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From Brimstone to Soothing Syrup WHEN THOMAS Kearns died so unexpectedly it was inevitable that his secretary, John F. Fitzpatrick, would take over management of the estate the one-time hard rock miner had accumulated during a comparatively short life. This was so for at least three reasons. In the five years Fitzpatrick had served as the former senator's confidential and chief assistant he had won the complete confidence of his employer. Death transmitted this confidence to Mrs. Jennie Judge Kearns, the widow. No one but he possessed both business experience and a familiarity with the various interests left by Kearns to his family. Thus the selection of Fitzpatrick to take over the responsibilities theretofore carried by Kearns was both a matter of choice and necessity. Still another factor which probably had some bearing on the succession was the willingness of the secretary to assume responsibilities. As he had said in his letter of application for the job, he had "the initiative and ability of execution to take up and diplomatically handle correspondence and other matters without dictation, and, in line with your desires." He was the "take-over" type of man who did not shrink from the exercise of authority, the making of decisions and the acceptance of responsibility for those decisions. And Mrs. Kearns never had reason to wonder whether she had acted wisely in placing so much trust in the ability and fidelity of her late husband's young secretary.
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