The Hypotheses of Failure by O. Henry

Name: The Hypotheses of Failure
Author: O. Henry

Lawyer Phineas C. Gooch specializes in divorce work, likening his three connecting office rooms to the watertight compartments of a ship's hull, which let him keep conflicting clients apart while his office boy Archibald manages the traffic. In the slow month of June, business is thin, and Gooch sits idle until three visitors arrive in succession, each insisting on presenting a "hypothetical case" before giving names. The first is a swaggering, well-dressed man who describes a Mrs. Billings, unhappily married to Thomas R. Billings in the town of Susanville, who has fled her husband to follow a man named Henry K. Jessup, with whom she is infatuated. The visitor argues that Billings is an unrefined match for a cultured woman and that she deserves to be freed to join Jessup, who will "do the square thing." He offers Gooch five hundred dollars to secure Mrs. Billings a divorce. Before terms are settled, Archibald announces a new arrival, and Gooch installs this first client in one of the side rooms to wait. The second visitor is a commanding, robed woman of literary pretensions who denounces the "bigoted" conventions of marriage and, after some philosophizing, states her own hypothetical: a soulful wife married to an unappreciative, materialistic husband who despises literature, who meets her true intellectual equal and follows him when he nobly flees to spare her reputation. She reveals herself as Mrs. Billings, the estranged wife of Thomas R. Billings, seeking to be with Henry K. Jessup. Archibald again interrupts with another arrival, and Gooch settles Mrs. Billings into the second side room. The third visitor is a nervous, travel-worn, middle-aged man carrying a small satchel. He too poses a hypothetical: a superior but restless wife, unhappy with her plain, business-minded husband, becomes infatuated with a stranger who came to town on real estate business; when the stranger leaves to avoid scandal, she abandons her husband and home to pursue him. Unlike the other two, this client does not want a divorce — he wants Gooch to persuade the wife to give up her pursuit and return home, and he identifies himself as the wronged husband, Thomas R. Billings, offering a thousand dollars for a reconciliation. He begs Gooch to find Mrs. Billings and bring her back. Delighted at holding all three parties to the same domestic triangle within his separate "compartments," Gooch locks the outer door and moves between rooms to strike the best bargain. He first returns to the original male visitor and demands fifteen hundred dollars as his fee for the divorce, with five hundred down. The visitor protests that five hundred dollars — all he cleared on a Susanville real estate deal — is his limit, and rather than pay more he leaves by the hallway stairs. Gooch privately dismisses him as "Mr. Jessup" departing. Gooch then returns to the third client, confirms the arrangement of one thousand dollars for reuniting husband and wife, and announces triumphantly that Mrs. Billings is waiting in the next room, moving to bring the couple together. At this, the client leaps up in alarm, seizes his satchel, and flees out the office window onto a shed roof and away up an alley, hurling the satchel at Gooch's head as he goes and shouting a denial of the name "Billings." Left holding the dropped satchel, Gooch opens it and finds a collar, comb, brush, folded map, soap, and a bundle of business letters, all bearing the initials or name of Henry K. Jessup — revealing that the third "hypothetical" client, who claimed to be the wronged husband Thomas R. Billings seeking reconciliation, was in fact Jessup himself, fleeing the woman rather than waiting to receive her. Realizing the truth of the tangled situation, Gooch puts on his hat and instructs Archibald to wait five minutes, then go in and tell the waiting Mrs. Billings that "there's nothing doing," as Gooch himself departs for the Supreme Court rooms.

By O. Henry · First published 1908 · Genre: Comedy, Drama, Satire · 5,422 words

First lines

Lawyer Gooch bestowed his undivided attention upon the engrossing arts of his profession. But one flight of fancy did he allow his mind to entertain. He was fond of likening his suite of office rooms to the bottom of a ship. The rooms were three in number, with a door opening from one to another. These doors could also be closed.

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The Hypotheses of Failure is listed on Textopian as a short story by O. Henry, dated 1908 CE.

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Work type: Short story
Author: O. Henry
Date: 1908 CE
Language: English
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Satire, Fiction, Romance
Length: 5,422 words
Structure: 1 section, 90 paragraphs
Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)

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Genres

Comedy — The narrative employs humor and wit, particularly through the character of Lawyer Gooch and his interactions with clients, creating a light-hearted atmosphere.
Drama — The story explores serious themes of marital discord, infidelity, and the complexities of human relationships, providing emotional depth.
Satire — The work critiques societal norms surrounding marriage and divorce, using irony and exaggeration to highlight the absurdities of the legal profession.
Fiction — The narrative is a fictional account centered around the life of a divorce lawyer and his clients, showcasing invented characters and scenarios.