The Dugdale Millions — page 145: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

ORTON PIERSON. 135 ‘TY desire to ask first,’’ Dick continued, ‘‘if you have a son?”’ **Yes,’’ replied the old man, “‘I have ason. But if there is purpose in your question, I suppose te answer you properly, I should say he is an adopted son. But he is the same to me as one, for he was adopted when a babe, and it is only in recent years that he has known that he was not ason of my own blood.”’ **So much confirmation,’’ thought Dick. Aloud he asked: ‘‘Did you obtain the child from an institution? Pardon me, I do not intend to be offensive.’’ “You are not, sitr,’’ blandly replied the old man. ‘“No, the child did not come from an asylum. There is quite a story connected with our obtaining it. Mrs. Pierson, who is now dead, and I hope in Heaven where so good a woman should be, was strolling one day, a quarter of a century ago, in Union Square, and had her attention attracted to a pretty babe in the arms of a respectable woman. Mrs. Pierson had never been blessed with children but had a large mother heart. She stopped to notice it, and, chatting with the woman, learned that the babe was the child of a man, though a gentleman, very poor, and that the mother was dead. How the talk of adoption came up, I don’t know, yet I recollect that Mrs. Pierson talked to me of adoption, but as I was not inclined, the mat- ter was dropped for the time, The next summer, however, Mrs. Pierson again saw the woman and the babe, and learned that the child’s father was dead and the babe homeless. Then it was that Mrs. Pierson persuaded me to go with her the next day to see it. eeing it, I fancied it. We made a proposition to take the child, but Mrs. Tompkins—no, that wasn’t the yame—not Tompkins—Tomp—Tompkins—Tomlhin- son—that’s it! but Mrs. Tomlinson said she could not dispose of the child until she had consulted her hus- COMIGIOO cS 3