The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-11-18
FROM THE 9Th STORY WINDOW.

thoughtful. ambitious and hsgh-minced
young lawyer. He was still drawing or
the old man back on the farm for his
weekly allowance OF S, and on his mag
nation for encoura cement ii the deep-sei
BELIEF that the law was not overcone as 2
profession and that ne. a Hamilton Pom
Ger was destined 70 I'll a high place il
the legal and forensic history Of Chi
cage.
HIS office was a waIied-oI corner on the
eighth floor Of the Blackstone building
aRd for its Use he paid With desultory
services as coDyist. messenger boy, cor
respondent ana assistant TO an elderly
who seldom visited his chambers, and
never under any conditions. considered
! either the necessity or the desi-ability al
| having the Offices swept or garnished
| Mr.. Ponder, who spent much OF his tine
walking around the loop district with 2
lad of calf-bound books under bis arm
for appearance sake" often felt like
ing q high and due regard for profess
| sional dignity, was loath to appear in
| pubic in the capacity Of janit0T.
But one bright autumn day having
| sUbconsciously applied the end of his
dingy Prince Albert 70 the griTny win
| dew, he was both pleased and fascinated
With the cheerful though narrow prospect
/ - AA4-Al tiA4S S4LSll O4A-DBA dtADAA~u -AAitA-
| He stared for q while across the street
a. the clear and giittering windows OF the
/ Well-kept building opposite. Then. with
/ vague yearnings and a sense OF his own
| loneliness he began TO size up several
! sprghtly stenogra piers who perched up
| or chairs AT many office windows. seemed
] 10 be waIloring enough briefs OUT Of
| enough typeTTiters 10 Teassure the most
| discoasolate and brieess tyro in the pro
! ffrSfn=, IL Of a &
| possibilities indicated by this industry on
| the part OF 50 many stenographers, he
| DR. ifted-naturaiiy, I think-into 4 study
o. their personalities.
! This line of investigation led his eyes
| as well as his mind from the farthest and
most remote windows OF the opposite
office building to the window directly OPP
rosite his own. and here. he decided. sat
the flower of the lock, the ideal lawyer
ster GraPher-perhaps, who knows the
Personifcation Of Gil his romantic dreams.
Her hair was brown. or was 1t red His
window was yet quite murky, but he pre-
ferred to call it red. because he vas
fresh from the country and didn't know
the prevailing STYLES. She wore a fluffy
white waist with little bifureated paper
cones about her nmble wrist-probably
C. keep her sleeves from selling. Her
shapely white hands literally few over the
keyboard. Sometimes when the man in
the adjoining Office came in TO dictate
letter or a ieng document Ponder could
see her turn her face toward her en-
ployer, and wondered in q vaguely jeal
Gus way If she were smiling at him.
often in paus-s of her work she would
turn her eyes outward and upward as II
locking at the sky, and the young lawyer
CncbseTved. gazing through the dim win
dow Of his squalid Office, saw that she
was very pretty and that her eyes were
large and soulful After that By
stealthy assaults. he managed to keep
his window fairly clean, ard aften he
caught himself vsinly hoping that she
would see him. that she would divine the
utter loneliness Of his sad lot snd---
Well. he didn't exactly hope that she d
smile 1T him, but he was conscious of a
vearning fancy that she might let fall
upon his pale anxious face some CLEAN
Of pity. some glance of interest. some
sweet but shadowy intimation that she
knew he yes there and ritied him. or
&C urse she didn't. but the hope sustained
him. kept him indoors. and st last be-
came a mild but strangely fsscincting
mania with him. He endowed her with
every conceivable excellence; he began 10
fancy that her employer was a tyrsnt. and
lonsed for the day when he himself could
afford a stenogTapher He planned how
he would Get her away from her old place.
planned the manner in which he would
treat her, and. in vague but exalted day
dreams, let himself into IN elaborate ro-
nance in which she was the presiding
genius, the guiding star. and from which
there was only one mode OF exit-mstrl-
mony.
One day. arriving at his dismal hole
an hour late, Ponder saw his divinity in
tears. At least her usually white and
pstrician nose seemed u he mere rudy
or was it blue!-than usual. The
wretch. grcwlod Ponder to himself and
the opposite Office The villain has been
rude to her. II J only had him by the
throat" And all that day Ponder watch
ed till he was convinced at last that rhe
fair creature in the office on the eighth
floor opposite was mysteriously IN the
clutches of a villain who nasltreated her.
He watched her glcomily isto the street
h. saw her mop away the involutary
tears that trembed upon her fair cheek
he treIp bled with an ecstacy OF anticipa-
ton az 10 what he would DO II he ever
cot good chance 81 her r-scally an
ployer. For days thereafter sh- did not
smile
Rut one Saturday morning. coming op-
portunely 70 his window. Ponder -as. hor
standing beside tn mans desk. Her face
was turned from the watcher. but he
could sec the villain and knex bv his
gestures that he was in ! rage. Tie was
waving his arms MS face was purple
md he seemed 70 be pouring upon the
bowed head ~ his unprotected steno-
gla9her the full walls Of his invective
At last he Jumped up. slipped tho latch
on his door sna slappcd-yes there could
bc no doubt about it-hs was slappin.-
the face Of the dcfenseles- divinity That
vas too much for Ponder Not wa.tin. 70
see the oenouernent Of this cowsrdly out
"a - he grabbed his hat and almost fell
down the stairs t=o 1igh1s before -
thought e the elevator n Two minutes
he was standing at the door Of the oFice
Of his goddess En- the opposite building
he knocked The girl. her -yss red with
Weeping, admitted him II Rad r-ad
the name on the door Horssio Roe5uck /
lawyer
rs Mr. Roebuek in?v asked Ponder.
heamin= sraciog-ly upon the distressed /
damsel.
No. .ir; h jus, went out sh- quiv-
ered- DID YOU Vi.h to 80 him 2rof-s-
sionslly.r
Ponder with on1iRous gutturals. 7 wish /
Il So him personally. personally. do rou 4
understand miss-
Oh. Tier. perhaps can tel you
what you ~ant . know. I'm r.
Ard Ponder doesn't wash his xizd-E 4
my more.-Jchn T. Reterty
Didn't Even Hesitate.
CFror the New York Cllppe-3
a well-known actor who had 5eeu VISIT
ing out-of-town friends over Sunday. no-
leg ago. hurried down % tht little sta
Ten on Aon6sy morning, with the sntea-
don o. sak1g c Certain train into ire
81 -