her with the quiet help thai
seemed to come when most needed. Even th'
collecting churchWardcns had not been able tC
trace that half-sOvercign which appeared every
Sunday in the bag to its rightfu source
So it happened that. rightly or wrongly month
after month she identified herself more and
more with the pcrpexitics Of her employer
Such "A foolish preoccupatiOn showed want
OF worldly wisdom and the mere fact that every
tone Of his voice betrayed accurately to her the
fluctuations OF Responding courage and energy
Indicated that her quick perceptions might have
been better employed attending To her own in
terests instead OF his.
The time came when. instead Of pacing rest
Iessy up and down. he would sit despondngy
with bowed head She could just see the blurred
outlines through the frosted glass Of the pigeon
hole, and then, in her anxiety for him. the tap
ping OF the typewriter would cease.
IT'S pulling him under, OF that am certain
and this business will go bankrupt unless -
She thought about 1t until she could think OF
nothing ese-until she could not rest while the
thing remained undone. SO entirely had she
placed the weight of his harassments on her
own shoulders that TO alleviate them seemed as
natural as the half -SOVereign in the correcting
bap he
He wanted the money. she did not. and That set
tied il. AS the outcome Of her determinatlon
and through the agency of those whom she had
Wellnigh sworn to secrecy, he found one morn
ing on his table a letter containing twenty
halves Of crisp bank notes. and the notes were
for 400 apiece. II was "A imminent glit. cost
ing her as yet very little. she had already
decided against using the money for herself;
and if only she had bestowed it on the clerk
with the FIVE hungry children il might have
meant compound interest to all concerned.
Francis DalwOOd. hardly daring to believe his
own eyes. read the businesslike note that ac-
cOmpanicd this apparently heav"n-st mt denoue-
ment Of all his difficulties: 1t contained moth
Ing but official assurance that the OtheI
halves would follow promptly on the announced
receipt OF the first. that they were a free GIT
from some grateful client. and that he desired
to make known his gratitude but not his name.
This was all and cudgel his brains as he might
Mr.. Dalwood could not think Of any client who
owed and paid gratitude on such magnificent
scale. He was "A long. long time over his cor
respondence that morning. and Hester, VINO
knew nerfectIy the contents Of one Of his letters
feI, nervousIy eeIf-conscious With noiselcss
touches she played tunes on ihe keys Of the
,,.rav,rit.r and hogan Ia feel really desperate
hoforn tho clazed shutter was pulled back She
lacked mn uuickly searchinglv to see the result
Of her handiwork. but the professional mask
showed nothing through. not even sparkle OF
u.w hone III IN, ewes IL was her frs disap-
monument in tho transaction and many more
u.cro ~ (oIlnu Vet surely ne stood a little
moro ,rrigb, nc tbuupb a weight had fallen
fro,, his shoulders In debating 10 her his voice.
sr,Ind.d rI.riseIv as usual. but as she was a
,t!tlc slow that morning II" looked half ahsently
OUT ur the window
What has that fountain got hold of this
morning.