ntains of it. Merchants and other business men of the town
would button-hole him, take him into some retired place and tell him how
this man had been caught _in flagrante delicto_ with Mrs. Hosford, how
that man had confessed to having been caught in her toils, and how some
other person had been made a suspicious person in the society of the
place, through some peccadillo with the dashing _Madam_.

All these persons referred to told of all the other persons who had
divulged their weaknesses, until it seemed to Mr. Bangs, after remaining
a few days in the vicinity, that the entire male portion of the
community were implicated. But securing promises of depositions was
quite another thing. Mr. A. was a married man, belonged to the church,
had extensive business relations, and, while he would like to assist in
the noble effort to show up the infamous woman, he really could not,
you see, place himself in so delicate a position.

Mr. B. was not a member of any church, but had the reputation of a high
order of morality. While he could not but acknowledge the justice of the
request, and hoped that Mr. Bangs would have no trouble in securing all
the evidence he needed, which would be a very easy matter, still he did
not see how he could consistently compromise himself by going on record
as a common adulterer.

Mr. C. was neither a churchman, nor did he claim a high order of
morality; but if he had good luck, he would in the spring marry a very
pretty girl of the village, and if she should ascertain that he had
previously been so generous with his affections in another direction, he
was satisfied that his dream of future bliss would be dissolved in thin
air at once.

And so on through the entire village directory. There were pointed out
scores of persons who had the knowledge desired, were all willing to
help him secure _some other person_ for sacrifice, and all equally
enthusiastically hoped that her suit against Lyon would end in an
ignominious failure; but declined, with thanks, the proud honor of
exposing their own weaknesses, for even the extreme honor of assisting
in her downfall.

CHAPTER XV.

A Chicago Divorce "Shyster."-- Hosford found.-- His pathetic
Narrative.-- More Facts.

Mr. Bangs was in no hurry to leave Sheboygan Falls, as he found that he
was in a fruitful field for information, and he continued garnering it
in and stacking it away industriously.

It appeared that Hosford's wife, not c