"I came back to New York, and went to Mr. Gilday.
"'Will he marry her?' he said at once.
"'He will marry her,' I said. 'As for her, I want you to say; for I'll
not write to her myself, since she wouldn't answer me. Say when she's
the wife of Paul Bargee I'll bring the child to her myself, and she's
to see me; for I have a word to say to her then,' I said, and I laid my
fist down on the table. 'Until then the child stays with me.'
"They've said hard things of Mr. Joseph Gilday, and I know it; but I
know all that he did for me. For he didn't turn it over to a clerk; but
he took hold himself and saw it through as I had said. And when the
divorce was given he called me down and told me that Fanny Montrose was
a free woman and no blame to her in the sight of the law.
"Then I said: 'It is well. Now write to Paul Bargee that his week has
begun. Until then I keep the child, law or no law.' Then I rose and
said: 'I thank you, Mr. Gilday. You've been very kind, and I'd like to
pay you what I owe you.'
"He sat there a moment and chewed on his mustache, and he said: 'You
don't owe me a cent.'
"'It wasn't charity I came to you for, and I can pay for what I get, Mr.
Gilday,' I said. 'Will you give me your regular bill?' I said.
"And he said at last: 'I will.'
"In the middle of the week Paul Bargee's mother came to me and went down
on her knees and begged for her son, and I said to her: 'Why should
there be one law for him and one law for the likes of me. He's taken my
wife; but he sha'n't put her to shame, ma'am, and he sha'n't cast a
cloud on the life of my child!'
"Then she stopped arguing, and caught my hands and cried: 'But you
won't kill him, you won't kill my son, if he don't?'
"'As sure as Saturday comes, ma'am, and he hasn't made Fanny Montrose a
good woman,' I said, 'I'm going to kill Paul Bargee wherever he stands.'
"And Friday morning Mr. Gilday called me down to his office and told me
that Paul Bargee had done as I said he should do. And I pressed his hand
and said nothing, and he let me sit awhile in his office.
"And after awhile I rose up and said: 'Then I must take the child to
her, as I promised, to-night.'
"He walked with me from the office and said: 'Go home to your little
girl. I'll see to the tickets, and will come for you at nine o'clock.'
"And at nine o'clock he came in his big carriage, and took me and the
child to the station and said: 'Telegraph me when you're leaving
to-morrow.'
"And I said: 'I will.'
"Then I went into the car with my little girl asleep in my arms and sat
down in the seat, and the porter came and said:
"'Can I make up your berths?'
"And I looked at the child and shook my head. So I held her all night
and she slept on my shoulder, while I looked from her out into the
darkness, and from the darkness back to her again. And the porter kept
passing and passing and staring at me and the child.
"And in the morning we went up to the great house and into the big
parlor, and Fanny Montrose came in, as I had said she should, very white
and not looking at me. And the child ran to her, and I watched Fanny
Montrose catch her up to her breast, and I sobbed. And she looked at me,
and saw it. So I said:
"'It's because now I know you love the child and that you'll be kind to
her.'
"Then she fell down before me and tried to take my hand. But I stepped
back and said:
"'I've made you an honest woman, Fanny Montrose, and now as long as I
live I'm going to see you do nothing to disgrace my child.'
"And I went out and took the train back. And Mr. Gilday was at the
station there waiting for me, and he took my arm, without a word, and
led me to his carriage and drove up without speaking. And when we got to
the house, he got out, and took off his hat and made me a bow and said:
'I'm proud to know you, Larry Moore.'"