The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Frame Up, by Richard Harding Davis

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Title: The Frame Up

Author: Richard Harding Davis

Posting Date: October 5, 2008 [EBook #1806]
Release Date: May, 1999

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FRAME UP ***

Produced by Aaron Cannon

THE FRAME UP

by Richard Harding Davis

When the voice over the telephone promised to name the man who killed
Hermann Banf, District Attorney Wharton was up-town lunching at
Delmonico's. This was contrary to his custom and a concession to
Hamilton Cutler, his distinguished brother-in-law. That gentleman was
interested in a State constabulary bill and had asked State Senator
Bissell to father it. He had suggested to the senator that, in the legal
points involved in the bill, his brother-in-law would undoubtedly be
charmed to advise him. So that morning, to talk it over, Bissell had
come from Albany and, as he was forced to return the same afternoon, had
asked Wharton to lunch with him up-town near the station.

That in public life there breathed a man with soul so dead who, were he
offered a chance to serve Hamilton Cutler, would not jump at the chance
was outside the experience of the county chairman. And in so judging his
fellow men, with the exception of one man, the senator was right. The
one man was Hamilton Cutler's brother-in-law.

In the national affairs of his party Hamilton Cutler was one of the four
leaders. In two cabinets he had held office. At a foreign court as an
ambassador his dinners, of which the diplomatic corps still spoke with
emotion, had upheld the dignity of ninety million Americans. He was
rich. The history of his family was the history of the State. When the
Albany boats drew abreast of the old Cutler mansion on the cast bank of
the Hudson the passengers pointed at it with deference. Even when the
search lights pointed at it, it was with deference. And on Fifth
Avenue, as the "Seeing New York" car passed his town house it slowed
respectfully to half speed. When, apparently for no other reason than
that she was good and beautiful, he had married the sister of a then
unknown up State lawyer, eve