Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-09-05

tory, hurried TO his rooms later In the
evening. AS he was about to enter
the elevator he noticed gray suited
boy in brass buttons, who stood near
by, an inquiring look in his face.
This is Mr.. Bansemer," observed
the laconic youth who ran the single
elevator in the apartment building.
Something for me?" demanded
Graydon. turning to the boy in gray.
Special delivery letter, sir. Sign
here"
Graydon took the thick envelope
from the boys hand. With a start. he
recognized his fathers handwriting.
Curiously he turned the letter over In
his fingers as he assembled in the car.
wonder growing in his brain. He did
not wait to remove his overcoat on en-
tering his rooms, but strobe to the light
and nervously tore open the envelope.
Dread. hope, anxiety, conspired to
make his fingers tremble. There were
| many closely written pages. How well
| lie remembered his fathers writing!
AS he read his eyes grew wide with
| wonder and unbelief. They raced
|
to joy and eXultation as he neared the
end of the astounding message from
the faraway prisoner.
y shout forged to his lips He hug
| ged the letter to his heart Tears came
into his eyes, and a sob broke in his
| throat
Thank God"' he cried, throwing
| MT nho; tn
and reread the contents of the letter.
Suddenly he sprang to his feet and
dashed across the room to the tele-
phone.
"She will die of joy- he half sobbed
in the transports of exhilaration. Five
minutes later he was on his way to her
hotel, clutching the priceless letter in
his bare fingers deep down in his over
coat pocket. He had shouted over the
phone that the good news would not
keep till morning. and she was waiting
up for him with Mr.. and Mrs. Gable,
consumed by curiosity
This letter." he gasped as he entered
the room-"from father. He's written,
Jane. everything. | knew he would.
Elias didn't know it all. He knew half
of the truth; that's all Good Lord, /
l can't read it, Mr.. Cable! You.
please"
David Gable, white faced and trem-
bling, read aloud the letter from James
Bansemer. 1t was to MY beloved
SON" The first appealing sentences
were given to explanation and apology
for the determined silence he had main
tanned for so many months. He spoke
casually of his utter Indifference to the
success of certain friends who were
working for his pardon. IF they Sc
cure my release" he wrote, Il shall
find happiness If you clasp my hand
but once before l leave America for
ever" Farther on he said: 81 will not
accept parole. 1t is Il poor premium
on virtue, and, as you know. my stock
of that commodity has been miserably
low"
Il may be required to serve my full
term" read David Cab,e. ''In that
case we should not see one another
for years, my son. You have much TO
forgive. and / have much more to for
get. We can best see our ways to the
end if we seek them apart. The dark
places won't seem so black.
My sole purpose in writing this letter
to you, my son. is to give back to you
as much happiness as l can possibly
extract from this pile of misery.
am not pleading for anything; l am
simply surrendering to the good i'm
pulses that are once more coming into
their own after all these years of sub
lection. l am not apologiZing
TO the Gables. / am doing this for
your sake and for the girl who has
wronged no one and to whom l have
acted with q baseness which amazes
me as l reflect upon 1t inside these
narrow walls
you will recall that 1 would have
: permitted you to marry her-I mean,
in the beginning. Perhaps it was spite
| which interposed later on. At least
be charitable enough to call it that
| Clegg has been here to see me. He
says you are bound to make Jane Ca
| BILE your wife. l knew you would
| For long time 1 have held out, un.
reasonably, l admit, against having
| her as my daughter. / could not en-.
| cure Cne thought OIL giving you up III
together. Don't you comprehend my
| thought? l cannot bring myself to
look again into her eyes after what
| she saw in this accused prison.
She was born in wedlock. The
story is not a long one. Elias broom
knows the names of her father and
mother, but / am confident that be
does not know all of the circum
stances. For once I was too shrewc
for him. The story Of my dealings In
connection with Jane Cable is shame
full one, and l cannot hope for pardon
either from you or from her"
II Here he related as concisely as pos
sible the incidents attending Mrs. Ca
bles first visit to his Office and the
subsequent adoption of the babe.
II knew that there We're wealth ant
power behind the mystery. There wa
a profitable scandal in the background
II Unknown to Mrs. Gable, 1 began In
designations Of my own. She hat
made little or no effort to discover tn
/ parents of the child. She could hav