"There is something on his mind," thought Bolton. "He looks as if he wished to speak to some one."
He addressed a casual remark to his companion, who instantly responded.
"I don"t like to trouble you," he said, "but I am somewhat perplexed."
"My dear sir, if in any way I can help you I shall be glad to do so,"
answered Bolton. "I am a lawyer--"
"Are you?" said the other eagerly. "I want to meet a good, honest, and _smart_ lawyer, who will undertake a case for me."
Bolton p.r.i.c.ked up his ears. This seemed to be a providential opportunity of which he resolved to avail himself.
"I should not like to praise myself," he said modestly, "but I think you would find me faithful to your interests."
"No doubt of it, sir. Are you a New York lawyer?"
"I am about to connect myself with a law firm in the city," answered Bolton, heartily hoping that this statement might prove accurate.
"Then you will be able to help me."
"State your case, if you don"t mind." Bolton took out a small memorandum book, and, pencil in hand, sat ready to take down the important points.
"You must know, sir, that twenty years ago my father died, leaving an estate of fifty thousand dollars. It was divided equally between my sister Martha and myself. I married, and Martha, for the last twenty years, has been a member of my family. Being a spinster, with only herself to provide for, her property has doubled, while I, having several children, have barely held my own. Of course I expected that my children and my self would inherit Martha"s money when she died."
"Very natural, sir, and very just."
"Well, Martha died last August. Imagine my dismay when her will was opened and proved to bequeath her entire estate to various charities in which she never took any particular interest when living."
"Do you suspect any one of influencing her to this disposition of her property?"
"Yes, she had had various conversations with a collector for these societies, who resided in the town during the summer, and who sought an introduction when he learned that she was a lady of independent fortune. He called frequently, and flattered up my poor sister, who, between ourselves, had lately shown signs of mental weakness."
"Did she cut off your family entirely in her will?"
"Yes; she didn"t leave even a dollar to any one of my children, though one of my daughters was named for her."
"Was the collector ent.i.tled to a commission on sums secured for the societies which he rep resented?"
"Yes, that is the cause of his zeal. He would make a very handsome percentage on an estate as large as my sister"s."
"But for him would she have been likely to cut off her relatives?"
"No; we should probably have received every dollar."
"Do you think the collector cherished any matrimonial designs with reference to your sister?"
"I did think so at one time, but Martha"s condition as an invalid led her to discourage his attentions, though she was evidently flattered by them."
"Of course you wish to break the will?"
"Yes. Do you think it can be done?"
"Upon the basis of what you have told me I should think the chances were greatly in your favor."
His companion brightened up very perceptibly at this a.s.surance.
"Have you ever been employed in any similar cases?" he asked.
"My dear sir, I have an important case of the kind on my hands at this moment. The amount involved is a quarter of a million dollars."
Mr. Bolton rose greatly in the estimation of his new client after he had made this statement.
"Is the case at all similar?"
"Hardly. It is the case of a will concealed, or rather suppressed, and acting upon a will previously made. I cannot go into details for obvious reasons, as I wish to keep our enemy in the dark."
"I understand. Have you your card with you, so that I can call at your office?"
This was a puzzling question for Bolton, but he was equal to the occasion.
"Tell me what hotel you propose to stop at, and I will call upon you at eleven o"clock to-morrow morning."
"I don"t know much about the New York hotels."
"Then let me recommend a house," naming a comfortable but not expensive hostelry on upper Broadway.
"I will go there."
"I think you have not yet mentioned your name."
"My name is Ephraim Paulding."
Bolton noted it down in his memorandum-book, and soon after the train ran into the station at Forty-second Street.
There was no time to be lost. Bolton made inquiries and obtained the name of a successful, go-ahead lawyer, having an office at 182 Na.s.sau Street. He did not wait till the next day, but made a call that same evening at his house on Lexington Avenue.
Mr. Norcross, the lawyer, entered the parlor with Bolton"s card in his hand and a puzzled expression on his face.
"Have I ever met you before, Mr. Bolton?" he asked.
"No, sir."
"Please state your business."
"I should like to enter your office. I am a lawyer with fifteen years experience."
"I should hardly think so, considering the strange, and I may say unprecedented, proposal you are making."
"I am quite aware that it seems so, but I can make it worth your while."