Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1899-11-14
see here. Esther. the idea Is al

| wv HSiSs- iSstlltIS lue 1lCd is all
right, but it is risky business for the
shrewdcst man to try and handle GRIM
inals. You want the best lawyer YOU
can secure, and you want him at the
start. Otherwise you'll drag your club
! into no end of trouble; for even GRIM
inals have certain rights, which they
understand better than you, and which
1t is dangerous to NEEDLE with or ig-
more. Now, the first thing you do, you
go to John Olmstead's nephew. l be-
heve he's the best lawyer of his age in
the state. He'll tell you he's too busy
TO give the matter attention, but don't
| let him slip. Ten minutes of his brain
| work is better than an hour from most.
Take him on philanthropy. l under
stand it's something of hobby with
him. Don't you offer to pay him, or he
won't look at you. He can earn ten
times all that your club will pay with
half the work you will require, but he's
forever throwing away good business
TO give his time in charity. Call it
charity. See? And if that don't work,
| try moral reform. He's head and front
In dozen moral reforms. And once
you've secured him you're all right"
Following this advice, Esther cut
from the next mornings papers all
the obnoxious advertisements she
could find. She read them over with a
| shudder of horror that men and women
could be SO base and depraved. One
In particular, signed Malcolm" fas-
tened itself upon her mind. Thus
armed, she started, early, to consult
that prodigy of genius and brilliant
leader in philanthropy, charity and
morality, John Olmstead's nephew.
She knew him we'll enough by sight
| and doubtless Stanton had frequently
heard her name and even seen her dur
Ing the brief period when he was most
| in society. He might almost have seen
her yesterday, and forgotten. There
was a strong similarity among women
| as he saw them. lie never tried to re-
member unless they were in the wit
ness-stand.
AS Miss Braddon stepped into the ele-
vator the operator was showing another
boy an item in the Morning Herald
| which intensely amused them both.
| Always interested in what interested
the young, she glanced over their Shout
ders, to find them absorbed in the adj
| vertisement signed Malcolm" She re-
membered it well, and new horror
chilled her to find that even boys found
| entertainment in the pernicious matter
| and from 1t formed their notions of
what real life would be for them too.
when they were old enough to enter in.
AS she crossed the hall to Stanton's
door, she whispered, Indignantly:
Malcolm. Herald. Uptown"
She paused timidly upon the thresh-
old, fully aware of the Importance of
the man she was about to approach,
when the office boy came forward, re-
marking:
Good mornin', UNI. Yer loollin' fur
de Mr.. Malcolm as addetised in de
Mornin' Herald, UNI? He's right in
here, um.''
Before she could collect her thoughts,
the door of the private office had been
opened, she had entered, and it had
closed again behind her. 1t was all in
4 an instant, and Esther Thorndike Brad
don was face to face with John Ohm
stead's immaculate nephew-otherwise
Malcolm.
Her first thought was to get herself
instantly away. The next suggested
that she be very sure, first, that she
was right, then fly to her father with
news of the clay feet of his idol. Then
a vein of amusement crept into the
situation, and when she found that she
was mistaken for an applicant her
woman's wit suggested that she had
a glorious opportunity to investigate,
draw him out, preach him sermon
that should wither him with shame,
then tell him who she was, why she
came to him, and what every true wom-
an would think of him.
Upon this plan she began operations,
and she carried out the plan-almost to
the end. The end itself was not quite
what she had planned. She went di-
rectly to her father. She told him
about the will, with its time-limit and
forfeiture, of which he already knew;
about the mistake in dates, of which
he did not know; about Richard Ray
mond, which did not greatly surprise
him; about Stanton's determination to
retain the property, of which he high
ly approved; about the matrimonial adj
vertisement and the plan for limited
alliance, which certainly did not affect
| him as Esther had feared 1t might /;
about-last of all she pulled together
all her courage, drew long, quivering
breath, and with fear and trembling
us she thought of what she had done,
began-about what her angry, indig-
nant, sympathetic heart had prompted
her to say and do to help John Ohm
stead's nephew and punish Richard
Raymond. With wet cheeks she looked
up to her father for his verdict.
If Thaddeus Braddon could have been
left alone for the next five minutes, he
would have given half his fortune; but
he was not left alone. Esther's anxious
troubled face was right before him. lie
saved the half of his fortune, but he
ran great risk of internal combustion
OF some kind, which might have been
much worse.
He did his best to look serious and
grave while she continued:
You know, papa, didn't really want
to marry Mr.. Raymond at any time.
never wanted to marry anyone, and
never shall want to. 1t will not matter
at all if am bound in this way SO that
1 can't. Don't you think l did right,
papa?'
Perfectly right, Esther" Braddcn