Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1904-12-24
A Realistic Affair
fOriginal.l

about the treatment of those vino for
the first time acted criminally One day
he left twenty dollar bill on his desk,
utes, and returning missed the bill
Calling his chief clerk, Frank Shepherd.
into his Office be said to him:
''Mr Shepherd, twenty dollar biz
has been taken from my desk at a time
when no time but the clerks was pres
ent. Please tell them for me that if the
one who took it will return it he will.
not be prosecuted nor even lose his
position. He will remain on probation"
Shepherd went away and the next
morning confessed that he was him
self the thief. He laid a twenty dollar
bill on his employers desk. received a
kindly but impressive lecture and with
drew. That night he wrote a note to
Beatrice Chaffee, to whom he had re-
Gently become betrothed, telling her of
the incident and offering to release her
from the engagement.
Let us take back step in our story.
for an answer, working himself into
fever lest he be refused, and at last re-
ceived an affirmative reply. We hear
a great deal Of the Inconsistencies of
women; the inconsistencies of men are
usually concealed. Frank Shepherd ex-.
perienced very severe case Of mascu-
line inconsistency. The day after his
acceptance he sank into a state of
melancholy. Whether this came from
reaction, an overburdening sense of the
obligations he was assuming or some
thing Of both, mingled with great
deal more, it is impossible to say;
nevertheless he would have given
worlds if he had not been accepted.
Beatrice Chaffee made no reply to
her lovers confession for several days;
then she wrote him that she was much
influenced by what his employer had
done-in fact, found herself in much
the same position as Mr.. Upton. She
felt that she ought to give him
chance to redeem himself, and she had
decided to do so. If he would come
to her in two years with record clean
from the time of his first sin she would
give her answer a second time. Mean
while they were not to have anything
to do with each other, and he was to
be free to marry any one else.
One Inconsistency is liable to lead to
another First, Shepherd had been in
terror lest the girl would refuse him:
second, plunged into gloom because she
had accepted him. third. being free, he
was plunged into new gloom because
he was free. What distressed him be-
yond measure was that he was a con-
fessed thief and must wait two years
to learn if he would be taken again into
favor.
One day his employer called him into
his office and said to him:
shepherd, you didn't take that TWEEN
ty dollar bill you confessed to have
stolen"
"Why do you say SOP
Something about your way of con-
fession made me suspect that you were
doing so Ito shield some one else
left marked bill on my desk, had the
room watched by detective and
caught the thief"
Shepherd was silent.
'The lady to whom you were en-
gagged came to see me about the matter,
wondering if you did not have some
motive in making a confession of hav
ing stolen what you did not steal. /
have proved now that you did so to
shield the real thief, your cousin. Mark
Leonard"
Shepherd started.
II have sent for you to say that Leon
ard will be treated with the same
leniency l have shown you, and that
you are not only eXonerated from ali
blame but stand far higher in my esti-
nation than ever"
After pause Shepherd asked Upton
if he had informed Miss Chaffee as to
these late developments, and received
the response that he had left that pleas
ure to the man most concerned Shep-
herd thanked him and was about to
withdraw when he turned and said:
Il would like to have you inform
Miss Chaffee that l am not the real
thief, but say nothing as to the motive
for my confession"
Upton promised to do so at once.
There had come a crisis in Frank
Shepherds life. Emotional people run
risks that other people are free from,
but so long as there is an undercurrent
of principle there is always d day of
grace for them. All Shepherd had to
do to be restored to favor was to let
the matter stand on his employers in
depreciation Strangely enough. to do
so was no temptation for him. He had
preferred to be considered thief to
standing in the position of a man who
had one day begged a girl to marry
him and the next day asked her to re-
lease him. Now that he really wanted
the girl he scOrned to take her under