THE LAW'S LAST WORD
Mr. Sigsbee remained for luncheon. He did not return to the city until
late in the afternoon. All day long an atmosphere of gloom, not
altogether attributable to reaction from the Fourth, pervaded the
house. By that strange, mysterious form of contagion described as
"sensing," the servants became infected by the depression; questioning
looks were answered by questioning looks; conversation was carried on
in lowered tones and confined almost exclusively to matters pertaining
to the work in hand; furtive looks were bestowed upon the door of Mr.
Bingle's study and, later on, directed with some misgiving upon the
closed transom above Mrs. Bingle's bedroom door. To the certain
knowledge of the oldest servant on the place, this transom had never
been lowered before.
This much was known to three persons: the butler, one of the footmen
and Melissa: shortly after the strange gentleman entered Mr. Bingle's
study with the master, the mistress and Dr. Fiddler, Mrs. Bingle was
led to her room by the doctor and her husband, moaning and wringing her
hands. The trained nurse who had come down to take care of Rutherford
was hastily summoned to the bedroom, and later on Diggs was instructed
to telephone to Dr. Fiddler's office in town with an order to his
assistant to send out a second nurse without delay.
At dinner, Mr. Bingle was singularly pale and preoccupied. His doctor
and his lawyer talked of the attitude of the Administration at
Washington in regard to the Mexican question and other problems in
which a keen observer would have remarked that they were not at all
interested--and in which Diggs and Hughes certainly had no present
interest. They ate quite heartily, as doctors and lawyers are prone to
do when the opportunity presents itself. Immediately after dinner they
repaired to the study and closed the door. All evening there were
telephone conversations with New York and Washington, and frequent
visits to Mrs. Bingle's room by the doctor and Mr. Bingle.
At ten o'clock Mr. Bingle walked out upon the moon-lit lawn and gazed
about him in all directions, taking in the terraces, the park, the
gardens, and last of all the splendid facade of the great house itself.
Head gardener Edgecomb approached and to him Mr. Bingle said:
"It was a beautiful place--a beautiful place, indeed," and then
straightway returned to the house. Edgecomb, slack grammarian though he
was, made note of the fact that he spoke of the house in the past
tense, quite as if it were a thing that had ceased to exist.
The children had had their supper when Melissa came down from Mrs.
Bingle's room, whither she had been summoned in some haste at five
o'clock. She promptly announced that they were to skip off to bed at
once as their mother's head was that bad that she was not to be
disturbed by the slightest sound. To the inquiries of her
fellow-servants, Melissa curtly replied that it was none of their
business what had happened and if they had any business they'd better
attend to it instead of snooping around the halls trying to find out
something that did not in the least concern them.
Melissa knew what had happened. Before eight o'clock that night Miss
Fairweather knew, and Flanders also. The great Bingle dream was not the
only one to be shattered by the news that the day brought forth.
For the first time in two days, Melissa addressed herself to Mr. Diggs.
Her lip trembled and there were tears lying close to the surface of her
eyes. She told the butler, in smothered tones, that she had decided to
remain in the employ of Mr. Bingle as long as he needed her services,
and that she would have to return his ring. She could not marry him--at
least not at present, nor for a long time perhaps. The children refused
to go to bed unless Melissa told them a story. She collected them in
the nursery--the lame, the halt and the half-blind--and very meekly
inquired what kind of a story they would have.
"The one about Peter Pan," said Henrietta.
"No! Tell us a new one about the piruts," cried Wilberforce.
"A ghost story, 'Lissie," chimed in Harold, aged five. "Scare me good
and hard, so's I can sleep with Freddy to-night."
"It's not the right kind of a night for a ghost story," said Melissa,
her eyes going over the group with a strange, sweet compassion in their
depths. "The wind ought to be howling with blood-curdling glee and the
will-o'-the-wisp ought to be a-hoppin' in the swamp. There ought to be
a graveyard close by--and some skeletons standing just outside the
winders, trying to look in upon us through their eyeless sockets."
"Let's imagine 'em," said Frederick.
"I want to huddle, 'Lissie," lisped Rosemary. "It's fun to huddle."
"You'll be discharged if you fill these kids up with any more of those
yarns of yours," said Stokes, the nurse-maid, languidly looking up from
the book she was reading.
"I guess not," said Melissa, rather grimly. "My job's safe, no matter
what I do or don't do. Go on with your reading, Miss Stokes. Your
worries are almost over. Mine are just beginning. Huddle up close,
Rosemary--I'm going to begin."
"I'm huddled," shivered Rosemary, crawling under Melissa's sheltering
arm.
"Now, this is a true story," began Melissa wearily. The children had
drawn close about her. "It's an honest true one about a ghost that used
to ha'nt my great-grandfather. My great-grandfather owned a beautiful
castle in France not far from Nice." She pronounced it with the long
sound of the vowel, and was promptly corrected by Marie Louise. "I said
it was my great-grandfather, not my niece," said the storyteller
sharply. "Well, onct upon a time he was engaged in a war--the Communism
war, I think it was. In the heat of battle one day he cut off a great
general's head, just like that. Goodness, don't jump so, Rosemary! It
rolled down a hill, bumpety-bump, swearing all the way. You see, he was
a very great general and was allowed to swear all he pleased. He got
his head cut off, so there's a warning for you boys never to swear.
Well, Grandpa got off of his fiery steed and looked everywhere for the
corpse's head. He had the body all right, but what good was a body
without a head? He couldn't find it anywhere. The rest of the army came
up and helped in the search, but 'twasn't any use. That general's head
had disappeared as if by magic. At first it was thought they might
trace it by the cuss-words it was uttering, but you see by this time
everybody was swearing, so it was like looking for a needle in a
haystack. They kept on hunting for nearly a week, because Grandpa
wanted to send that feller's head to his widow, so's she could give it
a decent burial and also get the insurance. He--"
"And so's she could get married again," broke in Frederick.
"Exactly. Well, after the war was over, Grandpa he went back to his
castle to rest up for the next war, and to have his sword sharpened and
his petard fixed. One dark night he was a-setting in his ante-room
pondering over the past and wondering what had become of that feller's
head--and also what had become of his widder, who was a most bewitching
creature and would make any man a most desirable wife, especially if he
didn't have one already--which Grandpa didn't. All of a sudden he heard
a voice speaking to him as if from a graveyard. It said 'Good evenin',
Duke!' Did I tell you my great-grandpa was a duke? Well, he was. 'Good
evenin', Duke,' said the voice, coming from nowhere in--"
"Did it say it twice?" demanded Reginald.
"Four or five times," said Melissa; "because Grandpa wasn't sure he
heard it the first time. He looked everywhere. Finally he saw it. It
was perched right there on his knee--a awful, horrid, bluggy head with
its moustache twisted up like Swanson's on Sunday. It--Oh, Lordy!"
Mr. Bingle entered the nursery. The children stared at him as if at the
long-expected ghost, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. His sandy, greyish
hair which of late had been trained to lie quite sleek and precise
across the widening bald-spot, was now in a state of wild disorder. It
stood out "every which way," according to Melissa's subsequent
description, and lent to his appearance an aspect of fierceness that
was almost inconceivable. Somehow they were all surprised when this
sinister figure spoke, for his voice was kind and gentle, and not at
all what one might have looked for in a maniac.
"Well, well, here we are. Isn't it time you all were in bed? Off with
you, like good boys and girls. Daddy won't be able to come up to see
that you're tucked in to-night. I'll say good night to you now.
Melissa, will you and Stokes come down to the library as soon as you've
got them to bed? And please tell the other nurse-maids to come also. I
don't happen to see them about anywhere. I suppose it is a general
night out. I have something important to say to you all. Please be as
spry as possible. I want to get it over with."
Half an hour later, Mr. Bingle received his servants in the library. It
was to be noted that his hair was smoothly brushed. With him in the
room was a young man who was recognised by a few of the servants as Mr.
Epps, a clerk from the lawyers' offices. From Diggs down to the boy
whose sole duty it was to feed the robins and squirrels in the
park--all were there, a curious and strangely depressed assemblage.
The master, in a quiet, unemotional voice at once stated the object of
the meeting. He had called them together for the purpose of giving them
the required two weeks' notice, and also to pay them in full their
wages up to the twentieth of the month. They were at liberty to go,
however, as soon as they liked, but he desired them to know that it
would be with his best wishes for their future. A letter of
recommendation would be found attached to each pay envelope. He
regretted exceedingly that it was not in his power to supplement this
last payment by the addition of a well-deserved present to each of his
faithful servitors. Circumstances over which he had no control made it
impossible for him to give them more than the stipulated amount. In
concluding a brief, simple tribute to their loyalty as servants and an
expression of his sincere regret that they were so soon to part
company, Mr. Bingle said:
"You see before you, my friends, a man who is poorer than any one of
you. Yesterday I was a rich man, to-day I am as poor as Job's turkey.
Poorer, if anything, for Job's turkey at least possessed a home, such
as it was. To-morrow I shall receive official notification that Seawood
and all that goes with it, real and personal, is no longer mine. The
law has said so, and I must abide by the decision of the highest court
in the land.
"The Supreme Court has finally handed down its decision in the case of
Hooper et al. vs. Bingle. I am not the rightful heir. Joseph H. Hooper
was not acting within his rights when he disposed of his privately
acquired fortune. His children were acting within their rights when
they disowned him, scorned him, kicked him out of their lives. It has
been decided that my uncle was not competent to dispose of his
property, and that I, his conniving nephew, influenced him by craft,
wiliness, duplicity and so forth to such an extent that he gave his
money to me instead of to those who should have received it. The
Supreme Court declares that all of the lower courts erred in not
admitting testimony to prove that my uncle DESIRED to leave his fortune
to his children, even after he had made his last will in my favour.
"It may interest you to know that 'The Christmas Carol' had a great
deal to do with the decision. The lower courts refused to hear evidence
to the effect that after making his will he wrote a letter to each of
his children, over his own signature, in which he stated that upon
reading the carol he was so impressed with the sermon it preached that
he was more than willing to let bygones be bygones and to give to his
children all of his fortune, in equal shares, expressing the hope,
however, that they would be governed by the same noble book in
compensating his beloved nephew, Thomas Bingle, and so on and so forth.
If they would take him back into their lives, he would forget and
forgive. Of course, no attention was paid to these letters at the time,
because he was supposed to be penniless. They only went to show that he
was mentally unbalanced. In the original trials, these letters were
introduced. The Christmas Carol was also offered as one of the
exhibits, and it was allowed to stick. When the story was read in open
court, every one sniffled, even the judge. The jury almost bellowed.
'As it was allowed to remain in the record, I've no doubt the Supreme
Bench wept a little over Tiny Tim. In its decision the Supreme Court
refers quite freely to the story and its effect on the old gentleman. I
shall not go into the history of the case. It would not be of interest
to you. It is only necessary for me to repeat that I shall be
penniless. Seawood must be turned over to the rightful owners. I don't
mind admitting that I have never really felt that it belonged to me. I
have always thought that Joseph Hooper's millions belonged to his
children, mean as they are.
"But that is neither here nor there. My lawyers would not consent to my
believing anything that they didn't want me to believe. I don't own a
dollar in the world, however, except the wages due to you, my faithful
servants. These wages are to be paid to you to-night by Mr. Epps, who
has cashed my last check against the Hooper fortune, in order that you
may receive your due. To-morrow my check, I fear, would not be
honoured. If I have done wrong in withdrawing money to-day for the
purpose of paying you for honest labour, I shall certainly never permit
it to disturb my conscience. As soon as Rutherford is able to be
removed, I shall leave Seawood forever. In conclusion, I may say that
all I have left in the world are ten small children. As usual, they
turn out to be the poor man's fortune. Mr. Epps, will you be good
enough now to distribute the pay envelopes? I shall say good night to
all of you, and to you, Mr. Epps, as well. To-morrow at any hour you
may select it will give me pleasure to go with you to see the little
flat you have described as the most desirable in your list of
apartments. I was not aware, Mr. Epps, that you acted as a renting
agent in addition to your duties with Bradlee, Sigsbee & Oppenheim."
"Yes, sir," said Mr. Epps. "I find it quite a profitable side issue,
Mr. Bingle. Clients of ours are constantly being reduced to the
necessity of seeking cheaper--ahem! I shall be pleased to show you the
flat at any hour YOU may select."
"Thank you, Epps."
Without going more deeply into details, the foregoing explains the
situation. Thomas Singleton Bingle was to be deprived of the Hooper
millions. His ten years of possession, years of peace and plenty, had
come to an abrupt termination. Poverty, even darker than he had
suffered before the windfall, loomed up ahead of him, for in the old
days there had been no children to feed and clothe. Added to this was
the certainty that a sick wife would take the place of that well,
strong and encouraging Mary of the past. Despite the claims and
assurances of his lawyers, Mr. Bingle always had felt that this day
would come. He had never looked upon himself as the rightful possessor
of Joseph Hooper's fortune in its entirety. So, when the time came, he
was the least surprised by the shock, and would have been the first to
smile had it not been for the dreadful effect the news had upon Mrs.
Bingle. His wife collapsed. She sent for her mother and sister and
declared openly that from that day forth she would make her home with
them. And to add to Mr. Bingle's incalculable distress, Dr. Fiddler
very resolutely said that he thought it advisable for her to do
precisely what she wanted to do at this time. Later on, no doubt, she
would look upon the situation differently, and would return to him
sound in body, mind and affection. But for the present--well, said the
great Dr. Fiddler, she'd be much happier with her mother and sister,
away from Mr. Bingle and the children. He also advised Mr. Bingle in no
uncertain terms to get rid of the children as soon as possible without
seriously jeopardising their future welfare, "for," said he, "they will
never cease to be a barrier between you and your wife, now that the
dream is over and you are both awake to the cruel call of reality." The
situation became desperate for Mr. Bingle when his wife took her
extraordinary stand, and not before. He wilted like a faded flower in
the face of this blighting calamity.
On the morning of the sixth of July, a pompous old gentleman rang the
front doorbell at Seawood, and inquired for Mr. Bingle. He turned out
to be the principal lawyer employed by Joseph Hooper's son and
daughters in their fight for the Grimwell millions--a Mr. Hoskins by
name. He might have been designated as General Hoskins, as a matter of
fact, for he was in actual command of a small army of lawyers, now
victorious after a long and bitter warfare.
"I am authorised by my clients, Mr. Bingle," said he, "to extend to you
the customary amenities in such cases, wherein a contest ends so
disastrously for one party or the other. We are not unmindful of the
teachings of 'The Christmas Carol.' Indeed, we have all read it with
great interest. Joseph Hooper's recommendations to his children in
regard to you--"
"Just a moment, please," interrupted Mr. Bingle. "Say it straight out,
Mr. Hoskins. Have they commissioned you to make provision for my future
out of the funds they are about to acquire?"
"In a measure, yes," said Mr. Hoskins, prepared to sneer at Mr.
Bingle's gleeful acceptance of charity. "Of course, nothing can be done
in the matter until the opinion of the Court is--"
"Nothing at all can be done in the matter," said Mr. Bingle acidly. "I
shall not accept a penny from them, Mr. Hoskins. They wouldn't accept
it from me, and I'm damned if I'll accept it from them. 'The Christmas
Carol' hasn't anything to do with the case. All I ask is a little time
in which to straighten out the affairs of the estate, and not to be
hurried in my actions. I promise you that I shall be as expeditious as
possible. In a day or two my counsel and I will be able to get started
on the work. It will be quite simple so far as I am concerned. I have
only to turn over to you everything in the world except our wearing
apparel--not all of that, you may be sure--and my part of the transfer
is completed. I had nothing when Joseph Hooper's money came to me, so,
you see, it will be quite easy for me to step down and out. I have only
to walk out of the house with my wife and children, without a cent in
my pockets, and the job is done. Everything else belongs to Geoffrey
and his sisters." Mr. Hoskins was disconcerted. He had come prepared to
be generous. "My dear sir, the fortunes of war have militated against--"
"Better say the misfortunes of war," interrupted Mr. Bingle, with a
twinkle in his eye.
"I wish you wouldn't interrupt me every time I start to speak to you,
Mr. Bingle," said the lawyer. "I'm not accustomed to being--"
"I beg your pardon," again interrupted Mr. Bingle, and, because he said
it apologetically, Mr. Hoskins was not resentful.
"My clients are disposed to be fair and--I will not say
charitable--generous in their hour of triumph. Last evening they met
and discussed the problems confronting you, sir. They realise that you
devoted a great deal of your time and much of your slender means toward
securing the comfort of their lamented father--"
"And burying him," put in Mr. Bingle. "Don't forget that I buried him."
"--and they are prepared to settle a certain amount upon you for life,
Mr. Bingle."
"Well, that's nice of them," said Mr. Bingle.
"The amount will be decided upon at some subsequent meeting. In the
meantime, you are to accept from them the sum of one thousand dollars
for the purpose of providing yourself with--"
"I've just got to interrupt, Mr. Hoskins. I do it for your own sake.
You are wasting time and words. I shan't take a penny, as I said
before. I will not allow them to settle a certain amount upon me.
That's flat, Mr. Hoskins. I know how to be poor a blamed sight better
than I know how to be rich. It won't be a new thing to me. I'll get
along, so don't you worry. I have kept the books for this estate ever
since I came into control of it, just because I like to be busy at
something I know how to do without asking the advice of the butler or
anybody else. The books and accounts have been kept straight up to this
very day. You can put your auditors and expert accountants at work on
them to-morrow, if you like, and you'll find that they balance to a
cent. So, you see, I've not allowed myself to get rusty with
prosperity."
"Most extraordinary," said Mr. Hoskins.
"When the time comes, I shall be able to turn over the estate a good
deal better than I found it. It has increased under my management. I
could not have begun to spend the income from the investments. Your
clients will find themselves in possession of an extra million or two
apiece to recompense them for their long wait. I do not expect or
solicit thanks for managing the estate while it was under my control.
Please tell them so, Mr. Hoskins."
"My clients are not disposed to exact a complete, minute accounting
from you, Mr. Bingle," said Mr. Hoskins, somewhat at a loss for means
to meet the unexpected. "Naturally we, as their attorneys, are expected
to ascertain the condition of the estate, and all that sort of thing. I
am quite sure that we will find it--er--in excellent order."
"Before I forget it, perhaps I'd better mention one or two expenditures
that I have made in the past twenty-four hours," said Mr. Bingle
thoughtfully. "I have taken it upon myself to pay all of my just debts
before the order of the Court takes effect. In other words, sir, I have
settled in full with my attorneys, my doctors and my servants. They are
paid up to the minute, Mr. Hoskins."
The lawyer stared. "Do you mean to say that you have paid out of the
estate the fees--undoubtedly exorbitant--of these lawyers for the ten
years' fiddling they have been--"
"My doctor's name is Fiddler, sir," interrupted Mr. Bingle, looking so
hard into Mr. Hoskins' eyes that once more the interruption passed
unresented. "I have paid them all in full, if that's what you are
trying to get at."
"Don't you know that such an act is distinctly illegal?" demanded Mr.
Hoskins.
"So my lawyers informed me."
"And yet they permitted you to hand over to them large sums of money in
the nature of fees without waiting for an order of the Court, knowing
full well that an opinion had been handed down? It is incomprehensible!"
"It shouldn't be incomprehensible to you, Judge Hoskins," said Mr.
Bingle gently. "You are a lawyer yourself."
"Am I to infer that you--What do you mean, sir?"
"I leave that entirely to you, sir."
Mr. Hoskins coughed, although there was nothing to indicate that it was
necessary.
"It is possible, sir, for my clients to bring suit against you for a
full accounting of all monies that you have expended or misused in--"
"I wouldn't say that, if I were you, Judge Hoskins."
"I beg your pardon, Mr. Bingle. For all monies that belong or have
belonged to the estate of their father. I say it is possible for them
to do so--but not likely. You should not forget that this estate
virtually has been held in trust by you for all these years, pending
the final decision--a point agreed upon by my clients and yourself in
the desire to increase the value of--"
"If they feel inclined to bring such a suit, Mr. Hoskins, I shall not
combat it," said Mr. Bingle drily. "They may take judgment by default.
They are used to waiting by this time, so it won't be anything new for
them to wait a million years for what they'd get if they sued me. By
carefully hoarding a couple of dollars a year for a million years, I
fancy I could in the end be able to take care of the judgment. But it
hardly seems worth while, does it? It is barely possible that your
clients might die before that time is up, even though I should survive."
"I fear that you do not realise that this is no joking matter, Mr.
Bingle," said Mr. Hoskins stiffly. He was not quite so pompous as when
he entered the house.
"I fear that you did not realise it either, Mr. Hoskins, when you spoke
of suing me."
"Ahem! And now, sir, when may we arrange for a conference over the
transfer of all properties now in your hands, or under your control, as
coming from the estate of the late Joseph Hooper?"
"You may call up my attorneys by telephone this afternoon, sir, and
arrange anything you like. They are still in my employ, according to
our agreement of yesterday. I've paid them to see that I have nothing
left when they get through with me, so there's nothing to worry about.
Confer with them, Mr. Hoskins, and when you are ready I'll come down
and do whatever is necessary in the premises. In the meantime, convey
my thanks to my cousins and say that when they refused to accept a
portion of the estate from me ten years ago they made it impossible for
me to accept anything from them now. What they were too proud to
accept, I also am too proud to take. Thank you for coming out to see
me, Mr. Hoskins. I know you are a very busy man, and I know it must
seem like a prodigious waste of time to be interesting yourself in the
affairs of a poor bookkeeper without a cent to his name. For that is
what I am, Mr. Hoskins: a poor bookkeeper without a cent to his name
but still a believer in 'The Christmas Carol.'"
"But that book actually was the cause of your undoing, sir. It--"
"It doesn't matter," said Mr. Bingle wearily. "It is a good book, just
the same. If you will excuse me now, I must go to the city. I have an
appointment right after luncheon with a man who is going to show me a
flat."
Mr. Hoskins surprised himself at this juncture--undeniably surprised
himself. "If you are going to the city at once, Mr. Bingle, perhaps you
will permit me to take you up in my car."
Mr. Bingle's smile was quizzical. "You HAVE got something out of 'The
Christmas Carol' then," he said, and Mr. Hoskins eventually had the
grace to redden perceptibly. He was slow in grasping the connection,
however.
The impoverished millionaire had a busy afternoon, and some annoying
mishaps--if they may be classified as such. In the first place, he went
to the bank and delivered his resignation as vice-president and
director. He handed it to Mr. Force and at the same moment applied for
his old job as bookkeeper. Mr. Force complimented him on his promptness
in both emergencies. It appears that the newspapers had printed columns
about the Bingle affair. Mr. Force was in possession of all the facts.
He had been interviewed by all of the reporters who had failed to see
Mr. Bingle and who had to be content with a statement prepared and
delivered by Flanders.
"Your resignation comes just in time, Bingle," he said. "We have a
meeting of the board to-morrow. And as for the position, I'm happy to
say you can have it almost immediately. Ramsey is leaving. I thought of
you this morning when my secretary mentioned the fact. And, by the way,
I don't mind saying that we hope to have the Hooper heirs continue
their holdings in the bank. The account, as you know, is a large one
and we don't want to lose it. Besides, Geoffrey Hooper is the sort of a
chap who will help the bank tremendously if we put him on the board. He
stands very high socially and is hand in glove with the richest people
in town. I am to see him at three o'clock. By Jove, it's nearly three.
Excuse me, Bingle, if I appear to hurry you off, but--"
"I just wanted to ask how Kathleen is, Mr. Force," said Mr. Bingle, who
had not been asked to sit down.
"She's all right," said Mr. Force. "Good-bye, Bingle. Tell Bashford I
said you were to have Ramsey's place. And, by the way, if I can ever be
of any service to you, Bingle, I wish you'd call on me."
"Thanks. The job will be enough, I hope, Mr. Force."
Force suddenly lowered his eyes. "I'd ask you to come and see Kathleen,
Bingle, but--but we're trying to break the child of her homesickness,
of her longing to see you. Time, of course, will do it. You will
understand, of course, that it is better for her--and for all of us--if
she doesn't see you."
Mr. Bingle's face shone. "She--she still loves me, then?" he cried
softly.
Force compressed his lips, and then admitted: "Yes, Bingle, old fellow,
she DOES love you. And, hang it all, why shouldn't she? I--I want her
to love me and not you. I can't look at you without envy in my
soul--eating my soul, do you understand?--and I could almost hate you
for the start you got of me in those long years with her. Oh, don't
laugh at me, Bingle. Don't stand there grinning like a hyena. I suppose
it will please you to hear that the poor child cries nearly every night
of her life because she--she misses you. I--"
"You can bet it DOES please me," shouted Mr. Bingle.
"Wait, Bingle! Don't go. What am I to do? How am I going to put
sunshine back into that little girl's face? Lord, man, I--I can't stand
it much longer."
Mr. Bingle pondered. Then he laid his hat upon the table and took a
notebook and pencil from his pocket. While he scribbled, Force looked
on in perplexity.
"There!" said Mr. Bingle, tearing out the sheet and handing it to the
president of the bank. "You may read it, Mr. Force. Give it to her, and
see if she doesn't brighten up a bit."
Force read the note. He read it aloud, as if that was the only way to
get the full meaning of it.
"'Dear Kathleen: Your old daddy loves you. You must always love him,
and you must make your new daddy fetch you to see him some day. Come
and see Freddie and all the other kiddies. They will be so delighted to
see you, for they all love you. And if your new daddy will fetch you to
see your old daddy once in a while, I am sure you will come to love
your new daddy as much, if not more than you love your old
"DADDY BINGLE.'"
"Give that to her, Force, and maybe she'll put her arms around your
neck and kiss you," said Mr. Bingle, and went swiftly out of the room,
leaving Force staring at the bit of paper as if fascinated.
As he hurried from the bank, he met Rouquin, the foreign exchange
manager, who evidently had been lying in wait for him.
"How do you do, Rouquin?" said he, stopping to proffer his hand to the
Frenchman.
"See here, Mr. Bingle," began Rouquin, in an agitated undertone; "I
want a word or two with you about Napoleon. What is to become of that
child, now that you are down and out? Will he be sent to some accursed
charity home or--"
"Possess your soul in peace, Rouquin," said Mr. Bingle, drawing back to
look more intently into the unfriendly eyes of the once amiable
Rouquin. "Napoleon shall have the best I can give him, no more. He is
as well with me as he could ever have been with his good-for-nothing
father, and if I choose to get rid of him later on to the best
advantage I won't be doing anything more despicable than his father and
mother did before me. Please bear that in mind."
"I shall see to it that he is taken away from you before he is a week
older," cried Rouquin angrily. "You cannot expect me to leave that
helpless child--"
"What have you got to do with it, Rouquin?" demanded Mr. Bingle sharply.
"I am his mother's friend. I promised her that he should have a fine
home. I swore to her that he should never know want or hardship or--"
"There is only one way for you to take Napoleon away from me," said Mr.
Bingle, as Rouquin floundered for words to express himself. "And that
is to come up like a man and say that you are his father. Whenever you
can do that and whenever you can show me that you and his mother are
married to each other, I'll give him up to you, but not before, you
scum of the earth!"
Rouquin went very red in the face and then very pale, and his thin lips
set themselves in a ghastly smile.
"Good day, Rouquin," said Mr. Bingle, and went out of the bank.
Mr. Epps was annoyed because his customer kept him waiting for nearly
half-an-hour. He was exceedingly crabbed and disagreeable as they set
out to look at the flat which was to be the Bingle home, provided the
rent was paid regularly and promptly.