Show l 0 J Y j 1 lJ J j jY KLEIN Y AND ANDI Y I ARTHUR HORNBLOW V ILLUSTRATION BY RAY PAY WALTER 1909 BY C W. W u SYNOPSIS Howard Jeffries bankers banker's son Mn under the evil influence of ot Robert Underwood student fellow at Yale Tale loads leads a life Ufe of dis- dis marries the daughter of a gambier gambler gambler gam gam- bler bier who died in prison and is disowned by his father He Is out of ot work and In desperate straits Underwood who had nce been engaged to Howards Howard's stepmother stepmother step step- mother A Alicia cla is Ie apparently In prosperous prosper prosper- ous DUS circumstances Taking advantage of his Intimacy with Alicia he becomes a sort ort of ot social highwayman Discovering his true character Alicia denies him the house He sends her a note noto threatening suicide Art dealers for whom he acted as commissioner demand an accounting He is cannot make good Howard calls cans at athis athis athis his apartments In an Intoxicated condition condition condition condi condi- tion to request a loan of 2000 to enable him to take up a business proposition Underwood tells him he is 18 In debt up to his eyes Howard drinks himself Into a maudlin condition and goes to sleep on a divan A caller caner Is announced and Underwood Underwood Underwood Under Under- wood draws a screen around the drunken sleeper Alicia enters Sho She demands a a. promise from Underwood that he will not take his hlo life He refuses unless she will renew I e her t patronage rol t This she refuses tl and takes a her leave Underwood e o kills himself The report of ot the pistol awakens awa awa- kens kane Howard He finds Underwood dead Realizing his predicament he attempts to flee and Is Ie met by Underwood's valet Howard is turned over to the police pollee Capt Clinton notorious for his brutal treatment of prisoners puts Howard through the third degree and finally gets an alleged confession from tho the harassed man Annie Howards Howard's wife declares her belief bellof In her husbands husband's Innocence and says Bays she will clear him She calls cans on Jeffries Sr He refuses to help unless she will consent to a divorce To save Howard she consents but when she finds that the elder Jeffries does not Intend to stand tand by his son except financially she scorns his help Annie appeals to Judge Brewster attorney for tor Jeffries Sr to take Howards Howard's case He declines Annie haunts Brewster's office CHAPTER XIV Continued You mean about the Underwood case Alicia nodded Yes Mr Jeffries is terribly upset As If the coming trial and all the rest of the scandal were not enough But now we have to face tace something even worse something that affects me even more than my husband Really Im I'm frantic about It happened now asked the lawyer calmly That woman is going on toe stage that's all she snapped Hm Hin said the he lawyer calmly Just think she cried the name Mrs Howard Jeffries' Jeffries my my name name name- paraded before the public At a time when everything e should be done to keep it out of the papers this woman is 18 going to flaunt herself on the stage She fanned herself indignantly while e the lawyer rapped his desk absentmindedly absentmindedly ab ab- ab- ab sent mindedly with a paper cutter Alicia went on You know I have never ne met the woman What Is she like Uke I understand understand understand under under- stand she's been bothering you to take the case of that worthless husband husband hus bus band of ot hers Do you know she had bad the tho Impertinence to come to our house and ask osk Mr Jeffries to help thorn thom I asked my husband to describe her but all I could get from him was that she ehe was impertinent and impossible She hesitated a a. a moment then she I added Is she as pretty as os her pictures pic plc tures Jures In the paper Youve You've seen her of course Judge Brewster frowned Yes Ves he replied She comes here every day regularly She literally compels me mc to see her and refuses to togo togo togo go till Ive I've told her I haven't changed my decision about taking her case What Insolence exclaimed Alicia I s should think that you would have I ber tier put out Jut of the office ollice J The lawyer was silent and toyed somewhat nervously wi with h the paper cutt cutter r as if if not quite decided as to what response to make He coughed and fussed with the papers on the desk Why dont don't you have her put out of ot the office sh she repeated The rhe Judge looked up There was an expression in his face that might have been Interpreted as one of annoyance annoyance annoyance an an- as If he rather resented this Intrusion Into his business affairs but Mrs Jeffries Sr was too Important Important important Im Im- im- im a client to quarrel with so soh h he merely said sald Frankly Mrs Jeffries If it were not for the fact that Mr Jeffries has exacted from me a promise not to take up this case I should be tempted to consider to-consider consider the matter In the first place you know I always liked How How- ard I saw a good deal of him before your marriage to Mr Jeffries He was always a wild unmanageable boy weak In character but 1 he lie had many lovable traits I am very sorry indeed to see him in such a terrible position It was hard for me to realIze realize real real- ize it and I should never have believed believed be be- him guilty had he not confessed confessed confessed con con- to the crime Yes she assented It Is an awful awful awful aw aw- aw- aw ful thing and a terrible blow to his father Of course he has had nothing nothing noth noth- ing lug to do with Howard for months As you know he turned bin out of doors long ago b but t the disgrace Is none the less overwhelming The lawyer looked out of the window window win win- dow and drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair Suddenly wheeling round and facing his client he said You know this girl he married is no ordinary woman Oh she exclaimed sarcastically She has succeeded in arousing your sympathy The Judge bowed c coldly No he replied I would hardly say that But Dut she has aroused my curiosity She is a ver very verj peculiar girl evidently a creature of Impulse and determination I certainly feel teel sorry for tor her Her position Is a very pain painful ful one She has been married only a few months and now her husband has to face the most awful accusation that can be brought against a man She is plucky in spite of ot it all and is moving heaven and earth in Howards Howard's defense She believes herself to b be In some measure responsible for tor his his' mis mis- fortune Apart from that the case Interests me from a pur purely ly h prof professional profession profession- al at point of view There are several strange features connected with the case Sometimes In spite of Howards Howard's ds d's confession I 1 dont don't believe be he committed com corn that crime Alicia changed color and shifting uneasily on o-n her chair scrutinized the lawyers lawyer's face What was behind that calm inscrutable mask What theory theary had he formed farmed One newspaper had suggested suicide She might herself I come forward and declare that Robert Robert Robert Rob Rob- ert Underwood had threatened to i take his own life Ufe but bow how could she i face the scandal which such a course would Involve She would have to I admit visiting Underwood's rooms at midnight alone That surely would ruin her In the eyes not only of her but of the whole world If It this sacrifice of her good name were necessary to save an innocent mans man's life Ufe perhaps she might summon UD r 1 1 enough courage to make it But after all she was by no means sure herself herself her her- 8 self lf that Underwood had committed suicide Howard had confessed so why should she Jeopardize her good name uselessly No repeated the Judge shaking his nis head theres something strange In the whole affair I dont don't believe Howard had any hand hand in In it ft But he confessed exclaimed Alicia The Judge shook his head nothing he said There Thero have been many Instances of untrue confessions A famous affair of the kind was the Boorn Doorn case In Vermont Two brothers confessed having killed their brother law law and described how they destroyed the body yet some time afterward the murdered man turned up alive and well The object of the confession of course was to turn the verdict from murder to manslaughter the circumstantial evidence against them having been so strong In the days of witchcraft the he unfortunate women accused of being witches were often urged by relatives to confess as being the only way war of escape open to them Ann Foster at Salem In 1692 confessed that she was a witch She said the devil appeared to her in the shape of ofa a bird and that she attended a meeting meeting meeting meet meet- ing of witches at Salem village She was not insane but the horror of the accusation brought against her had been too much for a weak mind Howards Howard's confession may possibly be due to some such influence I hope for his poor fathers father's sake said Alicia that you may be right and that he may be proved Innocent but everything Is overwhelmingly against him I think you are the only one In New York to express such a doubt Dont forget his wife remarked the Judge dryly No she replied I really feel sorry for lor the girl myself Will you give her some o money if I IThe I- I The lawyer shook his head She wont won't take It I tried It She wants me to defend her husband I I tried to bribe her to go to some other I lawyer but it wouldn't work i Well V ell something ought to be done to stop her annoying us exclaimed Alicia indignantly Mr Jeffries suffers suffers suffers suf suf- fers terribly I can hear him pacing up and down the library till three or four tour in the morning Poor man he suffers so keenly and he wont won't let any anyone anyone anyone one sympathize with him He wont won't let me mention his sons son's name I feel we ought to do something Try and persuade him to let me see this girl girland and you and you are his friend as well as his legal adviser Judge Brewster bowed Your husband is a avery very old friend Mrs Jeffries I cant can't disregard his wishes entirely entirely- There was a knock at the door of the th private office Come in called the Judge The door opened and the head clerk entered ushering in Howard HowardJ J Jeffries Sr The banker still aristocratic aristocratic aristocratic aristo aristo- cratic and dignified but looking tired and careworn advanced into the room and shook hands with the judge who greeted him with a cordial smile There was no response on the bankers banker's bankers banker's bankers banker's bank bank- ers er's face Querulously he demanded Brewster what's that woman doing out there again Its It's not the first time Ive I've met her in this office Alicia looked up eagerly Is she out there now she cried What right has she to come here What's her object t went on the banker The lawyer shrugged his isis shoulders The same old thing he replied She wants me to take her case The banker frowned you tell her it was Impossible impossible sible That makes no difference laughed the Judge She comes Just the same Ive I've sent her away a dozen times What am I to do If It she Insists insists insists in In- on coming We cant can't have her arrested She doesn't break the furniture furniture furniture furni furni- ture or beat the office boy She simply sim ply sits and waits walts Have you told her that I object to her coming corning here demanded the banker haughtily I have replied the Judge calmly but she has overruled your our objection tion With a covert he added added add add- added ed You know we can t use force Mr Jeffries shrugged his shoulders impatiently You can certainly use moral force torce he said What do you mean by moral force demanded the lawyer Mr Jeffries threw up his hands as asIf asIt asif If It utterly disgusted with the whole I business Almost angrily he answered answered answered an an- i Moral oral force is moral force I I mean persuasion of course Good God why cant can't people understand i these things as I do The judge said nothing but turned I to examine some papers on his desk I He hardly liked the inference that ho I could not see see things as plainly as other people but what was the use of getting irritated He couldn't afford atford at af ford to quarrel with one of his best clients s Alicia AUca looked at her husband anxiously Laying her hand on his arm she said aid soothingly Perhaps if It I were to aee ee her her her- Air Mr Jeffries turned angrily How can you think of or s such ch a athing athing athing thing 1 I cant can't permit my wife to come in contact with a woman of that cl character Z Judge Brewster who was listening in spite of the tact fact that he ho was seemIngly seemingly seem seem- seem seem- engrossed in his papers p pursed his lips UIS Oh come he said with a forced laugh not as bad as all that Im euro she Isn't said Alicia em em- Uy She must be amenable to reason The bankers banker's wife w wa ws s not altogether er bad Excessive vanity and am hi I l. l t. t Uon tion had steeled her heart and stifled Impulses that were naturally good I but otherwise she was not wholly devoid de do- void of ot feeling She was really sorry I for this poor little little 1 woman who was fighting so bravely to save her ber husband husband hus hus- band No doubt she had inveigled Howard into marrying her but she she she- Alicia had Alicia had no right to sit in Judgment judgment Judg judg- ment meat on her for or that If the girl had been ambitious to marry above her in what way was she more guilty than she herself hersel had been In marrying marrying marry marry- ing a man she did not love simply for his wealth and social position Besides Besides Besides Be Be- sides Alicia was herself herselt sorely troubled Her conscience told her that a word from her might set the whole matter right She might be beable beable beable able to prove provo that Underwood committed committed com corn suicide She knew she was wasa a coward and worse than a coward because she dare not speak that word The more she saw her husbands husband's husbands husband's hus bus bands band's anger the less courage she had to do It In any case she argued to herself Howard had confessed If he shot Underwood there was no suicide sui suicide cide so why should she incriminate herself needlessly But there was no reason why she should not show some sympathy for the poor girl who after all was only doing what any good wife should do Aloud she repeated Ill see the girl and talk to her She must listen to reason Reason exploded the banker angrily How can you expect reason from a woman who hounds us dogs our fo footsteps tries to compel us to to- to take her up Judge Brewster who had apparently apparent apparent- ly paid no attention to the bankers banker's remarks now turned around Hesitatingly Hesitatingly Hesi Hesi- ho he said I think you do her an Injustice Jeffries She comes every day in the hope that your feelings toward your son have She wishes to give color to the belief that his fathers fathers father's fathers father's fa fa- fa ther's lawyers are championing his cause She was honest enough to tell me i so You know w her movements are closely watched by the newspapers and she takes good care to let the reporters think that she comes here hereto to discuss with me the details of her husbands husband's defense The banker shifted Impatiently on his chair Contemptuously he said I IThe The newspapers which I read dont don't give her the slightest attention If It they did I should refuse to read them With growing irritation he went on Its no use talking about her any more What are we going to do about this latest scandal This woman wom worn an Is going on the stage to be exhibited exhibited ex ex- ex all over the country and she proposes to use the family name There is nothing to prevent her said the lawyer dryly The banker Jumped to his feet teet and exclaimed |