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Psychological Testing and Assessment

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Chapter 07 - Utility

Chapter 07
Utility

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Chapter 7's Meet an Assessment Professional, you met Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, whose
Ph.D. is in _______ and who works as a ______.
A. biometrics; research consultant
B. clinical psychology; counselor
C. health psychology; psychometrician
D. psychometrics; biostatistician

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2. In a typical work day, Dr. Delphine Courvoisier might


A. help out one team of researchers in conceptualizing initial hypotheses.
B. assist a research team in selecting the most appropriate outcome measure.
C. help a research team with data analysis or interpretation.
D. All of these

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3. According to Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, quality-of-life research for patients with a chronic
disease
A. is best conducted at the time the disease is first diagnosed.
B. is best conducted one-year after onset of the disease.
C. is of limited applied value five years after the first diagnosis of the disease.
D. may be conducted at different points in time through the course of the disease.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

4. Which of the following tests was mentioned by name by Dr. Delphine Courvoisier as an
instrument that she uses in her daily work?
A. SFQ
B. HAQ
C. OPQ-2
D. All of these

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5. Dr. Delphine Courvoisier described her use of one test in health outcome research and the
proprietary "DAS" it yielded. What did she mean by "DAS" in this context?
A. disease activity score
B. drug after-effect score
C. disability adjustment score
D. differential ability scaled score

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6. According to Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, when a research project demands that subjects
respond to a series of telephone calls, it would be instructive to understand how _______
affects the other variables in the study.
A. anxiety
B. compliance
C. intelligence
D. distraction

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Chapter 07 - Utility

7. According to Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, ecological momentary assessment (EMA) is a tool


of assessment that researchers can use to examine behaviors and subjective states in the
settings in which they naturally occur, and at a frequency that can capture their
A. validity.
B. volume.
C. variability.
D. volatility.

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8. According to Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, psychologists who raise compelling research


questions must understand that the road to satisfactory answers is paved with psychometric
essentials such as
A. a sound research design.
B. the use of appropriate measures.
C. accurate analysis and interpretation of findings.
D. All of these.

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9. According to Dr. Delphine Courvoisier, contrary to what many may hold as an intuitive
truth, success in the world of psychometrics cannot be measured by
A. a psychological test.
B. zeroes in a bank statement.
C. publication citations.
D. numbers alone.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

10. "Will the use of police-worn body cameras reduce use-of-force complaints?" According to
the textbook, this question is a question regarding
A. reliability.
B. validity.
C. utility.
D. None of these.

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11. In the Chapter 7 Everyday Psychometrics in your textbook, the vignettes at the beginning
were used to illustrate the fact that the police can do what they were trained to do and
A. the result will be "win-win."
B. the result will be "lose-lose."
C. and no one ever has to get hurt.
D. error can still find its way into the situation.

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12. The Ariel et al. (2015) study of police use of force was conducted using officers from the
police department of
A. San Francisco, California.
B. Rialto, California.
C. Los Angeles, California.
D. San Dimas, California.

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13. In the Ariel et al. (2015) study, police officers were assigned to the Camera or No Camera
condition
A. by the commander on duty at the time.
B. using the Cambridge Randomizer.
C. on the basis of case history data.
D. None of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

14. In the Ariel et al. (2015) study, the research protocol required officers to
A. wear cameras only during Camera shifts.
B. keep cameras on throughout their entire Camera shift.
C. issue verbal warnings during the Camera shifts to advise citizens confronted that the
interaction was being videotaped by a camera attached to the officer's uniform.
D. All of these

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15. The Ariel et al. (2015) study was conducted over the course of
A. one year.
B. two years.
C. three years.
D. four years.

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16. For the purposes of the Ariel et al. (2015) study, "use of force" was coded as being present
on any occasion that a police verbal confrontation with a citizen escalated to the point of
A. shouting back-and-forth.
B. any physical contact.
C. the citizen being restrained by the officer.
D. shots fired.

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17. Ariel et al. (2015) found that police use-of-force rates were ______ that in the No Camera
shifts as compared to the Camera shifts.
A. less than half
B. more than half
C. less than twice
D. more than twice

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Chapter 07 - Utility

18. Ariel et al. (2015) found that body cameras worn by police have utility in reducing use-of-
force incidents, as well as use-of-force complaints by citizens. However, given the procedures
used in their study, questions remain regarding whether changes in the participants' behavior
was more a function of the camera or
A. the police officer's verbal warning.
B. the ten directives in the experimental protocol.
C. officers attempting to give citizens two or more chances to comply with commands.
D. All of these

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19. In Chapter 7 of your textbook, if the illustrative case of the man who complained of leg
pain while playing basketball was a story, the "moral" of the story is BEST captured by:
A. "Never play basketball, or other contact sport, if you are on the wrong side of 30."
B. "The utility of playing the game must be weighed against that of not playing."
C. "There are costs associated with testing, and costs associated with not testing."
D. "What goes up, eventually comes down."

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20. As used in utility analyses, the term cost refers to


A. insurance payments.
B. mortgage payments.
C. payments for test protocols.
D. All of these

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21. As noted by the Hansen et al. study cited in Chapter 7 of your text, the addition of two
more x-ray views in addition to the conventional two is advisable because
A. it may make a more expensive procedure such as a CAT scan unnecessary.
B. the additional radiation exposure was shown to be insignificant.
C. it may be helpful in diagnosing whether physical abuse has occurred.
D. the procedure can do "double duty" as a drug screening tool.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

22. In industrial settings, there are many non-economic benefits to be derived for the company
that runs an effective testing program. Which of the following is NOT one such benefit?
A. increase in quality of workers' performance
B. decrease in time to train workers
C. reduction of work turnover
D. decrease in worker healthcare benefits

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23. The selection policies of the admissions office of a university can be instrumental in
A. building a good reputation for the university.
B. developing a good learning environment for students.
C. building high morale for the university's faculty.
D. All of these

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24. The tools of assessment used to make clinical judgments regarding the need for
involuntary hospitalization
A. benefit society at large.
B. may cause some to be unjustly denied their freedom.
C. include tests, case history data, and interviews.
D. All of these

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25. The textbook authors caution that in addition to formulas, tables, and other formal
methodologies, _____ must also be factored into any utility analysis.
A. common sense
B. physical property
C. intellectual property
D. All of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

26. The textbook defines a utility analysis as


A. a proprietary technique.
B. a family of techniques.
C. an exclusionary procedure.
D. a multidisciplinary effort.

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27. A utility analysis of a test may BEST be thought of as


A. a model for understanding the costs of producing the test.
B. a way of envisioning new uses for the test.
C. an evaluation of the costs and benefits of the test.
D. an amalgam of reliability and validity data on the test.

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28. A utility analysis may be undertaken for many different purposes. Which of the following
reasons is LEAST LIKELY to be one of them?
A. to determine if one test is preferable to another test
B. to determine if one method of intervention is preferable to another
C. to evaluate the validity of a test publisher's claim
D. to evaluate whether maintaining a training program is better than not having one.

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29. Thinking of the illustration of a utility analysis in the Close-up in Chapter 7, what type of
error would have been made if a driver who was hired was actually not qualified for the job?
A. a false positive
B. a false negative
C. a near outlier
D. none of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

30. A limitation of the Taylor-Russell tables is that


A. the relationship between the test and the rating of performance must be linear.
B. the relationship between the predictor and the criterion must be linear.
C. criterion score difficulties in differentiating "successful" from "not successful."
D. All of these

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31. An index of utility can be distinguished from both an index of reliability and an index of
validity in that an index of utility can tell us something about
A. how consistently a test measures what it measures in a particular context.
B. whether a test measures what it purports to measure in a particular context.
C. the practical value of the information derived from what a test measures.
D. None of these

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32. Test validity


A. has nothing whatever to do with test utility.
B. sets a ceiling on test reliability.
C. sets a ceiling on test utility.
D. None of these

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33. Which is the BEST general statement regarding a self-report test of integrity?
A. It is a valid test.
B. It is a reliable test.
C. It is not a psychometrically sound test.
D. It is a test of questionable utility.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

34. A group of testtakers all fail to follow the directions for taking a particular test. Which is
TRUE?
A. The test results could still have great utility.
B. The test could still be psychometrically sound.
C. The test results could still be valid.
D. The reason for this must have to do with the test and not the testtakers.

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35. High morale on a university campus can be ____________ resulting from a utility
analysis of student selection procedures.
A. an economic cost
B. a non-economic cost
C. an economic benefit
D. a non-economic benefit

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36. This is a tool that can be used to conduct a utility analysis. It is


A. expectancy tables.
B. Taylor-Russell tables.
C. Naylor-Shine tables.
D. All of these

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37. Generally speaking, the specific objective of a utility analysis will dictate what sort of
information will be required, as well as the specific
A. methods to be used.
B. expectancy tables to be used.
C. Naylor-Shine tables to be used.
D. Rise-and-Shine tables to be used.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

38. The end-point of a utility analysis is typically an educated decision about


A. limits on monetary expenditures for a new test or testing program.
B. which of many possible courses of action is optimal.
C. where to fix a cut point on a new test.
D. how to structure an intervention so that it is most cost efficient.

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39. In the now classic utility analysis for the Bell system telephone company conducted in the
1980s, Cascio and Ramos concluded that
A. the use of a particular approach to assessment in selecting managers could save the
company millions of dollars.
B. the use of a new approach to assessment in selecting managers was of little utility and
would cost millions of dollars.
C. charging for 411 calls to "Information" could result in millions of dollars in new revenue
for the company.
D. customers would make more calls if they could understand their phone bills.

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40. If undertaken for the purpose of evaluating a particular intervention, a utility analysis can
be helpful in making decisions about whether
A. one training program is preferable to another training program.
B. any intervention is better than no intervention.
C. one tool of assessment is more practical than another.
D. All of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

41. When the purpose of a utility analysis is to answer some finance-related question with a
dollars-and-cents answer, the utility analysis will most likely employ
A. the Cascio-Ramos formula.
B. the Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser formula.
C. Kuder-Richardson Formula 20.
D. Taylor-Naylor Formula 1.

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42. The Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser formula was developed by


A. the team of Brogden, Cronbach, and Gleser working together.
B. Brogden, Cronbach, and Gleser, each working independently.
C. the work of Brogden and later, the work of Cronbach and Gleser.
D. the work of Cronbach, and later, the work of Brogden and Gleser.

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43. The term multiple cut scores refers to


A. the use of two or more cut scores with reference to one predictor for the purpose of
categorizing testtakers.
B. the use of two or more cut scores with reference to a multi-stage evaluation process that
employs several predictors.
C. Both the use of two or more cut scores with reference to one predictor for the purpose of
categorizing testtakers and the use of two or more cut scores with reference to a multi-stage
evaluation process that employs several predictors.
D. None of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

44. Multiple hurdles as used in a decision-making process regarding a selection decision


refers to
A. the use of two or more cut scores with reference to one predictor for the purpose of
categorizing testtakers.
B. the multiple stages each applicant must successfully complete in order to get to the next
stage in the evaluation process.
C. the obstacles to success placed before each of the raters judging a competitive event.
D. All of these

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45. Decision theory is used to determine a test's utility for hiring employees who need to have
high attention to detail to be successful on the job. In this context, to what does the term hit
rate refer?
A. the proportion of people the test accurately identified as having this characteristic
B. the proportion of people the test failed to identify as having this characteristic
C. the number of people the test incorrectly identified as having this characteristic
D. the number of people having this characteristic that the test did not identify

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46. The Angoff method of setting cutting scores relies heavily on


A. data and empirical findings.
B. the judgment of experts.
C. researching the scholarly literature.
D. Both data and empirical findings and researching the scholarly literature.

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47. The "Achilles heel" of the Angoff method is


A. incremental validity.
B. test-retest reliability.
C. inter-rater reliability.
D. non-economic costs.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

48. The television program Dancing With the Stars


A. has a multiple hurdle selection model in place.
B. employs an absolute cut score for selection.
C. uses the known groups method to validate results.
D. once encouraged William Angoff to compete.

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49. The known groups method for setting cut scores is also known as
A. the method of contrasting groups.
B. an IRT-based method.
C. the method of discriminant analysis.
D. the Angoff method.

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50. A problem with using the known group method of setting cut scores is that
A. there is no consistent method of obtaining contrasting groups.
B. strong deterrents to test user acceptance of the data are in place.
C. no standards are in place for choosing contrasting groups.
D. test users must be personally familiar with each member in the known group.

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51. When a cut score is set based on norm-related considerations rather than on the
relationship of test scores to a criterion, the cut score is referred to as
A. a relative cut score.
B. a fixed cut score.
C. an absolute cut score.
D. a referential cut score.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

52. Which is NOT an economic cost typically factored in a test utility analysis?
A. legal costs of doing business
B. fees paid by testtakers for testing services
C. computerized test processing services
D. cost of supplies of blank test protocols

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53. Which of the following is a direct economic cost that could result as a consequence of
NOT evaluating personnel for employment positions within a large corporation?
A. the cost of public confidence in the corporation
B. the cost of accounting services and other routine costs of doing business
C. the cost in terms of lowered morale for employees of the corporation
D. the cost of lawsuits against the corporation

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54. A study that explored the utility of diagnostic X-rays in routine screening of children at
risk for child abuse concluded that there was most utility in
A. a four-view series of X-rays.
B. a two-view series of X-rays.
C. one X-ray combined with visual examination.
D. visual examination only.

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55. In the context of utility analysis, which is NOT a direct economic benefit to a company?
A. increase in worker morale
B. less product being trashed as waste
C. increase in international sales
D. higher worker productivity

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Chapter 07 - Utility

56. A potential non-economic benefit of a well-run evaluation program is


A. an increase in quality of workers' on-the-job performance.
B. a decrease in time it takes to train new workers.
C. a reduction in the number of workplace accidents.
D. All of these

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57. Which is an example of a false negative in the context of employee selection?


A. hired applicants who scored at or above the cut-off score on the employment test and then
went on to fail on the job
B. hired applicants who scored at or above the cut-off score on the employment test and then
went on to succeed on the job
C. rejected applicants who scored below the cut-off score on the employment test who would
have never gone on to succeed on the job
D. rejected applicants who scored below the cut-off score on the employment test who would
have succeeded on the job had they been hired

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58. A hospital uses a compensatory model of selection in hiring surgeons. In their hiring
evaluations, ratings regarding past safety record is given more weight than ratings regarding
the surgeon's "bedside manner." From this, one could reasonably conclude that the people
who are in charge of hiring surgeons believe that:
A. bedside manner is not very important for surgical staff members.
B. surgical safety is an art and a skill that is amenable to training.
C. a safe, bedside manner is essential for all staff members.
D. bedside manner is more amenable to training than surgical safety.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

59. The term item-mapping refers to an IRT-based method of


A. setting cut scores that entails expert judgments based, in part, upon how culturally fair
items are deemed to be.
B. setting cut scores that entails the use of experts rearranging items placed on maps by level
of difficulty.
C. setting cut scores that entails a histographic representation of test items.
D. test construction that was first used for a high school geography achievement test.

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60. The term bookmark method refers to an IRT-based method


A. of marking items with regard to difficulty in a book of items.
B. of setting cut scores based on expert judgment.
C. with possible drawbacks such as floor or ceiling effects.
D. All of these

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61. The term bookmark method refers to an IRT-based method


A. of estimating item difficulty using Las Vegas style odds.
B. of setting cut scores based on scholarly book reviews.
C. derived by researchers on sabbatical in Monte Carlo.
D. None of these

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62. A large corporation scrupulously avoids any possibility of discrimination and adverse
impact in its hiring practices. The selection procedure it probably has in place with regard to
its entry-level test is one that entails
A. personnel selection based on a cut score.
B. a top-down selection policy based on test score.
C. personnel interviews using translators, if necessary.
D. None of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

63. When the selection ratio for new personnel at a corporation goes down,
A. top-down selection policy can become discriminatory.
B. hiring becomes less selective.
C. competition for the position is likely to increase.
D. Both top-down selection policy can become discriminatory and hiring becomes less
selective.

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64. When the selection ratio goes up,


A. the bookmark procedure has less validity.
B. hiring becomes less selective.
C. hiring becomes more selective.
D. hiring is unaffected by the selection ratio.

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65. Which is an example of a false positive in the context of employee selection?


A. hired applicants who scored at or above the cut-off score on the employment test went on
to fail on the job
B. hired applicants who scored at or above the cut-off score on the employment test went on
to succeed on the job
C. rejected applicants who scored below the cut-off score on the employment test were
rejected but would have gone on to succeed on the job had they been given a chance
D. rejected applicants who scored below the cut-off score on the employment test were
rejected but went on to succeed at another, totally different job

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66. The more complex the job,


A. the more people differ on how well they do it.
B. the less complex the decision process in hiring.
C. the less selective the hiring process.
D. the more the need for item-mapping procedures.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

67. When setting a cut score on a predictor,


A. the Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser is usually used.
B. the utility of the test must first be quantitatively determined.
C. the goal of selection must be taken into account.
D. All of these

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68. When setting a cut score on a predictor, an objective is to attain


A. the highest false positive rate.
B. the lowest false negative rate.
C. a moderate hit rate.
D. All of these

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69. In Chapter 7 of your textbook, a pedagogical tool was presented to help you remember the
implications of a low selection ratio. It was:
A. "Selection ratio low, more employees to know."
B. "Selection ratio high, watch workers wave good-bye."
C. "Selection ratio down, less employees around."
D. "Selection ratio low, long road to hoe."

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70. In Chapter 7 of your textbook, a pedagogical tool was presented to help you remember the
implications of a high selection ratio. It was:
A. "Selection ratio up, more coffee in your cup."
B. "Selection ratio up, the bigger the cut."
C. "Selection ratio high, more employees say ‘Goodbye.'"
D. "Selection ratio high, more employees say ‘Hi.'"

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Chapter 07 - Utility

71. Using a cut score of 50 on a predictor test a researcher finds a base rate of 1.00. This
means that when a cut score of 50 is used,
A. 50% of applicants will perform successfully on a criterion measure.
B. 100% of applicants will perform successfully on a criterion measure.
C. 100% of applicants will fail on a criterion measure.
D. 50% of applicants will fail on a criterion measure.

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72. Offering permanent positions to only top-performing applicants is a strategy that can
backfire because
A. competing companies could offer these same applicants positions.
B. these applicants, once hired, might not stay.
C. it may be discriminatory.
D. All of these

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73. Having a personnel selection policy in place that scrupulously seeks to avoid the hiring of
unqualified personnel, even at the expense of not hiring qualified personnel,
A. is patently discriminatory.
B. usually has costs attached to it that tend to outweigh the benefits.
C. can be justified if the position is one of great responsibility.
D. usually has benefits attached to it that tend to outweigh the costs.

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74. Validity is to ____________ as utility is to ____________.


A. accuracy; consistency
B. usefulness; consistency
C. usefulness; accuracy
D. accuracy; usefulness

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Chapter 07 - Utility

75. Consider an employment test that is highly accurate (about 98% correct in classifications),
but very costly (about $5,000 per test). For which of the following positions would use of the
test be most warranted?
A. Translator for the United States Ambassador to the U.N.
B. Short-order cook for the President of the United States
C. Assistant buyer for Sam's Club
D. All of these

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76. Which of the following is NOT an assumption of utility analysis?


A. the value of people and their performance can be estimated.
B. psychological tests are always preferred over other means of assessment.
C. the performance of people in organizations can affect organizational viability.
D. large amounts of information can be integrated to make good decisions.

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77. An educational psychologist conducts a utility analysis of a teaching program used to


improve the handwriting of very young children. The measure of utility in this analysis will
MOST likely be a variable related to
A. an increase in performance level.
B. a decrease in the cost of the program.
C. a reduction in program-related accidents.
D. an increase in program-related revenue.

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78. An instructor assigns a grade of "A" to all students who earn 900 or more points out of a
total of 1000 points during the semester. In this case, 900 points is equal to
A. the cut score for an A.
B. the success rate.
C. the selection ratio.
D. the base rate of A-level students.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

79. The term used to describe the proportion of people in a population who are distinctive due
to their exhibition of a particular trait is
A. success rate.
B. base rate.
C. target rate.
D. cut rate.

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80. Over the last year, a personnel manager hired 20 new employees but only 12 of them
performed successfully. Here, the base rate of successful performance is
A. 0.375.
B. 0.625.
C. 0.600.
D. 0.750.

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81. What follows are the selection ratios from four different undergraduate programs. Which
of these reflects the most selective program?
A. 0.03
B. 0.50
C. 0.99
D. 1.00

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82. In the context of utility, the hit rate is equivalent to


A. the miss rate divided by the selection ratio.
B. the base rate divided by the selection ratio.
C. the success rate divided by the base rate of successful performance.
D. the number of correct classifications divided by the total number of classifications.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

83. Grethela scores very high on a graduate school admission test and is admitted to graduate
school, largely on the basis of that test score. But Grethela subsequently flunks out. In
retrospect, Grethela's score on the admission test is BEST viewed as a
A. false positive.
B. false negative.
C. true negative.
D. positive hit.

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84. Mahalia applies for a job at a company called "The Denver Recreational Marijuana
Factory" (DRMF). DRMF routinely administers a drug test to prospective employees to
screen-out drug users. Despite the fact that Mahalia smokes marijuana almost daily, the
company's test report indicates that she is drug-free. Mahalia is hired. In this case, the BEST
conclusion is that
A. a false positive was reported.
B. a false negative was reported.
C. DRMF drug testing is only for appearances.
D. the DRMF personnel director needs to be drug tested.

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85. Which of the following is included in the calculation of a miss rate?


A. false positives
B. borderline negatives
C. test utility index
D. All of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

86. If criterion-related validity is .40, and the base rate is .60, the false positive rate is likely to
be highest if the selection ratio is:
A. .10.
B. .50.
C. .95.
D. This is impossible to answer based on the data provided.

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87. "An empirical standard used to divide a group of data into two or more distinct categories"
is a formal description of a
A. cut score.
B. predictive yield.
C. norm-referenced test.
D. hit rate.

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88. "Multiple predictors may be used so that applicants must meet or exceed the cut score for
each predictor before moving to the next round of the selection process." This BEST
describes which of the following processes?
A. known-groups selection
B. top down selection
C. compensatory model of selection
D. multiple hurdle selection

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89. When minimum levels of several competencies are required, which of the following
selection strategies is BEST?
A. compensatory selection
B. multiple hurdle with fixed cut scores
C. the method of predictive yield
D. norm-referenced cut scores

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Chapter 07 - Utility

90. "It's a method of setting cut scores that relies heavily on judgments made by experts."
Which of the following is BEST described by this statement?
A. the known groups method
B. the Angoff method
C. discriminant analysis
D. the Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser method

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91. Using the Angoff method as applied to personnel selection, ____________ are used to
estimate the proportion of minimally competent people for the position of interest.
A. focus groups
B. known groups
C. known experts
D. disinterested bystanders

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92. _________ refers to a family of techniques that provides information about the costs and
benefits of testing.
A. Item response theory
B. Compensatory models of selection
C. Utility analysis
D. Conjoint analysis

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93. A method of utility analysis method that can yield utility information in either monetary
or non-monetary terms is the:
A. Taylor-Russell tables.
B. Naylor-Shine tables.
C. Expectancy tables.
D. Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser formula.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

94. In the context of utility considerations, a direct relationship exists between a cut score and
the
A. base rate.
B. selection ratio.
C. utility of the test being evaluated.
D. Both base rate and selection ratio.

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95. Which of the following is synonymous with the term "utility" as used in Chapter 7 of your
text?
A. consistency
B. truthfulness
C. usefulness
D. accuracy

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96. Costs associated with psychological or other testing typically include all of the following
EXCEPT
A. administrator time.
B. use of test facility.
C. return on investment.
D. test administrator's time.

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97. Which term BEST describes the ratio of the benefits of testing compared to the costs of
testing?
A. incremental liquidity
B. assessment investment
C. practical significance
D. return on investment

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Chapter 07 - Utility

98. If scores on a test are attributed with great utility, then it's MOST probably the case that
the scores are
A. reliable.
B. valid.
C. Both reliable and valid.
D. None of these

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99. __________ are used by organizations in order to assess the savings associated with
different decisions.
A. Focus groups
B. Discriminant analyses
C. Utility analyses
D. Taylor-Naylor-Fayva tables

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100. A test's ____________ rate is equal to the proportion of people a test accurately
identifies as possessing or not possessing a particular trait, behavior, characteristic, or
attribute.
A. miss
B. base
C. hit
D. success

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101. Research suggests that approximately 25% of the U.S. population are introverts.
Accordingly, 25% best corresponds to the
A. base rate of introversion in the U.S. population.
B. hit rate of identifying introversion on tests.
C. success rate for classification of introverts.
D. None of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

102. With reference to the graph (below), what is the base rate?

A. 11/25 = 0.44
B. 13/25 = 0.52
C. 15/25 = 0.60
D. 19/25 = 0.76

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Chapter 07 - Utility

103. With reference to the graph (below), what is the hit rate?

A. 14/17 = 0.82
B. 14/30 = 0.47
C. 17/30 = 0.57
D. 25/30 = 0.83

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Chapter 07 - Utility

104. With reference to this graph (below) what is the miss rate?

A. 3/10 = 0.30
B. 5/13 = 0.38
C. 5/18 = 0.28
D. 10/18 = 0.56

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Chapter 07 - Utility

105. With reference to the graph (below) what is the selection ratio?

A. 4/5 = 0.80
B. 4/9 = 0.44
C. 5/20 = 0.25
D. 9/20 = 0.45

106. Which of the following vignettes BEST illustrates a false negative?


A. Terry's MCAT scores are too low to be accepted to a U.S. medical school yet Terry goes
on to win a Nobel Prize in medicine.
B. Maurice scores at the top of his class on tests of speed, strength, and agility and is very
successful as a starting player on a college basketball team.
C. Lynn scores in the top 1% of the population on a test of cognitive ability yet flunks out of
college within the first year.
D. Morgan does not get hired as a pharmacy technician after failing a polygraph test and is
arrested several months later for drug possession.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

107. Which of the following methods of setting cut-scores is NOT data-driven?


A. the known groups method
B. the method of discriminant analysis
C. the Angoff method
D. the decision-theoretic method

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108. A Director of Human Resources is setting up a series of tests to use to select applicants
for sales positions. Inherent in the tests, and applied in the model of selection, is the Director's
assumption that high sales ability can make up for limited product knowledge. The model of
selection being applied could BEST be characterized as
A. a multiple hurdle model of selection.
B. a compensatory model of selection.
C. the method of predictive yield in action.
D. the method of contrasting group for selection.

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109. A problem with the use of the known groups method to set cut scores is
A. the two groups are always indistinguishable at a particular score.
B. low scores in one group that compensate for high scores in the other.
C. determining the minimally acceptable level of performance on the criterion.
D. the lack of any guidelines or standards for choosing contrasting groups.

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110. Which of the following researchers (or research teams) is BEST associated with
presenting utility information in financial terms?
A. Naylor
B. Taylor & Russell
C. Brogden, Cronbach, & Gleser
D. Goldman, Sachs, Morgan, & Stanley

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Chapter 07 - Utility

111. In general, the ____________ the misclassification rate, the lower the ____________.
A. lower; test's utility
B. lower; base rate
C. higher; test's utility
D. higher; base rate

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112. The Admissions Committee at Mount Mayhem Medical School is in the process
selecting applicants. They use applicant's scores on the MCAT (the Medical College
Admissions Test) to assess aptitude for a career in medicine, scores on an interview to assess
interpersonal skills, and college transcripts to assess past performance. The Admissions
Committee set minimum scores on each predictor rather than allowing high performance on
one predictor to compensate for low performance on another predictor. How would you
describe the selection model in place at Mount Mayhem?
A. chaotic
B. multiple hurdle
C. compensatory
D. known groups

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113. Jennifer and Rafael happen to walk in to a large company at the same time to apply for
an advertised position as an accounting clerk. The Human Resource (HR) professional
responsible for selecting the best candidate for the position orders an appropriate test of basic
mathematical skills for each of these applicants. Based on their scores, the HR professional
chooses Jennifer for the job. The reason for this choice is a determination that Jennifer has an
85% chance of performing at an acceptable level. By contrast, Rafael's score indicated that he
had only a 50% chance of performing successfully. The tool of assessment used to make this
hiring decision MOST probably was
A. the method of predictive yield.
B. a Taylor-Russell table.
C. an expectancy table.
D. a test administered and scored by Rafael's ex.

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Chapter 07 - Utility

114. The administrative office for a large newspaper wants to improve accuracy of employees
in the copy editing office. A short test of copy editing knowledge is developed and given to
100 existing copy editors. The current copy editors are divided into two groups: (a) those
whose performance was rated as acceptable on the most recent performance review, and, (b)
those whose performance was rated as unacceptable. Results are presented in graphed form
(below).

Based on this graph and the information in your text, what score should be chosen as the cut
score on the copy editing knowledge test in order to best predict who will be an acceptable or
unacceptable copy editor?
A. 4
B. 5
C. 6
D. 7

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Chapter 07 - Utility

115. Which of the following statements regarding cut scores is FALSE?


A. The setting of cut scores impact utility though the accuracy of decisions made based on test
scores.
B. In multiple hurdle selection, there will be a cut score for each predictor used in the
selection process.
C. An instructor who assigns an "A" to the top 10% of students in a class is using a fixed cut
score.
D. Absolute cut scores are preferred when applicants must demonstrate a minimum level of
competence.

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116. Taylor-Russell tables provide evidence of


A. content validity.
B. criterion-related validity.
C. split-half reliability.
D. one attempt to "outshine" Naylor-Shine.

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117. Both Taylor-Russell and Naylor-Shine expectancy tables must include which type of
validity coefficient?
A. concurrent criterion-related
B. predictive criterion-related
C. construct-related
D. content-related

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Chapter 07 - Utility

118. A difference between the Naylor-Shine and Taylor-Russell expectancy tables is that the
A. Taylor-Russell tables use concurrent validity coefficients; Naylor-Shine tables do not.
B. Naylor-Shine tables use predictive validity coefficients; Taylor-Russell tables use
concurrent validity coefficients.
C. Naylor-Shine tables do not require that the criterion be dichotomized; the Taylor-Russell
tables do.
D. Taylor-Russell tables are more useful than the Naylor-Shine tables for judging the utility of
tests.

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119. What is the selection ratio for a position that has 1,000 applicants and 5 openings?
A. 50
B. 05
C. 005
D. None of these

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120. What factor is perhaps most prominent in keeping decision theory from being widely
used in employee hiring?
A. the validity of the measures typically used
B. the complexity of the process
C. the lack of demonstrated utility of decision theory
D. the expense of the software that must be used

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Chapter 07 - Utility

121. Based on experience using Taylor-Russell tables, a test user would MOST likely
conclude that
A. tests must have unquestionably high validity to be useful in employee selection.
B. tests must have unquestionably low validity to be rejected for use in employee selection.
C. a test with well-documented face validity is more valuable in the workplace than a test with
well documented construct validity.
D. a test that is not high in validity may still improve accuracy in employee selection under
some conditions.

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122. Of the following list, which place would Taylor-Russell tables be MOST likely to be
found?
A. mental hospitals.
B. school guidance counselors' offices.
C. physicians' offices.
D. personnel offices.

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123. A municipal hospital employs various tests in the hiring of its staff. With regard to the
hiring of a neurosurgeon and the hiring of a cafeteria worker, which is MOST likely to be
TRUE?
A. The cut-off score for the neurosurgeon would be set at a level to maximize false negatives
as opposed to false positives.
B. The cut-off score for the cafeteria worker would be set to minimize false negatives as
opposed to false positives.
C. Cut-off scores for each position would be set to equalize false-positive and false-negative
errors for both positions.
D. None of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

124. Your textbook listed many frequently raised questions related to test utility. Which is
NOT one of those questions?
A. Is the time it takes to administer this test worth it?
B. What is the practical value of using this test over another?
C. Is the cost of using this test worth the cost savings that may result?
D. Does this test measure what it purports to measure?

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125. Which of the following is NOT a factor that affects a test's utility?
A. the test's validity
B. the test's publisher
C. the cost of the test
D. the benefits of the test

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126. In comparing one test to another in terms of utility, test users will evaluate whether
A. no testing is better than testing.
B. one tool of assessment is preferable to another.
C. one particular test is preferable to another.
D. All of these

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127. If undertaken for the purpose of evaluating a training program or intervention, the utility
analysis will help make decisions regarding whether
A. one training program is preferable to another.
B. one method of intervention is preferable to another.
C. no training program is preferable to any training program.
D. All of these

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Chapter 07 - Utility

128. The end point of a utility analysis is typically an educated decision about which of many
possible courses of action is
A. optimal.
B. the "hands down" best.
C. the "hands down" worst.
D. None of these

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129. In a now-classic utility analysis, Cascio and Ramos found that the use of a particular
approach to assessment for selecting managers by the telephone company
A. was costing the company over two million dollars per year.
B. could save the company more than $13 million over four years.
C. had to remain outdated because modernization was too costly.
D. None of these

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130. A new women's professional basketball team uses a composite score on a series of tests
to evaluate 100 prospective players. For the 25 openings on the team, a process of top-down
selection is used to award team positions. Accordingly,
A. the least qualified player still may be hired.
B. the lowest scorer is in the first position to be hired.
C. the highest scorer is in the first position to be hired.
D. the tallest scorer is in the first position to be hired.

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Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
leaves which had brought the pale-faced man to the luxurious sky
parlors of the “Elmleaf.” His merry face was soberly overshadowed.
With little formality, Jimmy Potter closed the door into the rooms
where the two women were engaged, and, not without a glance of
impelled admiration at the statuesque stenographer, broke into a
confidence which astounded Vreeland.
“Hear me out first, Vreeland,” he soberly said, “and then help me if
you can. I’m off on the steamer for Havre to-morrow. To join
Hathorn’s widow.”
Vreeland started, but Potter’s outstretched arm kept him in his chair.
“Poor Fred was drowned two days ago by the upsetting of a boat at
Cienfuegos. The fact is, the Cuban authorities were after him, and
so, he cleared out of Havana.”
“I’ve sent a good man down there to do all that may be done, in a
decent respect for his past. Mrs. Hathorn has just cabled for me. I
have had a long letter from her.
“Some damned traitor deliberately gave her the dead cross on the
‘Sugar Deal.’ She was trying to get Fred out of the Street. And so,
she plunged on fifty thousand shares of Sugar on this lying tip, came
out short, and has to pay, as Hathorn shoved all their customers’
money in to hold over his own huge, private gamble until the market
broke down to forty. It’s up to seventy-eight and there to stay. Now,
she wishes to make restitution to the men whom the firm robbed.
And I have to help her settle her own private losses.”
“Poor woman,” murmured Vreeland, with an agitation which did not
escape Potter. The little man was all broken up.
“See here, Vreeland!” cried Potter, “I have had a glimpse into a real
woman’s heart. This fatal quarrel with the Willoughby has wrecked
two lives. Hathorn believed Mrs. Willoughby to be invincible in the
Street.
“He tried to follow her game. She is reported to have dealt in Sugar
up to several millions.
“Do you suppose that she laid a trap for Hathorn’s wife to fall into?
Who gave her the false tips? I hope that the author of this misery will
roast in hell.”
“I know nothing. I am not in speculative stocks,” musingly said
Vreeland.
“Someone may have taken advantage of the Hathorns and lured
them on by pretending to give them Mrs. Willoughby’s game. I am
busied here now, half the day, with my own private matters.”
“It was soul-murder, whoever did it,” said Potter. “Alida Hathorn went
in nobly to help and save her husband. To aid him, to square him
with the Street and his firm, and then to take him forever out of the
turmoil and convoy him over to Europe. She has loads of money, you
know. But, the Ring was too much for him.
“He plunged, too, on her tip, and then came the crash, his flight, and
now his untimely death. It’s all due to the one who lured Alida
Hathorn on to ruin her husband. It was a fiend’s work.” A silence
reigned, a gloomy acquiescence.
Vreeland was moodily regarding the falling snow through the
darkened panes when Jimmy Potter sighed and said: “Well, it’s
good-by, old fellow. I’ve got an expert with Wolfe going over the real
honest debts.
“I shall stay over there, advise with Alida and see that the sufferers
get their money. For she has been a wifely sacrifice; she is high-
spirited and true, she outclassed Hathorn. Mrs. Willoughby set him
up, and then threw him down.
“His pride never got over her ruin of his firm’s reputation by drawing
all her business out.
“Of course, the society snakes who poisoned the young wife’s mind
brought on the social catastrophe. I would like to feel that Elaine
Willoughby did not betray that poor young woman. But I’ll square it
all by and by.”
“How?” eagerly demanded Vreeland. Potter was brave in a mad
resolve.
The young millionaire paused, hat and umbrella in hand. “I have
found a business in life at last. One that suits me.
“If Alida Hathorn has not money enough to square all the honest
claims, I have. For a year and a day from Hathorn’s death, I shall
marry her, and then give her a woman’s decent happiness.
“It was a false ambition that pushed Hathorn into her circle. He was
only a good-looking upstart, and never worthy of her.
“So, you can see all comes around to the man who waits.
“Now, I count on your sense of manliness to protect the name of
Fred Hathorn’s widow, the woman who will be my wife, for, with all
your money, you would not be in New York to-day, as you are, at the
top of the ladder but for Hathorn.
“You stand in his shoes up at Lakemere, here in the Circassia, and
you of all men, should be considerate to his memory.” The scheming
liar bowed his head in a speechless agitation.
Vreeland escorted his visitor to the stair. “If I need any private tip, I
may use you,” said Potter. “I’ll be at Hotel Vendôme, Paris, till I have
made her Mrs. Jimmy Potter, if we live.”
With a last touch of his old lightness, the champion of the absent
Alida whispered, “That’s a young goddess you have captured.”
Potter had observed the Bona Dea.
Vreeland frowned gravely as he followed the furtive gesture.
“Miss Garland has entire charge of all the books and records of my
private estate,” he coldly said.
“I am a man of system and order. The other little woman is my
private telegraph operator. She is a part of our ‘business force.’”
Vreeland affected the careworn millionaire.
“Ah, you don’t mix up the two affairs. Very good, very good,”
complacently said Potter as he disappeared, leaving Vreeland
startled. He bore away fruitful memories of Vreeland’s downcast
hesitation.
The hard-hearted schemer took a pull at the brandy bottle. “It was a
close shave,” he murmured.
“Alida Hathorn is game to the very last. She has not given him my
name, and now, as she will finally drift into this fortunate marriage,
the Lady of the Red Rose will be only a buried memory.
“I am safe, and he never will know. The lovely ‘Red Rose’ is only
another flower in le Jardin Secret.”
He realized, at last, that the daring imprudence of Alida Hathorn’s
visit was but a jealous wife’s device, at any risk, to break the lines of
her husband’s enemies.
“She got my secret far too easily,” he gloomily reflected, “and without
paying the price.
“I wonder if she was playing me as a lone fish,” he pondered—and
then a flash came to enlighten him.
“Could Elaine Willoughby fancy that the news of her plunging would
leak out and ruin them?
“By heaven! She may have crossed this gigantic trade by secret
orders to Endicott. Hathorn ruined, she may have no further use for
me.
“And if the Lady of the Red Rose should ever speak I would be
ruined, even held at arms length as I am.”
He shuddered under the curse of the burning words of that last
telegram.
“She believes me a liar and traitor to her, and I will never dare to
undeceive her.” He felt that he had missed the finest play of his life.
But the “special delivery” letter still stared him in the face. He
carelessly tore it open and then a smile wreathed his lips.
“To meet Senator Alynton, Senator Garston, and Miss Katharine
VanDyke Norreys at dinner.” He instantly wrote out and dispatched
his acceptance. A glow of joy lit up his anxious face.
“I must get Justine at work soon on my secret lines. I see it all.
These Senators are of the ‘Inner Guild,’ the true illuminati.
“Who the devil is this Garston—some Western fellow?”
A few moments’ reference gave him the news: “Senator-elect from
one of the newly knocked together Western States”—the “means to
an end” in balancing National elections. The trick of warring
plutocrats and democrats.
He paced the room in deep thought, after dispatching his reply. “The
battle will be on again soon. The Trust is reorganized and
conveniently removed to little Jersey. The courts have now done
their worst, and the small holders are all squeezed out.
“Now for a game of high ball. Yes, my lady, that’s your trick. A new
deal. And the beautiful Californian heiress is only a bright lay-figure.
“Your real hold on the Street is the secret chain linking these
statesmen, through you and Endicott, to the secret chiefs of the
Sugar Syndicate.
“I’ll get myself into your current, as a ‘transmitter,’ and you, Madame
Elaine, shall yet learn to bow and bend. The child, the secrets of this
dangerous partnership, the story of your past life, I can soon get it
all, bit by bit. And, then, marriage and ‘dominion over you.’ That’s my
game!”
There was an unpleasant menace lingering in the last words of the
departing Potter. Vreeland knew that should the generous-hearted
ex-banker, in time, marry Fred Hathorn’s widow, the few hundred
thousands lost in saving Hathorn’s personal honor would not in any
way impair their united estates. He lingered long on the subject. He
feared this new alliance.
“They might crush me, if they joined forces. The one danger is a
reconciliation with Mrs. Willoughby. I will see that this never occurs.”
And so, with a sense of defeat clinging to his past attempts, he
decided to use great care in approaching his proposed dupe, Miss
Romaine Garland.
For his patroness certainly was not wearing her heart upon her
sleeve now. Her private sorrows busied her more than the
confidential intimacy with her newest protégé.
“She could drop me, ruin me, or trap me as easily as she finished off
Hathorn,” he decided.
“And the hot-headed, daring young wife, desperate in her jealousy,
anxious to break Elaine Willoughby’s lines and guide her husband
into the heart of the Sugar forces, she had merely broken the
convenances, nothing more.
“For only a cur dare ever hint at the stolen visits. Club and coterie
would brand the man as a hound who dared to boast of such a
desperate confidence in a man’s honor.
“No. The Lady of the Red Rose, bright, daring and stormy-hearted
like many another fin de siècle New York wife, was safe.”
Safe by all the laws of manhood and honor. And, in all the gay life he
had led, he had only met the easy abandon of high life.
The loosening of restraint of a democratic luxury. He well knew that
the Dickie Doubledays and the Tottie Thistledowns did not weigh in
the scale against a real flesh and blood womanhood. They were only
bright, lurid beacons, warning signals on the seas of life, stranded on
the reefs of human weakness, and with shoals of foolish virgins
following on in their daring footsteps.
When he lifted his head, the stroke of twelve brought Miss Romaine
Garland, with bowed head, before him, awaiting her daily dismissal.
He had never dared to use the busy hours from nine to twelve for
any covert approach upon the stately girl’s confidence. There, too,
was the clear-eyed Mary Kelly.
The rapturous verdict of Jimmy Potter was confirmed as he glanced
at the young goddess, her brown hair rippling from a pure Greek
brow, her dark eyes dreaming under their lashes, and her pale,
proud face at rest, with all the untroubled peace of maidenhood.
In her plain, dark dress, her sculptured form was deliciously
intimated. Her voice, sweet and low as the breath of forest winds,
awoke his hungering curiosity. It was temps de relâche.
Here was the very chance to begin to mold her to his will. To awake
her latent love of luxury, to lead her out step by step into the
confidential delights of wine and song, and to find out the shady
places where Love lurks, an archer unawares. Yes. He would begin
to mold this woman to his will.
Vreeland desired to let the loneliness of a great city aid him in his
easy approach. And to hurry slowly and be wise. He had noted the
friendly cordiality of the two young women. “If the new assistant
would only play into his hands, and help to outwit the pale spy.
“If she can throw this little spy off her guard—if I can get them both to
begin to enjoy themselves a little, and then drop into an easy, hidden
intimacy with Miss Romaine, then my patroness’ little spy game here
will be useless.
“For, if that woman learned to love a man, she would go through fire
and water for him.”
The throbbing of his heart made his voice tremble, and the veiled
purpose of his crafty soul crept into his eyes, though they only rested
on her superbly molded arms and slender, delicate hands, when he
carelessly said: “If you would kindly leave me your private address,
Miss Garland, I might need it. There may be some extra call of duty. I
might wish to communicate with you.”
There was a slight flush upon her cheek as the delicate lips slowly
parted.
“I live at some distance, Mr. Vreeland, with private friends, and it
would be impossible for me to render you any other services than as
arranged. I have no one to escort me, and I never receive visitors.”
The voice was as cold as the glacier’s rills.
Her beauty shone out as pure as an Easter lily, when she simply
said: “Miss Kelly will, however, send any communication you might
have to make. I am an absolute stranger in New York. The
references which I gave Miss Marble are from old friends in Buffalo. I
can, however, at all times, stay as late as Miss Kelly does, on any
occasion when you may have overwork.”
The young Diana’s pure brow was loftily brave in its innocence.
Vreeland’s eyes hungrily followed her as she moved quietly away in
answer to his grave bow of dismissal.
“More time. More time,” he murmured. “If I could find some way to
gain her personal confidence. Flowers, books, little attentions, a
stray set of theatre or opera tickets. For she is, after all, only a
woman. Fit to reign, royal in youth, and serving without stooping.
“I must see Miss Marble. The ice once broken, perhaps—”
He mused long upon an ingenious plan to “brighten the life” of the
woman he would use as a tool. “Yes, it can be done, easily, through
the Marble.” And he knew that veteran traitress would aid him for
money.
The week before the day of Mrs. Willoughby’s ceremonial dinner was
wasted by Vreeland in some amateur detective work. Miss Justine
Duprez easily diagnosed the growing friendship of the two young
girls.
For Miss Garland’s sweet, tender face was already familiar in the
little household where Mary Kelly’s mother watched and wondered
from what fairyland this bright-faced nymph had descended.
A stout school lad of sixteen was an efficient home escort for the
young neophyte in New York, and pride filled the eyes of Mary
Kelly’s brother.
Vreeland felt all the growing charm of the steadfast girl’s influence,
her cultured manners, her dainty refinement and the rare delicacy of
her language and taste. He valued her as of superior clay.
“Not of common stock,” he murmured as he deftly trod along her
path, with a veiled impatience. He was deep now in the last details of
a plan which busied Justine Duprez, for the coming of the second
Senator, the open splendors of the grand dinner party as elaborated
by Justine warned him that if he would cut the secret channels so
vital to his success, he must bring the janitor and postal carriers of
the “Circassia” under control.
Justine, checking his headlong impatience, only smiled her velvety
smile and whispered, “Give me some money to hoodwink them a
little. Wait only for a few days, and trust to me. Have I ever failed
you?”
When the “rising and successful man,” Mr. Harold Vreeland, dressed
himself with unusual distinction for Mrs. Willoughby’s regal dinner
party of twenty, there was all the happiness of a new-born hope in
his heart. For he was nearly ready now “to move on the enemy’s
works.”
That experienced “broker in young womanly talent,” Miss Marble,
had earned herself a pretty diamond lace pin, and “an authorization
to proceed,” by her ingenious plan of drawing out “Miss Romaine
Garland.” The experienced lady had smiled at all his first crude
attempts.
“You were too abrupt. There is the awkward fact before her eyes
always, that you are her employer. She acts on the mere defensive.
“The proprieties you surely know. Now, you are far too young and
charming as a man,” she blushingly said, “to be a safe benefactor for
this glowing-hearted girl with her sweet, tender eyes.
“She is a rare beauty and frankly good, and untinged as yet with the
fires of Babylon. I have some showy friends of some influence, and,
as she trusts me blindly, I will ‘have warm-hearted civilities’ extended
to her.
“You will have her home address now, in return for my pretty pin.
Never go there. You would ruin all.
“But, sir, you shall be drawn in as a guest to our little friendly
coteries. She must be led into our allied camp gradually.
“You, by hazard, will appear as an old intimate, here and there, when
her shyness is worn off and, on that friendly and neutral ground, you
can soon warm the marble into life.” The Marble had a crafty and
glowing heart.
The sly woman smiled. “No lonely young woman can resist long-
continued and unobtrusive kindness. It always disarms. Let me have
the means to lead her along into little pleasures. Once the taste of
the easy evening outing life comes upon her, then, bit by bit, she will
be as wax in my hands. You can meet her, by chance, at the
theatres or operas when out with me. I will have a little supper given
at some friend’s home. We can drop off the friends one by one. I
cling to her.
“You can then drop me off, when we are sure that the taste of
pleasure is gently awakened, and you are free to then show her all
your generous liberality. Take her home to your daily life, then once
that the confidential relation is established—” Vreeland’s eyes
gleamed in a coming triumph. The way shone out, “straight and
sweet,” before him. “Miss Joanna, you are a good fairy, and a keen-
witted genius. I will give you carte blanche to lead her out along the
rosy path, step by step, and a path that leads always toward me.”
Mr. Harold Vreeland moved on serenely and laid his pitfalls for the
pure young girl, whom chance had thrown in his way, with no
compunction. In the blighted career of his own dishonored father, he
had only despised the weaknesses which led to failure.
He had seen the downfall of Hathorn without a throb of sympathy
and he resented the frank, honest predilection which was now
leading the warm-hearted Potter to screen Alida Hathorn from a mob
of cold-hearted “woman eaters” in honorable marriage.
Mean at heart, he even doubted the past life of the woman who had
lifted him up to luxury. He hated her now only that his charms of
person and manner had not brought her to his feet, a willing dupe.
“She seemed to be impressed at first,” he mused. “But the shock of
Hathorn’s cold abandonment in his little tiger cat wife’s jealous frenzy
seems to have turned her against man, for a time.
“But, let me only get a hold on her. I do not care to be the star actor
in a modern ‘Romance of a Poor Young Man.’ She shall not shake
me off.”
He plotted deliberately against her peace—his generous
benefactress. “First, the tapping of the private lines. Then, to mold
Romaine Garland to my will. If she does not yield to Joanna Marble’s
smooth ways, then out into the streets of New York.
“There are others, more complaisant; but to awaken those dark eyes
to pleasure’s glow. To have them quicken at my coming.”
It was with these “undreamed dreams” haunting him that Harold
Vreeland arrived, in sedate splendor, at the “Circassia,” where “the
feast was set” for Senator Alynton and that Western wonder of
recent occultation, Senator-elect James Garston.
In the kaleidoscopic splendors of the drawing-room, where manly
eyes gleamed upon the beauties of splendid womanhood, among
the fair daughters of Eve he missed that brilliant blonde heiress, Miss
Katharine VanDyke Norreys. A tap from Mrs. Volney McMorris’ fan
recalled him.
“I know that you are looking for her,” whispered the radiant duenna.
“Katharine is a sort of ward of Senator Garston. He is her trustee.
They all come together. I must have a word with you about poor—”
The entrance of Mrs. Elaine Willoughby brought the splendid circle
around her, there where gleaming lights and the breath of matchless
flowers, where diamonds and brightest eyes, where ivory bosoms
and shapely silver shoulders were mingling charms of a modern
Paradise of throbbing, hungry hearts.
Doctor Alberg’s gloved hand was resting in Vreeland’s palm—he was
whispering, “You and I and Justine must watch”—when the calm,
passionless face of Senator Alynton, with Miss Katharine Norreys on
his arm, appeared.
There was a hum of astonishment, of frank self-surrender to the
Occidental beauty’s charms as Alynton gravely presented a tall,
stately stranger, whose slightly silvered hair and chevalieresque
bearing recalled the “Silver King.”
“My friend, Senator James Garston,” began Alynton, but there was a
crowd of a dozen men eagerly stretching willing arms, as Elaine
Willoughby’s face contracted in a spasm of pain, and she fell
senseless into Doctor Alberg’s firm grasp. “Only the old heart
trouble. In five minutes madame will be herself,” suavely announced
the doctor. “Perhaps a bit too tightly laced,” he whispered to
Mrs. McMorris.
It was a stately function, the dinner, which proceeded in a solemn
splendor.
Senator James Garston was gravely attentive at the hostess’ left,
and only Vreeland knew when the lights were low that Garston had
whispered, “I must see you, at once.”
And with pale lips Elaine Willoughby had murmured, “At Lakemere,
and to-morrow.”
Justine had gained her long-needed clue.
CHAPTER X.

AN INTERVIEW AT LAKEMERE—SOME INGENIOUS MECHANISM.


—“WHOSE PICTURE IS THAT?”

Harold Vreeland was seated in a blaze of light, in his own rooms at


four in the morning, anxiously awaiting a night visit from one who
might unravel the whole mystery while the lonely Elaine Willoughby
lay helpless in her secluded rooms, feebly struggling toward a return
of her self-control.
“What new devil’s jugglery is this?” muttered Vreeland, pausing in his
wolf stride. He carefully recalled every action of the newly-made
Senator and yet he was baffled at every turn. “Was the newcomer an
agent of a morose husband, an old lover, or an unwelcome
apparition from the clouded past?” He was baffled.
For, he began to realize how baseless were his meaner suspicions
of the past. There had been no unworthy love between Elaine and
Hathorn. The devil’s poison of slander alone had excited Alida’s
burning jealousy. She herself had only sought “a dead straight point”
in the daring visit to his rooms. Elaine’s record was clear so far. “Was
it only an old sorrow?” He pondered long. Even the pale-faced,
proud girl, whom he would trap, so far had hugged her honest
poverty to a stainless bosom.
“I’ve been dead wrong on Alynton’s game all along. There’s neither
an old love, nor a new intrigue, there,” he growled. “Justine has
clearly proved that. Their union is only to be termed, ‘strictly
business.’
“And the Senator’s frank, brotherly concern at Elaine’s sudden
illness went no farther than Colonel Barton Grahame’s sympathy,
Judge Endicott’s alarm, or my own undisguised interest. Here is a
new jack-in-the-box. I must watch Senator Garston.”
It had been a galling mortification to Vreeland in the past, that faintly
disguised disdain of Senator David Alynton, who had always
practically ignored him.
But, this new statesman, sturdy James Garston, had brought to their
meeting an unfeigned western bonhomie.
The newcomer had sought him out eagerly. He had drawn the
younger man aside, in a lull of the entertainment.
“We must meet and talk over western matters; we have the world’s
coming treasury out there,” largely remarked the new Senator-elect.
“I am housed at the Plaza, to be near Miss Norreys, who is at the
Savoy. I shall stay here a few days, and, we will have a luncheon
together.”
In fact the acute Mrs. Volney McMorris had very deftly arranged it,
for she was eager to matronize the resplendent Miss Norreys, to
bask in the smile of this rising financial sun, and to have her own
private chat with the young Fortunatus about the vanished Lady of
the Red Rose. Her prompt social fastening upon Mrs. Willoughby,
was only a grim proof that “the one who goes is happier than the one
that’s left behind.”
The new Senator’s round bullet-head, his curved beak-like nose, his
uncertain gray eye and unsmiling lips marked him as a man of
power.
He bore in every movement the badge of hard-won success.
His fifty-one years had marked him lightly, and, lawyer, mine owner,
and capitalist, he was riding into the Senate on a chariot with golden
wheels. It is the West that holds now the American sceptre.
Vreeland had watched Garston keenly at the dinner and noted his
poised manner, his brilliant flashes of silence, and the grave,
undisturbed courtesy of his demeanor toward the marble-faced
hostess. “A man of a level head,” was Vreeland’s verdict. And he
tried to read the secret of Garston’s imploring glances.
There had been no lingering cloud over the table, and no shade of
Banquo was evoked to chill the later merriment. Love, veiled and
unveiled, deftly footed it, among the revelers, and, only Doctor
Alberg’s steady eyes, anxiously fixed upon his “star” patient, proved
that but one, besides Vreeland, realized the desperate battle against
Time which Elaine Willoughby was fighting out to the last. The
egoistic revelers imagined their hostess’ seizure to be a mere
passing weakness. They all knew the strain of the exhausting New
York season.
“Charming woman, our hostess,” frankly remarked Senator Garston
to Vreeland. “Type all unknown to our modest Marthas of the
Occident. Here in America, our women will soon be crowned
queens, if I may trust to the ‘tiara’ bearing stories of the society
journals.” And a casual remark from Vreeland brought out the
admission that Senator Garston had never before met the hostess.
“It was to my colleague, Alynton, that I owe the honor of this
presentation,” said the newly-made toga wearer. “And, as
Mrs. Willoughby has been so kind to my ward, Miss Norreys, in this
new acquaintance, both pleasure and duty join hands.”
But, the startled Vreeland, pacing his silent room had several times
exclaimed, in his lonely rounds while waiting for Alberg, “James
Garston, you are a cool-headed, thorough-paced liar! I will trace you
back, my occidental friend, only to find ‘the wires crossed,’
somewhere in the past, and, from you, I will yet wrench the secret of
Elaine Willoughby’s early life. Her child! Yes,” he cried, “It might well
be.” He was thrilling in every fibre, for, in the dressing room, Justine
had stolen to his side whispering:
“Doctor Alberg has sent for a trained nurse to help me watch with her
to-night. Be on your guard.
“When this new Senator had made his adieu, I was hidden behind
the curtain in the long hall. I saw him neatly drop his glove, as if by
accident. Alynton and that tall golden-haired girl were waiting outside
as he stole back.” The French woman fairly hissed, “He is the man to
fear. I am sure they are old lovers. For, he caught her by both hands
and fairly devoured her with his eyes.
“‘To-morrow, alone, at Lakemere,’ she said. Voilà! Milady. Just a
woman, like the rest of us.”
“Justine, that paper, the one in her corset. A thousand dollars for a
copy of it.”
“I will get it to-night!” the velvet-eyed spy cried.
“Go now. You will hear from me soon. Don’t leave your room for a
moment, and, gare la Kelly. She reports daily on you to our full-blown
ingenue. Whatever turns up, you will surely hear from me. I’ll earn
your money yet.”
It was five o’clock when the haggard German physician crawled up
Vreeland’s stair. He was worn and exhausted.
“I’ve had a night of it,” he savagely cried, “give me a glass of real
brandy. No slops. That poor devil of a woman has had fainting fits
one after the other. I’ve now got Martha Wilmot, my only really
reliable nurse, watching her. The devil of it is, Madame will go up to
Lakemere at ten o’clock, and she vows she will, alone. The house
there is shut up. It is not even properly warmed. She will come back,
and have a relapse, but what can I do. She has an iron will.”
The angry Teuton drank a second dram and then relapsed into a
sullen silence.
“Alberg, my boy, you are a good doctor, but, you don’t know women,
only your blue-eyed, clumsy frauleins, over there. This American
woman is made of fire and flame. Tell me, what sort of a person is
your nurse, Wilmot?”
“She’s a good one—an ‘out and outer.’ She goes home to England
next week. She has some ideas of her own to work out over there.”
“Tell that smart woman to slip down here and see me before our
patient comes back. I’ll be here from four to seven to-day. And, mind
that you put her ‘dead on’ to me, as the holder of a hundred pound
note for her.”
“Good,” grunted Alberg.
“And, now, my son of Galen, what was it that upset
Mrs. Willoughby?” Vreeland was eagerly studying the German’s
face.
“The old thing. She has raved all night about her child. I only brought
her out of the attack with the strongest anti-spasmodics that man
dare to use, short of clear cold murder. It’s a terrible risk,” sighed
Alberg.
When Doctor Hugo Alberg left the Elmleaf, he was under the spell of
his lying coadjutor, and richer by a few hundred dollars. “This fellow
must never even lift the veil of the Temple,” muttered Vreeland. “Only
trust to Justine. Only Justine,” he cried, as he threw himself down to
sleep, after ordering the wondering Bagley to send Miss Kelly home
on her arrival, and also that dark-eyed enigma, Miss Garland. He
needed solitude.
“I am ill, and, must have a long sleep. You can take a day off
yourself. Clear out for the day and don’t let me hear a single footfall
about my rooms,” were the staccato injunctions of the excited
schemer.
“If that nurse only comes,” he murmured, as he closed his weary
eyes.
It was eleven o’clock when a light step echoed in Vreeland’s hall,
and the swishing sound of Justine Duprez’s robe made the banker
leap to his door. The French girl had her will at last. She stood amid
the splendors of Vreeland’s veiled Paradise—her lover’s home.
She cried out in glee, “Thank God! She is out of the way. I came
here from the train. She absolutely forbade me to go with her. I have
had the janitor’s boy watching all the trains. This Senator Garston
went up the road an hour ago. The smart boy helped us last night in
the cloak rooms, and, so, they are off alone together, up there, to-
day.”
Vreeland’s eyes blazed in a mighty triumph. “To-night, you must help
me, Justine,” cried the eager schemer.
“See here. I already have stolen what you want,” cried Justine. “You
said it was worth a thousand dollars. I copied even every mark on
the hidden papers, and, I went over it a dozen times, while the new
nurse was with her. Madame was insensible, and, I had time to work
in safety. What will you give me, now?”
She was not listened too, for with a ferocious joy, Vreeland leaped
up, crying, “My God! I have her now. They are all in the hollow of my
hand.”
He had glanced over the list of names written there, and a row of
figures with some characters added, which seemed to glow before
him in living flame.
He drew the Frenchwoman to his side, and there dashed off a check
to his own order and carefully indorsed it.
“There’s your money, you jewel,” he gasped. “Listen. To-night, when
she comes back, or to-morrow night, if she is again under the
nurse’s watch, you must steal that envelope again. I will be waiting
outside the Circassia, and stay all of both nights till I get the original
paper that you copied. Put a simple sheet of blank paper back in the
envelope and close it up. Sew it up again in the same place in her
corset.
“We will leave that to be stolen by the nurse, Martha Wilmot. She will
know what to do with it.
“She clears out of here for Europe in a few days. She will keep well
out of Mrs. Willoughby’s way. And, so the Madame will think that she
has been robbed by our sly, English friend. I will pay the nurse well
and help her away. But that original paper must come to me.
“Be sure to leave Mrs. Willoughby’s garments where the nurse could
easily reach them—no one shall suspect you. I’ll hold you safe—it is
our own secret. Alberg will, of course, raise a devil of a row about the
nurse clearing out, and robbing him, but only after she is gone.”
“And my mistress. Mon Dieu! But, how I fear her!” faltered the
trembling Justine.
“Nonsense. The woman comes down here to-day. She will get her
orders from me. You can put this blank envelope with its paper filling
back in the corset, so that Mrs. Willoughby will feel that something is
there. And, now, about tapping her telephone and telegraph wires.”
Justine had finished a glass of wine when she sprang to her feet.
“To-day is the day of days. The janitor, August Helms, is all ready to
tie on the wires to tap her telegraph and telephone. Come up to the
Circassia at noon. I will take you into his room by the back way. He
has arranged all with Mulholland, one of the two letter-carriers, to
always delay Mrs. Willoughby’s mail by one delivery. Mulholland can
hold them all for himself to handle. And, Helms, in his room, will then
open and copy any we need. He is a German adept in letter
opening.”
“You are a genius, Justine,” cried Vreeland. “You can bring Helms
down to your own room in South Fifth Avenue and there you and I
together can square up with him. We must be two to his one. This is
the very day of days while she is fondly lingering at Lakemere with
her own oldest lover.
“And now, my girl, take a good look around my den and then get out
of here. It is too dangerous for us.
“For, you must never come here again. The janitor has sharp eyes.”
“Yes, and, the new ‘Mees Gairland’ is many evenings now, with that
little Kelly devil. Look out for them both. You can only trust me,”
nodded Justine, as she fled away, whispering, “I will come down into
the court of the Circassia and meet you, in the entrance, as if by
hazard at noon precisely. All you have to do is to silently follow me. I
will have that paper by midnight if I live and the nurse shall have the
blame.”
The rooms echoed to the laughter of hell as Vreeland’s fiery devil
whispered, “Victory!” He had at last solved the mystery of a
“business syndicate” which made him tremble as he feared its name
might escape his lips. The copied paper gave a list of names whose
publication would shake a nation’s counsels, and Garston’s name
was there.
So, tiger-like and triumphant, he waited for the hour to go and
arrange for his secret stealing of his dupe’s messages.
And, far away, at lonely Lakemere, where the trees now gleamed like
ghastly silver skeletons of summer’s glories, the winds wailed around
the silent mansion where Elaine Willoughby stood face to face with
the man who had come out of her dead past, an apparition as grim
and awful to her as the rising of the sheeted dead.
It was the struggle to the death of two proud and world-hardened
hearts. The secret of her blighted youth was face to face with her
now. And, the shadow of a crime hung menacingly over James
Garston, the toga wearer. A statesman of a clouded past—a past
known only to the defiant woman facing him on her own battle-
ground.
“I find you here under a stolen name, facing the world, as a living lie.”
The woman’s scornful lips had lashed into his quivering heart.
Garston, bold-brave, reckless now with a mad tide of desire
sweeping over his reawakened heart, had seized her hands. He
cried, passionately: “And, I find my lost wife, the mother of our child,
here, a lovely, and a glowing truth.”
When he would have drawn her to him, she flung him off and
dropped, a shaken Niöbe, into a chair, with her stormy tears raining
over her beautiful, pallid face. That single word, “child,” had
disarmed her rising anger. For, she was facing one who knew all of
the sealed past.
“My child, my child,” she sobbed.

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