The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1917-04-19
MOLLY STOPS PAYMENT
BY JANE OSBORN.

Molly Bell had intended to keep
Brad Simpson inesuspense. She would
say to him that she had known, of
course, that he liked to be in her COM
pany, but that he actually wanted to
marry her-roally the idea was so
strange, go novel, so unexpected, that
she would have to have time to think
1t over. That was what she planned to
say, but when the moment came Molly,
In her excitement, forgot all her plans
and told the undoctored plain truth. In
few timid, half sentences, and not
with the easy nonchalance she had
planned, she told him that she had
loved him always, and that now she
was the happiest girl in Bennington.
"And isn't 1t wonderful" she said,
how everything have dreamed about
and waited for comes the same day
May 20--the greatest day of my life?"
why the very greatest?"
Besides this most wonderful day."
she said, still forgetting the role she
had planned, there's the" Then she
stopped short. No, she wouldn't tell
him the rest. He mustn't know about
the check she had received from the
magazine that had accepted her little
story. "Well, then, besides this" she
added, confusedly marking off the
events on her fingers, "the first white
rose bloomed today, and we got the
new vacuum cleaner and the cook left"
Molly had literary ambitions and for
three long years she had been work
Ing, dreaming and scribbling with her
funny little ambition always uppermost
in her thoughts.
The next day Molly went to Brad
ford, the nearest sizeable town, to be-
gin to buy the things for the trousseau.
She had forgotten to have the check
cashed In Bennington before she start
ed, so all her little purchases were sent
G, o. d.
When she arrived home after the
shopping trip it was two o'clock.
+ Then Molly thought of the purse
with the check Where was it? 1t
could not be found, but where had she
lost it? The purse itself was old and
1t contained little of value but the
check, which Molly had foollshly
enough Endorsed after she had asked
Brad the night before how checks
should be signed. Brad, she was sure,
would know because he worked in
Bennington's only bank and knew
everything about banking.
First she telephoned all the way to
Bradford, to the store she had visited,
but she heard no news of her purse.
The man who answered her call at the
department store suggested that since
the check was indorsed she had better
write at once to the editor who had
sent it and request him to have pay
ment stopped. And this Molly did with
out, Of course, knowing what the words
meant.
Once or twice that evening when
Brad came to call he accused Molly of
being distracted and surely she was.
1t was two evenings later that the
tables were turned, and when Brad
called that evening it was he who was
accused by Molly Of being distracted.
at isn't that you have actually dis
pleased me-" Brad began quite seriously
after Molly had coaxed him to tell her
the cause of his anxiety, "but / am
afraid don't understand you. That's
all. l would be so happy If / thought
l had your confidence"
Molly blushed little as she thought
of her secret ambitions.
81 am sure that what l have been do
ing Is not at all wrong" she said, and
then a hot tear trickled down her
pretty cheek and another and then her
confused little head was on Brad's
shoulder and he was explaining very
gravely.
"I'll tell you exactly what I know;
then there will be no misunderstood
ing. This morning we had word that a
certain check we had honored was
worthless-that is, the person who
made 1t out had ordered payment
stopped. Well, / asked Jones, the cash
Ter, about it and he told me that he
had honored the check because you
had presented 1t. He also told me that
when you came into the bank you asked
him not to let me know that you called
and to say nothing about the check. I'd
patch 1t up If | understood you better.
But something Is wrong somewhere or
you would have told me about it, II
isn't too late. Molly, for heavens sake,
tell me who is this Jane Daw and how
did you get into possession of checks
made out to herr" Molly sat up very
straight and explained infinitely about
the story she had written, the check
and the loss of the purse. "And then"
she continued, latter had telegraphed
and asked the editor to stop payment l
found the purse after all. The very
next day, / hurried down to the bank
and got that nice Mr.. Jones to give me
the money, and Of course | told him not
to tell you, because / didn't want you
to know l had been writing. thought
l would write some day and tell the
editor not to bother to do anything
about the check as had found 1t. Oh
dear, / think banking is very hard to
understand. If ever get to be a really
truly writer and have many checks
come for my stories, do hope you'll
take care ole the business side of
things"
"WelI, rather" was Brad's reply
"and when you get an answer from.
the magazine there will probably be a
new check. Let me have that before