Perth Amboy evening news., 1918-12-20
THE HELPING HAND

BY GEORGE ELMER COBB.
COpJr:Gst. 1918. wes,srs Newspaper Union,

nTGN GOES IL ucduf DTehtneu
Grace Burton, aud she stared In a lost,
bswiidetei way at her practical-faced
landlady. alone FOR the first time in her
iifo ia the heart Of n great city.
TT mecus, my dear" spoke Mrs.
DtEl.aro gently. but with a clarity of
expression that struck a dread chin to
tbs soul o. her auditor. ";hst you are
Ike Gany another who has trusted q
the lure of ambition and false prom
ists-st-aadedr
Hopeiessly Grace sat weaving her
small white trembling bspGs In and
out, Ter frightened eyes fixed upon the
face Of the ia3d;ady in pleading hope
ana despair
"Tsl; me your story. dear" insisted
the other, but sighed secretly. for all
.hiE. ohile pathetic, was dresdfally
eG,ais onplace In a long experience that
had not hardened her heart, although
It had brought the settled conviction
that tie seamy side Of life came to
~all--good, bad, honest or tricky.
A simple story had Grace to tell
SEE aad lived her life in a quiet l;ttls
Quaker community. 1t had been bliss
full enough until her only relative, an
aged aunt, had died, leaving her PEN
njless.
There had come along a handsome,
flashing young fellow calling himself
Brant Durward. He was a musical
director, he told Grace. He protested
TO be Interested at once in her welfare.
Something In her novel environment.
In the rare purity and beauty Of her
face really struck this natural-born
Spectator In the field of exploiting
dramatic possibilities. He averred
that. just as she stepped out Of the
Simple framework OF a novel. unique
environment and appealed to his n
OF the artistic, SO he could take
her to the city, give her training and
make Of her a star In the great mimic
armament. He did not make love to
her, yet he limited at success. fame
and mutual benefit. He gave her an
address, the dramatic boarding house
where Grace had been waiting for him
yaInly for q week with implicit faith
In his promises.
And he had not come; her little stock
Of money was depleted and-disillu-
sionmenti She had met an incongru-
Gus group of men, girls and women,
most of them tawdry. superficial, each
and sll imbued with rare self-apprecia-
ton Of their gifts of genius and dream
ing of a vast future.
She shrank from them, somehow.
When one day she got into the conf
dence of an unknown like herself, just
starting in at the dreary treadmill OF
study and training, her heart grew
sick within her.
'My dear" pronounced the sympa-
thetic landlady, Il am glad of one thing
that you haven't foolishly rested
your heart on the love OF Brant Dur
ward, who is unworthy of you. He
is an enthusiast, and I do not doubt
the eenuineness Il his belief that he
could make something Of you in a dra-
matte way. but he is attracted by every
new face he sees.
''The fact is, he has been arrested and
Is in Jail for disappearing one OF
his dramatic schemes to an investor
and has simply forgotten you"
"But what am / to do?' choked up
Grace in dlrefui distress. "Mr. Dur
ward spoke Of a half-brother, a Mr..
Edgar Braham, who had great infiu-
ence In helping forward the untried
and struggling In the line l hoped to
succeed H."
"Give me time to think" murmured
Mrs. Denham, deeply interested In
forl0rn waif who had drifted so help
lessly into her life. Then. after a
pause: "Mr. Edgar Braham Is, In
deed, q power in his line, an advanced
one in the moving picture field. But
he considers his half-brother a scamp,
has backed him at q loss and will have
nothing more to do with him. Yes, my
dear, it is best that you should go and
see Mr.. Braham. Tell him your sim
pie story and abide by what he says, for
he Is a good man. He is a producer
OF the better type Of movie picture
specialties with a moral lesson at the
ond of them, and his sister, Harriet
Braham. writes the scenarios. They
live an ideal life together"
Never did Grace Burton forget that
eventful morning when she was
ushered into the presence of Edgar
Braham at his Office in his mansion
home. She had to await her turn, and
after gay, chatting actors and actresses
had come and gone, she found herself
facing a serious-eyed young man who
listened to her story with great earnest
attention.
"Sister Harriet" he said. there is a
little stray bird lost In the storm. See
what we can do to make her restful.
and safe, and happy"
What a life opened up to Grace Bur-
ton among these simple. noble chill
dren OF the hearth With what delight
and arior did she cooperate with Har-
riet Braham in furnishing the coloring
for a true. simple, heartsome screen
story of the old Quaker community.
evolving a drama that appealed later
to the souls of thousands!
One day. about six months later.
Brant Durward. unkempt. al odds with
the world, down and out, entered a
fhoofor IN yfayu With starfIad vODdar