Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-02-18
Even;ng Story
HIS ONLY BELIEF.
BY Carl Jenkins.

BY Carl Jenkins.
Copyright, 1911, by Associated Liter
airy Press.) -
Fred Fairlee's friends looked upon
the affair as Joke. It was all right
to go to college and stumble through
a classical course after fashion, but
to take up law and slide through
with 1t and then open an Office for
practice-why they couldn't believe
what their ears heard.
Fred Fairlee was the son Of a
millionaire widow, and he had money
Of his own. A college course was the
thing, in order that he might cheer
for Harvard, Yale or princeton when
the regattas and football games came
off, but why should he study law and
hang ont a shiigle and wait for
clients?
It was fad of his mothers. In
the long past there had been jurist
among the Fairlees. He had risen
to such heights that he had been
mentioned in the Log Cabin history
Of Kentucky. Things had dated back
to him. No one in the family since
his time had been jurist, and 1t
had been decided before Fred was
fifteen years old that he should pick
up the mantel OF his ancestor and
wrap 1t around him. Later on he
started out to be a jurist, simply to
oblige his mother.
There were four or five years OF
football, rowing, boxing, suppers, va
cations and study. and behold the
jurist! That is, Fred wasn't quite
a jurist yet, but on the high road to it.
Even his mother, who knew so lit
tie of law, argued that he must first
set up an office and win case or
two. Fred was good boy to a good
mother, and he made start. He was
modest about it, however. He began
at the foot of the ladder by opening
his Office in a suburban village, near
which was the family summer resi-
dence. It was one floor up and only
one room. There was at least one
law book-possibly two. There was
set of boxing gloves, a lifting ma
chine, a pair of Indian clubs and a
gun or two The old-time jurists
didn't have such outfits to begin
with, and that's the reason it took
them so long to get their fame.
For five long months Attorney r..
Fairlee drove, walked, fished, roWed,
hunted and waited for client. He
was doing better than he had any
reason to expect when his mother
hustled in on him one day with the
glad exclamation:
ooh, Fred, I've found you a client!'
IN i'm
for bringing the case to me?" was
asked @
"You will make great name!'
"That's what am after
your client is young lady!
."By George. but I never expected
to live. to see the day.
"Be serious, Fred. Your legal repu-
tation is at stake. You must have
heard of Miss Losing. The family
lives three miles from us. She has
been at the house. but never when
you were there. She's tall and will
lowy and blond. and the family is
among the best
ooh, that girl, eh?' unused Fred.
"On three occasions she's almost run
me down in her auto. And what's
the matter with her?'
"A farmer with load Of hay ran
into her auto and upset it and bruised
her all over ard did 5000 damages.
She wants to ling suit. | was cail.
ing at the house YESTERDAY and told
her about you, and she will come IN
with me in three days. Oh, Fred, it's
the chance of your lifetime!'
Thanks, mother dear, believe
you. It's going to be an easy case
to win. Handsome young lacy ont
for a spin. Farmer with loaa g.
hav. Young lady is happy, but the
farmer he's crouch. Sees the c.
portunity 20 crowd her into the ditch
Does crowd. Her auto wrecked and
her nervous system shattered by the
shock. Jury won't be out ten min
utes. Heavy damages and moral
lesson to the farmers Of all America.
Say, mother, you're BRICK"
Two or three days later chaperoned
by Mrs. Fairlee, the client appeared
at the law office. She instantly
looked good to the coming jurist The
more he looked at her the more
pleased he was with her as client.
It wasn't a formal affair. That is,
Mr.. Fairlee didn't try to look as wise
as a horned owl and go into all the
little legal details of the case. Miss
Losing said she had been bruised.
She was not asked the exact number
of her bruises Her auto had been
damaged. She was not asked to fig
ure the costs to cent. She had
screamed as the auto went over. The
number of screams was not solemnly
recorded. When her case had been
stated and she had looked up in a
pathetic way and asked the young
attorney what he thought the chances
were of winning, he heartily and
promptly replied:
Miss Losing, we'lii win in can
ter-that is, in boats length-that
is. by a neck Why, the case Is won
before being begun. You must rest
easy and leave it all to me-"
Mr. Fairlee got down his law book
and his sporting calander and begun
work at once. The case should be
rfgidly prepared.
In. two days he found it necessary
to drive out to the Losing manor
and ask his client two or three ques-
in with his mother, and the trio
1,,ooboa ~ q hoto1 nc thew went Oyor