,transcriber's ,notes3 ,underscores 80 before and after a word or phrase indicate italics in the original text4 ,equal signs 80 before and after a word or phrase indicate bold in the original text4 ,small capitals have been converted to ,,solid capitals4 ,antiquated spellings have been preserved4 ,typographical errors have been silently corrected4 ,jefferson's ,bible ,a rare volume for the book-lover readers of ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine #ajb ,,years ,,ago ,thomas ,jefferson1 while 8overwhelmed with other business10 cut such passages from the ,evangelists as he believed would best present the ethical teachings of ,jesus1 and 8arranged them on the pages of a blank book in a certain order of time or subject40 ,this book he called 8,the ,philosophy of ,jesus of ,nazareth40 ,for many years the manuscript of this wonderful book has lain in the archives of the ,state ,department at ,washington1 and public clamor for its publication at last became so great that ,congress recently ordered it issued as a public document--but in very limited number4 ,before the original was turned over to the ,state ,department1 an accurate copy of it was made while in the possession of ,col4 ,thomas ,jefferson ,randolph1 ,mr4 ,jefferson's oldest grandson4 ,from this copy was printed the edition now offered to our subscribers4 ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine ,,and ,,thomas ,,jefferson',s ,,bible ,for #a4ce1 sent direct to this office1 we will enter a year's subscription to ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine and mail a copy of the ,jefferson ,bible1 postage prepaid4 ,a dollar book and a dollar magazine--both for only #a4ce4 ,send today4 ,do it now4 ,address ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine #aba ,west #db;d ,street1 ,new ,york1 ,n4 ,y4 ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine ,,the ,,magazine ,,with ,a ,,purpose ,,back ,,of ,,it ,april1 #aije ,politics and ,economics ,thomas ,e4 ,watson #abi ,in ,russia--8,give ,them ,free ,passes and ,they ,will ,become as ,servants0--,two ,outlaws--,building on ,sand1 ,again--,look at ,england--,editorial ,comments--,how ,private ,ownership ,breaks ,down4 ,the ,patriot #adb ,the ,atonement of ,hustler ,joe ,eleanor ,h4 ,porter #ade ,the ,constitution ,frederick ,upham ,adams #aha ,in ,absence ,eugene ,c4 ,dolson #ahe ,the ,gray ,weed ,owen ,oliver #ahg ,with ,caste ,against ,him ,hugh ,pendexter #aif ,corrupt ,practices in ,elections ,hon4 ,lucius ,f4 ,c4 ,garvin #bjc ,ex-,governor of ,rhode ,island ,pole ,baker ,will ,n4 ,harben #bjh ,how ,i ,dined ,with ,president ,grant ,b4 ,f4 ,riley #bba ,the ,new ,york ,children's ,court ,hon4 ,joseph ,m4 ,deuel #bbe ,what ,buzz-,saw ,morgan ,thinks ,w4 ,s4 ,morgan #bcd ,the ,heritage of ,maxwell ,fair ,vincent ,harper #bcf ,the ,say of ,reform ,editors #bde ,news ,record #bdh ,application made for entry as ,second-,class ,matter at ,new ,york 7,n4 ,y47 ,post ,office1 ,march1 #aije ,copyright1 #aije1 in ,u4 ,s4 and ,great ,britain4 ,published by ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine1 #aba ,west #db;d ,street1 ,n4 ,y4 ,,terms3 #a4jj ,a ,,year2 #aj ,,cents ,a ,,number ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine ,,advertiser ,what the ,country ,thinks of ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine 8,a good fighter40--,buffalo ,times4 8,what ,mr4 ,watson says is forcible40--,buffalo ,express4 8,has a great deal of spicy reading40--,troy 7,n4 ,y47 ,times4 8,read ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine40--,editorial1 ,boston ,american4 8,the ,hon4 ,tom is at the front1 naturally and properly40--,n4 ,y4 ,sun4 8,bears out all that ,mr4 ,watson promised for it40--,philadelphia ,press4 8,besides specials there is an abundance of good fiction40--,n4 ,y4 ,world4 8,more than twice the money's worth40--,stephen ,fiske1 in ,spirit of the ,times4 8,some capital things in prose and verse40--,new ,york ,times ,saturday ,review4 8,mr4 ,watson's pen has lost none of its spice40--,binghamton 7,n4 ,y47 ,republican4 8,it stands1 and will ever stand1 for the principle of truth and justice40--,chicago ,american4 8,tom ,watson1 the broadest-minded statesman in the ,south40--,southern ,mercury1 ,dallas1 ,tex4 8,he by no means writes as a defeated candidate4 ,optimism is the keynote of his salutatory40--,new ,york ,herald4 8,although ,mr4 ,watson attacks his opponents in a lively fashion1 he shows no bitterness40--,the ,fourth ,estate4 8,watson's thoughts are upon great things1 and he will not be diverted by inconsequential affairs40--,joliet 7,ill47 ,news4 8,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine is the latest addition to the list of first-class periodicals of the country40--,puget ,sound ,american4 8,filled with the piquant1 forceful1 pungent sentences for which ,tom ,watson is famous40--,nebraska ,independent1 ,lincoln1 ,neb4 8,clean1 entertaining and filled with a full sheath of articles1 poems and stories by well-known writers40--,boston ,tribune4 8,mr4 ,watson is an intelligent1 aggressive writer1 with the courage needed by every man who enters the lists as a reformer40--,topeka ,herald4 8,mr4 ,thos4 ,e4 ,watson is a brilliant writer on history1 and an honest man1 sincerely interested in the welfare of mankind40--,kansas ,city ,times4 8,it shall ever stand for the rights of those who believe in ,democracy2 it stands and will ever stand for the principles of truth and justice40--,san ,francisco ,examiner4 8,the magazine will be useful as an educational force1 and all reformers welcome1 or should welcome1 every publication which is educational in its purpose40--,w4 ,j4 ,bryan's ,commoner4 8,following ,tom ,lawson1 ,tom ,watson will begin his magazine next month4 ,now1 if ,teddy will use the big stick when the two ,toms throw the limelight1 the great audience will be #8de-lighted4'0--,american ,standard1 ,indianapolis1 ,ind4 ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine ,,vol4 ,i ,,april1 #aije ,no4 #b ,politics and ,economics ,,by ,,thomas ,e4 ,,watson ,in ,russia 8,a ,tale of ,two ,cities10 written by the great novelist1 ,charles ,dickens1 contains a vivid picture1 which shows the relation existing between a nobleman of the ,old ,order in ,france and one of the common people4 ,in that day the streets were narrow4 ,sidewalks did not separate the space used by those who went on foot from that used by those who went in vehicles4 ,from the houses on the one side to the houses on the other1 travel was free to all3 those on the ground were ever in danger from those who were in vehicles4 ,dickens describes the progress of the carriage of one of the ,french aristocrats1 driven at headlong speed along these narrow streets4 ,it whirled around the corners with a wild rattle and clatter1 and with an utter lack of consideration for pedestrians4 ,women and children scattered1 screaming1 to get out of its way1 and men clutched at one another to escape the danger4 ,at last1 whirling round a corner1 by a fountain1 one of the wheels of this furiously driven carriage strikes a little child and kills it4 ,amid the loud cries of those who behold the sickening spectacle the horses rear and plunge and the carriage comes to a standstill4 ,the nobleman looks out and calmly inquires what has gone wrong4 ,he is told that a child has been run over4 ,a man is bending over the lifeless form1 screaming with grief4 8,why does he make that abominable noise80 asks the nobleman4 8,pardon me1 ,monsieur le ,marquis1 it was his child10 explains one of the crowd humbly4 8,killed60 screams the father1 lifting and extending his arms4 8,dead60 he cries4 ,the ,marquis runs his eye over all the rabble1 as though they were so many rats come out of their holes4 ,he draws out his purse4 8,i do not see why it is that you people won't take care of yourselves and children8 ,one or the other of you are always in the way4 ,,how ,,do ,i ,,know ,,that ,,you ,,have ,,not ,,injured ,,one ,,of ,,my ,,horses80 ,with this he throws a gold coin on the ground beside the father of the child4 ,the crazed parent continues to scream3 8,dead6 ,dead60 ,as the ,marquis is driving away1 the gold coin which he had thrown to the ground is flung back into the carriage1 and falls rattling at his feet4 8,hold60 says the ,marquis4 8,hold the horses6 ,who threw that coin80 ,the crowd makes no answer4 ,no blouse-clad man dare look him in the eye4 8,you dogs60 says the ,marquis smoothly2 8,i would ride over any of you very willingly and exterminate you from the earth4 ,if ,i knew who it was that threw that coin ,i would have the brigand crushed under the wheels40 ,so cowed were they1 so long and hard had been their experience of what such a man could do to them1 that not a voice or a hand or an eye was raised4 ,such was the condition of the ,french before the great ,revolution of #aghi2 and while the picture is drawn by a novelist1 it is the picture of a novelist who painted human life and human conditions as they were never painted before4 ,his pictures were photographs4 ,in another book1 not a novel but a history1 7the title and the author of which shall not be mentioned here71 there is another description of human relations under the ,ancien ,rgime1 and that description claims to be literally true4 ,i quote the author's own words3 8,was it not in this same year1 #aghh1 that the ,duke of ,bthune's carriage1 dashing through the narrow streets1 as was the aristocratic custom1 ran over a little girl in the rue de la ,ferronnerie and killed her8 8,did not the mother see it all8 ,did not she rush wildly to the scene1 snatch up the poor crushed form1 gaze distractedly into the eyes for light and see none1 lay her cheek to that of the child to feel the warmth of life and feel none8 8,still was the little heart1 gone the breath1 blanched the cheeks1 frozen the tiny hands4 8,what sound does the ear ever hear like that of the voice that was heard of old in ,ramah8 8,shriek after shriek split the air1 piercing every heart in the crowd that gathered as the frantic mother1 holding her dead child in her arms1 gave voice to her grief4 8,and the ,duke1 what said he8 #8,,let ,,the ,,woman ,,come ,,to ,,my ,,house1 ,,and ,,she ,,shall ,,be ,,paid ,,for ,,her ,,loss4' 8,he had not even left the carriage2 he had not spoken a word of sympathy or regret4 8,in his view of the case he had done some damage to this woman1 and1 being a man of honor1 he was ready to settle the bill4 8,that was all4 #8,drive on1 coachman6'--and never a thought more did the ,duke waste on the mother or child4 ,they were not of his world1 but of another and a lower40 ,this was more than one hundred years ago4 ,ever since that time we have supposed that the human race has been advancing onward and upward toward a higher and a better civilization4 ,the philosopher has reflected and advised4 ,the statesman has studied and planned4 ,the reformer has made his battle-axe ring at the door of every abuse4 ,learning has spoken from all our schools4 ,religion has preached from all our temples2 and yet in one of the nations of ,europe1 where the king and the priest have had absolute control of the minds and the bodies of the people for hundreds of years1 the point of view of the aristocrat is precisely the same that it was in ,france in the year #aghh4 ,and the man of the common people submits humbly in #aije just as he did in #aghh4 ,in ,russia no man's conscience is his own2 it belongs to the ,church4 ,in ,russia no man's action is free2 he belongs to the ,state4 ,the ,czar rules by 8,divine ,right40 ,he is the earthly representative of the ,most ,high ,god2 the common people of the land are mere dirt under his feet1 being of a different world and a lower4 ,a few ,sundays ago his people1 in the belief that his heart--the heart of their 8,little ,father0--was accessible to pity and to the plea for justice1 were coming in peaceful procession1 accompanied by their wives and their children1 to kneel at his feet1 lift up their supplicating hands1 and1 with their own tongues1 reach his ear with the true story of their grievances4 ,their ,little ,father refused to see them or hear them4 ,their ,little ,father threw a glittering line of steel between himself and his 8children40 ,the ,little ,father ordered1 8,fire60 and his children fell before the storm of lead4 ,they were shot down like dogs2 women and children were sabered or crushed under the iron-shod feet of horses2 they were scourged back to their hovels1 their cellars1 their sweltering dens4 ,and the hundreds of dead bodies which littered the streets were thrown into the river like so much carrion4 ,a few days afterward it was considered good politics by the ,grand ,dukes who control this contemptible little ,czar to grant a hearing to a deputation representing these same laborers4 ,the whole world had been aroused to anger and indignation at the manner in which the ,cossacks had massacred the people4 ,public sentiment had made itself felt even in the inner circles of the heartless oligarchy which controls the ,russian ,empire4 ,therefore the ,czar was told to receive the deputation1 and he did so4 ,the deputation bowed down to the earth before the ,czar1 who said3 8,good day1 my children4 ,i have summoned you to hear my words1 and to communicate them to your companions4 ,the recent unfortunate events were the inevitable results of your own lawless actions4 ,those who induced you to address this petition to me desire to see you revolt against me and my government40 ,after a few more words of the same complacent character1 this representative of ,god on earth said to the delegation3 8,i am convinced of the innocence of the workingmen1 and believe that they are well disposed toward me4 ,i ,,will ,,pardon ,,those ,,transgressors4 ,,return ,,again ,,to ,,your ,,work4 ,,may ,,god ,,assist ,,you40 ,the history of the world has so many revolting passages that ,i cannot say that this ,russian episode surpasses others1 but when the head of a great ,christian government tunes his tongue to the formula of ,divine ,right which was current during the ,dark ,ages1 and gives us a dash of medievalism1 to be reported by a special correspondent in the daily newspapers1 there is something so anomalous about the situation that it makes a peculiar impression of its own4 ,at least #b1jjj of this emperor's 8children0 had been butchered in cold blood for the high crime of wishing to present a petition to him for shorter hours of labor and a more liberal recognition of their status as human beings4 8,may ,god assist you10 says the ,czar--leaving it to the benighted minds of these untutored workmen to find out how it is that ,god is going to assist them1 when the representative of ,god on earth shoots them down by the thousand1 tramples them beneath the hoofs of ,cossack horses1 slashes them with ,cossack sabers1 pierces them with ,cossack lances1 lashes them with ,cossack scourges1 and sends them bleeding and howling back to their hopeless homes and miserable lives1 for no offense other than the wish to kneel at his feet and pray for better treatment4 99 99 99 99 99 8,i ,,forgive ,,you60 says the ,czar4 ,forgives them for what8 ,for being denied the right to petition the throne1 for being driven back into serfdom1 for being hacked and slashed and trampled and bullet-riddled by the hireling savages of a barbarian government6 8,as the ,great ,father above forgives1 so ,i1 your ,little ,father1 forgives40 ,amen4 ,let the whimpering wretch who nurses a saber-slashed head recover in peace4 ,he is pardoned for having been ,cossacked4 ,let the father who drags his lifeless daughter from under the hoofs of the warhorse go weep over her in comfort--he and she are forgiven for having dared to hope for mercy from the ,czar4 ,and the nameless dead who went forth that ,sabbath morning1 following the heroic priest whose baton was the ,cross of ,christ--went forth in the glow of lofty purpose and pathetic hope1 and whose bodies are now feeding the fishes of the ,neva--let them also rest in peace--their ,little ,father has forgiven them4 8,how do ,i know that you have not injured my horses80 asked ,dickens's ,marquis1 while the frantic peasant was lamenting his crushed child4 8,let the woman come to my house2 she shall be paid4 ,drive on1 coachman10 said the ,duke of ,bthune4 8,served you right60 says the ,czar4 8,served you right60 say the ,grand ,dukes1 speaking through the individual called ,vladimir4 8,you should not have quit work4 ,you should not have asked a hearing4 ,you got crushed by my troops4 ,i forgive you for it4 ,go back to your work4 ,be content with your lot4 ,may ,god assist you40 ,thus the voice of class-rule speaks in ,russia today as it spoke in ,france on the eve of the ,revolution1 and as it always has spoken in every part of the world since man learned the trick of enslaving his brother4 99 99 99 99 99 ,as everybody knows1 the real governors of the vast empire of ,russia are the ,grand ,dukes4 ,the ,czar is a mere puppet in their hands4 ,when he is obedient they control him4 ,when he is disobedient they murder him4 ,thus they killed ,paul1 the father of ,alexander the ,first1 because he favored an alliance with ,napoleon ,bonaparte1 while the ,grand ,dukes favored an alliance with ,great ,britain4 ,they would 8remove0 the present emperor if he were to pit his will against theirs4 ,the spokesman of the present cabal of ,grand ,dukes is ,vladimir1 as perfect a type of the cruel1 obstinate1 narrow-minded aristocrat as ,europe ever saw in its worst days4 ,speaking to ,michael ,davitt1 the ,irish member of the ,british ,parliament1 this ,grand ,duke declared that the reason why representation could not be given to the common people of ,russia was that they were not fit to exercise it4 ,he regarded and intended this to be an indictment against the common people4 ,on the contrary1 it is a tremendous indictment against the government4 ,the ,russian people1 as distinguished from the ,russian aristocracy1 have been completely under the control of the laws and the administration which the ruling class saw fit to establish4 ,the altar and the throne have supported each other4 ,church and ,state have been firm and fast allies4 ,ever since the days of ,peter the ,great the minds and the consciences of the common people of ,russia have been absolutely dominated by the ruling class4 ,the shepherds have had full control of the flock4 ,the guardians have had no interference with the education of their wards4 ,if after so many hundreds of years the mass of the ,russian people are so steeped in ignorance and superstition that they are unfit to exercise the common rights of manhood1 that fact1 if it be fact1 damns the ,russian aristocracy with the deep guilt of having debased the nation committed to its care and guidance4 99 99 99 99 99 ,no substantial reform has ever been conceded within a state governed by king or aristocracy until the blood of sacrifice has first been shed4 ,spain would grant no concessions to those who claimed freedom of conscience in the ,netherlands1 until years of warfare had drenched the soil of ,holland with the blood of heroes1 who fought and died for those principles which we carelessly and unappreciatively enjoy today4 ,france would loosen none of the chains which galled the peasant1 until that peasant rose in his desperation and paid with his life for the liberty his descendants inherit4 ,the king was deaf to all prayers4 ,the aristocracy drove from power with insults and persecution every enlightened minister who proposed to better the condition of the common people by conceding moderate reforms4 ,it was only when the desperation of despair roused the people to a furious attack upon time-honored abuses and vested wrongs of every conceivable kind1 that 8privilege0 would harken to reason1 and ,right could find a place on the statute-book4 ,in ,england the story has been the same4 ,in the long procession of the ages in which the common people have wrung1 one by one1 from the grip of aristocracy those liberties upon which we now pride ourselves1 the price of blood has been always demanded1 and invariably paid4 ,never has king or aristocrat conceded a single demand of the reformers until those reformers had either won it in battle or had made such a demonstration as struck fear into the hearts of the ruling class4 ,in ,russia precisely the same state of affairs exists1 and if ever liberal institutions are to take the place of grand ducal tyranny and class-rule in that empire the soil will once more drink the blood of sacrifice4 ,it was so in the beginning1 is now1 and ever will be1 perhaps1 for human nature is the same 8yesterday1 today and forever40 ,the man who believes that the autocratic class in ,russia will give up its advantages without a fight is a superficial student of history1 just as the man who believes that the dominating trusts and corporations in these ,united ,states can be made1 by moral suasion1 to turn loose1 is an idle dreamer who knows nothing of the greed of class-rule4 ,no matter under what name it exploits the people1 or under what form it exerts its power1 or under what particular system of legislation it usurps control and veils its rascalities1 to make it turn loose you must beat it in battle ,,or ,,make ,,it ,,afraid4 8,give ,them ,free ,passes and ,they ,will ,become as ,servants0 ,the manner in which the railway pass can make honest men steal was never illustrated more clearly than when the ,southern ,railroad of ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan1 a few days ago1 filched #adb1jjj from the taxpayers of this country4 ,it was a shameless1 impudent1 vulgarly common steal--nothing else4 ,the ,congressmen who stole this money for the ,wall ,street ,king1 ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan1 were led by the well-known statesman of ,alabama1 ,john ,h4 ,bedstead4 ,many and many a year ago a stupid ,post-,office ,department adopted the policy of paying subsidies to certain railroads for the carriage of mails which they had already contracted to carry4 ,it is doubtful whether a single dollar of this money was well spent4 ,to secure the ridiculously high prices which the government pays for the carriage of the mail1 the railroads could always have been induced to contract for as speedy a delivery as was possible4 ,subsidies could not make them do more4 ,even a stupid ,p4 ,o4 ,department woke up to this fact1 at last1 and quit paying the subsidies4 ,mails were carried just as fast after that as before4 ,the rate of payment is so high--the plum so very luscious--that the corporation could not refuse the contracts1 especially when they could borrow a rascally congressman's frank1 stuff the bags with bogus mail1 and thus secure a false average of weight upon which they were paid for the whole year4 7,congressman ,livingston of ,georgia can tell you how this is done47 ,but the ,southern ,railroad clung to the subsidy4 ,it needed the money1 as ,meredith of ,virginia once plaintively stated in the ,house4 ,the ,p4 ,o4 ,department no longer asked it or advised it--but certain congressmen from the ,south who are ravenously fond of free passes stood by the hungry corporation1 and at every session of ,congress this subsidy is voted4 ,the false pretense1 used as an excuse1 is that it secures fast mail for the ,south4 ,there is no truth in the statement4 ,under an ordinary contract for mail carriage1 the government can secure precisely the same service as the railroad gives in return for the subsidy4 ,in other words1 the #adb1jjj is a gift to the ,wall ,street ,monarch1 ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan4 ,hon4 ,james ,h4 ,blount of ,georgia was for many years ,chairman of the ,committee on ,post-,offices and ,post ,roads4 ,he understood every detail of that service4 ,he bitterly opposed this subsidy4 ,i myself heard him denounce it in the most wrathful manner2 and he declared on the floor of the ,house that the people got nothing whatever for it4 ,it was a donation--nothing more4 ,blount's place in ,congress is now partially filled by a different kind of man--and the indignant protest of the ,south against the contemplated steal was not voiced by him or by any other member from ,georgia4 ,that honor was won by ,tennessee4 ,when ,hon4 ,john ,a4 ,moon and ,john ,wesley ,gaines denounced this subsidy as it deserved1 they earned the applause and the grateful remembrance of every honest man in the ,south4 ,the ,hon4 ,r4 ,b4 ,macon of ,arkansas also deserves the highest credit for his opposition to the theft4 ,of course1 8,slippery ,jim0 ,richardson of ,tennessee rushed to the relief of the corporation1 as 8,slippery ,jim0 always does1 and the robbers1 led by the ,bedstead statesman of ,alabama1 prevailed4 ,the ,congressman from ,georgia1 or ,alabama or any other ,southern state who helps ,samuel ,spencer and ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan steal the taxes of the people upon the plea that it is done for the benefit of the ,south1 merits the scorn and contempt of every decent ,southern man4 ,but those who excuse their votes upon that pretense are hypocrites1 or dupes4 ,they know1 or should know1 that the subsidy gives no benefit to the ,south which she would not be entitled to under an ordinary mail contract4 ,the ,congressmen who stole this money from the treasury for ,morgan's ,railroad were seduced by the indirect bribery of railway favors--,,just ,,that1 and ,,nothing ,,else4 ,two ,outlaws ,once upon a time there was a great lawyer1 orator1 financier and statesman who was honest4 ,he bore himself among men with the port of a king1 and even strangers1 when they passed him on the streets1 would stop and look back at that majestic figure with involuntary admiration4 ,to see him was to get a new idea of the natural impressiveness of a great man4 ,to hear him talk was to learn more than you had ever dreamed of the infinite variety of creative intellect4 ,i knew him well4 ,and ,i looked up to him as ,i have since looked up to the higher summits of the ,rocky ,mountains--with wondering awe for height which ,i might never hope to reach4 ,royal as this man was in all his ways1 his heart was warm and true4 ,pure as the woman he called wife in his loyalty to the marriage tie1 his morality recognized the double-life nowhere1 and he scorned all that was mean and false and cruel and oppressive4 ,always and everywhere he was for the under-dog4 ,a more stalwart soldier of ,right never stood up in defense of the weak4 ,in a murder case he was able to command a fee of ten thousand dollars2 but he was proudest of that triumph he won in the court-house when he volunteered to defend a penniless negro1 and saved the life of the accused by tearing open his shirt and showing the scars which the black man had received on a battlefield in ,virginia while defending the life of his young master4 ,having incurred the displeasure of the ,federal authorities prior to the ,civil ,war and by certain conduct of his during that war1 the best ,government the world ever saw told him to 8git up and git0--and he did it4 ,in his native land he was outlawed4 ,he went to ,europe for his health4 ,while waiting for the wrath of ,thaddeus ,stevens to cool1 he studied conditions abroad--particularly the railroad systems and the public schools4 ,upon his return home he created a demand for a new ,constitution for his ,state1 and in the convention which framed it he was the undisputed leader4 ,the legislative appropriations for the convention were spent before the ,constitution was finished1 and the patriots were about to disband4 ,average patriotism moves on its belly1 as an army does4 ,the ,georgia outlaw of whom ,i have been writing borrowed #be1jjj from his ,cotton ,factors1 and financed the convention until the ,constitution was finished4 ,on two occasions only was this ,outlaw ever seen to weep in public--once when the ,constitutional ,convention of ,georgia thanked him for his princely generosity1 and once when he stood at the coffin of ,alexander ,h4 ,stephens to deliver the memorial address4 ,in the new ,constitution of ,georgia the ,outlaw believed he had embodied three grand provisions3 7#a7 ,he had made the looting of the treasury a difficult job4 7#b7 ,he had established a system of public schools to educate at public expense the children of the poor as well as the rich4 7#c7 ,he had put a curb on corporation tyranny2 made it illegal for competitive lines of railways to combine1 and had created a commission to regulate and control the transportation companies4 ,this was the ,georgia ,outlaw's proudest work4 ,he exulted over it2 he regarded it as his monument3 he relied on it to benefit his people for generations to come4 ,in this belief he lived out the remnant of his days1 and in this belief he died4 ,where are now the competing railroads in ,georgia8 ,we have none4 ,mergers1 leases1 allied interests have swallowed them all4 ,monopoly rules from border to border4 ,constitutional provisions are dead letters4 ,the corporations who nullify our law and plunder our people keep paid corruptionists busy all the year round to defeat investigation and reform4 ,when the legislature meets1 these professional corruptionists all flock to the ,capitol4 ,they remain throughout the session4 ,if any member seeks to vindicate the outraged ,constitution1 these lobbyists employ every weapon known to the armory of corruptionists to kill the measure4 ,the campaign fund with which the present ,governor beat his competitor was furnished by the railroads4 ,the notorious ,hamp ,mc,worter1 ,state lobbyist for the ,southern ,railroad1 was tendered a place on the ,supreme ,bench by this ,governor1 who owed his election to railroad money4 ,the ,railroad ,commission has been reduced to a state bordering on imbecility4 ,if they pass orders which the corporations dislike the orders are ignored4 ,they no more control the railroads than the saddle on a horse controls the horse4 ,three excellent gentlemen draw comfortable salaries for acting as commissioners2 the railroad lawyers have something to play with2 the corporations are sometimes annoyed by having to evade direct answers to troublesome questions1 and by having to get a ,federal ,judge to discipline the ,commission2 but that is about all4 ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan is the absolute king of the railroads of ,georgia4 ,he makes the ,governor1 controls the ,legislature1 overrides the ,commission and tramples the ,constitution of the ,state under his feet4 ,the ,georgia ,outlaw made the ,constitution for the good of the people2 the ,wall ,street ,outlaw violates it for the good of ,wall ,street plutocrats4 ,in making the ,constitution1 the ,georgia ,outlaw had the help of the best people of the ,state1 and his work was sanctioned by a popular vote after it was finished4 ,in violating the ,constitution1 ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan has the aid of the worst men in ,georgia1 and they dare not submit their work to a free vote of the people4 ,the party machinery of the ,democratic party is prostituted to the vile uses of the corporation lobbyists1 and the negro vote is held in reserve to be used as a club to beat down any organized opposition4 ,the ,georgia ,outlaw who made our ,constitution was a ,democrat2 the ,wall ,street ,outlaw who violates it is a ,republican4 ,georgia is a ,democratic state4 ,the ,democratic party is in full control of every branch of the ,government4 ,thus we have an amazing spectacle4 ,a ,republican ,wall ,street outlaw uses the machinery of the ,democratic party in ,georgia to trample upon the ,constitution and plunder the people4 ,what is the secret of this astonishing situation8 ,bribery--direct and indirect ,,bribery4 ,daily and weekly newspapers subsidized2 rebates given to certain shippers2 favors granted where they will do the most good2 campaign funds supplied to needy candidates2 free passes dealt out by the bushel2 princely salaries paid to plausible lobbyists4 ,bribery1 bribery1 ,,bribery6 ,in no other way can you account for such a shocking state of affairs4 ,when ,democrats hold down a ,democratic ,state while a ,wall ,street ,republican robs it1 there is just one explanation--only one--,,bribery4 ,building on ,sand1 ,again ,with a strenuous rush and clang and clatter1 ,president ,roosevelt has set out to solve the ,railroad ,problem4 ,all honor to him for the motive4 ,to his everlasting credit be it remembered that he recognized the abuses of the present system and shouldered the task of reform4 ,but ,mr4 ,roosevelt's remedy will never reach the seat of the disease4 ,in a case of blood poison1 shin-plasters for surface abrasions never yet saved the patient2 and ,mr4 ,roosevelt's plans for another tribunal to control the railroads are mere shin-plasters4 ,the trouble is that the corporations will control the new tribunals1 just as they have controlled the old ones4 ,the tremendous pressure which combined capital can bring to bear upon any tribunal which ,congress creates will be irresistible in the future1 as it has been in the past4 ,poor human nature is simply unable to withstand temptations which assume so many seductive forms1 and intimidations which assail natural weakness in such a variety of ways4 ,so vast is the power of the corporations to reward or punish1 enrich or impoverish1 that individuals sink into nothingness by comparison4 ,no man is beyond their reach4 ,if they cannot act upon the official himself1 they can strike him through his family1 or relatives1 or friends1 or business connections4 ,somewhere1 within the little world in which he lives1 they will find someone who will yield to their temptations or surrender to their power to hurt4 ,railroads have been known to do great things for the son of a ,judge who was about to try an important case4 ,governors1 ,senators1 ,judges1 ,railroad ,commissioners sometimes have relatives who are more or less willing to get hold of a good thing4 ,the wives of the same sometimes have approachable kinsmen who1 for a consideration1 are willing to speak superciliously of the 8demagogues0 who assail corporations4 ,then1 again1 the newspapers--those busy bees6--can be so trained by corporation cunning that they will give us their sting instead of their honey4 ,if ,sir ,statesman votes with a serene disregard for ,sir ,demagogue1 giving the railroads what they want1 ,editorial prowess will take care of him4 ,his praises will resound1 until his sublime head bumps against the stars4 ,but should he be his own master1 obeying no orders save those of his conscience1 the corporation organs can so belittle him1 slander him1 and manufacture lies about him1 that he almost grows ashamed of having been honest4 ,in short1 the corporation can make 8a good time0 for those who serve it1 and 8a bad time0 for those who defy it4 ,do not all men know this8 ,the more necessary any official is to combined capital1 the more they will do for him1 or against him4 ,create any tribunal which becomes an absolute necessity to the corporations--a matter of life and death to them--and they will either tempt it with bribes which no virtue can resist1 or assail it with intimidations which no courage can defy4 ,mr4 ,president1 have you studied the history of 8,the ,granger ,cases0 of thirty years ago8 ,if not1 study it4 ,then you will know better how the corporations control human tribunals and get rid of laws which are obstacles4 ,have you studied the recent decisions of the ,federal ,judges on the question of fixing 8reasonable rates08 ,if not1 study them4 ,you will then know better what a monkey a railroad lawyer can make of a ,federal ,judge4 ,to create another tribunal for the purpose of controlling the railroads1 is simply the building of another house upon sand4 ,the only solution of the ,railroad ,problem is national ownership1 which takes away the motive to do wrong4 ,in no other way can you cure the disease4 ,instead of establishing another ,court1 or ,commission1 for the corporations to play with1 assert the principle of ,eminent ,domain1 assess the railroads at a fair valuation1 pay for them partly in treasury notes and partly in twenty-year two per cent4 bonds1 place the general management of the property under the ,interior ,department--and then the railroads will no more think of free passes1 rebates and discriminations than the ,post-,office service does of free stamps1 or privileged patrons who must be enriched at the expense of the other patrons4 ,look at ,england ,collier's ,weekly thinks that the ,united ,states should pay higher salaries4 ,ambassadors do not get enough4 ,neither do cabinet officers4 ,the ,president also is underpaid4 ,how lamentable6 8,look at ,england10 says ,collier's1 in effect4 ,england pays #ajj1jjj to the ,lord ,lieutenant of ,ireland1 #ce1jjj to the ,speaker of the ,house of ,commons1 and so forth and so on4 ,well1 let us accept the invitation1 and look at ,england4 ,who pays the taxes in ,england8 ,we know who pays them here4 ,with us the poor man pays the tax4 ,when he covers his nakedness1 when he satisfies his hunger1 when he builds his house1 when he buys tools to work with1 he pays an outrageously oppressive ,tariff tax4 ,rockefeller pays no more ,federal tax than is paid by many a one-horse negro farmer in the ,south4 ,morgan pays less ,federal tax than many a ,western corn-grower who fed his stove on ear corn in #ahia1 because it was cheaper than coal4 ,blessed are our millionaires6 ,those of them who are neglected by ,congress are tenderly cared for by the ,federal judiciary4 ,blessed are the rich6--they run the government1 and the common man pays the bill4 ,,look ,,at ,,england6 ,all right1 we now look4 ,this is what we see3 ,she compels her railway corporations to pay an ,income ,tax upon the assessed valuation of #aij1jjj1jjj4 ,she compels the ,coal ,barons and the marble quarry owners to pay ,income ,tax upon an assessed valuation of #ie1jjj1jjj4 ,she compels the landlords1 bankers and merchant princes to pay ,income ,tax upon an assessed valuation of #ijj1jjj1jjj4 ,in this manner she forces her wealthy classes to pay on property and income nearly two hundred million dollars annually toward the support of the government6 ,her tariff duties are levied exclusively upon articles which are ,,not necessaries of life4 ,not a dollar of ,tariff need the poor man pay to live in perfect comfort4 ,this tariff upon the non-necessaries amounts to #agj1jjj1jjj4 ,from intoxicating liquors the revenue is #aej1jjj1jjj4 ,thus it will be seen1 by a look at ,england1 that the poor man can feed himself1 clothe himself1 build a house to live in1 and supply it with necessary furniture without having to pay one dollar of national tax4 ,in this land of the free he must pay the ,tariff tax1 or go naked1 eat grass1 and live in a hole in the ground4 ,but let us 8look at ,england0 again4 ,we see her operating her ,post-,office1 carrying parcels as well as letters4 ,she does not allow express companies to amass fortunes by robbing the people in the carrying of light freight4 ,thus she makes #gj1jjj1jjj instead of letting the corporations make five times that amount4 ,she owns and operates the telegraph lines1 and makes #ah1jjj1jjj per year instead of letting the corporations make it4 ,what1 therefore1 is the net result of the 8,look at ,england08 ,we discover that the government supports itself upon the possessions of the people rather than upon their necessities4 ,give us the same system of taxation--compel those who possess the wealth to pay the expenses of government--and ,i1 for one1 will say1 8,make the salaries what you will so long as you1 who make them1 have to pay them40 ,editorial ,comments ,,notoriously1 you cannot convict a cow-thief when eleven of the jury got part of the beef4 ,judge ,swayne owes his escape to similar conditions4 ,he was acquitted by the ,united ,states ,senate not because he was innocent1 but because he was regular4 ,he had not done anything which the ,senatorial ,jury does not constantly do4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a railroad fell into the ,federal ,court of which ,swayne happened to be the presiding judge4 ,swayne possesses and controls this railroad through the medium of a receiver4 ,in law and in morals ,swayne is the trustee of the property1 administering it for the benefit of the owners--the stockholders4 ,had he put his fingers into the cash-drawer at the ticket office and stolen five dollars1 his crime would have been clear1 indefensible4 ,proof of such an act would have compelled a unanimous verdict of guilty--even in the ,united ,states ,senate--for ,senators do not do it that way4 99 99 99 99 99 ,but ,swayne knows how the game is played1 and he played according to rule4 ,that is to say1 he made use of the trust funds which were in his possession and control1 to fit himself up a palace car and stock it with the best eatables and drinkables4 ,he then took on1 as a retinue of servants1 the employees who were paid to work for the stockholders1 and appropriated car1 provisions1 employees and all to his own private purposes4 99 99 99 99 99 ,with this luxurious car1 upon which he had spent the trust funds committed to his care1 he took himself and family on long pleasure trips to his native place in ,delaware4 ,in this rolling palace he and his family enjoyed a tour of the ,west4 ,the sum total of the trust funds which he thus converted to his own use could not have been less than thousands of dollars1 for the car and its equipment would have been worth hundreds of dollars per day had it been used by its owners1 the stockholders4 99 99 99 99 99 ,these facts were not denied4 ,in law and morals1 ,judge ,swayne misappropriated trust funds4 ,he did not go to the cash-drawer at the ticket office and steal five dollars1 but he took charge of the car1 the supplies and the employees whose services would have put thousands of dollars into the cash-drawers1 and thus converted to his own private use the property which was in his ,court for management and final disposition4 ,here was a plain case of dishonest use of power and opportunity4 ,here was a plain case of robbery--the ,federal ,judge taking that which belonged to the stockholders and which should have earned them thousands of dollars4 ,in morals and sound law1 the crime is the same as it would have been had he embezzled the same sum in dollars and cents4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,washington ,post argues that the ,president should have a salary of #ajj1jjj4 ,all right4 ,let us levy a tax or two on the rich1 and raise the salaries which the organs of the rich say are too small4 99 99 99 99 99 ,if the ,president is discontented with his pay1 why doesn't he throw up his job8 ,i know several fellows who will take it at the present price4 ,there is ,w4 ,j4 ,b41 for instance4 ,i haven't the faintest doubt that he would be willing to quit editing ,the ,commoner and assume ,presidential burdens at #ej1jjj per year4 ,it would be easier work1 don't you know1 than making twenty-two speeches a day for a candidate like ,parker1 a platform like that of ,st4 ,louis #aijd1 and a ,national ,chairman like ,tom ,taggart--the gambling-hell man of ,indiana4 99 99 99 99 99 ,governor ,folk1 of ,missouri1 was elected to stop boodling1 banish bribery and otherwise purify the political atmosphere4 ,a bill was promptly introduced into the ,legislature to make it possible to convict and punish bribery4 ,the ,senate promptly killed the bill4 ,folk is still ,governor1 however4 99 99 99 99 99 ,populists throughout the country regard with demure interest the modest strides which ,kansas is taking in ,state-,socialism4 ,that ,republican ,state is to own and operate oil refineries to the end that ,rockefeller's ,trust may not swallow the earth4 99 99 99 99 99 ,besides the ,kansas ,state refinery1 the ,republican legislature favors other things which are almost new under the sun4 ,no trust1 corporation or private partnership shall be allowed to sell cheaper in one place than in another in ,kansas--freight being deducted4 ,all over that ,state the price must be the same4 ,maximum freight rates have been established1 oil pipe lines have been made common carriers1 and the pumping of ,kansas gas out of ,kansas forbidden4 ,is it possible that we ,populists are to find ourselves reduced to a state of mere 8eminent respectability0 by such thoroughgoing revolutionists as the ,republicans of ,kansas8 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,washington ,post says3 8,after ,kansas gets her oil refinery in operation she may find that ,mr4 ,rockefeller will not allow his railroads to carry its product40 ,when ,rockefeller refuses to haul ,kansas oil because ,kansas operates a refinery he will probably discover that ,kansas can do a thing or two against his railroads4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,theodore ,roosevelt was a very1 very young man1 he wrote a 8,life of ,gouverneur ,morris0 in which the youthful author sweepingly classified ,tom ,paine as 8a filthy little atheist40 ,now that ,teddy has grown great upon the meat which ,csar fed on1 the ,university of ,pennsylvania has conferred an ,honorary ,degree upon him4 ,this is the same institution which conferred an ,honorary ,degree upon ,tom ,paine4 ,so there you are4 ,to the extent that the ,university of ,pennsylvania can equalize the eminence of ,teddy and ,tom1 equality has been established4 ,so far as the ,university of ,pennsylvania can link the two names together1 they are linked4 ,whether he likes it or not1 ,teddy must promenade down the corridors of time and fame arm in arm with the 8filthy little atheist40 ,here is a case where that one of the ,grecian philosophers who laughed at everything would weep3 and where that one who wept at everything would laugh4 99 99 99 99 99 ,tom ,paine being dead cannot resent the honors paid ,roosevelt by any act of renunciation aimed at the ,university of ,pennsylvania2 but ,teddy lives and can defend his virtue from contaminating contact4 ,will he tamely submit to wear the ,academic honor tainted by the touch of ,tom ,paine1 or will he spurn it with that disdain which condensed the career of a much-enduring1 much-achieving patriot and democrat in the cruelly scornful words1 8a dirty little atheist08 99 99 99 99 99 ,whenever1 in the hour of gloom and doubt1 we call upon the presidents of our world-famous colleges for guidance we get it4 ,which is one of the reasons why we are still in the dark4 ,a couple of years since1 the chief sage of one of these world-famous institutions told us that ,social ,ostracism was the medicine for the ,trust evil which would prove a cure-all4 ,the chief sage neglected to inform us how and when we should or could dose the wicked corporations with this medicine3 hence we have not as yet socially ostracized ,j4 ,p4 ,morgan1 ,ogden ,armour or ,john ,d4 ,rockefeller4 99 99 99 99 99 ,woodrow ,wilson1 chief sage of ,princeton ,university1 is the latest of the academic guides who offers to pilot us out of the gloom4 8,trusts10 remarks ,woodrow 7who1 just between you and me1 is something of a prig71 8,trusts can never be abolished40 8,we must moralize them40 8,the thing that keeps water in stocks is secrecy40 8,publicity is the remedy40 ,when we hear the chief sage of ,princeton droning and driveling this sort of nonsense we wonder whether his mind is fixed upon the actual men1 methods and standards of today1 or whether he gropes in some ,arcadia of the past4 8,moralize the ,trusts80 ,how will you do it1 impractical prig8 ,mr4 ,rockefeller is moral1 isn't he8 ,goes to church every ,sunday1 endows ,baptist colleges1 sends young ,john to teach ,sabbath school and attend ,english revivals1 prates of morality and the ,bible to equal any ,pecksniff that ever stole the livery of the ,lord to shear the sheep in4 ,yet where was there ever a more ruthless criminal on the face of the earth than ,rockefeller's ,oil ,trust8 8,the thing that keeps water in stocks is secrecy40 ,no1 it isn't1 impractical prig4 ,it's water that keeps the water in the stocks4 ,secrecy has nothing to do with it4 ,the public always knows when the watering is done6 ,it was so with the ,steel ,combine2 it has been so with every railroad reorganization which ,morgan has managed2 it was so with ,amalgamated ,copper4 99 99 99 99 99 8,publicity is the remedy60 says ,woodrow1 the ,sage4 ,how can that be8 ,does the knowledge that we are being robbed stop the robbery8 ,there is no secrecy about the ,beef ,trust4 ,publicity there has run riot4 ,we know all about the ,refrigerator car1 the rebate1 the discriminations1 the ,big ,stick methods1 the colossal1 un-,godly profits4 ,we know how the cattle owner is robbed when the ,trust buys1 and how the consumer of dressed meat is robbed when he buys4 ,what good does the ,publicity do us8 ,none at all4 ,it makes us rage and rant1 but the ,trust gets our money just the same4 ,have not ,lawson and ,russell and ,ida ,tarbell and ,lincoln ,steffens and a dozen others put the flashlight upon all these monstrous piratical combinations until the very children are familiar with the details8 ,publicity8 ,why1 if there is anything that we have got a lavish supply of1 just now1 it is ,publicity4 ,what we haven't got is ,,relief4 ,if ,publicity were a cure for the disease1 we'd have been well long ago4 ,as it is1 the evil grows worse1 day by day1 in spite of all the ,publicity4 ,go back to thy gerund-grinding1 ,woodrow--thou insufferable1 impractical prig4 ,among the dead ,greeks and the extinct ,romans thy labors may1 haply1 be useful2 but when thou comest among the practical men of today seeking to master actual conditions and to take part in the great battle of thought1 motive and purpose which rages around us1 thou art but 8a babby1 and a gal babby at that40 99 99 99 99 99 ,mr4 ,bryan says1 in his ,commoner1 that 8the movement begun in #ahif would have succeeded in #aijj had it not been for the ,spanish ,war and the increase of the gold supply40 ,what a superficial view6 ,first of all1 the 8movement0 did not begin in #ahif4 ,it began when the ,west and ,south were brought together by the ,farmers' ,alliance in #ahij4 ,it was in full swing when it gave ,general ,weaver #a1bjj1jjj votes in #ahib4 ,it was running like a millrace when it polled #a1hjj1jjj in the local elections of #ahid4 ,it would have scored a triumph in #ahif had the ,democratic leaders acted honestly with the ,populists4 ,after #ahif the 8movement0 lost strength every day4 ,in #aijj it was doomed to defeat before the campaign opened4 99 99 99 99 99 ,yes2 the reform 8movement0 was in full swing in #ahij1 and one of the good things it did was to float into ,congress a promising young lawyer named ,bryan4 ,to the ,populist movement ,w4 ,j4 ,b4 owes his rise1 for there were then no ,democrats to speak of in ,nebraska4 ,populist votes carried his home ,state for him in #ahif1 when he ran for ,president against ,mc,kinley4 ,in #aijj ,nebraska went ,republican1 although the same ,bryan was running against the same ,mc,kinley4 99 99 99 99 99 ,they are hunting1 in ,paris1 for the bones of ,john ,paul ,jones1 the first and greatest sea captain who ever flew the ,stars and ,stripes from the masthead of a battleship1 and 8held the ocean lists against the world in mail40 ,congress gives #ce1jjj to find the bones1 and of course they will be found--not those of the original ,jones1 perhaps1 but a good enough lot of bones for that amount of money4 99 99 99 99 99 ,had ,gouverneur ,morris1 the ,american ,minister to ,france1 done his duty at the time of ,paul ,jones's death1 by giving him a respectable funeral and a modest tombstone1 the people of this country would not now be taxed #ce1jjj to find the hero's grave4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,john ,paul ,jones--old1 broken and poor--lay dying in ,paris1 our high-toned ,minister to ,france1 ,gouverneur ,morris1 sat feasting with aristocratic company1 and that high-toned ,minister failed to mark the grave of a man who with ,nelson's chances might have done even more than ,nelson on the sea4 ,his grave was made in an obscure churchyard1 his resting-place neglected and forgotten1 covered with accumulated deposits1 and built over with houses4 ,those who seek the bones are sinking holes seventeen feet deep1 in the search4 ,of course1 they will find the body of ,commodore ,jones4 ,that is what they are hunting for4 ,therefore1 they will find it4 ,but whether the dust they bring back to ,america will be that of our ,paul ,jones no mortal will ever know4 99 99 99 99 99 ,in his ,diary1 ,gouverneur ,morris relates3 8,a message from ,paul ,jones that he is dying4 8,i go thither and make his will4444 ,send for a ,notary1 and leave him struggling with his enemy40 ,the ,american ,minister to ,france left ,paul ,jones struggling with death6 ,left him alone with a ,french ,notary1 and went away4 ,to do what8 ,to 8dine with ,lord ,gower and ,lady ,sutherland06 ,the ,american ,minister knew that ,paul ,jones was dying1 for he says so4 ,after the dinner with the ,english ,lord and ,lady1 does the ,american ,minister hasten back to the bedside of the fellow-countryman whom he had left 8struggling with his enemy08 ,by no means4 ,he goes to the ,louvre to look at the paintings2 and then takes ,talleyrand's mistress with him to ,jones's lodging4 8,but he is dead--not yet cold40 ,and this is all that ,gouverneur ,morris's ,diary records of ,paul ,jones's death1 until the indignation aroused in ,america by his shocking lack of attention to the dying hero had thrown him upon the defensive4 99 99 99 99 99 ,who paid the burial expenses of ,paul ,jones8 ,a ,frenchman claims that he did it4 ,morris1 in his ,diary1 certainly seeks to make the impression that he paid them out of ,jones's estate4 ,the hero left sufficient property for the purpose1 as can easily be shown4 ,further than that we are left in doubt4 ,but ,morris was requested to authorize a public funeral1 in which fitting honors should be paid to the dead4 ,morris refused4 ,he states that he 7,morris7 desired 8a private and economical funeral40 ,he got it4 ,the funeral was so economical and so private that neither the tongue of repute1 identifying the grave from generation to generation1 nor the more unerring evidence of shaft or vault guides the footsteps of those who come so late1 so late6 to repair the neglect of a hundred years4 ,how ,private ,ownership ,breaks ,down ,in the great city of ,new ,york there is a ,subway1 an underground street1 which was opened at the expense of the taxpayers4 ,every dollar of the enormous expenditure came out of the pockets of the citizens of ,new ,york4 ,after this ,subway had been completed and paid for by the people1 it was turned over to a private corporation to be used for private profit4 ,it is unnecessary to say that such a stupendous piece of folly could never have been committed by wise men or honest men4 ,on the face of it1 the transaction reeks with rascality4 ,let us1 however1 contemplate actual results4 ,the men to whom the property was given operate the ,subway to make all the money that is possible out of the franchise4 ,in doing so they have come into collision with their employees4 ,the disagreement results in a strike4 ,the experienced operators of the cars leave them4 ,inexperienced men take hold4 ,the necessary consequence is danger to life and limb1 which only the careless or reckless would incur4 ,the thousands of people in ,new ,york1 to whom the ,subway is a daily necessity1 are incommoded and injured4 ,the entire city suffers because of the dispute between the corporation and its employees4 ,i will not enter into the question as to who is to blame for the strike4 ,it is sufficient to say that under private ownership of this public thoroughfare the strike does occur and all of its evil consequences naturally follow4 ,no matter whether ,belmont is right or wrong2 no matter whether his employees are right or wrong1 the effect upon the public is precisely the same4 ,the public gets hurt4 ,the public suffers and the public is helpless4 ,such a situation is surely sufficient to arouse thought and investigation4 ,ever since we have allowed private corporations to take charge of public utilities we have had the strike1 the riot1 the loss of money1 the loss of life4 ,as long as private ownership continues to exploit these things which belong to the public1 we will continue to have the strike1 the riot1 loss of money and the loss of life4 ,i say nothing about the amount of which the traveling public is robbed by these corporations which own the public utilities4 ,i confine myself simply and solely to this thought1 namely1 that under private ownership the situation1 which now confronts the traveling public of ,new ,york ,city1 is liable to happen at any time and at any place throughout the ,union where public franchises are used for selfish and private gain4 ,that is the fruit of the tree4 ,it always has been2 it always will be4 ,that kind of tree will never bear any other sort of fruit4 ,then why not cut it down8 ,public ownership removes the motive for misuse of public utilities1 and when the motive goes the evil will go4 ,as long as selfishness and greed get the chance to gratify themselves at the public expense1 just so long will they do it4 ,in every conflict between ,capital and ,labor the public loses--no matter whether ,capital wins or ,labor wins4 ,public ownership would do for the railroads what it does for the ,post-,office1 the ,police ,department or the ,fire ,department4 ,who ever heard of a strike among the ,post-,office employees8 ,or in the police force8 ,or among the firemen8 ,in ,germany the railroads are owned and operated by the ,government1 and nobody ever heard of traffic being blocked by a strike4 ,in ,austria the story is the same4 ,in ,australia it is the same4 ,in ,new ,zealand it is the same4 ,nowhere on earth1 so far as ,i know1 has there ever been a strike when the principle of government ownership was in operation4 ,take those cities of ,england where the street cars are owned and operated by the city government4 ,who has ever heard of a strike on those lines8 ,from ,liverpool to ,birmingham and from ,birmingham to ,glasgow you will find the principle of public ownership applied with perfect success1 and nowhere has the operation of public utilities by the public been stopped by a strike4 ,it seems almost impossible for the people of our great cities to learn the lesson taught by our own troubles1 and taught further by the object-lessons furnished us by nationalities which are not such cowardly slaves of the corporations as we seem to be4 ,the most amazing feature in ,american life today is the audacity with which predatory corporations ride forth1 like the feudal barons of olden times1 to strike down the average citizen and rob him of what he makes as fast as he makes it4 ,individually1 we have plenty of courage1 but1 collectively1 we are the most cowardly creatures on earth4 ,the communal spirit seems to be dead within us4 ,public opinion is in its infancy4 ,the strength which lies dormant within us because of our numbers seems to be a fact of which the masses are totally ignorant4 ,acting swiftly1 acting with unity of purpose1 acting with the keenest intelligence1 acting with a magnificent courage1 the outlaws of modern commercialism dash at their object with superb confidence in their prowess1 and they have seized and ridden away with the spoils before the drowsy1 ignorant and timid public have awakened to the fact that they have been raided1 stricken down and plundered4 ,if the city government of ,new ,york had at its head a man 8with a beard on his chin10 he could find a way to solve this ,subway problem and all kindred problems within a few weeks1 and in such a manner that it would never be presented again4 ,he would have to be intelligent1 he would have to be honest1 he would have to be brave1 but if he had these qualities and were1 besides1 a patriot wishing to do what is best for the entire community1 he could win a victory which would repeat itself in all the centres of our population1 and which would terminate the reign of rascality which now exploits1 for personal ends1 the powers and the opportunities of public office in almost every great city of this ,republic4 99 99 99 99 99 ,you ask me how could the ,mayor do anything1 when the ,subway is legally in the hands of a ,commission created by the ,legislature8 ,i answer that the city has the right to use its streets4 ,one of its sovereign powers1 inherent and absolute1 is that of keeping its streets open for the safe and free use of every citizen4 ,nobody has the right to block travel or traffic1 nor can the ,legislature grant such a privilege4 ,as to the ,subway1 it is a street under the ground4 ,true1 the methods which he would have to employ differ from those which he would apply to a surface street1 but the principle would be precisely the same in the one case as in the other4 ,he could say to ,belmont and his employees3 8,you are blocking the streets4 ,you are interfering with the rights of the people who paid for the ,subway and who want to use it4 ,you and your disputes are as nothing to me in comparison with the duty which ,i owe to the city4 ,arbitrate your difference1 or ,i will exert the full sovereign power of the municipality to seize the ,subway and to open it to travel4 8,and you needn't run to any judge for an injunction1 either4 ,in the exercise of supreme executive authority policing the city and keeping open its streets1 ,i shall tolerate no interference whatever from corporation lawyers or corporation judges4 ,i give you fair warning3 ,arbitrate1 and do it quickly--else the city takes what is hers1 and operates the cars which you have tied up60 ,who doubts that a threat like this1 made by the right kind of ,mayor1 would bring ,belmont to his senses in a couple of minutes8 ,arbitrate6 ,of course he would arbitrate--quickly and gladly4 ,and the ,mayor would have the enthusiastic support of ninety-nine men out of every hundred in ,new ,york4 ,the ,patriot ,his eyes ashine with ancient memories1 ,his blood aglow with subtle racial fire1 ,for him are quenched the stirrings of desire4 ,the pageant of the world has ceased to please2 ,hushed are the evening songs--the lutes of ease2 ,in the war flame1 that old ancestral pyre1 ,he casts his hopes of home1 wife1 child or sire2 ,instinct of race1 a passion more than these1 ,the spirit of his country1 holds him thrall2 ,in him forgotten heroes1 forbears1 rise1 ,strengthening his heart to common sacrifice2 ,out of the darkness generations call ,and martyr hosts1 that unrecorded fall1 ,salute him from the void with joyful cries4 ,,london ,,daily ,,news4 ,the ,atonement of ,hustler ,joe 7,,complete ,,novelette7 ,,by ,,eleanor ,h4 ,,porter ,,prologue ,a toy horse or a raspberry-tart is not often responsible for the loss of a life1 but a succession of toy horses1 raspberry-tarts1 and whatever else the heart of a small boy craved1 given in a reckless abandonment of superfluity1 was certainly responsible for the wilfulness in the character of ,paul ,weston2 and the wilfulness1 in turn1 was responsible for the quarrel4 ,at twenty he was a restless1 impulsive1 good-hearted1 broad-chested1 strong-limbed young fellow1 the adored of his mother and the pride of his father4 ,and yet it was over the prostrate form of this same father that he now stood--the crack of the revolver still ringing in his ears1 the weapon itself still clutched in his hand4 ,was the man dead8 ,but a minute before he had been speaking2 now there was a fast-growing pool of something dark and horrible on the floor at his side4 ,paul ,weston brushed the back of his left hand across his eyes and looked down at the still smoking revolver4 ,had his miserable temper brought him to this8 ,his features worked convulsively and his eyes widened in horror4 ,throwing the revolver from him to the farthermost corner of the room1 he turned and fled4 ,out the door1 through the gate1 and down the long street of the little ,new ,england village he ran4 ,it was dusk1 but he stumbled as though it were the darkness of midnight4 ,the neighbors looked and wondered at the fleeing figure1 but only their eyes spoke disapproval4 ,if ,paul ,weston chose to use the main street of the village as a race-course1 it was not for them to interfere--they knew him too well4 ,the town fool alone ventured to accost him4 8,hi1 there--go it6 ,what's after ye80 he shouted2 but the jeering words and the vacant smile died on his lips at sight of the face ,paul turned upon him4 ,down the street1 across the open field1 and over the fence at a bound--surely the friendly shelter of the woods receded as he ran6 ,but his pace did not slacken even in the dense shadows of the forest4 ,on and on1 stumbling1 falling1 tearing his flesh and his clothing on the thorns and brambles until1 exhausted1 he dropped on a grassy mound1 miles away from that dread thing he had left behind him4 ,the wind sighed and whispered over his head4 ,weston had always loved the sound1 but tonight it was only an accusing moan in his ears4 ,even the stars that peeped through the leaves above were like menacing eyes seeking out his hiding-place4 ,an owl hooted2 ,weston raised his head and held his breath4 ,then through the forest came the baying of a distant hound4 ,the man was on his feet in an instant4 ,something tightened in his throat and his heart-beats came in slow1 suffocating throbs4 ,he knew that sound6 ,they sought for--murderers with creatures like that6 ,with a bound he was away on his wild race again4 ,hours later1 the gray dawn and his nearness to a small village warned him to move more cautiously4 ,all that day he tramped1 without rest1 without food1 reaching at night the seaport town that had been his goal4 ,skulking through the back streets he came to a cheap eating-house down by the wharves4 ,the odor of greasily fried meats and bad coffee floated out the open door1 causing ,weston to sniff hungrily4 ,in a moment he had thrown caution to the winds1 entered the restaurant and slunk into the nearest seat4 ,by his side lay a discarded newspaper4 ,he reached for it with a shaking hand1 then snatched his fingers back as though the printed sheet had scorched them4 ,no1 oh1 no--he dared not look at it6 ,his mind's eye pictured the headlines1 black with horror3 8,,murder6 ,,parricide6 ,,the ,,fiend ,,still ,,at ,,large60 ,he pushed back his chair and rushed from the room4 ,an hour later he had shipped as a sailor on a vessel bound for ,san ,francisco around ,cape ,horn4 ,i ,the cracker-barrels and packing-boxes that usually served for seats in ,pedler ,jim's store were1 strange to say1 unoccupied4 ,bill ,somers1 sole representative of 8the boys10 sat cross-legged on the end of the counter1 meditatively eying a dozen flies that were buzzing happily around a drop of molasses nearby4 ,pedler ,jim himself occupied his customary stool behind the counter4 ,it was ten years now since the little hunchback pedler first appeared in ,skinner ,valley4 ,he came from no one knew where1 driving a battered and worn horse attached to a yet more battered and worn pedler's cart4 ,the horse had promptly taken advantage of the stop in the village1 and by dying had made sure of never leaving the place for the wearisome trail again4 ,the miners say that the night the old horse died1 its master patted and stroked the poor dead head until it was cold and stiff1 and that the morning found him fondling the useless reins with his shriveled1 misshapen fingers4 ,the next day he bartered for a tiny piece of land fronting the main street4 ,when he had wheeled his old cart into proper position upon it1 he busied himself some time with a bit of board and a paint pot1 finally producing a rough sign bearing the single word 8,store40 ,this creation he nailed with much satisfaction upon the front of the dashboard1 then sat down on one of the thills to wait for a customer4 ,perhaps it was the oddity of the thing2 or perhaps there was something in the deformed little body that appealed to the strong-limbed1 straight-backed miners2 or perhaps it was the wonderful knowledge of healing herbs and soothing lotions that ,pedler ,jim possessed--perhaps it was a little of all three4 ,at all events1 the new store prospered amazingly so that in a year its owner bought more land1 trundled the old cart to the rear1 and erected a small cabin on his lot4 ,this1 in turn1 gave place to a good-sized frame building bearing the imposing gilt-lettered sign3 ,,james ,a4 ,,powers1 ,skinner ,valley ,emporium4 ,the hunchback rolled this high-sounding title under his tongue with keen relish1 but it was still 8the store0 to the boys1 and its owner was only 8,pedler ,jim40 ,bill ,somers shifted his position on the end of the counter and poked a teasing finger at the agitated mass of wings and legs around the molasses drop4 ,the storekeeper grinned appreciatively and broke the silence3 8,say1 who's yer new man80 8,blest if ,i know40 8,well1 he's got a name1 hain't he80 8,mebbe he has--then again1 mebbe he hain't40 8,but don't ye call him nothin'80 8,oh1 we call him #8,hustler ,joe'2 but that ain't no name to hitch a grocery bill on to--eh1 ,jim80 ,the little hunchback slid from his stool and brought his fist down hard on the counter4 8,that's jest the point6 ,he don't git much1 but what he does git he pays fur--spot cash4 ,an' that's more'n ,i can say of some of the rest of ye10 he added1 with a reproachful look4 ,bill laughed and stretched his long legs4 8,i s'pose1 now1 that's a dig at me1 ,jim40 8,i didn't call no names40 8,i know yer lips didn't1 but yer eyes did4 ,say1 how much do ,i owe1 anyhow80 ,with manifest alacrity ,jim darted over to the pine box that served for a desk4 8,there ain't no hurry1 ,jim10 drawled ,somers1 with a slow smile4 8,i wouldn't put ye out fur nothin'60 ,the storekeeper did not hear4 ,he was rapidly turning the greasy1 well-thumbed pages of the account-book before him4 8,it's jest twenty dollars and fourteen cents1 now1 ,bill10 he said1 his brown forefinger pausing after a run down one of the pages4 8,ye hain't paid nothin' since ,christmas1 ye know10 he added significantly4 8,well10 sighed ,bill1 with another slow smile1 8mebbe 'twouldn't do no harm if ,i ponied up a bit60 ,and he plunged both hands into his trousers pockets4 ,pedler ,jim smiled and edged nearer1 while ,bill drew out a handful of change and laboriously picked out a dime and four pennies4 8,there60 he said1 slapping the fourteen cents on the counter1 8now it's even dollars60 8,well1 ,i'll be jiggered60 cried ,pedler ,jim1 turning his back and walking over to the window4 ,somers looked after the retreating figure1 and a broad smile lighted up his round red face4 ,slipping his hand inside his coat he pulled out a roll of greenbacks4 ,in another minute the fourteen cents lay neatly piled on top of two ten-dollar bills4 ,the man hastily slipped into his old position and coughed meaningly4 8,ye don't seem pleased10 he began4 ,the hunchback did not stir4 8,mebbe ye don't want my money10 hazarded the miner4 ,no answer4 8,oh1 well1 ,i can take it back10 and ,somers shuffled noisily off his seat4 ,pedler ,jim wheeled about and came down the store with his small black eyes blazing4 8,jiminy ,christmas1 man6 ,if you ain't enough ter try a saint6 ,i'm blest if ,i can git mad at ye1 though1 fur all yer pesterin' ways4 ,now what in thunder--0 ,the storekeeper's jaw dropped1 and his mouth fell open idiotically as his eyes rested on the greenbacks4 8,well1 ,i'll be jiggered60 he murmured again1 and clutched the money in his claw-like fingers4 ,at that moment the outer door opened to admit a tall1 broad-shouldered miner wearing a slouch hat well over his eyes4 ,in a trice ,pedler ,jim was the obsequious merchant behind the counter4 ,the newcomer gave his order in a low voice and stood motionless while the hunchback busied himself in filling it4 8,anything else80 suggested ,jim wistfully1 as he pushed a small package toward him4 8,oh1 ,i guess that'll do for this time10 returned the man1 picking up his purchase and motioning toward a dollar bill on the counter4 ,pedler ,jim looked up quickly and something like tenderness came into his eyes4 8,i--guess you're from ,yankee-land1 stranger2 shake1 won't ye80 he said1 thrusting his hand across the counter4 8,gorry6 but it's prime ter see a good old ,new ,englander among all these dagos and ,dutchmen and the ,lord only knows what else here4 ,bill an' me was gittin' lonesome--,i'm glad ye come60 ,at ,jim's first words the stranger had stepped back1 but the outstretched hand had brought him to the counter again1 and he gave the brown fingers a grip that made the little hunchback wince with pain4 ,but ,pedler ,jim's welcome was scarcely spoken before the man had turned and disappeared through the door4 8,well1 ,i snum6 ,i should think he was #8,hustler ,joe'60 murmured ,jim4 8,if he didn't even hustle off and leave his change10 he added1 looking helplessly at the dollar bill on the counter4 ,somers laughed4 8,hustle6--you'd oughter see him at the mines6 why1 that man works like all possessed4 ,he don't speak nor look at a soul of us 'nless he has to4 ,if there's a chance ter work extry--he gits it2 an' he acts abused 'cause he can't work every night and ,sundays to boot4 ,gosh6 ,i can't understand him10 finished ,bill1 with a yawn and a long stretch4 8,that ain't ter be wondered at--'tain't #8,hustler ,bill' that the boys call you10 replied ,jim1 a sly twinkle in his beady little eyes4 ,somers sprang to his feet and towered over the hunchback1 his fist raised in pretended wrath4 8,why don't ye take a feller yer own size80 he demanded4 ,the hunchback chuckled1 dove under the upraised arm1 and skipped around the room like a boy4 ,an encounter like this was meat and drink to him1 and the miners good-naturedly saw to it that he did not go hungry4 ,somers shook his fist at the curious little creature perched on the farthermost cracker-barrel and slouched out the door4 ,,ii ,skinner ,valley did not know very much about ,hustler ,joe4 ,six weeks ago he had appeared at the ,candria coal mine and asked for work4 ,since that time he had occupied an old shanty on the hillside--a shanty so hopeless in its decrepitude that it had long been abandoned to bats and owls4 ,hustler ,joe1 however1 had accomplished wonders in the short time he had lived there4 ,it was a popular belief in the town that the man never slept4 ,stray wanderers by the shanty had reported hearing the sound of the hammer and saw at all hours of the night4 ,outside the shanty loose timbers1 tin cans1 rags and refuse had given way to a spaded1 raked and seeded lawn4 ,the cabin itself1 no longer broken-roofed and windowless1 straightened its back and held up its head as if aware of its new surroundings4 ,this much the villagers could see2 but inside it was still a mystery1 for ,hustler ,joe did not seem to be hospitably inclined1 and even the children dared not venture too near the cabin door4 ,it was vaguely known that the man had come over the mountains from ,san ,francisco1 and with that the most were content4 ,keen eyes and ears like ,pedler ,jim's were not common in the community1 and the little hunchback's welcome to the man because he came from 8,yankee-land0 was not duplicated4 ,hustler ,joe had not been in the habit of frequenting the store4 ,his dollar bill was in ,pedler ,jim's hands a week before the disturbed storekeeper had an opportunity of handing back the change4 ,the miner had forgotten all about the money and had wandered into the store simply because each stick and stone and dish and chair at home was in its place and there was absolutely nothing for his nervous fingers to put in order4 ,joe pushed open the door of the 8emporium10 then halted in evident indecision4 ,a dozen miners were jabbering in half as many languages over by the stove1 huddled around it as though the month were ,january instead of ,june1 and the stove full of needed heat instead of last winter's ashes4 ,bill ,somers lolled on the counter1 and ,pedler ,jim was bowing and scraping to a well-dressed stranger whose face ,joe could not see4 ,the miner had half turned to go when ,pedler ,jim's sharp eyes fell upon him4 ,in another moment the hunchback was by his side thrusting some change into his fingers4 8,you forgot it1 ye know--when ye bought them nails10 he said hurriedly2 then added1 8why don't ye come in and set down80 ,for a second ,joe hesitated2 then he raised his head with a peculiarly defiant up-tilting of his chin1 and strolled across the room to an unoccupied cracker-barrel behind the gesticulating miners4 ,pedler ,jim went back to his customer4 8,you won't find a better smoke within fifty miles60 he said pompously1 giving the box of cigars on the counter a suggestive push4 ,the well-dressed man gave a disagreeable laugh4 8,well1 that's hardly saying very much1 is it80 he questioned4 ,at the stranger's first words ,hustler ,joe glanced up sharply4 ,his fingers twitched and a gray look crept around the corners of his mouth4 ,the room1 the miners1 and ,pedler ,jim seemed to fade and change like the dissolving pictures he used to see when a boy4 ,a ,new ,england village street drifted across his vision with this well-dressed stranger in the foreground4 ,he could even see a yellow-lettered sign out one of the windows3 ,,george ,l4 ,,martin1 ,counselor at ,law4 ,then it all faded into nothingness again--all save the well-dressed stranger in the tall black hat4 ,in another minute the jabbering miners1 ,bill ,somers1 and the obsequious hunchback were in their old places1 and ,pedler ,jim was saying3 8,jest try 'em1 an' see fur yerself40 8,all right1 ,i'll take you at your word10 laughed the stranger1 picking out a cigar and leisurely striking a match4 8,it's a pity you can't have a few more languages going in here10 he added1 throwing the dead match on the floor and glancing at the group around the stove4 8,i suppose ,barrington employs mostly foreigners in the mines1 eh80 ,the hunchback thrust his brown fingers through his hair and made a wry face4 8,foreigners60 he exclaimed4 8,i was born and raised in the state of ,maine1 an' if it wa'n't fur ,bill ,somers--he's from ,york ,state--to talk ,god's own language to me once in awhile1 ,i'd 'a' gone daft long ago60 ,the stranger chuckled softly4 8,you hav'n't anyone here at the works from ,new ,england1 then1 ,i take it1 eh80 he asked1 with studied carelessness4 ,a smile crept up from ,pedler ,jim's mouth and looked out of his twinkling eyes4 8,well1 we have--0 he began1 then his eyes suddenly lost their twinkle as they encountered the despairing appeal from beneath ,hustler ,joe's slouch hat4 8,we have--been wishin' there would be some10 he finished after the slightest of hesitations4 8,we've got everythin' else under the sun60 ,bill ,somers's long legs came down from the counter abruptly4 8,why1 ,jim1 there's ,hustler ,joe--ain't he from ,new ,england80 ,the hunchback's little beany eyes turned upon ,somers and looked him through and through without winking4 8,hustler ,joe came over the mountains from ,san ,francisco1 ,i have heard10 he said blandly4 8,oh1 so he did--so he did60 murmured ,somers1 and sauntered out the door4 ,the man on the cracker-barrel over in the corner pulled his hat down over his eyes and sank back into the shadows4 8,well10 said the stranger1 tossing a bill and a small white card on the counter1 8put me up a dozen of those cigars of yours1 and there's my card--if you happen to know of any ,new ,englanders coming to these parts1 just let me know at that address1 will you8 ,i'll make it worth your while40 8,very good1 sir1 very good10 murmured ,pedler ,jim1 making a neat package of the cigars4 8,thank you1 sir10 he said suavely1 holding out the change and glancing down at the card2 8thank you1 ,mr4--er--,martin40 ,and he bowed him out of the store4 ,one by one the miners went away2 still the figure on the cracker-barrel remained motionless4 ,when the last jabbering foreigner had passed through the door1 ,hustler ,joe rose and walked across the room to the pine box where the storekeeper was bending over his account-book4 8,see here1 little chap10 he began huskily1 8that was a mighty good turn you did me a bit ago--just how good it was1 ,i hope to ,god you'll never know4 ,what you did it for is a mystery to me2 but you did it--and that's enough4 ,i sha'n't forget it60 ,something splashed down in front of ,pedler ,jim1 then the outer door slammed4 ,when the hunchback turned to his accounts again a blot and a blister disfigured the page before him4 ,,iii ,john ,barrington1 the principal owner of the ,candria mine1 did not spend much of his time in ,skinner ,valley4 ,still1 such time as he did spend there he intended to be comfortable4 ,indeed1 the comfort of ,john ,barrington--and incidentally of those nearest and dearest to him--was the one thing in life worth striving for in the eyes of ,john ,barrington himself1 and to this end all his energies were bent4 ,in pursuance of this physical comfort1 ,john ,barrington had built for his occasional use a large1 richly fitted house just beyond the unpleasant smoke and sounds of the town4 ,a tiny lake and a glorious view had added so materially to its charms that the great man's wife and daughter had unconsciously fallen into the way of passing a week now and then through the summer at ,the ,maples1 as it came to be called in the family--8,skinner ,valley0 being a name to which ,miss ,ethel's red lips did not take kindly4 ,mr4 ,barrington's factotum-in-chief at the mines1 ,mark ,hemenway1 lived at the house the year round4 ,he was a man who took every possible responsibility from his chief's shoulders and was assiduous in respectful attentions and deferential homage whenever the ladies graced the place with their presence4 ,to ,ethel this was of little consequence1 as she paid no more attention to him than she did to the obsequious servant behind her chair2 but to ,mrs4 ,barrington he was the one drawback to complete enjoyment of the place4 ,mark ,hemenway was a man of limited means1 but of unlimited ambitions4 ,every day saw him more and more indispensable to his comfort-loving employer1 and every day saw him more and more determined to attain to his latest desire--nothing less than the hand of this same employer's daughter in marriage4 ,in a vague way ,mrs4 ,barrington was aware of this1 though ,hemenway was1 as yet1 most circumspect in his actions4 ,mrs4 ,barrington was greatly disturbed1 otherwise she would not have ventured to remonstrate with her husband that ,sunday afternoon4 8,my dear10 she began timidly1 8isn't there any other--couldn't ,mr4 ,hemenway live somewhere else--rather than here80 ,her husband turned in his chair1 and a frown that ,mrs4 ,barrington always dreaded appeared between his eyebrows4 8,now1 ,bess1 why can't you leave things all comfortable as they are8 ,i like to have you and ,ethel here first rate1 but ,i don't see why you think you must upset things when you stay only five minutes1 so to speak40 8,i--,i don't mean to upset things1 ,john1 but--,i don't like him60 she finished in sudden asperity4 8,like him6 ,my dear1 who expected you to8 ,nobody supposes he is one of your palavering1 tea-drinking members of the upper ten6 ,he isn't polished1 of course40 8,polished6 ,he's polished enough1 in a way1 but--,i don't like the metal to begin with10 laughed ,mrs4 ,barrington1 timidly essaying a joke4 ,her husband's frown deepened4 8,but1 ,bess1 don't you see8 ,i must have him here--it's easier for me1 lots easier4 ,why can't you let things be as they are1 and not bother80 he urged in the tone of a fretful boy4 ,mrs4 ,barrington knew the tone1 and she knew1 too1 the meaning of the nervous twitching of her husband's fingers4 8,well1 well1 ,john10 she said1 hastily rising1 8,i won't say anything more10 and the door closed softly behind her4 ,as she passed through the hall she caught a glimpse of ,ethel and her friend starting for a walk1 and the strange unlikeness of the two girls struck her anew4 ,just why ,ethel should have chosen ,dorothy ,fenno for a week's visit to ,the ,maples1 ,mrs4 ,barrington could not understand4 ,perhaps it would have puzzled ,ethel herself to have given a satisfactory reason4 ,ethel ,barrington had met ,dorothy ,fenno the winter before on a committee connected with a fashionable charity1 and had contrived to keep in touch with the girl ever since1 though the paths of their daily lives lay wide apart4 8,she is mixed up with #8settlement work' and #8relief bands1' and everything of that sort10 ,ethel had told her mother2 8but she's wonderfully interesting and--,i like her60 she had finished almost defiantly4 ,the girls leisurely followed a winding path that skirted the lake and lost itself in the woods beyond4 ,they had walked half an hour when they came to the clearing that commanded the finest view in the vicinity4 ,ethel dropped wearily to the ground and1 with her chin resting in her hand1 watched her friend curiously4 8,well1 my dear girl1 you----0 8,don't--don't speak to me60 interrupted ,dorothy4 ,ethel ,barrington bit her lips2 then she laughed softly and continued to watch the absorbed face of her companion--this time in the desired silence4 ,by and bye ,dorothy drew a long breath and turned to her4 8,isn't it beautiful60 she murmured reverently4 ,miss ,barrington gave a short laugh and sat up4 8,yes1 very beautiful1 ,i suppose2 but1 do you know1 ,i've seen so much ,i'm spoiled--absolutely spoiled for a scene like that8 ,i'd rather look at you--you are wonderfully refreshing4 ,i don't know another girl that would have snapped me up as you did a minute ago40 8,indeed1 ,i beg your pardon10 began ,dorothy in distress4 8,don't60 interrupted her friend1 with a petulant gesture2 8you'll be like all the rest if you do40 8,but it was very rude10 insisted ,dorothy earnestly4 8,a view like this always seems to me like a glorious piece of music1 and ,i want everything quiet as ,i would if ,i were hearing a ,beethoven symphony1 you know4 ,that is why ,i couldn't bear even the tones of your voice--but it was rude of me1 very40 ,ethel sighed1 and fell to picking a daisy to pieces4 8,i used to feel that way1 once10 she said2 8,i did1 really40 8,i haven't a doubt of it10 replied ,dorothy1 with a smile4 8,but ,i don't any more60--the daisy was tossed aside4 8,no80 8,no2 ,i'm like a five-year-old that's had too much candy1 ,i suppose4 ,i've seen the ,alps and the ,rockies1 the ,rhine and the ,st4 ,lawrence2 and yet1 the first time ,i looked at that view ,i felt just as you did4 ,but now----60 8,you need something outside yourself to give zest to your life1 my dear10 said ,dorothy1 her eyes on the town below4 ,ethel looked at her narrowly4 8,now see here1 my dear1 ,i love you--and you know it1 but ,i just can't stand any of that settlement talk60 8,i never said settlement10 laughed ,dorothy1 her eyes still on the straggling cottages4 8,i know1 but--well1 ,i just simply can't6 ,how in the world you stand those dismal sounds and sights and--and smells10 she added1 with a grimace1 8,i don't understand40 8,i suppose the miners live in those cottages10 mused ,dorothy aloud1 as though she had not heard4 8,i suppose so10 acquiesced ,ethel indifferently4 8,others live over the hill in ,westmont40 8,they don't look as though they'd be very comfortable10 continued ,dorothy softly4 8,oh1 ,i don't know2 people like that don't mind such things1 ,i fancy40 8,did you ever ask them80 ,ethel looked up in quick suspicion1 but ,dorothy's face was placid4 8,of course not6 ,how silly60 8,suppose you do1 sometimes10 suggested ,dorothy1 quite as a matter of course4 8,i thought that was what you were coming to60 flashed ,ethel4 8,my dear girl1 you have no idea what those miners are10 she continued in a superior tone4 8,in the first place1 ,i don't think there is one of them that understands a word of ,english1 and ,i'd be afraid to trust my life anywhere near them40 8,but the women and the little children--they wouldn't hurt you4 ,isn't there something you could do for them1 dear80 urged ,dorothy4 ,a rumble of thunder brought the girls to their feet before ,ethel could reply1 and a big storm-cloud coming rapidly out of the west drove the whole thing from her mind4 8,quick--we must run60 she exclaimed4 8,we can't reach home1 but there's an old shanty just behind those trees over there4 ,no one lives in it1 but 'twill give us a little shelter1 maybe10 and in another minute the girls were hurrying down the hill4 ,big drops of rain and a sharp gust of wind quickened their steps to a run4 ,had ,ethel not been running with her head bent to the wind she would have noticed the changed appearance of the shanty to which they were hastening4 ,but as it was1 she rushed blindly forward1 up the steps1 and pushed open the door1 ,dorothy close by her side4 ,once across the threshold she stopped in amazement1 while ,dorothy dropped breathlessly into the nearest chair4 ,,iv ,the tiny room was exquisite in its orderly neatness4 ,the furniture was of the plainest1 but bore an air of individuality4 ,on one side was a case of books1 and the mantel above the fireplace was decorated with quaint curios and beautiful shells4 ,a shadow fell across the floor4 8,a nearer view might the better satisfy your curiosity1 madam10 said a voice from behind ,ethel4 ,ethel turned sharply to find herself face to face with a man in the rough garb of a miner4 ,the man's eyes looked straight into hers without flinching4 8,i said that a nearer view might the better satisfy your curiosity in regard to my poor possessions10 he repeated4 8,yours80 she stammered1 a look of repulsion coming into her eyes4 ,the look and the shrinking gesture were not lost on ,hustler ,joe4 ,his eyes darkened4 ,his broad shoulders bent in a mocking bow and his right hand made a sweeping flourish4 8,mine1 madam2 but consider them yours until the storm is over4 ,i'll not intrude0--and he was gone4 ,a flare of lightning and a deafening report made his exit wonderfully dramatic to ,dorothy4 ,the rain was falling in torrents1 too--a fact which suddenly occurred to ,ethel4 ,for a moment she hesitated2 then she sped through the door1 overtook and confronted the miner4 8,go back instantly60 she commanded4 8,if--if you don't1 ,i shall start for home in all this rain60 ,the words were scarcely spoken before the man had turned and was hurrying her back to the house4 ,once inside there was an uncomfortable silence4 ,dorothy came to the rescue4 8,i'm afraid you thought we were unpardonably rude10 she began pleasantly4 8,you see we were caught by the shower and my friend thought no one was living here2 otherwise1 we would not have so unceremoniously taken possession40 8,no1 of course not10 murmured ,miss ,barrington constrainedly1 going over to the window and looking out at the swaying trees4 ,hustler ,joe made a dissenting gesture4 8,say no more3 you are quite welcome10 he replied1 going over to the fireplace and touching a match to the light wood ready placed for a fire4 8,it will take the dampness out of the air1 and--of your garments10 he added1 with a furtive glance at the tall figure in the window4 8,thank you1 you are very kind10 said ,dorothy1 drawing nearer4 ,the movement brought her close to the mantel1 and she picked up one of the shells4 8,did you gather these yourself80 she asked1 wondering at the light that leaped into his eyes at the question4 ,ethel1 turning round a minute later1 found them talking like old friends together4 ,she even caught herself listening breathlessly to a story he was telling of an ,indian arrow he held in his hand4 ,a sudden glance in her direction from the man's dark eyes sent her back to her old position with an abruptness that surprised as well as displeased her4 ,the storm was not a long one4 ,the clouds were already lifting in the west and the rain was less flood-like in its descent4 ,finally the sun peeped out and flashed for a moment in ,ethel's eyes4 ,dorothy and their host were over at the bookcase deep in a discussion of the respective merits of ,scott and ,dickens1 when ,ethel crossed the room and came toward them4 8,i think10 she said1 with the slightest of inclinations in ,hustler ,joe's direction1 8that the storm is over4 ,we can go now40 8,so it is10 said ,dorothy2 then turning to the man at her side she held out a cordial hand4 8,thank you very much4 ,you have been very kind40 8,yes1 very kind--thank you10 murmured ,ethel1 bowing slightly and turning toward the door4 8,we shall have to go home by the road10 she announced regretfully a moment later1 as she stood outside looking longingly at the hillside path where the wet grass sparkled in the sun4 ,for a time the two girls walked on in silence1 then ,dorothy murmured softly3 8,not a word of ,english--not a word60 ,ethel gave a sidelong look from her lowered lids4 8,well1 ,i didn't suppose they could60 she said petulantly4 8,i wouldn't trust my life near one of them10 continued ,dorothy in the same low voice4 ,ethel shrugged her shoulders and a faint pink showed on her forehead4 8,don't60 she protested4 8,how could you talk with him so8--what dreadful boots he wore60 ,dorothy laughed outright4 8,my dear1 his boots do not cover his head4 ,would you have a man dig coal in patent-leathers80 ,ethel made a wry face and was silent4 8,seriously1 dear10 ,dorothy went on1 8he was very interesting to me4 ,his knowledge of books was most amazing4 ,what he is doing here ,i can't imagine--he's no common miner60 8,oh1 of course not10 laughed ,ethel mockingly4 8,no doubt he's a college president in disguise6 ,but really1 ,i'm not in the least interested4 ,let's talk of something else40 ,and she changed the subject4 ,and yet it was ,ethel who1 at dinner that night1 turned to ,mr4 ,barrington with the abrupt question3 8,father1 who is living in the old shanty just beyond the ,deerfield woods80 8,i'm sure ,i haven't the least idea1 my daughter10 replied the man1 mildly indifferent4 8,perhaps ,i can assist ,miss ,barrington in the matter10 interposed the smooth voice of ,mark ,hemenway4 8,it has lately been taken in hand by a curious creature known as #8,hustler ,joe4'0 8#8,hustler ,joe'80 murmured ,john ,barrington4 8,yes1 sir1 one of the men4 ,a queer1 silent sort--the kind that no good comes of4 ,i'm keeping my eye on him1 however40 8,indeed10 observed ,ethel calmly1 8,i thought him quite the gentleman40 ,the effect of her words was like that of an electric shock around the table2 in fact1 ,ethel herself felt it to some extent1 for her remark was almost as much of a surprise to herself as to the others4 8,why1 my daughter60 murmured ,mrs4 ,barrington faintly1 and even ,dorothy started4 ,there was an ugly narrowing of ,mark ,hemenway's eyes1 but it was ,john ,barrington who spoke4 8,well1 you seem to have the advantage10 he drawled4 8,would you mind telling where the rest of us could meet--this gentleman80 ,his daughter laughed and lapsed into her old bantering tone4 ,v ,that portion of the ,candria mine known as the 8,bonanza0 had been on the black-list of the miners for some time4 ,it was more than two months since ,henry ,rotalick1 a fire boss1 had reported that an extra amount of gas seemed to be collecting in the district4 ,the mine officials had begun at once to take the utmost precautions4 ,the ,bonanza was one of the wealthiest portions of the mine1 but1 the coal being deep and of very fine quality and the slate being particularly thick1 it necessitated considerable blasting to get down to the finest parts4 ,owing to this and to the growing accumulations of gases1 the miners had for some time past been repeatedly warned to use the greatest care4 ,on the day after the thunderstorm1 ,hustler ,joe was passing through this district when he came upon some miners drilling holes twelve feet or more in depth and preparing for an exceptionally heavy charge4 8,you'd better look out or you'll bring the whole thing tumbling about your ears60 he said1 with a sharp glance at one of the men who seemed much the worse for liquor4 ,a snarl of oaths in various tongues followed him as he turned his back and walked away4 ,thirty minutes later every door in the ,bonanza fell with a crash1 and solid walls of masonry three feet through were torn down as though they were but barriers of paper1 so terrible was the explosion that shook the earth4 ,hustler ,joe was half a mile away4 ,the shock threw him on his face1 and for a minute he was too dazed to think4 ,then he staggered to his feet and rushed blindly forward straight toward the place where he thought the explosion had occurred4 ,at every turn he met fleeing men1 coatless1 hatless and crazed with terror4 ,suddenly he came face to face with ,bill ,somers4 8,good ,god1 man6 ,where ye goin'8 ,are ye gone clean crazy80 demanded ,bill1 clutching ,joe's arm and trying to turn him about4 ,for answer ,hustler ,joe wrenched himself free1 picked up a half-unconscious miner and set him on his feet2 then he dashed forward and attempted to raise a fallen door that had pinned another miner fast4 8,jiminy ,christmas6 ,ye ain't goin' ter stay in this hell of a place alone1 anyhow10 muttered ,bill1 bringing his broad shoulder and huge strength to bear on the door4 ,in another moment the imprisoned man was free and in broken ,english was calling on heaven to reward his rescuers4 ,the two men did not falter for an instant1 though all the while the deadly damp was closing around them4 ,from gallery to gallery they went1 warning1 helping1 dragging a comrade into a possible place of safety1 until human endurance could stand it no longer4 ,exhausted1 they staggered into a chamber which the fire damp had not entered4 8,we--we'd better git out--if we're goin' to10 panted ,somers weakly4 ,joe was dizzy and faint4 ,for himself he did not care4 ,he had long ago given up all thought of escape2 but a sudden vision came to him of the little blue-eyed woman that he had so often seen clinging to this man's arm and looking fondly into his face4 8,your wife and babies1 ,somers--0 murmured ,joe1 his hand to his head as he tried to think4 8,yes1 we must get out somehow4 ,there's the fanhouse--we might try that10 he added1 groping blindly forward4 ,the fanhouse1 now out of use1 stood at the top of the airshaft heading that led up through the ,deerfield hill from the mine4 ,and by this way the two men finally reached the open air1 and there1 blinking in the sunshine1 they sank exhausted on the hillside4 ,it was some time before ,somers found strength to move1 but his companion was up and away very soon4 ,the ,candria mine had two openings about four miles apart1 that went by the names ,silver ,creek and ,beachmont4 ,the ,bonanza section was a mile and a half from the surface1 and was nearer to the ,silver ,creek opening than to the ,beachmont4 ,it was to the former entrance1 therefore1 that ,hustler ,joe turned his steps as soon as he could stand upon his feet4 ,the news of the disaster was before him4 ,men running from the mine1 barely escaping with their lives1 had told fearful tales of crawling over the dead bodies of their companions in their flight4 ,the story flew from lip to lip and quickly spread through the entire town4 ,mothers1 wives1 daughters1 sons and sweethearts rushed to the mine entrances and frantically sought for news of their dear ones4 ,when ,hustler ,joe reached the ,silver ,creek entrance1 a bit of a woman with a tiny babe in her arms darted from the sobbing multitude and clutched his arm4 8,bill--my ,bill--did you see him80 she cried4 ,hustler ,joe's voice shook as it had not done that day4 8,on ,deerfield hill1 by the fanhouse--he's all right1 ,mrs4 ,somers10 he said huskily2 and the little woman sped with joyful feet back by the way she had come4 ,it was ,hustler ,joe who was at the head of the first rescue party that attempted to enter the mine2 but the deadly gases increased with every step4 ,first one1 then another of the heroic men succumbed1 until the rest were obliged to stagger back to the outer air1 half carrying1 half dragging their unconscious companions4 ,again and again was this repeated1 until they were forced to abandon all hope of reaching the entombed miners from that direction2 then hasty preparations were made to attempt the rescue from the ,beachmont opening4 ,here1 as at ,silver ,creek1 ,hustler ,joe was untiring--directing1 helping1 encouraging4 ,the man seemed to work in almost a frenzy1 yet every movement counted and his hand and head were steady4 ,slowly1 so slowly they worked their way into the mine1 fighting the damp at every turn4 ,by using canvas screens to wall the side entrances and rooms1 a direct current of pure air was forced ahead of the rescuers1 and by night their first load of maimed and blackened forms was sent back to the mine entrance to be cared for by tender hands4 ,all night ,hustler ,joe worked1 and it was his strong arms that oftenest bore some suffering miner to air and safety4 ,once1 far down a gallery1 he heard a shrill laugh4 ,a sound so strange brought the first tingle like fear to his heart4 ,another moment and a blackened form rushed upon him out of the darkness1 angrily brandishing a pickaxe4 ,crazed with wandering for hours in that horrid charnel-house of the earth's interior1 the miner was ready to kill even his rescuers4 ,he was quickly overpowered and his hands and feet were securely bound2 then on ,hustler ,joe's back he made the journey of a quarter of a mile to the cars that were waiting to bear him1 and others like him1 to the aid so sadly needed4 ,toward morning ,hustler ,joe was accosted by one of the doctors who had been working at his side half the night4 8,see here1 my man1 you've done enough4 ,no human being can stand this sort of thing forever4 ,i don't like the look of your eye--go outside and get some rest4 ,there are fifty men now that owe their lives to you alone4 ,come--you'd really better quit1 for awhile1 at least40 8,fifty8 ,fifty1 did you say80 cried the miner eagerly4 ,then a look came into his face that haunted the doctor for long days after4 8,would fifty count against--one80 he muttered as if to himself1 then fell to work with a feverishness that laughed at the doctor's warning4 ,from dusk to dawn1 and again from dawn to dusk1 flying ambulances1 hastily improvised from every sort of vehicle1 coursed the streets with their gruesome burdens4 ,weeping throngs surged about the ,beachmont entrance and about the stricken homes of the dead4 ,sleepless wives and mothers waited all night for news of their missing dear ones1 and peeped fearfully through closed blinds as the dead and injured were borne through the streets4 ,but everywhere the name of ,hustler ,joe was breathed in gratitude and love4 ,tales of his bravery and of his rescues were on every lip1 and when the man walked out of the mine that day1 he walked straight into the hearts of every man1 woman and child of the place4 ,his fellow-workmen tried to show their love and appreciation by going in a body to his lonely cabin on the hillside4 ,they found him muttering half crazily to himself3 8,fifty lives for one--fifty for one60 ,and on the table before him he had placed fifty matches in a row and below them one other alone4 ,they looked at him half fearfully1 wholly pitifully1 thinking the past horror had turned his brain4 ,but he listened with brilliant eyes and flushed cheeks to their hearty words of thanks and seemed strangely eager to hear all that they had come to say4 ,yet the next morning his eyes were heavy with misery1 and someone said that the matches lay strewn all over the floor where an impatient hand had cast them--all save one1 left alone in the middle of the table4 ,,vi ,on the day of the explosion in the ,candria mine ,john ,barrington sat on the broad piazza of ,the ,maples reading his morning paper4 ,occasionally he glanced up to admire the charming picture his daughter and her friend made playing tennis on the lawn nearby4 ,his night's rest had been good and his morning's beefsteak tender2 moreover1 a certain paragraph in the newspaper before him had warmed his heart and1 in prospect1 his pocketbook4 ,he leaned back in his chair and sighed contentedly4 ,after a time he spied ,hemenway's tall form at the far end of the winding walk leading to the house4 ,there was a languid curiosity in his mind as to why ,hemenway was walking so fast2 but when he caught his first glimpse of his general superintendent's face1 his head came upright with a jerk1 and he waited in some apprehension for the man to speak4 ,the girls on the lawn heard an exclamation of dismay from the piazza1 then saw the two men pass rapidly down the walk and disappear in the direction of the town4 ,fifteen minutes later ,jennie ,somers1 the parlor-maid1 crossed the lawn and approached ,miss ,barrington4 ,all her pretty rose color had fled1 and her eyes were wide and frightened4 8,i beg your pardon--but would you please let me go to town8 ,there has been an explosion in the mine1 and my brother--he may be hurt6 ,may ,i please go80 8,an explosion8 ,how terrible6 ,yes1 yes1 child--run right along4 ,don't hurry back if you're needed there10 said ,miss ,barrington4 8,i hope you'll find your brother uninjured10 she added as the girl hurried away4 ,when she turned to speak to ,dorothy she found herself alone4 ,miss ,fenno appeared a few minutes later dressed in a short walking-suit4 8,why1 ,dorothy60 8,has ,jennie gone8 ,if you don't mind1 dear1 ,i'll go with her4 ,i might be able to do something10 explained ,dorothy hastily4 8,mercy60 shuddered ,ethel1 8how can you go1 dear8 ,they'll be all maimed and bleeding6 ,there'll be doctors and--and others to do everything needful4 ,i wouldn't go--really1 dear40 8,i know--but there'll be something else to do4 ,i might help someone--,jennie1 for instance1 if she found her brother injured4 ,i really want to go--,oh--there she is60 ,and ,miss ,fenno hurried after ,jennie's swiftly moving figure4 ,ethel was restless when her friend had gone4 ,she wandered aimlessly around the grounds1 then went indoors and began to play a waltz on the piano4 ,the piece was scarcely half through1 however1 before her fingers moved more and more slowly1 finally straying into a minor wail that ended abruptly in a discordant crash as the player rose from the piano-stool4 ,miss ,barrington's next move was to take the field-glass from the library and go upstairs to the tower4 ,from there she could see the village and catch occasional glimpses of hurrying forms4 ,she could see the ,silver ,creek entrance to the mine1 too1 and she shuddered at the crowds her glasses showed her there4 ,twice she turned her eyes away and started down the winding stairs1 but each time she returned to her old position and gazed in a fascination quite unaccountable to herself at the moving figures in the distance4 ,by and bye she saw the head-gardener coming rapidly up the road from the town4 ,as he entered the driveway she hurried down the stairs and out into the kitchen4 8,were there many injured1 ,peter80 she asked anxiously as the man came into the room4 8,they don't know yet1 ma'am2 they can't get into the mine4 ,they're goin' to try the ,beachmont openin' now40 8,perhaps they won't find things so bad as they think10 she suggested4 8,mebbe not2 but them that has come out1 ma'am1 tell sorry tales of creepin' over dead men's bodies--there ain't much hope for the poor fellers inside now1 ,i'm 'fraid40 8,is--is there anything one can do80 ,peter shook his head4 8,not much1 ma'am4 ,they can't get in to get 'em out4 ,the young lady from the house here has got her hands full with the women and children4 ,they are takin' on awful1 of course1 but she kinder calms 'em down--she and that feller they call ,hustler ,joe40 ,miss ,barrington turned away4 ,as she opened the door she stopped abruptly and looked back into the kitchen4 8,if they need anything1 ,peter--anything at all--come to me at once10 she said hurriedly1 and closed the door behind her4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it was at dinner the next night that ,mr4 ,barrington said to his general superintendent3 8,what was the matter with ,rotalick today8 ,i heard you laying down the law pretty sharp to him this noon40 8,oh1 he wanted a prima donna1 that's all40 8,a what80 ,hemenway laughed4 8,yes1 ,i thought so1 too4 ,it was simply this4 ,there isn't anyone to sing at the funerals ,thursday4 ,the choir that usually sings at funerals hereabouts is incapacitated through injuries to the bass and loss of a husband to the soprano4 ,rotalick wanted a day off to go hunting for singers over in ,westmont40 8,humph60 commented ,mr4 ,barrington4 8,i rather think our departed friends will excuse the lack of music10 laughed the general superintendent coarsely2 but the laugh ceased at a flash from ,miss ,barrington's eyes4 8,will you be so kind1 ,mr4 ,hemenway1 as to tell the man that ,i will sing ,thursday80 ,once more the electric shock ran around that table1 and once more ,mrs4 ,barrington murmured faintly1 8,why1 my daughter60 ,this time ,mark ,hemenway rose promptly to the occasion4 8,how very kind60 he said suavely4 8,indeed1 ,miss ,barrington1 one could almost afford to die for so great an honor4 ,i will tell ,rotalick4 ,the miners will be overjoyed--they have bitterly bemoaned the probable lack of music tomorrow4 ,funny they should care so much60 8,oh1 ,i don't know--they are human beings1 ,i suppose10 ,miss ,barrington suggested4 8,yes--of course--certainly--but then----0 8,you seem troubled to find a solution10 she remarked1 with slightly uplifted eyebrows2 8suppose you give it up80 8,suppose ,i do10 he acquiesced with ready grace1 glad of the way of escape she had opened4 ,,vii ,many of the victims of the explosion had lived in ,westmont1 but for those whose homes had been in ,skinner ,valley a succession of funeral services had been arranged to take place in the ,slovak ,catholic ,church1 the largest audience-room in the town4 ,it was here that ,miss ,barrington had offered to sing1 and as one sad service followed another in rapid succession the task she had undertaken was no light one4 ,but her heart did not lose its courage nor her voice its sweetness all through those long hours4 ,she did grow sick and faint1 though1 as the throngs of weeping women and children filed in and out of the church1 and her voice trembled and nearly broke when a young girl fainted and sank to the floor4 ,hustler ,joe had not been known to step inside a church since he came to ,skinner ,valley4 ,on the day of the funerals he had lapsed into his old unapproachableness4 ,he left his cabin early in the morning and joined the crowds moving toward the church1 but1 once there1 he lost himself in the throngs outside instead of entering the doors4 ,hustler ,joe had long since made up his mind that a church was no place for him4 ,he had the reverence1 born of a ,new ,england boyhood's training1 for all things sacred1 and he had come to feel that his own presence was an unpardonable insult to any holy place4 ,the windows of the church were open and the chanting tones of the priest floated out to his ears4 ,he imagined himself as one of those still1 silent forms before the chancel1 and he bitterly envied the dead4 8',twould have been the easiest way out of it60 he muttered under his breath4 8,by ,jove1 what a voice60 he added aloud a moment later as the priest's droning gave way to the flute-like tones of a singer4 8,it's old ,barrington's daughter--ain't she great80 said ,bill ,somers at his elbow4 ,the man had been there several minutes furtively watching for a chance to speak4 ,hustler ,joe did not answer until the last note quivered into silence4 ,then he drew a long breath and turned around4 8,barrington's daughter8 ,what is she doing here80 8,singin'--didn't ye hear her80 8,but why8 ,how happens it80 ,joe demanded4 8,rotalick said she heard how that the choir couldn't sing and that the ,slavs and ,poles were makin' a terrible touse 'cause there wa'n't no music4 ,so she jest stepped up as pleasant as ye please an' said she'd sing for 'em4 ,she's a daisy1 an' as purty as a picture4 ,have ye seen her80 8,yes10 replied ,hustler ,joe shortly1 moving away4 ,ethel ,barrington's singing won her many sincere1 if humble1 admirers that day1 but perhaps no one inside the building listened quite so hungrily for every tone that fell from her lips as did a tall1 sad-eyed man who stood outside--just beneath an open window4 ,when the last sombre procession had moved away from the doors1 and ,miss ,barrington herself1 white and faint with weariness1 stepped into her carriage1 ,hustler ,joe left his position under the window and walked slowly toward his home4 8,yes1 ,i'll go back10 he muttered4 8,there's nothing but hell upon earth to be gained by running away in this cowardly fashion4 ,i'll give myself up and take the consequences--which will be hell somewhere else1 ,i suppose10 he added grimly4 8,good ,god--it can't be worse than this60 ,he pushed open his cabin door and looked about him with troubled eyes4 ,for the first time he was conscious of a fondness for the place4 8,i'll give them to ,jim10 he said aloud1 his eyes lingering on the books and on the shells and curios over the mantel4 ,with feverish haste he began collecting a few necessaries into a traveling-bag4 ,it was packed and strapped when there came a knock at the door4 ,at so unusual an occurrence ,hustler ,joe started guiltily4 ,then he crossed the room and threw wide the door4 ,the bent form of an old woman with two frightened eyes peering out from beneath a worn shawl confronted him4 8,has he been here80 she whispered1 stepping into the room and glancing furtively around her4 8,he6 ,who80 8,then he hasn't1 or you'd know it10 she answered in a relieved tone2 but her expression changed almost instantly1 and her frail form shook with terror4 8,but he may come6 ,you wouldn't give him up--you're ,hustler ,joe1 ain't ye8 ,they say you're good an' kind4 ,oh1 you wouldn't give him up60 ,a strange look came into the miner's eyes4 8,no1 ,i wouldn't give him up10 he said1 after a moment4 8,but who is he8 ,and who are you80 8,i'm his mother1 sir4 ,he didn't know anyone was livin' here10 she apologized1 8an' he sent me a bit of paper sayin' he'd meet me here tonight4 ,oh1 sir1 they'd hang him if they got him6 ,hang him60 she shuddered4 ,hustler ,joe's lips twitched1 then settled into stern lines4 8,ye see10 continued the woman1 her voice husky with feeling1 8his daddy was--was one of them that was killed1 an' my boy came back to look once more on his poor dead face today4 ,he said he'd colored his hair an' changed his looks so no one would know him2 but oh1 they'd hang him--hang my boy60 she finished in a frenzy1 wringing her hands and swaying her body from side to side4 ,through the window ,hustler ,joe saw the figure of a man moving among the shadows of the trees near the house4 ,the miner stepped close to the old woman and laid a light hand on her shoulder4 8,listen6 ,i am going away for an hour4 ,when ,i am out of sight1 go out to the trees behind the house and call your boy in4 ,i shall be gone and shall know nothing of it--you can trust me4 ,do you understand80 ,a heartfelt 8,god bless you60 rang in his ears as he left the house and hurried away4 ,when he returned an hour later he found these words scrawled on a bit of brown wrapping-paper3 ,you treated me white4 ,thanks4 ,you don't know what you saved my mother4 ,it would have broke her heart if they had strung me up4 ,thanks4 ,hustler ,joe stared fixedly at the note long after he had read it2 then he tore the paper into tiny bits and dropped them into the fireplace4 ,very slowly he opened the traveling-bag and unpacked one by one the articles therein4 ,when the bag was empty and the room restored to its spotless order1 he drew a long breath4 8,yes1 'twould break her heart2 she's less miserable if ,i stay where ,i am10 he murmured4 8,poor dear mother1 she's suffered enough through me already60 ,,viii ,the days that followed were busy ones for ,ethel4 ,company made ,the ,maples gay with fun and laughter2 but ,ethel did not drop her newly awakened interest in the miners4 ,by her earnest persuasion ,miss ,fenno had agreed to lengthen her visit1 the need of these same miners having been held up by the wary ,ethel as good and sufficient reason for her remaining4 ,a maid1 laden with the best the house afforded1 always accompanied ,dorothy on her frequent visits to the town1 and sometimes ,ethel herself went4 ,it was after her first trip of this sort that she burst unceremoniously into the library4 8,father1 do you do anything for them80 she demanded breathlessly4 8,my dear1 not being aware of the antecedent of that pronoun1 ,i may not be able to give a very satisfactory answer to your question40 8,what8 ,oh--sure enough60 laughed ,ethel4 8,i mean the miners1 of course40 8,since when--this philanthropic spirit1 my dear80 8,do you1 father80 persisted ,ethel1 ignoring the question4 8,well10 ,mr4 ,barrington began1 putting the tips of his forefingers together impressively1 8we think we do considerable4 ,we are not overbearing2 we force no #8company store' on them1 but allow that curious little ,pedler ,jim full sway4 ,we--,however1 have you anything to suggest80 he suddenly demanded in mild sarcasm4 ,somewhat to his surprise ,miss ,barrington did have something to suggest1 and that something was not particularly to his mind4 ,however1 when ,miss ,barrington set out to have her own way she usually had it1 even with her comfort-loving father--perhaps it was because he was a comfort-loving father that he always succumbed in the end4 ,at all events1 the ,candria ,mining ,company1 after the explosion in the ,bonanza section1 organized a system of relief to which they ever after adhered4 ,the family of each miner killed in the disaster1 or dying from its effects1 received one thousand dollars cash over and above all medical and burial expenses4 ,the maimed were dealt with according to the extent of their injuries4 ,the mine was a great source of interest to all of ,miss ,barrington's friends1 and it was accounted a great day among them when a party under careful escort were allowed to 8do the mines10 as they enthusiastically termed a glimpse of the mine buildings and a short trip through a few underground passages4 ,two weeks after the explosion ,ethel1 with a merry party of ladies and gentlemen led by ,mark ,hemenway1 and duly chaperoned1 started for the ,beachmont entrance to the mine4 ,the general superintendent was in his element4 ,he explained and exhibited all through the outer buildings1 and was about to take his charges into the mine itself when an unavoidable something intervened and claimed his immediate attention4 ,it was with evident reluctance that he therefore handed his party over to ,bill ,somers1 who1 having proved himself careful and attentive1 had often before been intrusted with the escort of sightseers over the mines4 ,to ,ethel the change was a relief4 ,a vague unrest had lately assailed her whenever in ,hemenway's presence and she had almost unconsciously begun to avoid him4 ,her old indifference to his existence had given way to a growing realization that there was such a being1 and the realization was bringing with it an intangible something not quite pleasant4 ,the feminine portion of the party followed ,bill ,somers through the strange underground chambers with daintily lifted skirts and with many a shudder and half-smothered shriek4 ,and though they laughed and chatted at times1 they cast sidelong glances of mingled curiosity and aversion at the stalwart forms of the begrimed miners4 8,is--is this anywhere near the--accident80 asked ,miss ,barrington1 looking behind her fearfully4 8,no1 ma'am--oh1 no60 reassured ,bill ,somers quickly4 8,the ,bonanza is a long ways off4 ,we don't go nowheres near there today1 ma'am40 8,oh1 was there an accident80 chimed in a pretty girl with rose-pink cheeks4 8,sure2 this was the mine1 wasn't it80 interposed a fussy little man with eyeglasses through which he was peering right and left with his small1 near-sighted eyes4 8,tell us about it1 please10 begged three or four voices at once2 and ,bill needed no second bidding4 ,when they passed ,hustler ,joe1 ,somers pointed him out1 and as they walked on into the next gallery he told with unconscious power the story of the heroic rescue of the imprisoned men4 ,the shifting shadows and twinkling lights made the telling more impressive1 and the dusky forms flitting in and out of the mysterious openings on either side1 added a realistic touch to the tale that sobered the gay crowd not a little4 ,their interest in the earth's interior waned perceptibly4 8,are--are we on the way out1 now80 asked the pretty girl1 her cheeks showing white in the gloom4 8,no1 ma'am2 we're goin' in deeper4 ,wa'n't that what ye wanted80 returned ,bill4 8,yes1 of course10 murmured the girl1 without enthusiasm4 ,the man with glasses coughed4 8,really1 ,miss ,barrington1 this is beastly air4 ,it might be well enough to go back before long40 ,bill ,somers took the hint4 ,he knew the type to which the fussy little man belonged4 ,the party turned about1 and the pretty girl's eyes flashed with a grateful glance--a glance which the near-sighted-glassed saw and promptly appropriated4 ,as they repassed ,hustler ,joe1 ,ethel ,barrington dropped behind the others and came close to the miner's side4 8,i want to thank you myself10 she said1 the crimson staining her cheeks as she impulsively held out a slim1 ungloved hand4 8,i want to tell you how much ,i appreciate your courage and bravery at the explosion40 ,the man flushed painfully4 ,as he reluctantly touched her finger-tips1 she added3 8,you must be so happy to have saved so many lives4 ,i knew you were a good man the minute ,i saw your face60 ,hustler ,joe grew white to the lips1 dropped her hand rudely and turned away without a word4 ,hemenway met the party at the entrance of the mine4 ,he was profuse in apologies for his enforced absence and in offerings of further service1 but ,miss ,barrington dismissed him with a cool 8,thank you2 nothing more10 and led the way to ,the ,maples4 ,miss ,barrington was vexed--worse than that1 she was vexed because she was vexed4 ,her pulse quickened and her nostrils dilated as she thought of ,hustler ,joe and of the way he had met her impulsive greeting4 8,the--the rude--boor60 she said to herself1 at loss for words to express fittingly that to which she was so little accustomed4 ,a lingering touch or a gentle pressure was the usual fare of ,miss ,barrington's graciously extended hand--never this wordless touching of her finger-tips and hasty1 rude release4 8,not that ,i care10 she thought1 with a disdainful tilt of her head4 8,but he might have been decently civil60 she added1 with a scornful smile as she thought of how differently a score of pampered youths of her acquaintance would have received so signal a mark of favor as she had that afternoon bestowed on an all too unappreciative miner4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,hustler ,joe had left ,miss ,barrington so abruptly he had attacked his work with a fierceness that even the miners had never seen him show4 8,a good man--a good man--#8,i knew you were a good man'60 he muttered between his teeth4 8,a #8good' man indeed--bah60 he snarled aloud1 wielding his pick with long1 sweeping strokes4 ,then he suddenly stood upright4 8,great ,god--am ,i not a good man8 ,have fifty lives not a feather's weight80 ,the pick dropped from his relaxed fingers1 and his hands went up to his head4 8,ah1 no10 he moaned2 8father--father--fifty1 a hundred--a thousand times a hundred could not tip the scale with your dear1 dead self on the other side60 ,,ix ,exciting days came to ,skinner ,valley4 ,gold was discovered far up the creek4 ,a man furnished with funds by ,mark ,hemenway1 who long had expressed faith in the locality1 had 8struck it rich10 and the general superintendent awoke one day to find himself wealthy4 ,the effect of this awakening was as immediate as it was startling4 ,his commanding tones took on an added imperiousness1 his clothing a new flashiness1 and his whole demeanor an importance likely to impress the most casual of beholders4 ,his veiled attentions to ,miss ,barrington gave way to a devoted homage that was apparent to all men1 and so thick was his armor of self-conceit that her daily snubs fell pointless at his feet4 ,miss ,barrington had never before spent so long a time at ,the ,maples1 and ,mr4 ,hemenway's sudden accession to wealth resulted1 as far as she was concerned1 in hasty preparations to leave4 ,her guests were already gone4 ,on the day before her intended departure she started off by herself to enjoy one more sunset from the clearing beyond the ,deerfield woods1 the place where she and ,dorothy were overtaken by that memorable thunder-shower4 ,mark ,hemenway did not confine himself so strictly to business these days as had heretofore been his custom1 and he was upstairs in his room when he spied ,miss ,barrington's lithe figure disappearing in the grove that skirted the grounds on the west4 ,the general superintendent had lately invested in a tall silk hat1 and it was this impressive bit of headgear that he donned as he left the house and followed1 at a discreet distance1 the form of the woman he meant to marry4 ,since ,hemenway had become rich this idea of marriage had strengthened wonderfully4 ,in a certain coarse way the man was handsome1 and the only class of women with which he had ever come in contact had readily welcomed his attentions4 ,he had supposed the lack of money would be the only drawback in the eyes of this his latest love1 and now that the lack no longer existed he was confident of success4 ,miss ,barrington followed the path very leisurely1 picking a flower or a fern here and there1 and softly humming a tune4 ,upon reaching the clearing she settled herself comfortably under her favorite tree and opened her book to read4 ,it was then that ,hemenway approached from the shadows of the path she had just left4 ,at the snapping of a dry twig ,miss ,barrington glanced up4 ,her first impulse was to laugh1 so absurd did the checkered trousers1 flaming watch-charm and silk hat look to her against the background of the cool green woods4 ,but the laugh was killed at birth by an angry objection that the man should be there at all4 ,even then she supposed him to be merely passing by and that he might stop for a word or two4 8,ah1 good afternoon1 ,miss ,barrington4 ,what a surprise to find you here10 fibbed ,hemenway1 advancing with easy confidence4 8,good afternoon1 ,mr4 ,hemenway40 ,miss ,barrington moved her book suggestively and lowered her eyes4 8,charming view you have here60 said the man4 ,no reply4 8,you have an interesting book there1 ,miss ,barrington80 8,i don't know--,i'm trying to find out10 replied ,miss ,barrington1 with calm but ineffectual rudeness4 8,um--delightful place to read6 ,nice day1 too40 ,no answer4 ,mr4 ,hemenway looked down approvingly at the lowered lids of the girl's eyes and1 blinded by his vast conceit1 mistook the flush of annoyance for the blush of maidenly shyness4 8,i never did like a girl to fling herself in my face10 he mused1 coming a little nearer4 8,well10 he said aloud1 8if you have no objections1 ,miss ,barrington1 ,i'll just stop a bit with you and enjoy this breeze10 and he cast himself at her feet in careful imitation of the attitude he had seen the fussy man with glasses assume only the week before4 ,miss ,barrington was speechless with indignation4 ,her first instinct was to spring to her feet1 but the paralysis of amazement that had struck her dumb had also rendered her1 for the moment1 incapable of motion4 ,a sudden determination to 8teach the man a lesson and stop once for all this insufferable persecution0--as her mind expressed it--followed1 and she remained passively quiet4 ,there was an uncomfortable silence that to any man but ,hemenway would have proved embarrassing4 8,er--,i believe ,i haven't told you10 he finally began1 8how kind ,i thought it was of you to interest yourself as you have in the miners40 8,it is not necessary that you should10 said ,ethel icily4 8,very becoming modesty60 thought ,hemenway4 ,aloud he said3 8,oh1 no1 not necessary1 perhaps1 but ,i want to do it4 ,it is a pleasure to me40 8,it is not one to me40 ,hemenway frowned4 ,there was such a thing as carrying this modesty too far4 8,your singing1 too--it was delightful60 he continued smoothly4 8,and so kind of you to do it60 ,miss ,barrington turned a leaf of her book with an unnecessary rustling of the paper4 8,feigning indifference10 commented ,hemenway to himself4 8,i've seen 'em do that before40 8,you looked so tired that night after the funerals4 ,i actually worried about you--you looked sick10 he said next1 in what was meant for tender tones4 ,miss ,barrington's eyes narrowed ominously as she replied3 8,mr4 ,hemenway1 my actions and my looks can have no possible interest for you4 ,i should be obliged if you would cease to consider them40 ,to ,hemenway's perverted fancy this was but a bit of shy bait4 ,he promptly took advantage of it4 8,on the contrary1 ,i have the very greatest interest1 my dear ,miss ,barrington--the very warmest interest4 ,i--,i--,miss ,barrington1 as you may be aware1 ,i am a rich man now40 8,that does not concern me in the least10 retorted ,ethel sharply4 ,a strange expression came over ,hemenway's face4 ,for the first time a doubt shook his egotistical content4 ,his eyes grew hard4 ,no maidenly shyness prompted that speech4 ,still--possibly she had not understood4 8,miss ,barrington1 it has long been in my mind to ask you to be my wife4 ,i love you1 and now ,i am rich ,i am confident ,i can make you----0 8,stop6 ,i won't even listen to you60 ,miss ,barrington was on her feet1 her eyes blazing4 ,hemenway rose and faced her4 ,all his polish dropped like a mask1 and the real man looked out from beneath angrily frowning brows4 8,you won't listen1 my fine lady8 ,and why not1 pray8 ,ain't ,i good enough to speak to you80 8,i hate you--,i despise you--oh1 ,i loathe the very sight of you60 shuddered ,ethel1 losing all control of herself4 8,now will you leave me in peace--or must ,i say more before you quite understand me80 ,hate--despise--loathe2 these words ,hemenway knew4 ,the delicate shafts of society sarcasm fell powerless against his shield of self-conceit1 but these heavier darts struck home and reached a vital point--his pride4 ,his face grew livid4 8,will you go80 repeated ,ethel impatiently1 not a quiver of fear in the scorn of her eyes--8or shall ,i80 she added4 8,neither one60 he retorted insolently4 ,for answer ,ethel wheeled and took two steps toward the path4 ,hemenway was at her side in an instant with a clutch on her wrist that hurt her4 8,coward60 she cried4 8,would you force me to scream for protection80 8,do so1 if you like--there's not a house within earshot1 and the inhabitants of this region are not given to walking for pleasure60 ,he released her wrist and stepped again in front of her4 ,the sharp throb of terror that paled ,ethel's cheek was followed by one of joy that sent the color back in surging waves--,hustler ,joe's shanty just behind those trees6 ,it was after six--he must be there4 ,if worst came to worst----6 8,mr4 ,hemenway1 this is altogether too theatrical4 ,i ask you again--will you let me pass80 8,if you think ,i am a man to be loathed and hated and despised with impunity1 young lady1 you are much mistaken4 ,no1 ,i won't let you pass--you'll listen to me4 ,i want none of your airs60 he finished sourly4 ,ethel's head bent in a scornful bow4 8,very well1 suppose we walk on1 then10 she said4 8,i'm tired of standing40 ,and she turned about and began walking in the opposite direction from the path that led toward home4 ,mark ,hemenway was suspicious of this sudden acquiescence4 ,he hurried to her side and looked sharply into her face4 8,none of your tricks1 young lady6 ,i mean business10 he snarled4 8,if you ain't willing to hear what ,i've got to say by fair means1 you shall by foul60 he added1 bringing a small revolver into view1 then slipping it back into his pocket4 ,ethel was thoroughly frightened4 ,she thought ,hemenway must be mad4 8,i should think you had stepped out of a dime novel1 ,mr4 ,hemenway10 she began1 trying to steady her shaking lips4 8,nobody wins a bride at the point of a pistol nowadays60 ,the trees that hid ,hustler ,joe's shanty from view were very near now4 8,then you needn't treat me as if ,i was nothing but the dirt under your feet10 he muttered sullenly1 already regretting his absurd threat of a moment before4 ,ethel suddenly darted forward and around the edge of the trees1 ran across the lawn and sprang up the steps of the shanty4 ,hemenway was close at her heels when she flung the door open with a bang and stood face to face with ,hustler ,joe4 8,will you please take me home80 she asked1 trying to speak as though she considered it a customary thing to invade a man's house and demand his escort in this unceremonious fashion4 8,mr4 ,hemenway is--busy and cannot go10 she added1 with a cheerful assurance due to the presence of the big-bodied miner at her side4 ,hustler ,joe instantly accepted the part she had given him to play4 8,i shall be glad to be of any service10 he said respectfully1 with ready tact1 but with a sharp glance at ,hemenway4 ,the general superintendent bowed to ,miss ,barrington with uplifted hat1 then turned and walked away4 8,please do not ask me any questions10 said ,miss ,barrington hurriedly to ,hustler ,joe as they left the house4 8,you had better take me by the path through the woods--it is the nearer way1 and will be less embarrassing than the main road would be for--both of us4 ,i know you think my conduct extraordinary1 but1 believe me1 ,i had good reason for asking your escort4 ,you--you always seem to be around when ,i need someone60 she concluded1 with an hysterical little laugh--the tension to which she had been keyed was beginning to tell on her4 8,no apology is needed10 demurred the man gravely4 8,i think ,i understand40 ,that walk was a strange one4 ,the sun had set and the woods were full of shadows1 and of sounds unheard in the daytime4 ,ethel was faint and nervous4 ,the miner was silent4 ,once or twice ,ethel spoke perfunctorily4 ,his answers were civil but short4 ,at the edge of the private grounds the girl paused4 8,thank you very much2 ,i shall not forget your courtesy10 she said1 hesitating a moment1 then resolutely offering her hand4 ,it was not the finger-tips the man touched this time--it was the hand from nail to wrist2 and his clasp quite hurt her with its fierceness4 8,miss ,barrington1 you thought me a brute the other day when you spoke so kindly to me1 and no wonder4 ,i can only beg your pardon--your words cut deep4 ,i am going to the mines tomorrow--the gold mines1 ,i mean4 ,i'm glad ,i had this chance to speak to you4 ,you were wrong1 ,miss ,barrington--,i--,i'm not the good man you think60 ,he dropped her hand and turned away4 8,i--,i don't believe it60 she called softly1 and fled1 swift-footed1 across the lawn4 99 99 99 99 99 ,mark ,hemenway did not appear at ,the ,maples that night4 ,a message from him received by ,mr4 ,barrington in the evening said that he had been suddenly called away on business connected with his gold mine2 that he would return soon1 however1 and would like immediately to make arrangements whereby he could sever his connection with the ,candria ,mining ,company1 as his new interests needed all his attention4 8,humph60 commented ,mr4 ,barrington4 8,i never saw a little money make such a dam fool of a man as it has of ,hemenway60 ,ethel's lips parted1 then closed with sudden determination4 ,twelve hours later she left for ,dalton without mentioning to her father her experience of the day before1 and within a week she had sailed from ,new ,york on a steamer bound for ,liverpool4 ,x ,the discovery of gold had made all the miners at ,skinner ,valley restless1 and ,hustler ,joe was among the first to take his wages and start for the promised bonanza4 ,hustler ,joe of the coal mines was still 8,hustler ,joe0 of the gold mines4 ,the same ceaseless1 untiring energy spurred the man on to constant labor4 ,the claim he staked out proved to be the richest in the place and wealth sought him out and knocked at his cabin door4 ,strange to say1 ,hustler ,joe was surprised4 ,he had come to the mines simply because they promised excitement and change4 ,he had thought1 too1 that possibly they harbored the peace and forgetfulness for which he so longed4 ,but peace had fled at his approach and wealth had come unasked4 ,man-like1 he regarded the unsought with indifference and gazed only at the unattainable2 whereupon wealth rustled her golden garments to charm his ears and flashed her bright beauty to dazzle his eyes4 ,still failing to win his heart1 she whispered that she--even she--was peace in disguise1 and that he had but to embrace her to find what he sought4 ,it was then that ,hustler ,joe yielded4 ,in a year he had sold half his claim for a fabulous sum4 ,the other half he retained1 and leaving it to be developed under the charge of expert engineers1 he left for ,skinner ,valley4 ,hustler ,joe had never forgotten the little hunchback pedler1 nor the debt of gratitude he owed him4 ,many a time in the old days at the coal mines he had tried to pay this debt1 but always1 in his own estimation1 he had failed4 ,so it was of ,pedler ,jim that he first thought when this new power of wealth came into his hands4 ,the news of ,hustler ,joe's good luck had not reached ,skinner ,valley1 and the man was in the same rough miner's garb when he pushed open the familiar door of the 8,emporium0 in search of ,pedler ,jim4 8,well1 if it ain't ,hustler ,joe60 exclaimed the hunchback delightedly4 8,you're a sight good fur sore eyes4 ,come back ter stay80 8,well1 awhile1 maybe4 ,how's the world using you these days1 ,jim80 8,oh1 fair--fair2 'tain't quite 's good as ,i'd like--but ,i ain't complainin'40 8,i wonder if anything would make you complain--,i never heard you10 remarked ,joe1 helping himself to a seat on the counter4 8,well1 now that ye mention it1 mebbe ,i don't much--,i hain't no need to4 ,my appetite's good an' my conscience is clear2 an' a clear conscience is----0 8,jim10 interrupted the miner sharply1 8did you ever hear of ,aladdin and his lamp80 8,huh8 ,oh1 the feller that rubbed it an' got what he wanted80 8,that's the chap40 8,well--s'posin' ,i have80 8,oh1 ,i only wondered what you'd ask for if you had one to rub40 8,gorry--,i wish't ,i had60 8,well1 what would you80 persisted ,joe1 his face alight4 8,what would ,i8 ,well1 ,i'll tell ye4 ,i'd buy the big house on the hill----0 8,what--,barrington's80 interrupted ,joe4 8,gee whiz1 no6 ,i mean the empty one that ,rotalick lived in2 an' ,i'd make it over into a hospital1 an' ,i'd add to it as ,i was able40 8,a hospital8 ,why1 there is one40 8,yes1 ,i know--the company's2 but the boys always have ter quit there long 'fore they're able4 ,they can't work1 an' if they laze 'round home it takes furever to git well--what with the noise an' the children an' all4 ,they crawl down here to the store1 an' my heart jest aches fur 'em1 they're so peaked-lookin'4 ,i'd have it all fixed up with trees an' posies an' places ter set1 ye know1 where they could take some comfort while they was gittin' well40 ,a moisture came into ,joe's eyes4 8,but how about yourself80 he asked4 8,you haven't rubbed out anything for yourself1 ,jim40 8,fur me8 ,gorry--if ,i jest had that lamp1 you'd see me rubbin' out somethin' fur me1 all right4 ,i've been wantin' ter send home a box ter the old folks--'way back in ,maine1 ye know4 ,jiminy ,christmas1 man1 there'd be no end ter the black silk dresses and gold-headed canes an' fixin's an' fur-belows that ,i'd rub out an' send to 'em60 ,hustler ,joe laughed2 then something came into his throat and choked the laugh back4 8,but all this isn't for you1 ,jim10 he remonstrated4 8,huh8 ,not fur me8 ,fur heaven's sake1 man1 who is it fur1 then80 ,the miner laughed again and slid off the counter4 8,you've got quite a store1 ,jim4 ,ever wish you had more room80 he asked abruptly4 ,pedler ,jim not only nibbled at the bait1 but swallowed it4 8,well1 ye see1 ,i'm goin' ter have the place next door when ,i git money enough and then ,i'll jine 'em together4 ,that'll be somethin' worth while10 he continued4 ,hustler ,joe easily kept him talking on this fascinating theme a full ten minutes1 then he prepared to take his leave4 8,let's see10 he mused aloud1 8you came from ,maine1 you say4 ,about where--the town1 ,i mean80 ,jim named it4 8,you say the old folks are living there yet80 ,jim nodded4 8,name is ,powers1 ,i suppose1 same as yours2 maybe you were named for your father1 eh80 8,no2 father's name was ,ebenezer1 an' mother objected--so it's #8,jim' ,i am4 ,why8 ,goin' ter dig up my family tree by the roots80 asked the little man whimsically4 8,not a bit of it60 laughed the miner1 looking strangely embarrassed as he hurried out the door4 8,monte ,cristo0 had been ,hustler ,joe's favorite tale in his boyhood days4 ,he thought of it now1 as he left the 8,emporium10 and the thought brought a smile to his lips4 ,a few days later ,pedler ,jim was dumfounded to receive a call from a ,westmont lawyer4 8,well1 my friend10 the man began1 8,i have a few little documents here that demand your attention40 ,pedler ,jim eyed the formidable-looking papers with some apprehension4 8,now see here1 sir10 he demurred1 8my conscience is perfectly clear4 ,i don't want nothin' to do with sech devilish-lookin' things as that60--his eyes on the big red seal4 8,i hain't never harmed no one--'tain't an arres'1 is it80 he added1 his voice suddenly failing him4 8,well1 hardly60 returned the lawyer1 chuckling to himself4 8,this1 my friend1 is the deed1 filled out in your name1 to the ,rotalick property on the hill back here2 and this10 he continued1 taking up another paper and paying no attention to the little hunchback1 who had dropped in limp stupefaction on to a packing-box1 8this is the deed--also made out in your name--to the building adjoining this store on the south4 ,mr4 ,balch1 the present occupant1 has a lease which expires in two months4 ,after that the property is at your disposal40 8,but where in thunder did ,i git it80 demanded ,pedler ,jim4 8,that is not my business1 sir10 said the lawyer1 with a bow4 8,well1 ,i'll be jiggered60 murmured the hunchback1 gingerly picking up one of the deeds and peering at it4 ,pedler ,jim was still further astounded to find that to his tiny bank account had been added a sum so large that he scarcely believed his eyes4 ,it was entered under the name 8,hospital ,fund40 ,following close upon all this came a letter from the folks at home3 ,dear ,jimmie3 ,what a good1 good son we have1 and how can we ever thank you6 78,dear ,jimmie0 looked blank47 ,the black silk1 so soft and rich1 will make up into such a beautiful gown--much too fine for your old mother1 ,jimmie1 but ,i shall be proud of it4 ,father is already quite puffed up with his lovely gold-topped cane4 ,nellie and ,mary and ,tom and ,john have divided up the pretty ribbons and books and sweetmeats to suit themselves1 as long as you didn't single them out by name4 78,no--,i'm blest if ,i did60 murmured ,jim47 ,we were proud and pleased to get the box1 ,jimmie1 both because the things were so beautiful and because you thought to send them4 78,i'll be hanged if ,i did60 muttered the hunchback1 scratching his head in his perplexity47 ,why don't you come on ,east and see us1 dear8 ,we wish you would4 ,then followed bits of neighborhood gossip and family news1 ending with another burst of thanks which left ,pedler ,jim helpless with bewilderment4 ,it was that night that ,somers was talking in the store4 8,yes1 he's rich--rich as mud1 they say1 an' ,i ain't sorry1 neither4 ,there ain't anyone ,i know that ,i'd as soon would have a streak o' luck as ,hustler ,joe40 ,pedler ,jim was across the room1 but he heard4 8,rich6 ,hustler ,joe rich60 he demanded1 springing to his feet4 8,that's what he is60 8,jiminy ,christmas60 shouted the hunchback4 8,i've found him--he was the lamp himself60 ,,xi ,it was in ,dalton1 the nearest large city to ,skinner ,valley1 that ,hustler ,joe began his career as a rich man4 ,he built him a house--a house so rare and costly that people came from miles around to stare and wonder4 ,society not only opened its doors to him1 but reached out persuasive hands and displayed its most alluring charms4 ,she demanded but one thing--a new name3 8,hustler ,joe0 could scarcely be tolerated in the aristocratic drawing-rooms of the inner circle6 ,he gave her 8,westbrook10 and thenceforth 8,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook0 was a power in the city4 ,he was petted by maneuvering mamas1 flattered by doting papas1 and beamed upon by aspiring daughters2 yet the firm lips seldom relaxed in a smile1 and his groom told of long night rides when the master would come home in the gray of the morning with his horse covered with mud and foam4 ,but society cared not4 ,society loves a ,mystery--if the ,mystery be rich4 ,when ,joseph ,westbrook's mansion was finished and furnished from cellar to garret and placed in the hands of a dignified1 black-robed housekeeper at the head of a corps of servants1 and when his stables were filled with thoroughbreds and equipped with all things needful1 from a gold-tipped whip to a liveried coachman1 ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook himself was as restless and ill at ease as ,hustler ,joe had been in the renovated shanty on the hillside4 ,the balls and the dinners--invitations to which poured in upon him--he attended in much the same spirit that ,hustler ,joe had displayed in loitering in ,pedler ,jim's 8,emporium0--anywhere to get rid of himself4 ,but if the inner man was the same1 the outer certainly was not2 and the well-groomed gentleman of leisure bore little resemblance to the miner of a year before4 ,on the night of the ,charity ,ball ,westbrook had been almost rude in his evasion of various unwelcome advances1 and he now stood in the solitude for which he had striven1 watching the dancers with sombre eyes4 ,suddenly his face lighted up2 but the flame that leaped to his eyes was instantly quenched by the look of indifference he threw into his countenance4 ,coming toward him was ,ethel ,barrington1 leaning on the arm of her father4 8,mr4 ,westbrook10 said the old gentleman genially1 8my little girl says she is sure she has seen your face somewhere1 so ,i have brought her over to renew old acquaintance40 ,someone spoke to ,john ,barrington then1 and he turned aside1 while ,westbrook found himself once more clasping a slim firm hand1 and looking into a well-remembered pair of blue eyes4 8,you are----80 8,hustler ,joe10 he supplied quietly1 his eyes never leaving her face4 8,i knew it60 she exclaimed1 her pleasure frankly shown4 8,i never could forget your face10 she added impulsively1 then colored in confusion as she realized the force of her words4 ,but his tactful reply put her immediately at ease and they were soon chatting merrily together1 closely watched by many curious eyes4 ,society never had seen ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook in just this mood before4 8,father did not recognize you10 said ,ethel1 after a time4 8,no2 ,i was introduced to ,mr4 ,barrington at the ,essex ,club a week ago4 ,i hardly thought he would remember ,hustler ,joe4 ,you have just returned1 ,miss ,barrington80 8,a month ago--from ,europe1 ,i mean2 mother is there yet4 ,america looks wonderfully good to me--,i have been away from it the greater part of the last two years1 you know4 ,when ,i came home to ,dalton ,i found the name of ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook on every lip4 ,you seem to be a very important personage1 sir10 she laughed4 8,a little gilding goes a long way1 sometimes10 he replied1 with a bitter smile4 8,but there must have been something to gild60 she challenged4 8,mr4 ,westbrook1 for the last two weeks ,i have been at ,the ,maples--have you been down to ,skinner ,valley lately80 she asked1 with peculiar abruptness4 8,not for some months40 8,there are some changes in the village40 8,yes80 8,that poor little deformed storekeeper has bought the ,rotalick house and has turned it into the dearest little convalescents' home imaginable40 8,is that so80 murmured ,westbrook1 meeting ,miss ,barrington's gaze with a face that was innocently noncommittal4 8,pedler ,jim always was kind to the boys40 8,so it would seem2 still--someone must have helped him in this10 she suggested1 her eyes on his again4 8,do you think so8 ,possibly6 ,i am wondering1 ,miss ,barrington1 if we might not find it cooler over there by the window4 ,will you allow me to escort you80 8,perhaps we might10 she smilingly assented4 8,perhaps we could find some subject of conversation other than ,hustler ,joe's generosity to ,pedler ,jim1 too--we might try60 ,she threw him a merry glance1 which he answered with a shrug of his shoulders4 8,indeed1 ,miss ,barrington1 you quite overestimate anything ,i may have had to do in the matter4 ,it was entirely ,pedler ,jim's idea4 ,how about the reading-room80 he suddenly asked1 mentioning ,miss ,barrington's latest gift to the miners1 8and the kindergarten class1 and the----0 8,ah--please60 interrupted the girl1 with hand upraised in laughing protest4 8,i acknowledge myself vanquished at my own game4 ,i'll talk about--the weather1 now1 if you like10 she finished dutifully4 ,westbrook laughed1 but before he could reply ,miss ,barrington was claimed by a tall young fellow for the next dance4 8,i wonder10 he mused as he saw them glide gracefully into the waltz--8,i wonder if dancing belongs to those things one never forgets4 ,i'll have to brush up my old steps--and learn some new ones10 he added1 after a pause4 ,from the night of the ,charity ,ball the world appeared in new colors for ,westbrook4 ,he did not stop to question the cause of all this change4 ,if wealth were lifting her disguise and showing a glimpse of peace1 he was too rejoiced to care to ask the reason4 8,i wish you'd come up to the house some time10 said ,john ,barrington to ,westbrook one evening soon after the ,charity ,ball4 8,i'd like to talk with you--we can't make any headway in this infernal racket60--the 8infernal racket0 in question being the high ,c's and low ,g's of some world-famous singers at a particularly exclusive musical4 ,westbrook smiled4 8,thank you2 ,i should be only too happy40 8,then call it tomorrow night--to dinner4 ,seven o'clock40 8,i will--and thank you10 said ,westbrook after a momentary hesitation4 ,to his daughter ,john ,barrington said a little later3 8,oh1 ,i've invited ,mr4 ,westbrook up to dinner tomorrow night40 8,mr4 ,westbrook60 8,why1 yes--why not8 ,you seem surprised40 8,gilding does count1 doesn't it1 father dear80 8,eh8 ,gilding8 ,my dear1 ,i don't know what you mean4 ,i know he's rich as mud--if that's what you're talking about2 but he's got more than money--he's got brains4 ,he knows as much about mines as ,i do6 ,i like him--he's worth a dozen of the youths that usually flutter about you40 8,perhaps he is10 laughed ,ethel1 the color in her cheeks deepening4 ,that was but the first of many visits4 ,barrington was urgent1 ,ethel charmingly cordial--and ,westbrook1 nothing loth4 ,,xii 8,i'm in search of a good lawyer10 said ,westbrook to ,john ,barrington one day4 8,can you recommend one to me80 8,indeed ,i can4 ,i have in mind the very man--he's been doing a little work for me1 and he is very highly spoken of40 8,that sounds about ,o4 ,k4 ,who is he80 8,that's just the point10 laughed the older man2 8the name's escaped me4 ,he's from the ,east--hasn't been here very long4 ,i'll tell you what--,i'll bring him into your office tomorrow4 ,will that do80 8,it will--and thank you40 ,westbrook's 8office0 was something new4 ,a life of leisure was becoming wearisome2 consequently he invested in various bits of real estate1 opened an office1 put a man in charge1 and of late had himself tended strictly to business1 such time as he could spare from his social engagements4 ,it was into this office that ,mr4 ,barrington came one morning accompanied by a short1 smooth-faced man whose garments were irreproachable in style and cut4 8,ah1 ,westbrook10 began ,barrington1 8let me introduce ,mr4 ,martin1 of ,martin ,gray1 the lawyer of whom ,i was telling you yesterday40 ,again the room and all it contained--save the figure of ,martin himself--faded from ,westbrook's sight1 and he saw the ,new ,england street with the lawyer's sign in the foreground4 ,the next moment the vision was gone1 and he had extended a cordial hand4 8,i'm very glad to meet ,mr4 ,martin10 he said1 looking the lawyer straight in the eye4 8,mr4 ,westbrook--delighted1 ,i'm sure10 murmured the little man suavely2 then1 in a puzzled tone1 8have ,i had the honor of meeting you before1 ,mr4 ,westbrook8 ,there is something familiar about you40 8,is there80 began ,westbrook1 but ,john ,barrington interrupted4 8,there1 ,martin1 you've hit my case exactly6 ,he's puzzled me a thousand times with a little turn or twist that's like someone ,i've seen4 ,dash it--who is it80 8,my features must be cast in a common mold10 laughed ,westbrook1 8to remind so many of one they know40 8,um--ah--well--,i shouldn't want to say quite that60 retorted ,barrington4 8,well1 gentlemen10 he resumed after a pause1 8,i'll leave you to your own devices4 ,i'm off--good morning40 8,good morning1 and thank you10 replied ,westbrook1 rising4 8,i've no doubt ,mr4 ,martin will prove a credit to your introduction10 he concluded as he bowed the elder gentleman out4 ,then he turned to the lawyer and began the business at hand4 99 99 99 99 99 ,in his own room that night ,westbrook carried a small mirror close to the light and scrutinized himself for some minutes4 8,h'm10 he mused1 8hair rather gray for a man not yet thirty2 still--it looks less like that of a youth of twenty40 ,he stroked his carefully trimmed beard meditatively4 8,hides the telltale mouth and chin pretty well10 he murmured4 8,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook can stay where he is for the present1 ,i think40 ,the next evening ,westbrook called at the ,barringtons'4 ,he found ,ethel and ,mr4 ,martin at the piano singing a duet which they continued at his solicitation4 ,then the two musicians drifted into a discussion of ,martin's favorite composer1 which was like a foreign language to ,westbrook4 ,after a half-hour of this the lawyer took his leave4 ,westbrook drew a long breath1 but it was caught and stifled in half completion by ,miss ,barrington's first remark4 8,what a fine voice he has60 8,er--yes1 very40 8,and his knowledge of musical matters is most unusual1 too40 8,that so80 8,yes4 ,he says he wanted to make music his profession1 but his parents objected2 so he took up law40 8,indeed10 murmured ,westbrook without enthusiasm4 8,yes1 but he talks of musicians as glibly as though he had read ,grove as much as ,blackstone4 ,i haven't had so good a time discussing my pet composers for many a day40 ,westbrook stirred restlessly1 and his hostess suddenly became aware of the hopelessly lost look in his eyes4 ,she promptly changed the subject4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it was the very next day that ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook appeared in the leading book-store of the city4 8,i want some lives of musicians10 he announced4 8,i beg pardon80 8,books1 ,i mean--lives of musicians40 8,oh1 certainly1 of course10 apologized the clerk4 8,which ones80 8,why--er--the best ones1 to be sure40 ,westbrook's voice faltered at first1 but it vibrated with the courage of his convictions at the last4 ,the clerk suddenly turned his back1 and when ,westbrook next saw his face it was an apoplectic shade of reddish purple4 8,certainly1 sir4 ,bach1 ,beethoven1 ,handel1 ,haydn1 ,mendelssohn1 ,mozart1 ,chopin----0 8,yes1 yes1 put me up one of each10 interrupted ,westbrook hastily2 he was growing suspicious of the clerk4 ,he left the store with more dignity than he usually displayed4 ,the real estate business would have suffered in the next few days had it depended entirely upon ,westbrook1 for the greater share of his time was spent in poring over the recent addition to his library4 ,at the end of a month he was sadly entangled in a bewildering maze of fugues1 sonatas1 concertos and symphonies1 in which the names of ,bach1 ,beethoven1 ,haydn1 ,handel1 ,mendelssohn1 ,mozart and ,chopin were hopelessly lost4 ,,xiii ,westbrook often met the lawyer at the ,barringtons' after that first visit4 ,martin's music and ,martin's voice seemed to be unfailing attractions in the eyes of ,miss ,barrington4 ,westbrook studied his 8lives0 assiduously1 but only once did he venture to take any part in the discussions of composers which were so frequent between ,miss ,barrington and the lawyer4 ,that once was sufficient to show him how hopeless was the task he had set for himself2 and ever after he kept a discreet silence on the subject of music and all that pertained thereto4 ,as the winter passed1 ,westbrook was seen more and more frequently in the company of ,miss ,barrington4 ,his eye had lost its gloom and his step had gained a new springiness4 ,just why1 ,westbrook did not stop to consider4 ,indeed1 the considering of anything was what the man most wished to avoid4 ,it was on a beautiful morning in ,may that he asked ,miss ,barrington to drive with him4 ,the air that brushed his cheek was laden with the fragrance of green-growing things1 and the girl at his side had never seemed so altogether lovely4 ,he let the reins loosen in his hands as he settled back for an hour of unalloyed enjoyment4 8,i am particularly glad to take this drive today10 remarked ,miss ,barrington1 smiling into his eyes1 8for1 as ,i go away tomorrow1 ,i may not have another opportunity of enjoying one at present40 8,what80 demanded ,westbrook1 suddenly sitting upright4 8,i merely said ,i was going away tomorrow10 she returned merrily1 picking out with intuitive skill that portion of her remark which had so startled him4 ,then something in his face made her add--8for the summer1 you know40 ,westbrook pulled the reins taut and snapped the whip sharply4 ,going away6 ,of course2 why not8 ,what of it8 ,yes1 what of it1 indeed6 ,long days fraught with sudden emptiness loomed up before him and stretched on into weeks devoid of charm4 ,he understood it all now--and he a felon6 ,he could hear a girl's voice saying1 8,i knew you were a good man the minute ,i saw your face60 ,unconsciously he shrank into the corner of the carriage1 and was only brought to a realization of his action by a voice--amused1 yet slightly piqued--saying3 8,really1 ,mr4 ,westbrook1 ,i hardly expected so simple a statement would render you speechless60 8,speechless8 ,no1 oh1 no--certainly not6 ,i beg your pardon1 ,i'm sure10 he said1 talking very fast4 8,you're going away1 you tell me4 ,it is needless to assure you that we shall all miss you very much4 ,where do you go1 if ,i may ask--and how long are you to remain80 ,and he turned to her with eyes so full of misery that she could scarcely believe she had heard his words aright4 ,before she could answer there came the wild1 irregular clattering of unguided horses' feet4 ,westbrook turned quickly to see two frightened animals rushing toward them dragging a swaying empty carriage4 ,by a swift and skilful turn he just escaped the collision1 but ,ethel ,barrington felt the hot breath of the beasts as they flew past4 ,in another moment their own startled horse had dashed after the runaways with speed scarcely less than their own4 ,westbrook brought all his great strength to bear1 then--the right rein snapped4 ,the horse swerved sharply1 throwing the man to his knees4 ,the next moment he was crawling cautiously1 but rapidly1 over the dashboard on to the thill1 then to the back of the frightened animal1 where he could grasp the dangling broken reins4 ,one strong pull1 and the horse stopped so suddenly that the man shot over her head to the ground2 but he did not relax his hold1 and the trembling animal stood conquered4 ,westbrook turned to look into the shining eyes of the girl1 who had leaped from the carriage and come close to his side4 8,oh1 that was wonderful6 ,but--my ,god6 ,i thought you'd be killed10 she cried1 holding out two trembling hands1 then sinking to the ground and sobbing out her nervousness and relief4 ,the man looked down at her with yearningly tender eyes4 ,involuntarily he extended his hand as though to caress the bowed head2 but he drew back shuddering--that hand had forfeited all right to such a touch4 ,the look in her eyes had thrilled him to his finger-tips1 but it as quickly stabbed him with the revelation that not he alone would suffer4 8,miss ,barrington1 don't1 ,i beg of you10 he said finally1 in a voice that was stem with self-control4 8,you are completely unnerved--and no wonder40 ,then he continued more gently1 8,but see--,firefly is quiet now4 ,will you dare to drive home behind her if ,i can manage somehow to mend the reins80 ,a vivid color flamed into the girl's cheeks and she rose unsteadily to her feet4 8,yes1 indeed10 she asserted1 forcing her trembling lips to speak firmly4 8,i am ashamed of myself4 ,i hope you will pay no attention to my babyishness1 ,mr4 ,westbrook40 8,you were not babyish1 ,miss ,barrington10 objected ,westbrook gravely2 8on the contrary you were very brave40 ,but as he helped her into the carriage he averted his eyes and refused to meet her questioning gaze4 ,all the way home ,ethel ,barrington talked with a nervous volubility quite unlike herself4 ,westbrook made an effort to meet her brilliant sallies with something like an adequate return1 but after two or three dismal failures he gave it up and lapsed into a gloomy silence broken only by an occasional short reply4 8,i expect my friends will come this evening to say good-bye--,i shall see you1 shall ,i not80 she asked gaily as she gave him her hand in alighting at her own door4 ,before ,westbrook fully realized what the question was1 he had murmured1 8,yes1 certainly02 but when he drove away he was muttering1 8,fool1 what possible good can it be to you now8 ,just suppose she knew you for what you are80 ,ethel entered her door and slowly climbed the stairs to her room4 8,he cares2 ,i know he does60 she exclaimed under her breath4 8,but why--why couldn't he--80 ,then the conscious red1 that was yet half in pique1 flamed into her cheeks and she shrugged her shoulders disdainfully4 ,when ,westbrook called that night she gave him a gracious hand and looked frankly into his eyes with the inward determination to 8have no more nonsense02 but her eyelids quickly fell before his level gaze and she felt the telltale color burning in her cheeks4 ,she was relieved when her father broke the awkward silence4 8,well1 ,westbrook1 we shall miss you--we've got so we depend upon seeing you about once in so often4 ,we shall be in ,skinner ,valley in ,august4 ,you must plan to run down to ,the ,maples then and make us a visit4 ,i should like to show you the mines40 8,thank you10 replied ,westbrook1 glancing toward the door and1 for the first time in his life1 welcoming the appearance of ,martin4 ,martin advanced1 smilingly sure of his welcome1 nor did he notice that ,miss ,barrington's greeting was a shade less cordial than usual4 ,his coming was the signal for an adjournment to the music-room1 and there ,westbrook sat with clouded eyes and unheeding ears while the air about him rang with melody4 ,after a time he was conscious that the music had stopped and that ,ethel was speaking4 8,i think ,i never heard of anything so horrible60 she said4 ,from ,martin's next words ,westbrook gathered that they were talking of a particularly atrocious murder that had been committed in the city the night before4 ,then the girl spoke again1 her voice vibrating with feeling4 8,oh1 but ,mr4 ,martin--only think of a human being fiendish enough to attack his own son60 ,westbrook tried to rouse himself1 to speak1 to move2 but he seemed bound by invisible cords4 ,his head was turned away from the speakers1 but he saw their reflection in the mirror facing him1 and he noticed that the lawyer's gaze was fixed across the room upon himself with a peculiar intentness as he said3 8,yes1 incredible1 ,i grant1 ,miss ,barrington2 and yet1 in a little ,new ,england town of my acquaintance a boy of twenty shot down his own father in cold blood at their own fireside40 8,oh1 don't1 ,mr4 ,martin--the human fiend60 shuddered ,ethel4 ,the lawyer's eyes did not waver2 a strange light was coming into them4 8,a human fiend1 indeed10 he repeated softly1 half rising from his chair4 ,something seemed to snap in ,westbrook's brain1 and he forced himself to his feet4 8,your music set me to day-dreaming10 he began1 with a smile as he crossed the room1 8and your creepy murder stories awoke me to a realization that the sweet sounds had stopped4 ,come0--he looked straight into ,martin's eyes--8some time you may tell me more of this gruesome tale--,i am interested in studies of human nature4 ,no doubt you meet with many strange experiences in your business2 but now ,i want you to sing #8,calvary' for me4 ,will you1 please8 ,then ,i must go40 ,martin rose to his feet with a puzzled frown on his face and picked up a sheet of music from the piano4 8,thank you10 said ,westbrook1 when the song was finished4 ,then he turned to ,ethel with extended hand4 8,i hope you will have a pleasant summer10 he said in stilted politeness4 8,you are very kind4 ,shall ,i wish you the same80 ,her voice and her fingers were icy4 ,her pride was touched1 and she expressed no hope as to their future meeting1 and certainly ,westbrook dared not4 ,he left the house with a heart that was bitterly rebellious1 and the blackness outside seemed to him symbolical of his own despair4 ,that night1 and for long nights afterward1 he rode over the hills outside the city4 ,little by little his life dropped back into the old rut4 ,all the new warmth and brightness faded with the going of ,miss ,barrington1 and he threw himself into business with a zeal that quickly brought 8,westbrook ,company0 into the front rank and filled his purse with yet greater wealth--wealth which he had come to hate1 and for which he had no use4 ,,xiv ,one morning1 long after sunrise1 ,westbrook entered the outskirts of the city and allowed his tired beast to slow to a walk4 ,in one of the poorest streets of the tenement district he saw a white-faced woman1 a group of half a dozen puny children and a forlorn heap of clothing and furniture4 ,he was off his horse in a moment1 and a few kindly questions brought out the information that they had been evicted for arrears in rent amounting to thirty dollars because the woman had been too ill to work4 ,he straightway paid the sleek little agent not only the amount due1 but also a year's rent in advance and rode away1 followed by a volley of thanks and blessings from the woman4 ,he did not know that ,martin was the landlord and that he came out of the tenement in time to hear the details of the incident fresh from his agent4 ,as ,westbrook turned the corner of the dingy street a curious elation took possession of him4 ,how the sun shone--how exhilarating the air was6 ,how his heart beat in tune with it all6 ,what was this new joy that seemed almost to choke and suffocate him8 ,was this the shadow of peace at last8 ,he threw the reins to the groom with so beaming a smile that the man scratched his head meditatively for a full half-minute4 8,faith1 an' what's got into the master80 he muttered as he led the horse to the stable4 ,in the days that followed society was treated to a new sensation--the ,mystery turned into a ,philanthropist4 ,a school1 a library and a hospital were under way in a wonderfully short time4 ,did ,westbrook hear of anyone wanting anything--from a toy to a piano or a dinner to an education--he promptly bought and presented it4 ,the result was disastrous4 ,there came a constant stream of beggars to his door1 varying from those in rags asking a nickel to bank presidents demanding a million--for 8investment10 of course2 furthermore1 he was obliged to hire two private secretaries to attend to his mail4 ,in ,august came a cordial note from ,mr4 ,barrington inviting him to ,the ,maples for a two weeks' visit4 ,the stiffly worded refusal which ,westbrook despatched by return mail threw ,john ,barrington into a state of puzzled dissatisfaction1 and ,john ,barrington's daughter into a feeling of unreasoning anger against the world in general and ,joseph ,westbrook in particular4 ,the anger was not less when1 two months later1 ,westbrook called on the ,barringtons just four weeks after they had come up to their town residence in ,dalton4 ,it was not a pleasant call4 ,westbrook was stilted1 ,mr4 ,barrington plainly ill at ease1 and ,ethel the personification of chill politeness2 yet she became cordiality itself when ,martin appeared a little later4 ,she chatted and laughed with the lawyer and sent merry shafts of wit across the room to ,westbrook and her father4 ,but when ,westbrook had gone she lapsed into bored indifference and monosyllables4 ,mr4 ,barrington was called from the room after a time1 leaving his daughter and ,martin alone4 ,the lawyer broached subject after subject with unvarying ill success1 even music itself failing to awaken more than a passing interest4 ,at last he said abruptly3 8,queer chap--that ,westbrook60 8,queer8 ,why80 almost snapped ,miss ,barrington4 ,martin raised his eyebrows4 8,how can you ask80 he returned4 8,you've seen him--you know him60 ,miss ,barrington gave the lawyer a swift glance4 ,just what did he mean8 ,had he noticed the change in ,westbrook's manner--his indifference--his coldness8 ,did he think that she----8 ,miss ,barrington laughed softly4 8,indeed1 yes1 ,mr4 ,martin1 ,i do know him--slightly1 perhaps2 but #8queer' is not the adjective ,i would have applied to him40 ,the lawyer leaned forward4 8,miss ,barrington1 what do you know of him8 ,did it ever occur to you how very little any of us know of this man80 ,the lady stirred uneasily4 8,really1 ,mr4 ,martin1 ,i know him for a gentleman1 as you do--,i might also add that he is quite a noted philanthropist1 of late10 she added teasingly4 8#8,philanthropist6'0 scorned the lawyer4 ,miss ,barrington's manner instantly changed4 8,mr4 ,westbrook is doing a world of good with his money2 ,i admire him for it10 she said with decision4 8,oh1 of course10 returned the man smoothly4 8,still1 ,i wonder why--this sudden generosity60 8,sudden8 ,it's a long time since ,i first heard of ,mr4 ,westbrook's good deeds1 ,mr4 ,martin10 replied ,miss ,barrington1 a vision of ,pedler ,jim and his hospital rising before her eyes4 8,h'm-m10 murmured the lawyer1 his level gaze on her face1 8you knew him before1 perhaps--this man they--er--call #8,westbrook4'0 ,the lady sprang to her feet and crossed the room to the piano4 8,oh1 fie1 ,mr4 ,lawyer60 she laughed nervously4 8,i'm no poor victim on the witness stand4 ,come--let's try this duet40 ,the man followed her and leaned his elbow on the piano1 but he did not pick up the music nor take his eyes from her face4 8,you have known him before1 then--under his other name1 of course10 he hazarded4 ,a swift red came into ,ethel's cheeks4 8,perhaps--perhaps not6 ,i really do not care to discuss it40 ,and she wheeled around upon the piano-stool and dashed into the prelude of the duet4 ,martin waited until her hands glided into the soft ripple of the accompaniment4 8,then you1 of all people1 ,miss ,barrington10 he began again1 8should know that this philanthropic mummery is nothing but a salve for his conscience4 ,admirable1 ,i'm sure60 ,the music stopped with a crash4 8,what do you mean80 she demanded4 8,i don't know what you are talking about1 with your miserable innuendoes40 ,martin's face paled4 8,innuendoes60 he burst out1 losing his temper2 8then ,i'll speak plainly1 since you demand it6 ,since when1 ,miss ,barrington1 have you made a practice of shielding--murderers80 ,he regretted the word the instant it had left his lips1 but he forced himself to meet ,miss ,barrington's horrified gaze unflinchingly4 8,murderer60 she gasped4 8,hustler ,joe was no murderer60 ,at that moment ,mr4 ,barrington re-entered the room and ,martin turned to him in relief4 ,five minutes later he had made his adieus and left the house4 ,,xv ,murderer6 ,ethel fled to her room and locked the door1 but the word laughed at bolts and bars4 ,it looked from the walls and the pictures and peeped at her from the pages of the book she tried to read4 ,she opened the window and gazed up at the stars1 but they1 too1 knew the hated word and spelled it out in twinkling points of light4 ,murderer8 ,ah1 no1 it could not be--and yet---- ,away back in ,ethel's memory was a picture of the ,deerfield woods that skirted the lawn at ,the ,maples4 ,she saw the tall1 grave-faced miner and the imperious girl1 and even now the words rang in her ears--8,i'm not the good man you think1 ,miss ,barrington60 ,half-forgotten tales of 8,hustler ,joe's queerness0 came to her1 too1 and assumed an appearance of evil4 ,and was this to be the explanation of that ride--that ride on which she had almost betrayed herself only to be met by stern words of conventionality8 ,was this the meaning of the infrequent calls1 the averted face1 the eyes so misery-laden if by chance they met her own8 ,a murderer8 ,ah1 no1 no6 ,he was so good--so kind--so brave6 ,there were ,pedler ,jim1 the miners whose lives he had saved1 and the multitudes of the city's poor to give the lie to so base a charge2 and yet--,martin had said that these very benefactions were but a lullaby to a guilty conscience4 ,the night brought ,ethel no relief4 ,the dark was peopled with horrid shapes2 and sleep1 when it came1 was dream-haunted and unrefreshing4 ,in the morning1 weary and heavy-eyed1 she awoke to a day of restless wandering from room to room4 ,twenty-four hours later her trunk was packed and she was on her way to ,the ,maples4 ,it was at about this time that ,westbrook's philanthropy took a new turn4 ,he began to spend long hours in the city prison while society looked on and shrugged disdainful shoulders4 ,the striped-garbed creatures behind the bars seemed to possess a peculiar fascination for him4 ,he haunted their habitation daily1 yet he never failed to shudder at every clang of the iron doors4 ,particularly was he kind to those outcasts from human sympathy--the murderers4 ,so far did he carry this branch of his charity that the authorities ventured to remonstrate with the great man one day1 telling him that he was putting a premium on the horrible crime4 ,they never forgot the look that came over the beneficent ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook's face as he turned and walked away4 ,it was on that night that the servants said he sat up until morning in his library1 raging around the room like some mad creature1 so that they were all afraid1 and one came and listened at the door4 ,there he heard his master cry out3 8,my ,god--is it not enough8 ,is there no atonement--no peace80 ,then there was a long1 quivering sigh1 and a noise as of a clinched hand striking the desk1 and a low muttered1 8,oh1 the pitiless ,god of ,justice60 ,in the morning ,westbrook left the house before breakfast and boarded the eight o'clock train for ,skinner ,valley4 ,,xvi ,westbrook had gone back to ,skinner ,valley for a talk with ,pedler ,joe1 having it in his mind to tell the little hunchback his life story as that of a friend of his and so get the benefit of sound advice without quite betraying his secret4 ,but the door opened suddenly and ,bill ,somers burst into the store4 8,there's another blow-up at the mine60 he gasped thickly4 8,an' the old man's daughter--she----0 8,what old man's daughter80 demanded ,westbrook1 his lips white4 8,she--,barrington's girl--is down there in that hell6 ,she went in with her friends at two o'clock4 ,they----0 8,which entrance80 thundered ,westbrook1 with his hand on the door4 8,beachmont6 ,they----0 ,westbrook dashed down the steps and across the sidewalk1 whipped out his knife and cut loose a horse from the shafts of a wagon in front of the store4 ,the next moment he had mounted the animal and was urging it into a mad run toward the ,beachmont entrance of the ,candria mine4 ,again did he face a crowd of weeping women and children crazed with terror2 but this time there stood among them the bowed form of the great mine-king himself4 ,john ,barrington's lips were stern and set1 and only his eyes spoke as he grasped ,westbrook's hand4 ,once more did a band of heroic men work their way bit by bit into the mine1 fighting the damp at every turn under ,westbrook's directions4 ,barrington had looked at the preparations in amazement4 8,how comes it that this ,westbrook1 this millionaire1 knows the mine so well80 he stammered4 ,a woman standing near--,bill ,somers's wife--answered him4 8,that's ,hustler ,joe1 sir10 she said softly4 ,hustler ,joe6 ,john ,barrington drew a deep breath as the memories of the ,bonanza catastrophe came to him4 8,thank ,god for ,hustler ,joe60 he breathed fervently4 8,if anyone can save my little girl1 'tis he60 8,you're right1 sir--an' he'll do it1 too10 returned the little woman1 her eyes full of unshed tears4 ,,xvii ,slowly1 so slowly1 the rescuers worked their way into the mine4 ,one by one the unconscious forms of the miners were borne back to fresh air and safety4 ,but no trace could be found of ,miss ,barrington and her band of sightseers4 ,at last1 far down a gallery1 ,westbrook heard a faint cry4 ,with an answering shout of reassurance he dashed ahead of the others and came face to face with ,ethel ,barrington4 8,you60 she cried4 8,yes1 yes2 you're not hurt80 ,she shook her head and leaned heavily against the wall4 ,the reaction was making her head swim4 8,and your friends80 8,here0--she pointed to the ground almost at her feet4 8,they're not hurt--they fainted40 ,stalwart miners poured into the narrow chamber and lifted the prostrate forms1 leaving ,westbrook to follow with ,miss ,barrington4 ,that young lady still leaned against the wall4 8,i--we should be going2 can you--let me help you10 stammered ,westbrook4 8,oh1 ,i can walk10 she laughed nervously1 making a vain attempt to steady her limbs as she moved slowly away from her support4 ,westbrook caught her outstretched hand and passed his disengaged arm around her waist4 8,miss ,barrington1 you're quite unnerved10 he said1 his voice suddenly firm4 8,pardon me1 but you must accept my assistance40 ,and he half carried1 half led her down the long gallery1 at the end of which they could hear the steps and voices of their companions4 ,all the misery of the last few days fled from ,ethel's mind4 ,she was conscious only of the strength and bravery and tenderness of the man at her side4 ,martin's hated words became as phantoms of a past existence4 8,you--you haven't told me how you came to be here today1 ,mr4 ,westbrook10 she began again1 a little hysterically4 8,i thought you were in ,dalton40 8,i came down this morning10 he said4 ,then added softly1 8,thank ,god60 ,ethel was silent for a moment4 ,when she spoke again her voice shook4 8,as usual1 ,mr4 ,westbrook--you are near when ,i need you6 ,if ,i am ever in danger again1 ,i shall promptly look for you4 ,now see that you do not disappoint me60 she added with assumed playfulness1 trying to hide her depth of feeling4 ,they had almost reached the turn when a distant rumble and vibrating crash shook the walls about them1 throwing ,westbrook and ,miss ,barrington to the ground4 ,it was some time before the man could stagger to his feet and help his companion to stand upright4 8,what--what was it80 she gasped4 ,westbrook advanced two steps only to come sharply against a wall of earth and timbers4 8,my ,god--the roof is fallen60 he cried4 ,she came close to his side4 8,then there was another explosion80 8,yes40 8,but they will find us80 8,that wall may be--0 he stopped abruptly4 8,many feet in thickness1 ,i know10 she supplied4 8,and the damp--if it should enter the gallery from the rear--0 his voice choked into silence4 8,i know--,i understand4 ,but--we are together60 ,she laid her hand on his arm4 ,he caught the hand and held it in both his own1 then slowly raised it and laid the soft palm against his lips4 8,ethel--,ethel--may ,god forgive me60 he whispered brokenly4 ,she swayed dizzily1 and he caught and held her close4 8,i--,i think ,i am going to faint10 she murmured4 8,i----0 ,his arms tightened their clasp and her head drooped until it lay in the hollow of his shoulder4 8,ethel1 darling--only one little word6 ,ah1 sweetheart--,i've loved you so60 ,she raised her hand and just touched his cheek with her fingers1 then let her arm fall about his neck4 ,his head bent low and his lips closed over hers as she drew a long1 quivering sigh4 8,may ,god forgive me10 he breathed1 8but 'tis the end--the end60 ,,xviii ,when ,ethel ,barrington regained consciousness she was in her own bed at ,the ,maples1 but it was a full two days after that before they let her ask the questions that so often came to her lips4 ,it was her father who finally answered her4 8,yes1 dear1 you were unconscious when the miners found you4 ,westbrook could barely speak4 ,why1 girlie1 when that second crash came and the miners realized that ,hustler ,joe--as they insist upon calling that remarkable man--was himself imprisoned1 they swarmed into that mine like ants and attacked the fallen wall like madmen6 ,those that had no pickaxe clawed at the dirt and stones with their naked fingers40 8,and--,mr4 ,westbrook80 8,is all right and has been here every day to inquire for you and to bring you these10 replied ,mr4 ,barrington1 with a wave of his hand toward the sumptuous red roses on the table4 ,the girl's eyes lingered on the flowers and her cheeks suddenly glowed with a reflection of their vivid color4 8,he is very kind10 she murmured as she turned her face away4 ,for a week ,westbrook and his roses made daily calls4 ,at the end of that time it was reported to him that ,miss ,barrington was feeling quite like herself4 ,the next morning ,westbrook did not appear1 but his roses came in charge of a boy together with a note for ,miss ,barrington4 ,the missive bore no date1 no salutation1 but plunged at once into its message4 ,that ,i should address you at all is an insult1 but my cowardly weakness when we were last together makes it a greater insult for me to keep silence now4 ,i have waited until you were quite recovered before giving you this1 for ,i know that it will give you pain--and that it will give you pain is at once my greatest curse and my greatest joy4 ,that ,i should have dared to love you is despicable1 but that ,i should have allowed you to give me even one tender thought in return is dastardly--and yet1 nothing in heaven or hell can take from me the ecstasy of that one moment when your dear lips met mine6 ,forgive me--think kindly of me if you can1 for--,god help me--,i am going away1 never to look on your face again4 ,i was a boy of twenty when ,i committed the sin against ,god and man that has made my life a thing of horror4 ,for years ,i have sought for peace2 adventure1 work1 wealth1 philanthropy--each alike has failed to bring it4 ,i am going now to my boyhood's home to receive my just punishment4 ,ah1 ,ethel1 ,ethel1 my lost love--what can ,i say to you8 ,i have but words--words--empty words6 ,i can see the horror in your dear eyes4 ,i am not worthy of even the thought of you1 and yet1 my darling1 oh1 my darling1 were it not for this dread shadow on my life1 ,i swear ,i would win you for my darling in very truth6 ,but now--,god help me--farewell6 ,there was no name signed1 but this ,ethel did not notice until she had read the note three times with her tear-dimmed eyes2 then she whispered3 8,poor fellow6 ,he could not sign #8,westbrook' and he would not sign--the other40 ,much to ,john ,barrington's amazement1 his daughter insisted upon going to town on the noon train that day4 ,in response to his persistent objections she assured him that she felt 8perfectly well and quite equal to a journey around the world1 if necessary40 ,at four o'clock ,lawyer ,martin was surprised by an urgent note summoning him to the ,barringtons' ,dalton residence on ,howard ,avenue4 ,half an hour afterward he was ushered into the presence of ,miss ,barrington herself4 ,the interview was short1 sharp and straight to the point4 ,a few hours later ,miss ,barrington and her maid boarded the eight o'clock express for the ,east4 ,,xix ,twenty-four hours passed after ,westbrook had sent his letter to ,miss ,barrington before he could so arrange his affairs as to start for the little ,new ,england village of his boyhood4 ,all day and all night he had worked with feverish haste1 and the time had flown on wings of the wind2 now1 when he was at last on the morning 8,limited10 the hours seemed to drag as though weighted with lead4 ,he could see it all--the proud new name he had made for himself dragged low in the dust4 ,he knew just how society would wonder and surmise2 just how the maneuvering mamas would shake their skirts in virtuous indignation and how the doting papas would nod their heads in congratulation over a miraculous escape4 ,he knew how the poor and friendless in the great city would first deny the charge1 then weep over the truth4 ,he knew1 too1 the look that would come to the faces of the miners1 and he winced at even the thought of this--,hustler ,joe had prized his place in the hearts of his miner friends4 ,there was one on whom he dared not let his thoughts rest for a moment2 yet it was that one's face which seemed ever before his eyes1 and it was that one's voice which constantly rang in his ears4 99 99 99 99 99 ,again the sun had set and it was twilight in the little ,new ,england village4 ,the street had not changed much--the houses were grayer and the trees taller1 perhaps4 ,as he neared the familiar gate1 he saw in the window the face of a silver-haired woman4 ,was that his mother--his dearly beloved mother of long ago8 ,she turned her head and he was answered4 ,after all1 would it not be better to pass on and away again1 rather than to bow that gray head once more in grief and shame8 ,his steps lagged and he almost passed the gate4 ,then he drew a long breath1 turned sharply1 strode up the path and pulled the bell4 ,the sweet-faced woman opened the door4 ,the man's dry lips parted1 but no sound came1 for from an inner room advanced ,ethel ,barrington with a gray-haired man whose kindly face wore a strangely familiar smile4 8,what is it1 wife8 ,is it--,paul80 he asked in tremulous tones4 ,,epilogue ,it was long hours afterward that ,paul ,joseph ,weston sat with ,ethel alone in the library4 8,but yourself1 dear--you have not told me yet how you came to be here10 he said4 ,she laughed softly4 8,rash boy6 ,was there not need of someone's preparing your father and mother for so wonderful a home-coming8 ,i found out by judicious inquiry that you had not yet left the city1 so ,i knew1 when ,i took the train1 that ,i had at least a few hours' start of you40 8,but how--what--how could you1 dear8 ,surely ,i didn't tell----0 ,again she laughed1 but this time she dimpled into a rosy blush4 8,when your very disquieting letter came1 sir1 ,i remembered something ,mr4 ,martin had once said to me4 ,i went to town1 sent for ,mr4 ,martin and insisted upon his telling me all that he knew of--your youth40 8,and that was80 8,that he believed you to be ,paul ,weston1 who had quarreled with his father and run away after apparently killing the poor gentleman4 ,mr4 ,martin said that the father did not die1 but slowly recovered from his wound and made every possible effort to find his son1 even sending ,martin himself to seek for him4 ,once ,martin traced the boy to a mining camp1 but there he lost the trail and never regained it until he thought he saw ,paul ,weston's features in ,joseph ,westbrook's face40 8,ethel1 what did ,martin first tell you of me that caused you to go to him for aid80 8,he hinted that you were a--ah1 don't make me say it1 please60 ,the man's face grew stern4 8,and he knew all the time it was false60 he cried4 ,she put a soft finger on his tense lips4 8,we just won't think of him--and really1 ,i've forgiven him long ago1 for it was he that helped me in the end1 you know4 ,besides1 he acknowledged that he didn't really suppose you were ,paul ,weston4 ,i--,i fancy he didn't want me to think too highly of this interesting ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook60 she added saucily4 ,the arm that held her tightened its clasp4 8,he needn't have worried10 she continued1 with uptilted chin4 8,i shall never1 never marry ,mr4 ,joseph ,westbrook60 8,ethel60 8,but if ,hustler ,joe or ,paul ,weston should ask----0 ,her lips were silenced by a kiss and a fervent1 8,you little fraud of a sweetheart60 ,interludes ,the rich man speaks about how he spends his money1 while his friends speak about how he made it4 99 99 99 99 99 ,you could tell the old-time hero by his medals2 the modern one is known by his collection of loving-cups4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the spendthrift sometimes does more good with his money than the philanthropist4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the fact that figures won't lie probably accounts for the invention of statistics4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a political job differs from any other kind1 inasmuch as you work before you get it1 instead of afterward4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the miser holds on to his own money2 the millionaire to other people's4 99 99 99 99 99 ,his ,cogitation 8,well1 then1 amongst others1 there's the man who habitually talks to himself10 ruminatingly said the ,pruntytown ,philosopher the other evening4 8,if he does it in order to listen to himself1 he is a fool2 if he does it to avoid listening to his friends1 he is a sage2 and if he does it to save his friends from listening to him1 he is a philanthropist40 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,safe ,side ,,reporter--,were you quoted correctly in that interview in the morning papers8 ,,senator--,come around the day after tomorrow4 ,how can ,i tell until ,i see how the interview is going to be taken8 99 99 99 99 99 ,an ,inference 8,my wife and ,i have lived happily together for twenty-five years40 8,now1 tell me1 old fellow--in confidence1 of course--which one of you has had the other bluffed all this time80 ,the ,constitution ,,by ,,frederick ,,upham ,,adams ,author of 8,the ,kidnapped ,millionaires10 8,colonel ,monroe's ,doctrine10 8,president ,john ,smith10 8,shades of the ,fathers10 etc4 ,the practical man values a house not by its antiquity1 but by its conformability to modern standards of construction and equipment4 ,if he purchases an ancient structure he is not required to pay an added price because of its lack of plumbing1 its absence of gas and electric lighting fixtures1 and he is not entranced that its roof leaks and that its cellar is damp and moldy4 ,this same man1 if he gives the subject a passing thought1 will likely assure you that the ,constitution of the ,united ,states is a perfect document because it is more than one hundred years old4 ,it also is likely that this is the extent of his information concerning that famous document4 ,the average lack of knowledge concerning our ,national ,constitution is astounding4 ,like children who have been drilled to repeat the ,lord's ,prayer without the faintest conception of what the petition means1 we have mentally drilled ourselves to believe that our ,constitution is perfect1 that it was inspired by a superhuman wisdom1 and that it is treason to criticize or even discuss its infallible precepts4 ,in this respect we are the most narrow1 bigoted and prejudiced people who pretend to keep in alignment with progress4 ,for more than one hundred years we have been proclaiming the perfection of our free governmental institutions1 and calling on other nations to admire us and to follow our example4 ,within the past few years the truth has been forced home on us that the officialdom of our townships1 villages1 cities1 counties1 states and of the nation is maggoty with corruption2 that our local1 state and national legislatures are openly controlled by mercenary private interests2 that the scandals concerning our judiciary can no longer be smothered or concealed2 that our citizens are powerless to pass laws demanded by the majority1 or to defeat those aimed to despoil the majority2 that the burdens of taxation are spurned by those who have amassed wealth by means of unfair and ofttimes purchased legislation1 and that the domination of corporations and vested interests is so complete as to be apparent to the dullest of the plundered4 ,this language is not exaggerated4 ,it is impossible to overstate the enormity of the depth to which we have descended in the scale of political morals4 ,ten years ago any one of the disclosures which now are made from week to week would have aroused the nation2 today the repetition of these horrors dazes those who attempt to keep track of them4 ,not one crime in a hundred ever sees the light in printer's ink4 ,the bigger thieves are so buttressed and protected by the fortifications of wealth1 and so secure behind the barbed wire entanglements woven by the courts1 that their enraged dupes cannot reach them4 ,great ,britain is a republic in all save name1 yet no such conditions prevail under its government4 ,france is a republic1 yet its people are not despoiled by official brigands1 neither is the free expression of its electorate crushed beneath the massed weight of its moneyed interests4 ,i count it a disgrace to be an ,american so long as these degrading conditions prevail4 ,it is a dishonor to live in a city1 community1 state or nation where thievery is condoned or tolerated1 and it is cowardly weakness for the honest majority to assume that the problem of corruption is past their solving4 ,the most formidable barrier in the way of permanent redress has been erected and is maintained by those who are checked by it4 ,it consists of the absurd assumption that our material prosperity has been the consequence of the perfect provisions of our ,national ,constitution4 ,it is manifested in the senseless worship of the forefathers1 and the ignorant deification of the founders of the document1 which for more than a hundred years has served as a model for our state1 municipal and local governments4 ,we have come to recognize the hopelessness of honest majorities when pitted against the machinery of our municipal governments2 we no longer deny that the cumbersome machinery of our state governments lends itself to the manipulation of corrupt private interests2 the suspicion has dawned on us that our ,national ,congress is more concerned with thwarting public sentiment than in conforming to it2 and despite all this knowledge we steadfastly refuse to direct our gaze to the prime cause of these abuses4 ,with a hundred monopolies filching from us that which we have created--and doing it under the guise of law and by sanction of the ,constitution2 with legislatures1 executives and courts scorning to put into operation those remedies for which we have legally voted--and declining to do so under the authority of the ,constitution2 with a system of taxation which places all the burdens on those who are poor because they are producers of wealth1 and releasing from taxation those who have become rich because of their exploitation of labor and through the debauching of its representatives--this system being founded on constitutional decisions--we yet cling to the childish delusion that ours is the only perfect government ever bequeathed to mankind4 ,compared with the governments of ,england and ,france we have only the semblance of self-rule1 while they possess the substance4 ,the people of ,germany have more direct influence over legislation than have those of the ,united ,states4 ,despite an autocratic emperor1 surrounded as he is by a nobility and protected by the most powerful standing army in the world1 the people of ,germany have made greater progress along the road of democracy within the last twenty years than we have4 ,if in ,england there is valid reason to believe that the majority of the people hold an opinion counter to that of the administration in power1 ,parliament is dissolved and a direct appeal is made to the voters for a new body of representatives4 ,the new ,parliament meets and proceeds to pass the laws demanded by the electorate4 ,there is a ,house of ,lords1 but it does not dare reject a measure known to be popular4 ,there is a king1 but he has not exercised his veto power for more than a century and a half1 and one need not be a prophet to hazard that he never will exercise it again4 ,there is no supreme court in ,england4 ,in that benighted monarchy when the people pass a law it is a law1 and not a guess4 ,to all intents and purposes the same procedure obtains in ,france and in a score of other countries which might be named4 ,ours is the only country on earth where the vote of a citizen has no direct significance4 ,we are not permitted to vote for a ,president1 but are allowed to help choose electors who represent not us1 but the state4 ,there is no such thing as a citizen of the ,united ,states1 so far as the franchise is concerned4 ,if you have a vote it is by grace of the state in which you reside4 ,the ,constitution does not recognize your individual sovereignty in any way4 ,if you doubt this assertion read that document4 ,the state fixes your qualifications as a voter4 ,it might debar you because of your sex1 because of your height1 because you were not worth #ajj1jjj1 and you would have no redress under the ,constitution of the ,united ,states4 ,possibly you did not know this4 ,in practice you are privileged to vote for members of the ,lower ,house of ,congress4 ,that is the beginning and the end of your influence so far as your national government is concerned4 ,you have nothing to do with the selection of senators1 and ,i doubt if you are consulted as to the composition of the ,supreme ,court4 ,as ,i have explained1 if the ,lower ,house of the ,legislature in ,england passes a law1 it at once becomes a law4 ,under our ,constitution the ,senate has the power to amend or defeat it4 ,this is supposed by us to be the quintessence of all earthly legislative wisdom4 ,this is ,check ,number ,one on the mandate of the foolish people4 ,in passing1 ,i desire to repeat that this is the only alleged republic or constitutional monarchy yet remaining on earth which assumes that its majorities are unfit to influence legislation4 ,if the measure demanded by the people be so fortunate as to pass the ,house and ,senate1 the ,president may veto it4 ,this is ,check ,number ,two on the mandate of the foolish people4 ,if the ,president sign the measure the ,supreme ,court may declare it unconstitutional1 and that is the end of it1 unless a subsequent infallible ,supreme ,court should overrule the decision of the first infallible ,supreme ,court4 ,this is ,check ,number ,three on the mandate of a free and enlightened people4 ,in the event that the ,supreme ,court should decide that a law is a law1 the financial interests adversely affected may and do defeat its enforcement by legal quibbles as to details1 or may and do resort to the bribery of the officials charged with the execution of the law4 ,these are ,checks ,numbers ,four and ,five on the will of the people in this1 the one perfect system of popular government ever designed in all history4 ,we are the most corrupt nation on earth because of 8our peculiar form of ,government02 because of the exactions and limitations of a ,constitution which was designed to protect and conserve the interests of property rather than of citizenship4 ,those who are astounded or offended at this statement need only read the record of the convention which drafted the ,constitution in order to satisfy themselves as to its moderation4 ,i do not mean to insinuate that the fifty-five delegates who met in ,philadelphia in #aghg had any idea of establishing a system which would foster corruption1 but the records absolutely prove that they deliberately planned to suppress the rule of the majority in order that popular clamor might not menace property interests4 ,the train of abuses from which we now suffer flow logically from the checks they then provided2 checks which place selfish and corrupt wealth beyond the reach of public redress4 ,those foolish persons who have been taught in school and in the public prints that the founders of our ,constitution were sincerely desirous of establishing a system of government in which the will of the people should find free expression1 will be shocked and undeceived when they read its debates and proceedings as recorded by ,james ,madison1 one of the delegates from ,virginia4 ,when one comes to learn of these fifty-five delegates that not more than ten are on record as voicing the slightest degree of confidence in the wisdom of the people or their fitness to rule1 he is likely to take a new view of the ,constitution framed by them1 and he is able to account for the innumerable ills which we are compelled to suffer4 ,i will quote a few expressions of opinion from delegates who wielded the greater influence in the construction of the ,constitution3 ,roger ,sherman--8,the people should have as little to do as may be about the ,government40 ,elbridge ,gerry--8,the evils we experience flow from an excess of democracy1 the worst of all possible evils40 ,john ,dickinson--8,a limited monarchy is one of the best governments in the world40 ,rufus ,king--8,it is immaterial to the people by what government they are possessed1 provided they be well employed40 ,alexander ,hamilton--8,the ,british monarchy is the best government in the world10 and he doubted if anything short of it would do in ,america4 8,their ,house of ,lords is a most noble institution40 ,alexander ,hamilton--,he acknowledged himself not to think favorably of republican government4 8,inequality in property constitutes the great and fundamental distinction in society40 ,gunning ,bedford--8,are we to act with greater purity than the rest of mankind8 ,our votes are actuated by interest and ambition40 ,gouverneur ,morris--8,the ,senate must have great personal property2 it must have the aristocratic spirit2 it must love to lord it through pride4 ,to make it independent it should be for life4 ,property is the main object of society40 ,john ,rutledge--8,property certainly is the principal object of society40 ,pierce ,butler--8,slaves should have an equal representation in a government which is instituted principally for the protection of property1 and is of itself to be supported by property40 ,charles ,c4 ,pinckney--8,property in slaves should not be exposed to danger in a government instituted for the protection of property40 ,george ,mason--8,it would be as unnatural to refer the choice of a proper character for ,president to the people as to refer a test of colors to a blind man40 ,james ,madison--8,in future times a great majority of the people will not only be without landed but any sort of property4 ,if they combine1 the rights of property will not be safe in their hands40 ,james ,ellsworth--8,as population grows1 poor laborers will be so plenty as to render slaves useless40 ,the thirteen delegates1 from whom ,i have quoted were the dominating characters in that convention1 and it is possible to cite innumerable passages expressing the same distrust and contempt for the people4 ,it should be understood that the great mass of the people had no representation in that secret conclave1 and that half a century passed before its proceedings were made public by ,act of ,congress4 ,i have touched on these facts for the purpose of indicating clearly that the right to ignore the majority is inherent in the ,constitution4 ,the ,senate was provided for the special benefit of property interests1 and at one time a clause was adopted1 decreeing that no one could be elected a ,senator of the ,united ,states unless he was worth #ej1jjj or more4 ,this cautious provision was abandoned because there were states which had no men with that amount of property4 ,having provided a ,senate they continued to pile up checks against the people1 until such aristocrats as ,gerry1 ,randolph and ,mason attempted to call a halt1 declaring that the people would be so stripped of power that the last of their rights would disappear4 ,their warnings were disregarded1 and they absolutely refused to sign their names to the document4 ,with these facts within access of every citizen of the ,united ,states1 the vast majority of us still adhere to the myths and falsehoods contained in our school books and uttered by ignorant demagogues and editors4 ,it is likely that the aristocratic delegates who framed the ,constitution had just reason to fear the people it was intended to hold in check4 ,the average citizen of #aghg was a savage compared with the average voter of today4 ,he knew of no world beyond the narrow limit of his horizon4 ,he was ignorant1 prejudiced1 suspicious and envious4 ,the builders of the ,constitution regretted that it was necessary to grant him even the shadow of political power and were consumed by the dread that the ,lower ,house of ,congress would overawe all other branches of the new government4 ,in that day wealth had little influence as a mass1 but it was strong in its instinct of self-preservation4 ,it trembled lest the poor should combine at the polls in a crusade for the legal despoiling of the rich4 ,having absolute control of the convention it was free to design a document which would include every possible check against the aggressions of the dreaded masses1 and it rightly conjectured that the magic of the name of ,washington would induce the people to consent to the provisions aimed against them4 ,we of today are caught in the trap set for those who lived more than a hundred years ago4 ,not until after the nation had been plunged into a civil war between two factions--each of which claimed strict allegiance to the ,constitution--did conditions arise which afforded a fair test of the restrictive features of that document4 ,so long as the wealth of the nation was so distributed as to prevent the formation of conspiracies in its behalf1 the masses were able to conserve their rights1 despite all of the checks and restrictions in the ,constitution4 ,it was this fairly maintained state of equilibrium which half a century ago gave rise to the worship of our system of government4 ,when the first unscrupulous man found himself in possession of millions of dollars the ,constitution became not his master but his tool4 ,when the officials of our first great corporation found it practical to bribe legislation1 the trap set by the forefathers was sprung4 ,i do not mean to hint that the founders of the ,constitution foresaw any such outcome4 ,they constructed a device to protect themselves1 and their bones had crumbled into dust before wealth was sufficiently armed and equipped to take advantage of their mistakes4 ,wealth seized upon the senates1 state and national4 ,it found in the judiciary a natural ally1 and it did not hesitate to invoke the aid of partisanship and the unblushing use of corrupt influences1 direct and indirect1 in order to subject the courts to its domination4 ,this is a blunt statement1 but the time has arrived when the courts can no longer be covered with a machine-made robe of sanctity4 ,there are good judges and bad judges1 but the decisions of the latter are as binding as those of the former4 ,a corporation judge is not a priest2 he is a low type of politician4 ,our aristocratic forefathers designed a ,constitution intended to protect themselves against a majority4 ,our modern corporations and vested interests have discovered that the same machinery oiled with bribery can be used by the minority for the purpose of plundering the majority4 ,our forefathers invented checks2 our trusts have converted them into bludgeons4 ,our forefathers constructed constitutional ramparts1 behind which they hoped to be safe from the attacks of the majority2 our vested interests have bristled them with guns1 behind which they demand and receive tribute4 ,,note--,in the ,may number ,mr4 ,adams will treat of the necessity for the revision of the ,constitution1 and consider how it may legally be accomplished4 ,in ,absence ,,by ,,eugene ,c4 ,,dolson ,with miles between us--miles of land and sea1 ,however far my wandering footsteps roam1 ,still memory ever backward turns to thee-- ,queen of my heart and home4 ,in ,outline 8,many a man complains that he lost his health in business1 although he was not in business for his health40 99 99 99 99 99 8,the quickest way to get to the top in this world is to have someone let you in on the ground floor40 99 99 99 99 99 8,money often fails to bring happiness1 on account of the way it has been made40 99 99 99 99 99 8,the world may owe you a living1 but you have to work hard to collect the debt40 99 99 99 99 99 8,one-half the world doesn't care how the other half lives40 99 99 99 99 99 8,the man who courts an investigation has generally been making love to other people's money40 99 99 99 99 99 ,not ,guilty ,,tavern ,,lounger--,that 'ere smooth-shaved1 horse-faced feller jest goin' into the dinin'-room looks like an actor4 ,,landlord--,yes2 but you bet yer life he ain't one6 ,he came day before yesterday1 paid his bill in advance1 and ain't kicked about anything yet6 99 99 99 99 99 ,a ,discovery 8,i have looked the matter over with reasonable care10 said the ,pruntytown ,philosopher1 with his usual acridity1 8and ,i have reached the conclusion that it is not absolutely necessary to send boys to college in order to have 'em act the fool40 99 99 99 99 99 ,a ,one-,sided ,alliance ,,judson--,do you think capital and labor will ever work together8 ,,budson--,it looks that way4 ,at the present time the landlord and the tenants seem to be both engaged in raising the rent4 99 99 99 99 99 ,at the ,zoo ,,the ,,parrot--,the eagle says he has been bald ever since he can remember4 ,,the ,,cockatoo--,gee-whiz6 ,those eagles marry very young1 don't they8 ,the ,gray ,weed ,,an ,,extract ,,from ,,the 8,,london ,,times0 ,,of ,,february #h1 #aiji ,,by ,,owen ,,oliver ,owing to the lamented death of ,professor ,newton1 to whose wisdom and courage the world owes its deliverance1 ,i have been asked to contribute to the first newspaper issued in the new era some account of the terrible weed which overran the earth1 and threatened to stifle out mankind4 ,the professor had intended dealing with the origin of the weed1 its relations to ordinary plants1 the nature of its growth1 so far as this proceeded1 and the forms which it would ultimately have assumed4 ,unfortunately his notes upon these points are so abbreviated and technical as to be unintelligible to me2 and personally ,i possess no qualifications for dealing with the scientific aspects of the case4 ,so ,i must confine myself to a plain narrative of the occurrences which ,i witnessed4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it was nine o'clock in the evening of ,november #aj1 #aijh1 when ,i left my office in ,norfolk ,street1 letting myself out with a duplicate key which the hall-porter had intrusted to me4 ,i thought at first that it was snowing2 but when ,i put out my hand and caught a few of the particles1 ,i found that they were flimsy white seeds1 something like those of melons1 only less substantial4 ,where they lay in heaps--as ,i thought--in the road1 their color appeared to be gray4 ,at the ,embankment end of the street the 8heaps0 were larger2 and when ,i came to them ,i discovered that they were not seeds1 but a growth of gray weed1 which fastened round my shoes as ,i tried to walk over it4 ,i stooped and took hold of a piece to examine it2 but1 when ,i attempted to pluck it1 it stretched like elastic1 without breaking off4 ,the tendrils were round1 and about one-fourth of an inch in diameter when not stretched4 ,they had1 at intervals1 spherical bulges which1 at a distance1 bore the appearance of small berries4 ,these appeared to be of the same substance as the tendrils4 ,the latter began twining round my fingers1 and ,i had some difficulty in releasing them4 ,the road and the ,embankment were deserted by people1 but three or four horses at the cab stand were plunging with fright as the weed wound round their legs4 ,it had grown perceptibly in the few minutes that ,i had been observing it1 and1 feeling somewhat alarmed1 ,i made my way back along ,norfolk ,street4 ,the weed had spread a good deal there also2 and ,i noticed that wherever a white seed fell a fresh plant sprang up1 and grew with marvelous rapidity4 ,in the ,strand the weed was nearly a yard high4 ,the 'bus drivers were whipping their frightened horses in a vain attempt to drive over it4 ,the foot-passengers were unable to move1 except a big man1 who1 with a small axe1 hacked a passage through the growth for himself1 his wife and his daughter--a pretty girl of about nineteen4 ,they were making their way down to the ,embankment1 but ,i warned them that the weed was thick there4 ,the young lady then suggested that they should try to get into one of the houses1 and ,i invited them to come to my offices4 ,the tendrils were seizing people and pulling them down and binding them like flies in a spider's web4 ,we could hear cries and screams all along the ,strand1 and a cab was upset by the struggles of the horse4 ,the weed had spread over ,norfolk ,street1 while we were talking1 and it clung to our feet as we ran4 ,the lady tripped and fell4 ,the tendrils seized her immediately1 and we had great difficulty in freeing her4 ,when we had entered the door of the house we could not close it until we had chopped away the tendrils that followed us4 ,i turned on the electric light in the halls1 and took my new friends to my rooms1 which were on the fifth floor4 ,the elder lady was faint1 and ,i gave her some brandy and soda and biscuits4 ,i had a good stock of these fortunately4 ,the gentleman's name was ,george ,baker1 his wife was ,marian ,baker1 and the girl was ,viva4 ,they had been buying curiosities in the ,strand1 and the axe--a roughly engraved ,moorish instrument--was fortunately among their purchases4 ,some people whom they met in the streets had told them that the weed was growing all over ,london1 and that the ,guards had been ordered out to cut it away4 ,a learned old gentleman had conjectured that the seeds were the atoms of some dissipated planet1 or the elements of some world that was to be1 and that they contained the raw elements of life1 which set them growing when they came into contact with suitable matter4 8,it's diabolical60 ,mr4 ,baker said furiously4 8,the vestries ought to send round water-carts with weed-killer1 or--or something4 ,i don't know what they ought to do2 but they ought to do something40 ,he wiped his face excitedly with his handkerchief4 8,diabolical60 he repeated4 8,it grows through the flagstones1 the wood paving1 everything4 ,it--it seizes people60 8,seizes people60 his wife repeated1 wringing her hands4 8,we saw it40 8,it clings to you10 the girl added tremulously4 8,clings to you4 ,if it goes on growing----60 ,her mother gave a sharp scream1 and her father groaned4 8,if it goes on growing--60 they said together4 8,it won't10 ,i assured them1 with an indifferent appearance of confidence4 8,those things that grow like--like fungi--never do4 ,it will shrivel up suddenly1 and let people go again4 ,i don't suppose they're really hurt1 only frightened4 ,in an hour or so you'll be on your way home1 and laughing about it2 and ,i shall be thanking the--the fungus--for some pleasant acquaintances4 ,i look upon this as a little surprise party40 ,the girl wiped her eyes and forced a smile4 8,a little surprise party10 she agreed4 8,what are you going to do for our entertainment1 ,mr4 ,adamson8--,i saw the name on the door-plate40 8,henry ,adamson10 ,i said1 8and very much at your service1 ,miss ,viva--,i have some cards1 but----0 ,i paused doubtfully4 ,her mother held up a trembling hand1 and her father shook his head4 8,we won't have any fool's games10 he said4 8,let's talk40 ,viva and ,i talked in broken sentences1 and her mother and father in monosyllables4 ,we kept glancing at the window1 but no one had the courage to draw up the blind for nearly an hour4 ,then we opened the window and looked out4 ,the weed was fully six feet high in the street1 and higher in the ,strand4 ,it had overrun the 'bus that stood at the opening4 ,if there were people on the 'bus1 it had overrun them1 too4 8,it doesn't seem to hurt10 ,i said4 8,there's no screaming now40 ,i shuddered as soon as ,i had said it4 8,there is no screaming now10 ,viva repeated4 8,i suppose they--they are all----0 ,her voice broke4 ,her father shut the window sharply and drew her away4 8,it will be gone in the morning10 he asserted1 8as--as our friend said4 ,we shall have to impose on your hospitality for the night1 ,i am afraid1 ,mr4 ,adamson40 8,there is no question of imposing10 ,i assured him4 8,i cannot say how glad ,i am to have your company40 ,we made a couch for the ladies by putting several hearth-rugs on the table in the clerks' room1 and laying two rugs of mine to cover them4 ,mr4 ,baker and ,i dozed in front of the fire in my room in chairs4 ,toward the morning ,i fell into a sounder sleep4 ,when ,i woke he had pulled up the blind4 8,it's fifteen feet high at least10 he told me4 8,halfway up the second windows4 ,god help us60 ,i joined him and saw the roadway filled with a sea of gray weeds4 ,they looked like india-rubber reeds4 ,the largest were as thick as my little finger1 and the bulges were the size of damsons4 ,we opened the window and listened4 ,presently a caretaker opened a window nearly opposite and called to his wife4 8,here's a rum go1 ,mary10 he shouted1 with a laugh4 8,bulrushes growing to the street6 ,we sha'n't have any clerks pestering us today40 ,the woman joined him1 and they laughed together because they would have a holiday4 ,they treated the matter as a joke1 and evidently disbelieved us when we told them of the terrible events of the preceding night4 ,so we closed the window and called the ladies4 ,i made some tea on my ring-burner1 and we breakfasted on that and biscuits4 ,the ladies avoided the window1 and so did ,i1 but ,mr4 ,baker went to it every few minutes4 ,after each visit he whispered to me that it was still growing4 ,mrs4 ,baker seemed in a stupor1 but ,viva tried hard to cheer us4 ,she sang little snatches of song under her breath as she washed the tea-cups2 and once she said that it was great 8fun40 ,her mouth trembled when ,i looked reproachfully at her4 8,mother is so nervous10 she whispered4 8,i have to pretend1 to cheer her4 ,do you think it will--grow80 8,heaven knows60 ,i said4 8,but you are very brave40 ,after this1 she and ,i sat at the window1 watching the tendrils growing and growing1 and clutching incessantly at the air4 ,i thought1 at first1 that they were swaying in the wind1 but there was no breeze4 ,also there was an indescribable air of purpose about their movement4 ,a number of long branches spread themselves over a window opposite4 ,their swaying ceased1 and they pressed on it steadily1 till at last it broke with a dull crash4 ,mrs4 ,baker fainted1 and her husband lifted her on to the sofa4 ,viva clung to my arm4 ,the malicious tendrils broke down the window-frame1 piece by piece1 and spread slowly into the room1 winding themselves round the tables and chairs4 8,if anyone had been there10 ,viva cried hoarsely4 8,if--if--0 ,she looked at me4 ,her eyes were big with fright4 8,they must be doing something to stop it10 ,i said--8the--the authorities4 ,if we could find out6 ,i'll try the telephone40 ,after several calls ,i obtained an answer4 ,it was a girl's voice4 ,six of them had stayed all night in the exchange1 she said4 ,they were in communication with the police and the ,government ,offices4 ,the soldiers had been out since the previous evening1 and had cut their passage from ,chelsea ,barracks to ,victoria ,street1 and along this almost to ,westminster ,bridge4 ,they had intended coming on to ,whitehall and the ,strand2 but the stuff grew almost as quickly as it was cut down1 and had overpowered many of them4 ,over a hundred had been crushed to death by it1 and they had sent for gun-cotton to try and blow it up1 as a last resort4 ,it was known1 through the telegraph1 that the weed had appeared all over ,england and on the ,continent4 ,it was also growing out of the sea4 ,the ,english ,channel was choked in places1 and several vessels had been bound by the weed in sight of the coast4 8,it's alive60 she wailed2 8alive6 ,its eyes are watching us through the windows60 7,the bulges had the appearance of eyes47 ,i was unable to obtain any further answers1 although ,i tried the telephone several times4 ,by one o'clock the third-story windows were covered4 ,the thickest tendrils were then nearly the diameter of a florin1 with the bulges the size and shape of exceedingly large plums4 ,the stems and bulges seemed to be of one homogeneous material4 ,there were no leaves or fruit or flowers at this time1 but branches were beginning to sprout from the main stems4 ,there did not appear to be any communication between one stem and another2 but1 according to ,professor ,newton's notes1 this undoubtedly took place at the roots1 which interlaced so as to form a gigantic nervous system or brain4 ,we made another meal of tea and biscuits4 ,mrs4 ,baker seemed stupefied with horror1 and her husband was evidently overcome by his anxiety for her1 and scarcely spoke4 ,viva and ,i tried to talk1 but our voices broke off in the middle of words4 ,we listened vainly for any explosions1 and concluded that the attempt at rescue had failed4 ,by four o'clock the weed was up to the window-sill4 ,mrs4 ,baker was in a prolonged faint4 ,her husband sat beside her1 with his head on his hand4 ,he did not look up when ,i suggested carrying her out on the roof4 8,the cold would rouse her10 he said4 8,it is best as it is4 ,you're a good chap1 ,i think4 ,do what you can for my little girl40 ,i put on my overcoat1 crammed the pockets with biscuits and a flask1 and persuaded ,viva to accompany me to the roof to look for a way of escape1 for us and for her parents4 ,we never saw them again4 ,some people from neighboring houses were on the adjoining roofs already1 two old caretakers1 a man and a lad4 ,we saw about twenty more on the roofs in other streets4 ,some of them were raving and singing4 ,the caretakers who had spoken to us in the morning flung their window open4 ,they were laughing as if they had been drinking4 ,they brought two pailfuls of boiling water and emptied it upon the weed4 ,there was a soft hissing sound4 ,then two--four--six quivering tendrils reached slowly toward them4 ,the man and woman seemed fascinated4 ,they did not attempt to move1 only screamed4 ,the tendrils seized them2 bound them round and round4 ,viva buried her head on my shoulder1 and ,i shut my eyes4 ,it was about half a minute1 ,i think1 before the screams ceased4 ,then there was crash after crash as windows were broken in4 ,the weed had its passions1 it seemed4 8,take me back to my mother and father10 ,viva begged4 8,we can all die together--if you would rather die with us80 8,yes4 ,i would rather die with you1 ,viva10 ,i said4 8,i should have liked you very much if we had lived40 ,we returned to the trap-door1 but the staircase was choked with the weed4 ,as we looked down it seemed to be a pit of twirling gray snakes4 ,we called to her mother and father1 but there was no answer4 ,viva would have flung herself among the weed1 but ,i held her and carried her back to the roof4 ,the weed was beginning to crawl over the gutters4 ,long rope-like filaments were surrounding the other people who were on the roofs4 ,they huddled together and did not attempt to escape4 ,the tendrils overran them and bound them round and round4 ,i think they had mostly fainted4 ,there was only one cry4 ,the tendrils lashed one another and fought over their prey4 ,their struggles made a repulsive1 8scrooping0 noise--a noise like the sound of stroking silk1 only louder4 ,there was also a sound of crunching bones4 ,i did not notice the weed closing round us till ,viva clutched my arm4 8,hold me10 she begged4 8,hold me tight6 ,i thought life had only just begun----0 ,i supported her on one arm1 and backed toward the ,strand end of the roof1 where the weed had encroached less4 ,we stumbled against a skylight4 ,the attic below was empty4 ,i opened the frame1 lowered ,viva and jumped down after her4 ,we crouched in a corner watching the window4 ,one--two minutes passed4 ,then the gray weed1 with the bulges that simulated eyes1 pressed upon it4 ,the glass shivered upon the floor4 ,i lifted ,viva in my arms--she was too faint to walk--and carried her out on the landing4 ,the light was bad1 and ,i saw no weed till we reached the next landing4 ,then it stretched toward us from the broken window-frame4 ,a dozen gray ropes crept toward us from the stairs when we approached them4 ,the lift was standing open4 ,i pushed ,viva in1 jumped after her1 slid the steel railing to and lowered us4 ,a tendril caught at the lift as we started4 ,i heard it snap4 ,in my excitement ,i lowered the lift too fast4 ,we were thrown against the sides and almost stunned when it stopped4 ,there was barely a glimmer of light1 and we did not know if we had reached the bottom of the shaft or had been stopped by the weed4 ,we listened for a long while and heard nothing4 ,then we let ourselves out and advanced a few inches at a time1 feeling round us with our hands4 ,we seemed to be in the hall of the basement4 ,we came upon a table and found a tray on it with biscuits and milk4 ,we drank the milk and ,viva stuffed the biscuits in her pockets1 as mine were full4 ,there was a dim1 barely perceptible light from an area window4 ,we peered up through the grating into the forest of huge weeds4 ,the trunks1 which had grown to the size of young elms1 only swayed a little2 but the branches above twisted and twined incessantly4 ,viva shuddered when she saw them1 and ,i took her away4 8,we are safe down here10 ,i assured her2 but she pressed her hand over my mouth4 8,hush60 she whispered4 8,hush6 ,it may hear40 ,we wandered about in the darkness till we found a caretaker's room4 ,we sat there on a sofa1 holding hands4 ,we never lost touch of each other all the time4 ,i do not know how long it was4 ,it seemed years4 ,the basement was very quiet1 but the sound of the india-rubbery motion came down to us4 ,once or twice we thought we heard a human cry4 ,once a mouse squeaked1 and a spider dropped on the couch beside us with a thud4 ,we were always listening4 ,after an unknown time we groped our way into the scullery to get water4 ,we had just drunk when we heard the sound of india-rubbery tentacles dragging themselves over the walls4 ,something clung to my hand4 ,something held her skirt4 ,it tore as ,i pulled her from it4 ,something was in the way when we tried to close the door4 ,it followed us across the room and into the passage4 ,we felt along the walls for the door that we thought led to the cellars--found it--fastened it after us--groped down the stairs4 ,it was darker than the darkness of the basement above--darkness that could be felt4 ,we stumbled over some coals--and a rough1 hoarse voice came out of the darkness4 8,give us your hand1 guv'nor10 it said1 8just a touch of your hand4 ,i've been alone here for--for a thousand years60 ,something staggered toward us--stumbled against us2 and a huge rough hand gripped my arm4 ,i put myself between him and ,viva and pressed her arm for silence4 ,the voice and grip were not reassuring1 and ,i hoped he did not know she was there4 8,here is my hand10 ,i said4 8,and mine10 said ,viva eagerly4 8,you are a friend--of course you are a friend4 ,god bless you40 8,god bless you1 lady40 ,the rough voice softened strangely4 8,i--,i'm sorry to intrude40 ,he drew back a little way from us and sat down4 ,i could not see him1 but ,i could hear him breathe4 ,another unknown time passed4 ,then ,viva whispered that she was thirsty4 8,there's a pail of water10 the man said1 8if ,i can find it40 ,he moved about in the darkness till he kicked it4 ,then he brought it to us4 ,we drank from the pail and ate a few biscuits4 ,i offered him some1 but he said that he had a crust left4 ,viva and ,i explored the cellar and found a shovel and a pick4 ,i suggested that we should try to break through into the next cellar1 on the chance of finding food2 but ,viva and the man feared that the weed might hear us4 ,she and ,i sat on an empty packing-case1 and she laid her head on my shoulder and slept4 ,after a time ,i slept too4 ,the man woke us4 8,there's something moving1 guv'nor10 he said hoarsely4 8,i think it's growing out of the floor4 ,strike a match1 and give me the shovel40 ,we found forty or fifty weed plants growing4 ,he beat some down with the shovel1 but others clutched him round the legs4 ,he was a strong1 rough-looking man and he fought furiously1 but they pulled him down4 ,i gave ,viva the matches and went to his rescue with the pick4 ,the weeds seized me too1 but he cut us both free with a clasp-knife1 and at length we destroyed them all4 ,we saw by the matchlight that the wall was cracking in one place4 ,so we resolved to try to get through it4 ,the man dislodged a few bricks with the pick1 and we pulled others away till our fingers bled and the last match gave out4 ,at length he managed to crawl through4 8,you come next1 sir10 he proposed4 8,the lady would be frightened of me40 8,dear friend10 ,viva said1 8,i am not in the least afraid of you40 ,so he helped her through1 and ,i followed4 ,we discovered a passage1 and along the passage another doorway--and people4 ,i do not remember our words when we found one another in the dark--only the gladness of it4 ,there were about twenty of them--men1 women and children4 ,they had food and drink which they had collected before they fled to the cellar4 ,professor ,newton was among them4 ,he seemed acknowledged as their leader1 and he proposed me as his second4 ,he wanted the aid of an intelligent and educated man1 he whispered1 in fighting the weed4 8,we must fight it10 he declared1 tapping me on the arm with his finger1 8but ,i don't know how4 ,i--don't--know--how6--,i can't even guess what it is2 still less what it is going to be4 ,it may be mere vegetable life--a man-eating plant4 ,it may be brute animal life--a carnivorous animal6 ,it may be intelligent--diabolical intelligence4 ,whatever it is1 it will develop as it grows1 develop new organs and new powers1 new strength and new weaknesses4 ,we must strike there4 ,what weaknesses8 ,ah-h6 ,i don't know6 ,it may outgrow itself and wither4 ,it may perish from the little microbes of the earth1 like the ,martians in ,wells's romance4 ,we thought that an idle fancy then4 ,it may grow into an intelligent--devil6 ,it may be one now and merely lack the organs to carry out fully its evil will4 ,on the other hand1 its malevolence may be purposeless--a blind restlessness that it will outgrow--after we have stifled in the darkness at its feet4 ,we must fight it anyhow4 ,to fight it we must understand it4 ,to understand it we must study it4 ,will you risk your life with me80 8,yes10 ,i said4 ,viva cried softly when ,i told her ,i must go2 but she did not try to keep me from my duty4 ,the professor and ,i crawled up the stairs into the basement1 and finding nothing there went up in the lift in the dark4 ,we heard the weed moving about on the second landing4 ,i jumped out1 turned on the electric light1 and jumped in again4 ,the tendrils followed me and clutched at the steel curtain1 but could not break it4 ,we hacked with our pen-knives at those that crept through4 ,the juice which ran out from them had an oily smell4 ,they beat furiously on the curtain4 ,the professor studied them calmly with a microscope4 ,the bulges were the beginning of eyes1 he thought4 ,he pronounced some feathery sprays sprouting from them to be the rudiments of organs like hands4 ,i do not know whether he was right1 but he always maintained that they would develop organs of sense4 ,anyhow the character of the weed was clearly changing4 ,it had grown harder and drier1 but without losing its flexibility or strength4 ,after a time the professor decided that ,i should return to the others4 ,he went up again in the lift when he had lowered me4 ,viva was waiting for me in the dark just inside the door4 ,i had obtained some candles4 ,we lit one and stuck it in a bottle4 ,i shall never forget the group in the low1 wide cellar1 huddled together on boxes or on the floor4 ,the man we met first was nursing an ailing child4 ,lady ,evelyn ,angell had gathered a young flower-girl under her opera cloak4 ,a policeman was binding up a wounded hand with his handkerchief4 ,a shivering old match-seller wore his cape4 ,viva took a little boy on her lap and told him about ,jack and the ,beanstalk4 ,steel--a card sharper1 ,i learned afterward--who had been indefatigable in helping everyone1 was chatting to ,lady ,evelyn4 ,some ill-clad youths had draped themselves in sacking4 ,a rouged and gaudily dressed woman was mothering some younger ones4 ,she had comforted ,viva while ,i was away1 ,i heard1 and had offered to accompany her in a search for me1 but the others had persuaded them that they would only be a hindrance to us4 ,after a couple of hours--,i had wound my watch again--the professor reappeared4 ,his clothes were torn and his face and hands were bleeding4 8,they broke the steel curtain at last10 he explained1 8but ,i got away4 ,good heavens1 how it grows6 ,i can't make up my mind about it40 ,after a time1 when most of us were dozing1 a portion of the roof and the wall fell in4 ,the growth of the roots under the street had pressed the earth upon it1 the professor conjectured4 ,a faint light streamed down the tall weeds and through the opening4 ,the branches overhead were still moving1 but the lower stems seemed inert4 ,the professor decided to venture among them in search of knowledge4 ,i went with him4 ,there was just room enough between the weeds for us to pass4 ,the houses upon the other side of the street were all down4 ,so were many in the ,strand4 ,in ,fleet ,street we saw the way it was done4 ,the huge weeds leaned upon them1 till they fell with a crash4 ,the ,law ,courts went so4 ,we found the clock among the weeds4 ,sometimes the branches pushed themselves through the windows and walls of houses which were still standing4 ,once or twice we heard human cries4 ,we found a woman1 with a baby and a dog1 walking among the weed-trees1 and took them with us4 ,the light which straggled down through the waving branches overhead was feeble and patchy1 and we lost our way for a time4 ,at length we found ,norfolk ,street2 but as we were entering it1 some of the tendrils1 which seemed to be fighting one another viciously overhead1 broke off and dropped at our feet4 ,they writhed upon the ground like huge gray snakes1 and wound themselves round the weed-trees and lashed out blindly4 ,one of them caught the woman and dashed her against a trunk4 ,we pulled her away from the tendril as its violence lessened1 but she was dead4 ,the baby was not hurt and still slept4 ,i carried it in my arms4 ,a moment later a broken tendril dropped right upon the dog4 ,he howled loudly1 and in his fright bit at an unbroken tendril hanging down among the trees4 7,there were a good many such1 but we had succeeded in avoiding them hitherto47 ,it shook as if with rage and pain1 wrapped its extremity round the dog1 and bore him aloft1 still howling4 ,hundreds of tendrils stretched toward it1 and fought with it for the dog4 ,they still fought after his cries ceased2 and other tendrils began reaching downward1 in every direction round us1 as if searching for further prey4 ,the professor watched them intently1 oblivious of danger4 8,they make a different sound now10 he remarked abstractedly4 8,it is no longer the scroop-scroop of clammy india-rubber--they rustle4 ,it doesn't seem like decay4 ,they are stronger--stronger4 ,there is always weakness in excess of anything--even strength4 ,let me think60 8,quick60 ,i cried4 8,quick6 ,they are falling upon us4 ,run60 ,we dodged rapidly among the weed-trunks4 ,he was slow and ,i pushed him4 ,tendril after tendril rustled downward1 and the trunks themselves swayed4 ,two almost fixed the professor between them--he was a stout man--but ,i dragged him through4 ,the light from above was entirely shut out by the descending tendrils1 and we must have been lost but for an electric lamp burning in one of the houses4 ,as it was1 the descending tendrils must have caught us but for their struggles among themselves4 ,broken pieces dropped and wriggled madly all round us1 and we had to dodge them4 ,one caught at my foot1 and dragged my shoe off as ,i pulled myself away4 ,several touched us as we slid down the debris into the cellar4 ,they followed us there4 ,a few of the people screamed4 ,a few fainted4 ,the rest backed in a huddled1 wide-eyed crowd toward the farthest wall4 ,lady ,evelyn stood in front of the children1 holding out her arms as if to shelter them4 ,steel came and stood in front of her4 8,dear lady10 he said1 8these have been the best days of my life--since we met4 ,i should have been a better man if ,i had met you before40 ,she smiled very sweetly at him4 8,i like you greatly1 ,mr4 ,steel10 she said4 ,the rouged woman came and took the baby from me1 and ,i tried to pull the professor back2 but he would not come4 ,viva ran out from the crowd and put her arms round me4 ,the tendrils drew nearer and nearer4 ,some came along the ceiling1 hanging their heads like snakes4 ,others crawled along the floor1 raising themselves as if to dart at us4 ,i do not know whether they saw us1 heard us or smelt us1 or how they knew where we were2 but they knew4 ,they were within a yard of the professor1 and still he did not move2 only took the burning candle from the bottle1 and railed at them as if they could hear4 ,i thought that he had gone mad4 8,do you think man has learned nothing in his thousand generations80 he shouted4 8,that you can crush him with the brute strength of a few days8 ,come and see6 ,come and see60 ,the foremost tentacle wound round him2 began to lift him4 ,he felt it carefully with his hands4 8,it is dry10 he shouted--8dry60 ,then he put the candle to it6 ,there was a wilderness of white light4 ,then a purple darkness4 ,i heard the professor fall4 ,when our eyes recovered from their dazed blindness the weed was utterly gone4 ,the daylight was streaming into the hole in the wall1 and the professor was picking himself up from the floor4 ,his hair and beard were badly singed1 and his eyebrows were gone4 8,it dried too fast10 he told us1 with a queer angry chuckle4 8,that was its weakness4 ,it dried--dried----0 ,he kept on repeating the word in a dull1 aimless tone4 ,the rest repeated it vacantly after him4 ,viva was the first to speak coherently--a faint whisper in my ear4 8,my dear60 she said4 8,my dear60 ,lady ,evelyn spoke next--to ex-card sharper ,steel4 8,the world begins afresh10 she said2 8and--you have met me1 ,mr4 ,steel40 ,the tears rolled down her cheek and his1 and they stood smiling at each other4 8,the world begins afresh10 the professor called in a loud voice4 8,come with me and make it a better world40 ,he strode toward the light1 but some held back4 8,the weed60 they cried timorously4 8,the weed has gone--burned in an instant1 from the end of the world to the end of the world60 he assured them4 8,follow me40 ,we followed him out of the darkness into the sunlight4 ,it was a mild1 bright day for ,november1 and a pleasant air4 ,the weed had disappeared entirely1 as the professor predicted2 and1 speaking generally1 the conflagration had been too sudden to do much harm2 but most of the buildings had subsided upon the sudden destruction of the weed-roots which had undermined them4 ,here and there houses1 stones and timber had caught fire2 and in many districts the fire spread1 and lasted for days4 ,the statistics1 which are being prepared in the ,new ,department for the ,service of the ,people1 over which ,i have the honor to preside1 are not yet quite complete2 but ,i may mention that seventeen per cent4 of the buildings on the north of the ,thames are found to have been destroyed1 and ninety-three per cent4 on the south--the wind having blown mainly in that direction2 and that the destruction of property in ,great ,britain and ,ireland generally is roughly estimated at fifty-five per cent4 ,the adventures of our little band1 after we came out from our hiding-place1 scarcely belong to this story2 but ,i must set down a few events which stand out in red letters in our calendar of the world after the ,gray ,weed4 ,upon the first afternoon we learned that there were other survivors--which we had not dared to hope--by finding a man1 woman and child nearly dead with hunger and fright1 hiding in a basement4 ,we formed ourselves at once into small parties to go round ,london1 wherever houses yet stood1 and rang the church bells1 and blew trumpets1 and beat drums1 and shouted to all those who remained to come out4 ,here and there frightened groups of white-faced1 famished1 disheveled people answered the call4 ,as our numbers increased we sent parties to search the cellars and other hiding-places1 and rescued many at their last gasp4 ,the total number of survivors in ,london1 where the percentage of deaths was highest1 amounts to some #ce1jjj4 ,upon the second day we obtained several replies to our calls by telegraph to the provinces2 and the next day we were in telegraphic communication with most parts of the ,united ,kingdom and even the ,continent4 ,in almost all towns at least one or two persons had escaped4 ,in some parts the ,gray ,weed had left open spaces1 or a few houses1 to which people could flee1 and only a portion of those who reached them had died from starvation4 ,in a few instances it was alleged to have refrained from injuring those with whom it came in contact4 ,also it failed to crush many of the ships which it seized at sea--the sea-growths generally being less virulent than those on land4 ,so far as our statistics go at present1 we hope that nearly one-eighth of the population of ,europe has survived4 ,on the fourth day the first train from the provinces to ,london was run2 and several ships1 which the weed had overgrown without injuring1 came into port4 ,after this1 traffic was rapidly re-established4 ,a fortnight later our present government was provisionally established4 ,the professor1 whom all hailed as their deliverer1 refused office himself2 but upon his nomination ,i was appointed to my present position4 ,several of our little band were assigned important posts1 including ,steel--now known by another name1 and married to ,lady ,evelyn--and ,viva1 who is presiding over the ,london ,homes for ,orphans1 until our marriage4 ,the day after tomorrow a newspaper appears4 ,we have toiled unremittingly to reconstruct the social and commercial life of the country1 and not without success4 ,we have few luxuries1 but no wants2 fewer workers1 but no drones2 fewer to love--but we love more--,i think the world will go well1 now1 because we love one another so much4 8,the ,gray ,weed has solved the problems of poverty1 envy1 crime and strife1 which have puzzled mankind for ages10 the professor said1 just before he died4 8,don't cry1 little ,viva4 ,ah6 ,but ,i felt a tear on my hand6 ,there is nothing to cry about1 my child4 ,they have gone2 and ,i am going2 but you have learned to love4 ,it is all for the best60 8,all--for--the--best10 he repeated at the last1 and smiled4 ,that is his message to you to whom ,i write1 dear friends4 ,with ,caste ,against ,him ,,by ,,hugh ,,pendexter ,tiberius ,smith in love was a spectacle ,i had never conjured up4 ,billy ,campbell1 the strolling actor and his patron's ,boswell1 had pictured the old showman to me as being arrested for a spy in ,russia1 for a madman in ,france1 for a too active ,carlist in ,spain and for smuggling opium in ,china1 but he had never hinted at sentiment4 ,i had taken it for granted that ,smith's many wanderings over the face of the earth with his various theatrical enterprises and circuses had eliminated any inclination for love-sickness1 and it seems it had until he met the lord's daughter4 ,that was like ,smith4 ,it was impossible to conceive of him as married and settled down1 and when he did fall in love it was his characteristic to indulge in a hopeless passion4 ,for all that1 the lord's daughter was forced to see him at his best1 sturdy and resourceful1 when others failed her1 and ,i doubt not but that this knowledge was sadly sweet to the old showman1 and that in after years he enjoyed diagnosing the climax and realizing it was superbly dramatic4 ,if she ignored his existence at first1 he had the keen pleasure of knowing she had only him to rely on at a most critical finale and that her world was better1 much better1 for his having lived4 ,possibly the trick could have been turned without him1 turned in a prosaic manner with some bloodshed and a great waste of gunpowder4 ,but when a lovely girl is the stake1 be she a lord's daughter or a queen from the masses1 it is sometimes advisable to finesse4 ,and ,tiberius1 if slightly melodramatic1 solved the problem as he could only do1 and as only he could do--that is1 in an unusual manner4 ,campbell used to style him the 8assassin of adversity10 and his peculiar faculty of rescuing the weak from undesirable situations was1 perhaps1 never better demonstrated than when1 with cutter bars down1 he restored the ,english girl to her people and incidentally introduced the uses and abuses of modern farming implements to some unsophisticated savages in a lonely ,pacific isle4 ,i had recurred to the time when ,tiberius piloted an ,uncle ,tom's ,cabin company up and down the land1 and ,billy1 gazing sadly into my open grate1 irrelevantly observed3 8,yes2 and that was when ,tib ought to have won her and settled down4 ,he was clear daffy over that girl1 and ,i'll admit she was a hummer2 one1 you know1 that would make a man abandon his grandmother in a blinding snowstorm if it pleased her4 ,but ,i reckon ,fate had other work cut out for ,tiberius besides spooning1 love in a cottage and no money for the iceman and all that sort of stuff4 ,yes1 it was fully ten years ago that the ,kalanke broke her propeller40 8,you are speaking of a boat80 ,i inquired4 8,lord bless you1 yes4 ,the ,kalanke was one of ,lord ,blam's boats2 ran from the ,coast to ,australia4 ,you see1 ,tib got the bee that an ,uncle ,thomas show would take in ,australia like four squaws in a no-limit game2 and once he had outlined the bill of fare1 there were plenty of us come-ons pushing out our plates and begging for a helping4 ,i suppose that when it came to the realm of pure 8con0 there wasn't a hypnotist doing a mail order business that could lay it on quite so succulent and plausible as he4 ,lord1 we had to believe him4 ,he believed in himself4 8#8,why1 ,harriet1' he cried1 drawing up his dear1 fat old form and looking more honest than any real estate dealer you ever kenned2 #8why1 ,harriet1 don't linger over the paltry twelve dollars a week ,i'm supposed to pay you4 ,don't even hesitate4 ,forget that part of it4 ,imagine you are paying me for the chance to go4 ,picture1 if you please1 ,opportunity1 clean-shaven and bald-headed1 gliding by your door in a seventy-eight horse-power gasolene romp-about at the mirk hour of midnight with you chloroformed and locked in your gilded cage4 ,picture me with a jiu-jitsu strangle hold on ,oppo1 detaining him until you can come to1 slip into your ,horse ,show gown and come down and relieve me4 ,then you are feasting your magnetic orbs on truth4 ,why1 the people down there will be so worked up over your 8,papa1 dear papa1 set ,uncle ,tom free10 that they'll wreck your hotel with showers of gold4' 8,she was a slim1 ingrowing woman1 who always played the ,little ,eva parts and was the teariest thing ever between the wings4 ,clarence1 her husband1 booked for ,legree1 balked a little and said he'd stand a blankety1 blank1 all blanks1 nice chance of getting his showers in lead after he'd massacred ,thomas4 ,but ,tib poured a little balm into his wounds1 and that was how we came to hop the ,kalanke for ,australia4 8,the boat was one of ,lord ,blam's new line and was fixed up regardless4 ,besides the passengers1 she did quite a freight business and carried our lots of horses and farm implements4 ,our troupe traveled second class except ,tib1 who always went the limit--or walked4 ,besides the company there weren't many passengers aboard1 as it was in the dull season2 but we hadn't cuffed the deep blue for more than two days before ,tib met his fate4 8,she was the ,english girl1 all blue eyes1 and peaches for complexion2 and ,tib haunted her usual promenade like a mosquito4 ,she was the lord's only daughter and was making a flying trip to ,sydney1 where her father lay ill4 ,she had hurried from ,washington to ',frisco and caught the boat with her maid4 ,the ,captain was the rest of her bodyguard4 ,but ,tib had the ,captain solid at the go-in1 and through him and his own gall he managed to speak to ,miss ,mary4 8,she was about as approachable as the ,eiffel ,tower4 ,she was the first bit of peerage ,i had ever seen traveling alone1 and ,i would prefer trying to get chummy with an iceberg to speaking to her4 ,but a man or a woman had to be armor plate to withstand ,tib when he put himself out1 and at the end of one day he had made her laugh2 then she got a bit interested in him and ,i knew he was spinning romance4 8,when he got to giving his ,vermont family an old chateau environment and spoke of the good old days at #8,the ,oaks1' and his father's pack of hounds1 aristocracy wanted to crawl into a safe deposit vault and slam the door or get scalped4 ,he could jam more poetry and pt de foie gras breeding into his round form and look more dreamy passion from his pleading eyes than any man that ever made a house believe a bum show was a good one4 ,he was all right1 ,i tell you1 and if ,little ,eva hadn't butted in when we were doing things to the equator1 and asked him to come down and play stud-poker in the smoking-room1 ,i reckoned he'd have won a few plighted troths anyway4 ,i shall always believe he had her clinging to the ropes when ,eva made the fatal stab4 8#8,do you know those people in the second cabin8' demanded ,her ,lordship with an eighty-two degrees north voice4 8,tib groaned and tore his brown hair and admitted he owned us4 #8,the vase is broken1' he cried4 #8,i've got the bell and it's back to the barriers4' 8,well1 he felt so bad over that girl that he almost wept4 ,it wa'n't her titled papa1 or the coat of arms2 it was just a case of ,she4 ,when he was talking to her he forgot he was merely a showman4 ,he believed all about the old ivy-covered manse and the hounds4 ,why1 ,i've even heard him call the pups by name4 ,and his father never owned anything more blue-blooded than a sheepdog4 8#8,billy1' he said to me as we smoked down aft1 #8,i never met a girl yet ,i felt so soft over4 ,i know ,i'm older than she by some years1 but ,i keep my age locked up in the baggage-room and we might have been happy if not for ,little ,eva4' 8,and ,miss ,english was mad4 ,she scolded the ,captain for presenting ,tib1 and told him her father would do things once we'd sighted old earth4 ,and the ,captain was on the anxious seat1 for her father was his meal ticket and had delegated him to fetch out his daughter ,o4 ,k4 ,but on the next night we began to forget it1 when we steamed into the heart of a flying wedge of terrific winds4 8,i decided that if ever we got ashore it would be to have the folks come down to the beach and look at us and say1 #8,how natural they look4' ,some of the gingerbread works were carried away the first night of the blow1 and whenever the wind let up a bit the live stock would throw in a few ensembles that made one pray for more breeze4 ,yet the boat behaved well1 and if something hadn't happened to the propeller we'd have come through in rare form4 ,but when the chief engineer began to parade out his kit and try to mend things while standing on his head ,i knew the game was getting serious4 ,now we were bumped by every billow1 and ,i heard a petty officer whisper that we were being driven far from our course4 8,at last the kick stopped1 or else we'd slipped out of the storm zone1 and at about three o'clock in the morning we dropped anchor near a dear little island that the ,captain couldn't name with any great degree of exactness4 8,the anchorage was so good and the water so smooth that our engineer said it would be easy to take the boat to pieces and put it together without losing even a shingle nail4 ,well1 you can indulge in a small wager that we were all up and happy when we came near enough to smell the land4 ,the sky was clear and peppered over with incandescent lights1 and ,tib felt so good that he waltzed up to the ,she ,saxon and observed3 #8,i regret you have been inconvenienced by the storm4' 8,say1 she just turned and dragged her two sapphires up and down his anatomy as if he were a seven-leaf clover4 ,then she stabbed him four times with as many glances and turned and walked forward to the ,captain4 ,cap wheeled around with his lips pursed up to say something unwholesome1 but seeing who it was he swallowed it1 and it hurt4 ,then she asked something in a low voice and he shook his head slowly4 ,then she stamped her hoof and he seemed to give way4 ,at last he called a man to him and gave some orders4 ,the next thing we knew a boat was dropped and she was being rowed ashore by four sailors4 8#8,isn't it rather dangerous to let the lady go ashore8' asked ,tib of the ,captain4 8,this gave the ,captain a fine chance to ease his mind1 and he did it by pouring out his whole heart to ,tib in a comprehensive flow of profanity4 ,he cursed ,tib up hill and down1 but ,tib was so round it all glanced off4 ,cap told him that ,miss ,mary had gone ashore to get rid of his presence4 ,tib shuddered4 ,then the ,cap reminded him that a ,british skipper takes sass from no one except the owners1 and ordered him back with the rest of us4 ,another gilt braid sneaked up and told ,tib the ,cap meant nothing1 that he was only feeling cross at being delayed4 ,as to ,miss ,mary1 he swore she was as safe when guarded by the four tars as she would be on her father's deck4 ,besides1 the island was probably vacant1 he added1 and she would take a short stroll on the beach beneath the stars and then return4 ,but ,tib was uneasy4 ,he said no one could ever diagnose the disposition of the average cut-up residing on an oceanian isle4 #8,billy1' he concluded1 #8,i'm cut to the heart4 ,she won't even look at the same ocean with me4' 8,in about an hour's time1 just as the sun was lazily crawling out of his bed of blue--say1 old chap1 that sounds voluptuous as well as poetic1 doesn't it8--well1 as the sun appeared there came to our ears a loud cry from the beach1 and we could see some dots bobbing up and down trying to act intelligent4 ,in two jumps the ,captain shot off in a boat1 and1 without seeming to touch land1 was back again on the run4 8,the lord's daughter had been carried off by the natives1 was the startling intelligence he fed out to his officers4 ,it seems she wanted to walk up a little hill and get a view of the sea1 and1 although the sailors protested1 she had ordered them to remain behind2 and1 like idiots1 they obeyed her4 ,then they heard a smothered scream and ran to the rescue1 only to meet with a shower of spears and clubs and to witness a large band of barefooted taxpayers making off with the skirts4 ,one of the sailors had his arm broken1 another had a spear through his shoulder1 and all were badly bruised and battered4 ,the ,captain was crazy4 ,he ordered his men to arm and rush to the rescue4 ,at first he was going to lead them1 but some of his officers soothed him down a bit and made him see his place was with the boat4 ,it was not only necessary to rescue ,miss ,mary1 but the tub must be in condition to carry her away when she was recovered4 8,but when ,tib asked permission to join the posse the ,captain broke loose again and swore he'd have the boss in irons4 ,if it hadn't been for ,tib it never would have happened1 he cried4 ,i chipped in then and reminded him ,her ,lordship was too high and mighty to hunt for an exit just to avoid a mere man1 and ,i closed with the ,stars and ,stripes and our consul in ,australia4 ,this distracted his attention a bit1 for he forgot ,tib in swearing at our consular service4 8#8,billy1' groaned ,tib1 #8,i guess the ,cap is right1 and ,i'm to blame for her going ashore4 ,but these volunteers will never get her by hunting the brownies with a brass band4' 8,well1 we put in several long hours of waiting1 and then two men returned and said reinforcements were needed1 as the men had discovered a large village a few miles inland1 which they didn't dare to attack alone4 8#8,guess you'd better let some of the passengers chip into this game now1' advised ,tib4 8,the ,captain began to rave again1 but1 seeing that the men left were needed in making repairs1 he had to give in4 ,just then some more of the crew came back to the beach and1 once aboard1 panted that the colored folk were getting aggressive and wouldn't even wait to be attacked4 8#8,to the boats1 men6' cried the ,captain1 while the steward served out howitzers4 8,before the order could be obeyed the officers and the rest of the gang rushed down to the beach4 ,their news was worst of all4 ,they said the heathens had produced ,her ,lordship in view of all and had threatened to kill her if her friends didn't beat a retreat4 8#8,if we show violence she's lost1' sobbed one of the men4 8,the ,captain was dazed4 ,he was brave enough and would gladly fight to the last gasp2 but he didn't want to recover ,miss ,mary dead4 ,he tried to mumble something about strategy1 and ,tib caught it4 ,it was the psychological moment for him4 8#8,if you'll turn the management of this show over to me ,i'll go and get her1' he said simply4 8,some jeered him in wild anger1 some eyed him in amazement1 and others were ready to grasp at any suggestion4 8#8,i mean it1' he repeated firmly1 drawing up his fat form and beginning to radiate heart waves4 #8,force will avail nothing1 except to kill the lady4 ,do as ,i say and let the galleries back me and a few of my men1 and ,i honestly believe we can turn the riffle4' 8,discipline was lost sight of as all clamored for pointers4 #8,hoist up a few mowing machines from the hold1 drop twice as many horses over into the surf1 while the carpenters are knocking together a float4 ,then ferry the grass clippers ashore and have your mechanics put them together4 ,that's the scenario4' 8,some said he was crazy1 but ,i believed he could fill his hand if they let him alone1 and the ,captain asked if he intended to palm off the mowers as machine guns4 8#8,if they can't recognize a mowing machine you don't expect 'em to be conversant with ,maxims1 do you8' groaned ,tib4 #8,no2 ,i'll play 'em as mowing machines and win out at that4 ,i believe they'll be big medicine with the natives4' 8,of course the ,captain pooh-poohed the scheme4 ,he said the niggers would kill the lass before the paraphernalia could be thrown together4 8#8,and while you're doing nothing and can think of nothing to do1 they may kill her1' cried ,tib4 #8,and her blood be upon your head6 ,mine is the only plan that's been advanced1 and it is practical4 ,it's unusual1 but you can't impress these folks with shotguns4 ,it's got to be something new in the way of scenic effect4 ,if ,i had an airship ,i'd use that4 ,but ,i haven't4 ,we can use the mowing machines and stagger the banditti4 ,we can start in three hours if you'll only give the word4 ,besides1 ,i shall want the full chorus to follow with their batteries4 ,you lose nothing1 unless it be me and some of my friends and the machines4' 8#8,hoist 'em up1' commanded the ,captain1 and the gang caught ,tib's enthusiasm4 8#8,now1 who's game for a little romp8' asked ,tib gently of us actors1 his brown eyes collecting in two needle points4 #8,i want my own men for the leading parts in this deal4 ,now1 who's game8' 8,of course ,i said ,i was1 as ,i owed him poker money4 ,little ,eva's husband said if he could have one more drink he'd play tag with the devil1 and ,uncle ,tom was on if he didn't have to black up4 ,tib wanted one more operator1 and a young fellow that was coming out to hold down a stool in his father's branch house in ,sydney agreed to chip in if he could have time to write something sad to his parents4 ,tib reminded him the postman wouldn't have time to collect the mail before we returned1 and so the five of us made ready4 ,the ,captain ached to go1 but ,tib reminded him he must take command of the rear-guard4 8,i was for grabbing up a papaw root and dashing blindly into the weeds1 but ,tib held us all back as he outlined his scheme more fully4 ,the mowing machines would dazzle the natives1 he contended1 and while he and his men were trifling with the aborigines' superstitions the ,captain and his bullies were to rush in1 surround the captive1 or else cover ,tib's retreat1 once he had rescued her4 ,and say6 ,you never saw men work as did those boys on the ,kalanke4 ,the donkey engine was mounted in a trice and the big crates1 containing the mowing machines1 intended for peaceful pastoral scenes1 were yanked out on deck4 ,by that time the carpenters had put a raft together and the clippers were soon ashore with a bevy of mechanics impatiently waiting to get in their work4 ,when the different parts of the machines had been assembled and joined each to his neighbor1 some half-crazed draft horses came through the surf and were promptly caught4 ,then boxes of harness were ripped open1 and there we were1 as gay a cluster of charioteers as you would meet with outside a star production of #8,ben ,hur4' 8,tib1 as the head ,mazeppa1 jumped onto the first auto completed and tested the gearing4 ,then with his hat tipped jauntily over his right ear he reminded the ,captain that the crew should loiter not too far in the rear1 but always out of sight of the enemy1 until we gave the signal to advance1 three pistol shots4 ,then he cried1 #8,cutter bars up6' and away we clanked around the base of the low hill4 8,we had received tips as to the course to take1 and it would have done your heart good1 sir1 could you have seen us in that bringing-in-the-sheaves effect4 ,we only needed wide-brimmed straw hats1 with handkerchiefs knotted carelessly about our throats1 to be the village heroes in the average rural melodrama4 8,the land1 lucky for us1 lay flat and hard baked by the sun1 once we were around the hill4 ,then ,tib's good sense in picking his own men was demonstrated4 ,always in the lead as we trundled over the hard ground1 he had only to move his hand to cause us to catch the signal and obey4 ,back of us1 scuttling through the occasional brush1 was our bodyguard1 and the glint of the sun on the gun metal was a wonderful antidote for homesickness4 ,in advance a fringe of woods told where the ,english girl was held captive4 ,we expected to encounter outposts1 but ,i reckon the foe measured our love for a woman by their own standard and couldn't conceive of a man risking his life to save a squaw4 8,at last we struck the shade and sure enough found a broad avenue between the trees1 just as the boatswain had mapped out4 ,then came another level stretch1 only not so long as the first1 bounded by a slight rise4 ,it was just beyond this that the village was located4 ,we approached as slyly as we could and cautiously gained the top without being interrupted4 ,just below us was the encampment1 consisting of several scores of low huts4 ,they were arranged like the spokes of a wheel1 with broad streets radiating from the centre4 ,the voters were having a big powwow1 and they made so much noise that they had failed to catch the sound of our steeds or wheels4 8#8,now1 children1 list1' commanded ,tib4 #8,i'm going to drive straight ahead4 ,billy will wend his way to the right and pick up the first spoor1 followed by ,simon ,legree1 who takes the second trail4 ,uncle ,tom takes the first left aisle1 followed by young ,add ,six and ,carry ,two4 ,and we'll form a cluster1 ,god willing1 in the centre of the exposition1 where there seems to be a commodious green4 ,attention6 ,cutter bars down6 ,forward1 trot6' 8,and we five chauffeurs dashed into the hippodrome in the most ridiculous fashion4 ,tib bounced up and down like a rubber ball1 and to fall from the seat meant a badly sliced up white man4 ,but the effect was stupendous4 ,i reckon the brunettes never before gazed on such wags as we must have appeared to be4 ,bang6 ,smash6 we rode through their rotten village1 and the machines needed oiling4 ,of all the rasping1 clattering noises you ever heard1 sir6 ,black nightmares rushed to get out of the way as we cleaned out the lanes4 8,snip6 snip6 and ,tib had shaved off the corner of a mud villa4 ,crunch6 and ,simon picked up a totem pole4 ,every tooth in those five cutter bars was working and the collateral we chewed up didn't do 'em a bit of good4 ,but1 as ,tib said1 it was only a one-night stand and our game was to sell tickets and ramble away4 ,so on we careened1 the horses wild with fright1 now and then the shears picking up a brown toe as some devotee fell prostrate in his flight and babbled a cast-iron prayer to some burglar-proof god4 ,it simply swept them off their feet1 sir4 ,before they woke up we had entered the middle square4 8,and if there wasn't ,her ,lordship1 trussed up between two poles1 white as death6 8#8,if you'll pardon the bucolic style of my turnout1 dear lady1 ,i should be felicitated to have you accompany me back to the ship1' cried ,tib cheerily as he slashed her free and held her so she would not fall4 ,and during it all he was apparently oblivious to the frescoes of black faces staring in stupid awe in the background4 8#8,can it be ,i'm saved6' she whimpered1 brushing back her twenty-two-carat hair with an uncertain gesture4 8#8,tut1 tut1' cried ,tib heartily as he took her hand and tripped a merry morris toward his chariot4 #8,i guess there's no danger4 ,these people are simply crude in their deportment and evidently believed you some wandering goddess and would detain you awhile4' 8#8,you are a brave and a good man1' she choked4 8#8,i guess your hosts think me the devil4 ,excuse me1 lady1' salaamed ,tib4 8#8,never a man took greater risk1' she murmured4 8#8,an ,uncle ,tom's ,cabin company1 lady1 will take any risk1 or anything outside a church1' replied ,tib4 #8,whoa1 ,montezuma4 ,now hop up here on my knee4 ,these bronze pieces will come to their senses in a second4' 8,and when ,her ,lordship jumped up into his arms the wonder-stricken gang gave a howl and came out of their trance4 ,we countermarched in those rigs so that ,tib had the lead when we quit the plaza1 but not before one big buck1 attired in a war club and a workmanlike spear1 gave a grunt of disapproval and raised his trowel behind ,tib's back4 ,i had been expecting one of them would draw to that card1 and while his arm was pulled back ,i pinked him from the hip1 and the sunlight was turned off so far as he was concerned4 ,but they didn't mind crowding into hell so long as they could regain the woman1 and my shot took the ,japanese out of only one of them4 ,and as we swarmed up the slight rise they came yowling along behind us1 disturbing the peace in a variety of ways4 ,but just as ,simon ,legree fired three shots in quick succession a fringe of strained-faced tars popped over the crest in front1 preceded by the busy end of their repeaters4 ,under cover of their diversion we gained the top and bounced down on the other side with the neighbors renewing their pursuit4 8,just as everything began to look cozy and homelike my pair of ,jaspers decided they were afraid of the ocean1 and1 hang me1 if they didn't turn about and caper back right in the face of the dancing spearmen4 ,i couldn't hold 'em1 and so ,i just dropped the cutter bar and pulled out my junk1 only expecting to muss a few of 'em up before ,i was registered4 ,my friends began to howl behind me1 and ,i tossed a glance over my shoulder and beheld old ,tiberius coming along after me like a madman1 his machine jumping and swaying1 and he with a big gun in each hand yelling like a fiend4 ,he had tossed ,her ,lordship to the sailors and was back to play in my drama4 ,then the heat of it got into my blood1 and as ,tib drew up beside me ,i gave a war cry and urged the brutes onward still faster4 8,i knew if we tried to turn we were down and out1 and that our only show was to put up a bold front and scare the enemy off the ridge4 ,the sailors were now popping away merrily1 and just as we had gone the limit the foe threw up the sponge and scampered back down the other side of the rise4 8,maybe we were several hours retreating to the beach6 ,when we got there the whole bunch fell on ,tib's neck and pawed his round form affectionately1 the ,captain leading in the demonstration4 ,tib drove them away1 but when we got aboard and ,her ,lordship rushed upon him and throwing both arms about his neck1 pressed her red lips with a resounding and most plebeian smack on his chin1 you could have heard him blush4 ,it was the first time ,i had ever known him to lose his nerve4 ,he made a clean break-away and bowing low said something in a murmur and it was all over4 ,of course she thanked us all1 but she realized that ,tib was the guiding light4 8,to ring off2 we left the machines and horses for the natives to get up guessing parties with1 and with our machinery repaired steamed out to the open water4 ,tib never made any advances to ,her ,lordship after once aboard1 although she eyed him with a soft look whenever they met on deck during the run to port4 8#8,my old heart got foolish1 boy1' he remarked to me the night we landed1 #8but it's beating all right now4' ,yet he always kept a handkerchief she dropped4 8,and wherever the show played ,tib coined money by the barrel1 for ,her ,lordship's people boomed his game early and late4 ,but ,tib got to believing it was because the show was so good4 ,for1 you see1 he'd explain to me as he counted the receipts1 #8,little ,eva is dying better every night4'0 ,corrupt ,practices in ,elections ,,by ,,hon4 ,,lucius ,f4 ,c4 ,,garvin ,ex-,governor of ,rhode ,island ,efforts to expose bribery and other corrupt practices in elections are met with the cry1 ,you are defaming the state6 ,if there are governmental evils1 we are told1 prove them to the bottom and correct them quietly4 ,such a course may be feasible if applied to a private business1 but in public affairs1 in the nature of the case1 it cannot be successful4 ,certainly none of the persons who directly profit by such practices will correct them--not the 8respectable0 men of means who furnish the funds and who do so with a view to recouping themselves in some way as a result of the election2 not the workers who handle the corruption fund1 taking good care to see that they themselves are rewarded for the trouble and risk involved2 not the individuals who pocket the money disbursed1 and in this way become always morally1 and often criminally1 confederates2 nor1 finally1 the few who secure the offices through fraudulent methods4 ,in fact1 nothing has been found effective outside of that strongest of all influences in a free country1 the force of public opinion4 ,the many1 who are made aware of the iniquity by suffering from it1 have every inducement to end it4 ,over and over again1 in great crises1 the ,american people have shown themselves to be patriotic1 honest and wise4 ,this has happened whenever the masses have been aroused by serious threats of danger1 either external or internal4 ,the real danger to our institutions lies1 not in great crises1 but rather in a gradual1 almost insensible1 deterioration of the government1 due either to a lack of vigilance on the part of the people or to a paralysis of their latent powers4 ,while it is possible that the immense fund of good will and good sense possessed by the ,american people may be expended in private pursuits and thus diverted from a control of their own government1 the far greater danger is that the mighty influences being put forth at almost every election will rupture completely the natural dependence of public officials upon the electorate4 ,in order to cure any wrongdoing it is needful1 first1 to ascertain definitely wherein the wrong consists1 and1 secondly1 to fix with equal definiteness upon an adequate remedy4 ,the crudest1 the most demoralizing and the most common method of withholding the hands of the sovereign people from the control of their government is the direct bribery of voters4 ,this means of thwarting the wishes of the majority dates back to the early history of the country4 ,our system of so-called majority election by districts1 placing1 as it often does1 the balance of power in a small minority of the electorate1 invites the purchase of the votes of individuals4 ,it has proved easy both to estimate the number of votes needed to turn the scale and to find out the particular voters who can be so influenced4 ,upon the original plan of buying individual voters at retail1 the improvement has been made of purchasing en bloc--the money to be paid over only in case of delivery of the goods4 ,in this modern bribery by wholesale the venal voters organize1 choose an agent to conduct negotiations and sell the entire block of votes to the highest bidder4 ,when success is achieved1 as shown by the count of the ballots1 hundreds of dollars are paid to the agent and by him distributed to the members of the gang4 ,but1 whatever the details of the transaction1 a long experience has shown that1 in a multitude of small constituencies a few dollars placed in the hand of a voter are sufficient to outweigh every consideration of patriotism or enlightened self-interest4 ,wherever this habitually occurs1 the rule of a few moneyed men has been substituted for a government by the people4 ,in the elections of large cities1 of populous states and of the nation at large1 it can seldom happen that bribery of voters1 either by retail or wholesale1 is sufficient to alter the result4 ,to supply this deficiency other means are more and more being resorted to4 ,to assure success1 where the number of voters renders the simpler measure for overcoming the people's will unreliable1 party managers now make use of finesse and fraud4 ,the finesse consists in 8packing0 the primary meetings and conventions of the rival party for the purpose of nominating weak opposing candidates4 ,nearly every local party may be differentiated into two factions1 both desirous of success1 but the one occupying morally a very much higher plane than the other4 ,the rich party1 taking advantage of this division in the ranks of its opponents1 furnishes funds and votes to aid the baser faction1 upon condition1 of course1 that1 having gained control of the nomination1 candidates will be put up of such a character as to drive away the better element from their support4 ,in consequence of these manipulations1 when election day comes around1 the poorer party is found with a so-called 8yellow dog0 ticket in the field--that is to say1 a ticket composed of unfit and unknown men1 clearly inferior to the pliant respectabilities who have been placed in nomination by the richer party4 ,it sometimes happens that even this political trick fails to assure success4 ,either the better faction of the opposing party wins1 or1 notwithstanding the inferiority of the ticket named1 it may promise to receive a majority of the votes cast4 ,in this exigency the managers of the party which is fully supplied with the sinews of war do not hesitate at direct fraud4 ,that is to say1 they expend large sums of money in hiring election officials to betray their trusts at the risk of going to jail4 ,one method adopted1 where the law provides an official ballot1 is to get from the officials having charge of the ballots one or more to be marked for the voter by heelers outside of the polling-room4 ,this furnishes a sure method of bribery1 for the venal voter1 after depositing the ballot thus prepared for him1 returns an unmarked ballot to the briber1 as a guarantee of good faith1 to be marked by him for the use of the next person bought4 ,in this way one or more endless chains of purchased votes may be run all day1 through the connivance of some election officer4 ,this was done in ,pawtucket1 ,r4 ,i41 and at other places in that state1 on the eighth of last ,november4 ,but as the number of venal voters in a polling precinct is limited1 so there is a limit to the effect attainable by giving out to heelers the official ballots designed for use in the voting booth only4 ,what more1 then1 can be done in the way of modern chicanery and criminality8 ,election officers may be bought1 and are bought1 to defraud their fellow-citizens in a variety of ways4 ,for instance1 there is a very considerable percentage of illiterate voters in most states1 many of whom desire to give their suffrage to the candidates of one of the poorer parties4 ,but the richest party has paid the election officials1 who assist the illiterate voters1 to mark all such ballots for its candidates4 ,evidence exists that this was done systematically at the recent ,presidential and state election in the city of ,providence1 ,r4 ,i41 a sufficient number of voters thus being deceived to turn the scale in the filling of one or more important offices4 ,inasmuch as there is a limit to the number of illiterate voters1 even that base fraud1 added to direct bribery1 may not effect the desired reversal of the people's will4 ,but the moneyed party has other resources4 ,in order to annul votes already cast for opposing candidates1 it may hire the election officers to make additional marks upon the ballots before they are counted4 ,in this way in the city of ,providence1 ,r4 ,i41 at the last election many votes for ,augustus ,s4 ,meller1 the ,democratic candidate for mayor1 were rendered void--fortunately1 however1 not in sufficient numbers to prevent his election4 ,and not even yet has the corrupted election officer reached the full extent of his ability to defraud4 ,it still is possible for him to miscount votes2 or he may announce the result falsely--for example1 by revising the total number of votes given to the candidates1 when the real majority proves to be adverse to his suborned wishes4 ,in case there is a ,returning ,board1 whose duty it is to make a second and final count of the votes cast1 as is the law in the city of ,providence and the state of ,rhode ,island1 that board1 too1 or its controlling members1 may be partisan and corrupt4 ,at the late election in ,rhode ,island all the ballots for state officers and for ,presidential electors were in possession of a partisan ,returning ,board1 of which the chairman of the ,republican ,state ,central ,committee was the head1 for a period of three full weeks before the counting began4 ,if there were miscounts in certain voting districts on election day1 it was easily possible for members of that ,returning ,board to open the sealed packages of ballots1 make such changes as were necessary in order to have the ballots conform roughly to the previously announced figures1 and then to reseal without the fraud being detected4 ,but1 it may be asked1 where are the courts while such frauds are being perpetrated8 ,why are not these criminal election officers punished8 ,unfortunately1 the courts1 too1 are frequently partisan1 especially the lower courts1 before which the cases are first brought4 ,after the election of last ,november in ,rhode ,island1 three cases were brought before the inferior courts--one for bribery1 one for posing as an illiterate voter and one against an election officer in charge of a ballot-box for allowing the deposit by voters of sham instead of official ballots4 ,each of these causes was brought before a different local judge1 and all were thrown out of court4 ,several days before election it was known that immunity had been promised to hesitating and apprehensive election officers4 8,the ,republican ,party controls the courts10 they were told1 8and would see that no punishment was meted out to them for unlawful acts40 ,it is needless to say that1 if corrupt practices in elections continue to increase1 the end of popular government in this country is in sight4 ,already there exists a widespread and deep-seated distrust of the result of elections4 ,instances could be given1 occurring within the past ten years1 in which a very large proportion of the voters interested1 perhaps a majority of those voting1 believe that the wrong candidate was inducted into office4 ,certainly no duty is more pressing than to see to it that in every election the unbiased and unbought will of the people be recorded4 ,is there a remedy8 ,and1 if so1 what is it8 ,my conviction is1 that we only need to carry out the intent of the founders of this government4 ,they blazed the way2 we must make a clear and beaten track along that way4 ,by a republican form of government the ,revolutionary statesmen meant two things1 which now are not carried out4 ,they meant that every state1 and the nation as well1 should possess a legislative body1 representative of the will of the people4 ,nowhere does this exist1 not even where honest elections assure a free ballot and a fair count4 ,neither in ability nor in opinion do state legislatures by their acts represent a majority of their constituents1 except by accident4 ,nor will they represent the people until each political party1 whether large or small1 elects its due proportion of the members4 ,that is to say1 a party which casts forty-five per cent4 of the total vote for representatives must have forty per cent4 of the legislature1 and the party which casts five per cent4 of the total vote must have five per cent4 of the legislature4 ,then only will statute law be framed in accordance with the will of a majority of the people4 ,the other part of our republican form of government1 as understood and intended by ,american statesmen of the eighteenth century1 was that a majority of the people should directly control the organic law4 ,to this end they had the state constitutions framed by the people1 acting through delegates chosen to conventions for that sole purpose1 but not in effect until submitted to the electors and adopted by a majority of the votes cast for and against4 ,in like manner the referendum was provided for in case of subsequent amendments4 ,it was thought1 also1 that a popular initiative for constitutional changes was created1 in the authority given to legislatures to submit amendments2 but1 alas1 time has shown that those legislatures1 being unrepresentative of the people1 refuse to submit amendments1 however extensively demanded by public sentiment4 ,hence the necessity of giving the power to propose constitutional amendments1 as has lately been done in ,south ,dakota1 ,utah and ,oregon1 to a reasonable minority 7in those states eight per cent47 of the voters4 ,when the popular initiative shall thus have been added to the referendum already existing for making changes in the organic law of our states1 all else will take care of itself4 ,the amendment pending in the ,rhode ,island ,legislature1 and known there as the constitutional initiative1 reads in substance as follows3 ,eight per cent4 of the legal voters of the state may propose specific and particular amendments to this constitution by filing with the ,secretary of ,state1 not less than three months nor more than nine months prior to any state election1 a petition that the electors may1 at such election1 cast their ballots for or against such amendments4 ,any proposition thus made shall be submitted to the electors by the ,secretary of ,state at said election1 and1 if then approved by a majority of the electors of the state present and voting thereon1 it shall1 ninety days thereafter1 become a part of the ,constitution of the state4 ,to elect a legislature in any state committed to such an amendment calls for not only a widespread but an aggressive public sentiment in its favor4 ,as a rule the organization of the party dominant in the state will strenuously oppose the adoption of the amendment4 ,a party continuously in power1 no matter what its name or avowed principles1 is sure to frown upon radical measures4 ,the complete control of the organic law of a state by a majority of its voters means a future political situation hitherto unknown4 ,the effect upon present party leaders and upon partisan organizations cannot be foreseen in full1 but that it will be tremendous no one can doubt4 ,but if the individuals1 who are enjoying the state offices1 are opposed to a political upheaval of any kind1 the parties which are permanently in the minority feel very differently4 ,their organizations and their members will welcome any reasonable reform which promises to alter materially the existing unsatisfactory situation4 ,also in sympathy with a reform so meritorious and non-partisan would undoubtedly be found a considerable portion of the adherents of the dominant party4 ,yet even with a clear majority of the voters of any state earnestly in favor of a given amendment to the constitution1 it does not follow that its adoption would be easy4 ,in every state1 with scarcely an exception1 it is the party whose membership comprises nine-tenths of the total wealth1 which1 with few brief and partial interruptions1 controls every department of the government4 ,for the past decade this has been the situation more than ever before1 and every year finds the power of money to determine the results of elections gaining in strength--notwithstanding a rising public sentiment against abuses which are ignored1 if not encouraged1 by the authorities4 ,the situation seems almost hopeless1 as is very near being the case1 if the reforming elements pursue for the future the same course as in the past4 ,if the leader of the party in power were permitted to dictate the action of opponents1 his command would be3 8,divide your forces40 ,its boss would say3 8,split among yourselves into several separate and distinct parties1 attack one another with the same virulence that you attack me4 ,call yourselves ,democrats1 ,populists1 ,socialists1 ,prohibitionists1 ,labor1 and have whatever platforms or principles you please4 ,in fact1 the stronger and nobler the men and the issues over which the small parties wave their banners the better ,i am pleased1 for the more minute will be the subdivision and the more attractive and combative each fractional part40 ,and these hopelessly minor parties offer few inducements to the dissatisfied members of the major party to change their political affiliations4 ,such a transfer is altogether too much like removing one's bed on a bitter cold night from a warm room to a vacant lot4 ,discomforts1 and even hardships1 patriotic citizens may be willing to endure1 but they can scarcely be blamed for refusing to embrace them merely for the fun of being come-outers4 ,in order to contend successfully against the party in power1 however well known its abuses1 there must be a co-operation of the dissatisfied and antagonistic voters4 ,by co-operation it is not meant that an attempt should be made to create a single party with a platform composed of the planks of half a dozen parties4 ,such a composite is but a rope of sand2 and1 in fact1 the stringing together of a collection of unrelated questions1 such as prohibition1 socialism and labor1 is quite as likely to end in mutual hostilities as in a combined charge upon the common enemy4 ,the use of money for carrying a state election by corrupt practices can only be offset by the exercise of great wisdom on the part of those who depend upon other agencies4 ,the second party1 which in the ,northern states generally means the ,democratic1 must furnish the nucleus about which the third1 fourth and fifth parties gather4 ,indeed1 it devolves upon the second party to invite the other minor parties to join forces with it4 ,and1 in order to have such invitation accepted1 it must fix upon one or two paramount issues so fundamental and important as to attract strongly all who are offended with the doings of the party in power4 ,if two issues are elected1 one of them may well be a constitutional amendment such as has been outlined in this article1 the other might be a legislative measure--such1 for instance1 as direct primaries1 which serve excellently the purpose of a corrupt practices act4 ,each of the minor parties1 besides educational work1 wishes to preserve its organization and to measure its strength at each succeeding election by the number of votes cast in its support4 ,the wish is natural and proper2 but the objects aimed at can be accomplished in a state election without putting full tickets into the field4 ,the nomination and support of a single candidate for a minor state office will fully answer both purposes4 ,the means of stopping most surely and speedily corrupt practices by the party in power1 lies in an open and aboveboard fusion of all its opponents upon a few issues1 together with a united support of one set of candidates for all offices whose incumbents can aid or hinder the adoption of the measures agreed upon4 ,this1 ,i believe1 offers the best chance of accomplishing the very difficult task of establishing in a state good and pure government4 ,pole ,baker ,,by ,,will ,n4 ,,harben ,author of 8,the ,georgians10 8,abner ,daniel10 etc4 ,,chapter ,i ,the planter alighted from the dusty little train under the crumbling brick car-shed at ,darley1 turned his heavy hand-luggage over to the negro porter and walked across the grass to the steps of the ,johnston ,house4 ,here he was met by ,jim ,thornton1 the dapper young clerk1 who always had a curled mustache and hair smoothed flatly down over his brow4 8,oh1 here you are1 right side up1 ,captain ,duncan60 he cried4 8,you can't stay away from those level acres of yours very long at a time40 8,no1 ,jim40 ,the short1 thick-set man smiled as he took the extended hand4 8,as soon as ,i heard spring had opened up here we left ,florida4 ,i had a bad case of homesickness4 ,my wife and daughter came a week ago4 ,i had to stop on business in ,jacksonville4 ,i always want to be here in planting season2 my men never seem to know exactly what ,i want done when ,i am away4 ,jim1 ,i've got a lot of land out there between the river and the mountains40 8,i reckon you have10 laughed the clerk as he led his guest into the hotel office4 8,there's a neighbor of yours over there at the stove1 old ,tom ,mayhew1 who runs the big store--,mayhew ,floyd's--at ,springtown40 8,oh1 ,i know him mighty well10 said ,duncan4 8,how are you1 ,mayhew8 ,what are you doing away from your beat8 ,i thought you'd be behind your counter such fine weather as this40 8,trade's dull10 said the merchant1 who was a tall1 spare-made man about sixty-five years of age1 with iron-gray hair and beard4 8,farmers are all at the plow1 and that's where they ought to be if they expect to pay anything on their debts this fall4 ,i had to lay in some stock1 and so ,i ran down to ,atlanta day before yesterday4 ,my young partner1 ,nelson ,floyd1 usually does the replenishing1 but the books got out of whack1 and ,i left him to tussle with them2 he's got a better head for figures than ,i have4 ,i've just sent to the livery-stable for a horse and buggy to take me out2 how are you going80 8,why1 ,i hardly know10 answered the planter as he took off his straw hat and wiped his bald head with a silk handkerchief4 8,i telegraphed ,lawson1 my head overseer1 to send somebody to meet me1 and ,i was just wondering----0 8,oh1 you'll be attended to all right1 ,captain ,duncan60 said the clerk1 with a laugh as he stood at the register behind the counter4 8,pole ,baker was in here last night asking if you had arrived4 ,he said he had brought a buggy and was going to drive you back4 ,you will make it all right if ,pole sobers up long enough to get out of town4 ,he was thoroughly #8how-come-you-so' last night4 ,he was in ,askew's bar raising holy ,cain4 ,the marshal ordered ,billy to close at twelve1 but ,pole wouldn't hear to it1 and they were within an inch of having a fight4 ,i believe they would if ,mrs4 ,johnston hadn't heard them and come down4 ,pole has more respect for women than most men1 and as soon as he saw her at the door he hushed up and went to bed40 8,he's as straight as a shingle this morning1 ,captain10 put in ,charlie ,smith1 a mulatto porter1 who was rolling a pair of trucks across the room laden with a drummer's enormous brass-bound trunk4 8,he was up before day asking if you got in durin' the night40 8,well1 ,i'm glad he's sobered up if he's to take me out10 said the planter4 8,he's about the biggest daredevil out our way4 ,you know him1 don't you1 ,mayhew80 8,know him8 ,humph6 to the extent of over three hundred dollars4 ,floyd thinks the sun rises and sets in him and never will close down on him4 ,they are great friends4 ,floyd will fight for him at the drop of a hat4 ,he says ,pole has more manhood in him to the square inch than any man in the county1 white or black4 ,he saw him in a knock-down-and-drag-out row in the public square last election4 ,they say ,pole whipped three bigger men than he is all in a bunch1 and bare-handed at that4 ,nobody knows to this day how it started4 ,nelson doesn't1 but ,i heard it was some remark one of the fellows made about ,nelson himself4 ,you know my partner had a rather strange start in life--a poor boy with nobody to see to his bringing up1 but that's a subject that his best friends don't mention to him40 ,the ,captain nodded understandingly4 8,they tell me ,pole used to be a moonshiner10 he said1 8and ,i have heard that he was the shrewdest one in the mountains4 ,his wife got him to quit it4 ,i understand he fairly worships the ground she walks on1 and there never was a better father to his children40 8,he thinks well enough of them when he's at himself10 said ,mayhew1 8but when he's drinking he neglects them awfully4 ,i've known the neighbors to feed them two weeks on a stretch4 ,he's got enemies out our way4 ,when he quit moonshining he helped some of the government officers find some stills over there4 ,that was funny4 ,pole held off from the job that was offered him for a month1 during which time he sent word everywhere through the mountains that he would give all his old friends plenty of time to shut up and quit making whisky1 but after his month was up he intended to do all he could against law-breakers4 ,he had to testify against several1 and they now certainly have it in for him4 ,he'd have been shot long ago if his enemies weren't afraid of him40 8,i see him coming now1 ,mr4 ,mayhew10 said the clerk4 8,captain1 he walks steady enough4 ,i reckon he'll take you through safe40 ,the tall countryman1 about thirty-five years of age1 without a coat1 his coarse cotton shirt open at the neck1 a slouch hat on his massive head and his tattered trousers stuffed into the tops of his high boots1 came in4 ,he had a brown1 sweeping mustache1 and his eyebrows were unusually heavy4 ,on the heel of his right foot he wore an old riding-spur1 very loosely strapped4 8,how are you1 ,captain ,duncan80 he said to the planter as he extended his brawny hand4 8,you've come back to ,god's country1 eh80 8,yes1 ,baker10 the planter returned with a genial smile2 8,i had to see what sort of chance you fellows stand for a crop this year4 ,i understand ,lawson sent you over for me and my baggage4 ,i'm certainly glad he engaged a man about whom ,i have heard such good reports40 8,well1 ,i don't know about that1 ,captain10 said ,pole1 his bushy brows meeting in a frown of displeasure and his dark eyes flashing4 8,i don't know as ,i'm runnin' a hack-line1 or totin' trunks about for the upper-ten set of humanity4 ,i'm a farmer myself1 in a sort of way--smaller'n you are1 but a farmer4 ,i was comin' this way yesterday1 and was about to take my own hoss out o' the field1 where he had plenty to do1 when ,lawson said1 said he1 #8,baker1 bein' as you are goin' to make the trip anyways1 ,i'd feel under obligations ef you'd take my rig and fetch ,captain ,duncan back when you come4' ,by gum1 to tell you the truth1 ,i've just come in to tell you1 old hoss1 if you are ready right now1 we'll ride out together1 if not ,i'll leave you an' go out with ,nathan ,porter4 ,engaged1 the devil6 ,i'm not goin' to get any money out o' this job40 8,oh1 ,i meant no offense at all1 ,baker10 said the planter in no little embarrassment1 for the group was smiling4 8,well1 ,i reckon you didn't10 said ,pole1 slightly mollified1 8but it's always a good idea fer two men to know exactly where they stand1 and ,i'm here to say ,i don't take off my hat to no man on earth40 8,that's the right spirit10 ,duncan said admiringly4 8,now1 ,i'm ready if you are1 and it's time we were on the move4 ,those two valises are mine and that big overcoat tied in a bundle40 8,here1 ,charlie60 ,pole called out to the porter1 8put them things o' ,duncan's in the back end o' the buggy1 an' ,i'll throw you a dime the next time ,i'm in town40 8,all right1 boss10 the mulatto said1 with a knowing wink and smile at ,mayhew4 8,they'll be in by the time you get there40 ,while the planter was at the counter1 saying good-bye to the clerk1 ,pole looked down at ,mayhew4 8,when are you goin' out80 he asked4 8,in an hour or so10 answered the merchant as he spat into a cuspidor4 8,i'm waiting now for a turnout1 and ,i've got some business to attend to40 8,collections to make1 ,i'll bet my hat10 ,pole laughed4 8,i thought mighty few folks was out on ,main ,street jest now2 they know you are abroad in the land an' want to save the'r socks40 8,do you reckon that's it1 ,pole80 said ,mayhew as he spat again4 8,i thought maybe it was because they was afraid you'd paint the town1 and wanted to keep their skins whole40 ,the clerk and the planter laughed4 8,he got you that time1 ,baker10 the latter said1 with a smile4 8,i'll acknowledge the corn10 and the mountaineer joined in the laugh good-naturedly4 8,to look at the old skinflint1 settin' half asleep all the time1 a body wouldn't think his tongue had any life to it4 ,i've seed the dern thing wiggle before1 but it was mostly when thar was a trade up40 ,,chapter ,,ii ,as they were driving into the country road1 just beyond the straggling houses in the outskirts of the town1 going toward the mountains1 which lay along the western horizon like blue clouds nestling against the earth1 the planter said3 8,i've seen you fishing and hunting with ,mayhew's young partner1 ,nelson ,floyd4 ,you and he are rather intimate1 are you not80 8,jest about as friendly as two men can be10 said ,pole1 8when one's rising in the world an' t'other is eternally at a standstill1 or goin' down like a round rock on the side of a mountain4 ,or maybe1 ,i ought to say1 when one of 'em has had the pluck to educate hisself an' t'other hardly knows ,b from a bull's foot4 ,i don't know1 ,captain1 why ,nelson ,floyd's friendly to me4 ,i like him beca'se he is a man from his toe-nails to the end o' the longest hair on his head40 8,i've heard a lot of good things about him10 remarked the planter1 8and ,i understand1 too1 that he has his faults40 8,they're part of his manhood10 said ,pole philosophically4 8,show me a feller without faults and ,i'll show you one that's too weak to have 'em4 ,nelson's got some o' the dust o' the broad road on his coat1 an' yet ,i'd take his place in the general bust-up when old ,gabe blows his trumpet at the millennium a sight quicker than ,i'd stand in the shoes o' some o' these jack-leg preachers4 ,i tell you1 ,captain ,duncan1 ef the ,lord's goin' to make favorites o' some o' the long-face hypocrites ,i know1 that is robbin' widows an' orphans in the week an' prayin' an' shoutin' on ,sunday to pull the wool over folkses' eyes1 me an' ,him won't gee in the hereafter4 ,you know some'n about that boy's start in life1 don't you1 ,captain80 8,not much1 ,i must own10 answered the planter4 8,thar it is60 said ,pole1 with a condemning sneer2 8ef the pore boy had belonged to one o' the big families in yore ring out in ,murray--the high an' mighty sort1 that owned niggers1 you'd 'a' heard all about him4 ,captain1 nobody on earth knows how that feller has suffered4 ,all his life he's wanted to make some'n of hisself an' has absolutely to my certain knowledge had more to contend with than any man alive today4 ,he don't even know the exact date of his birth1 an' ain't plumb sure that his name really is ,floyd4 ,you see1 jest at the close of the war a woman--so sick she could hardly walk--come through the ,union lines in ,east ,tennessee with a baby in her arms4 ,the report is that she claimed that her name was ,floyd1 an' that she called the baby #8,nelson4' ,she put up at a mountain cabin for the night1 a shack where some pore razor-back whites lived by the name o' ,perdue4 ,old man ,perdue was a lyin'1 treacherous scamp1 a bushwhacker and a mountain outlaw1 an' his wife was a good mate to him4 ,nelson's mammy1 as ,i say1 was tuck in1 but thar wasn't no doctor nigh1 an' very little to eat1 an' the next mornin' she was ravin' out of her head1 and late that day she died4 ,i'm tellin' you now all that ,nelson ,floyd ever was able to find out1 as it came down to him from one person's recollection to another's4 ,well1 the woman was buried som'ers1 nobody knows whar1 an' old ,mrs4 ,perdue kept the baby more beca'se she was afeared to put it out o' the way than fer any pity fer it4 ,she had a whole litter of brats of her own goin' about winter an' summer in the'r shirt-tails1 an' so they left ,nelson to scratch fer hisself4 ,then the authorities made it hot fer ,perdue on some charges agin 'im1 and he left the child with another pore mountain family by name o' ,scott and moved clean out o' the country4 ,the ,scotts couldn't remember much more than hearsay about how ,nelson got thar an' they didn't care1 though they tried to raise the boy along with three of their own4 ,he had a tough time of it1 for he was a plucky little devil and had a fight mighty nigh every day with somebody4 ,and as he growed up he naturally fell into bad company1 or it fell into him1 like everything else did1 an' he tuck to drinkin' an' become a regular young outlaw2 he was a bloodthirsty rowdy before he was fifteen2 shot at one man fer some cause or other an' barely escaped bein' put up fer life--nothin' but bein' so young got 'im off4 ,but one day--now ,i'm givin' it to you jest as ,nelson told me--one day he said he got to thinkin' about the way he was a-goin'1 and of his own accord he made up his mind to call a halt4 ,he wanted to cut clean off from his old set1 an' so he went to ,mayhew and told him he wanted to git work in the store4 ,old ,mayhew would skin a flea fer its hide an' tallow1 an' seein' his money in the boy1 he bound 'im to an agreement to work fer his bare board an' clothes fer three years40 8,low enough wages1 certainly60 exclaimed the planter4 8,yes1 but ,nelson didn't grumble1 and ,mayhew will tell you hisself that thar never was sech a worker sence the world was made4 ,he was a general hand at ever'thing1 and as bright as a new dollar and as quick as a steel trap4 ,the ,lord only knows when or how he did it1 fer nobody ever seed a book in his hands in business hours1 but he l'arned to read and write and figure4 ,an' that wasn't all4 ,mayhew was sech an old skinflint1 and so hard on folks who got in his debt1 that nobody traded at his shebang except them that couldn't go anywhars else2 but lo and behold6 ,nelson made so many friends that they flocked around 'im from all directions an' the business of the house was more than doubled at a jump4 ,mayhew knowed the cause of it1 fer lots o' customers throwed it up to 'im4 ,the prosperity was almost too much fer the old skunk2 in fact1 he got mighty nigh scared at it and actually tried to dam the stream o' profit4 ,to keep up such a business big credit had to be extended1 and it was a new venture fer the cautious old scamp4 ,but ,nelson had perfect faith in all his friends1 and thar it stood--a beardless boy holdin' forth that it was the old man's chance fer a lifetime to git rich1 and old ,mayhew half believin' it1 crazy to act on ,nelson's judgment1 an' yet afraid it would be ruination4 ,that was at the close of the boy's three-year contract4 ,he was then about twenty year old1 and ,i was in the store and heard the talk between 'em4 ,we was all a-settin' at the big wood stove in the back end1 me an' the old man1 an' ,nelson and ,joe ,peters1 a clerk1 who is still with the firm4 ,i shall never forgit that night as long as ,i live4 ,i gloried in the boy's spunk to sech an extent ,i could 'a' throwed up my hat an' hollered4 8#8,i've been waitin' to have a talk with you1 ,mr4 ,mayhew1' ,nelson said4 #8,our contract is out today1 and you an' me disagree so much about runnin' the business that ,i hardly know what ,i ought to do an' not stand in my own light4 ,we've got to make a fresh contract anyway4' 8#8,i knowed that was comin'1' old ,mayhew said1 with one o' his big1 hoggish grunts4 #8,people for miles around have made it the'r particular business to fill you up with ideas about what you are wuth4 ,i've thought some about lettin' you go an' see ef me an' ,joe cayn't keep things a-movin'1 but you know the trade round here1 an' ,i want to do the fair thing4 ,what do you think yore time's wuth8'0 ,pole laughed4 8,the old skunk was usin' exactly the same words he'd 'a' used ef he was startin' in to buy a load o' produce an' wanted to kill expectation at the outset4 8#8,i want fifty dollars a month1 under certain conditions1' the boy said1 lookin' the old skinflint straight in the eye4 8#8,fifty--huh6 yo're crazy1 stark' starin' crazy--plumb off yore base6' the old man said1 his lip twisted up like it is when he's mad4 #8,i see myse'f payin' a beardless boy a ,broadway salary to work in a shack like this out here in the mountains4' 8#8,well1 ,i'll jest be obliged to quit you then1' ,nelson said as steady as a millpond on a hot day in ,august1 'an' ,i'd sorter hate to do it4 ,moore ,trotter1 at ,darley1 offer me that fer the fust six months1 with an increase later4' 8#8,moore ,trotter6' the old skunk grunted loud enough to be heard clean to the court-house4 ,they was the only firm in this end o' the state that controlled as much custom as ,mayhew did1 an' it struck the old chap under the ribs4 ,he got up from his chair an' walked clean down to the front door4 ,it was shet an' locked1 but thar was a lamp on the show-case nigh whar he stopped1 an' ,i could see his old face a-workin' under the influence o' good an' evil4 ,purty soon he grunted1 an' come back1 thumpin' his old stick agin barrels an' boxes along the way4 8#8,how am ,i goin' to know whether they offered you that much or not8' he axed4 8#8,beca'se ,i said so1' ,nelson told 'im1 an' his dark eyes was flashin' like lightnin'4 ,he stood up an' faced the old codger4 #8,i'll tell you one thing1 ,mr4 ,mayhew1' he let fly at 'im1 'ef you don't know whether ,i'm tellin' the truth or not you'd better let me go1 fer a man that will lie will steal4 ,i say they offered me fifty dollars4 ,i've got the'r written proposition in my pocket1 but ,i'll be hanged ef ,i show it to you4'0 8,good60 exclaimed ,duncan4 8,well1 it knocked the old man clean off his feet10 ,pole went on4 8,he sat down in his chair again1 all of a tremble an' white about the mouth4 ,stingy people git scared to death at the very idea o' payin' out money1 anyway1 an' stingy don't fit that old cuss4 ,ef ,noah ,webster had known him he'd 'a' made another word fer that meanin'4 ,i don't know but he'd simply 'a' spelled out the old man's name an' 'a' been done with it40 8,what answer did ,mayhew give the young man1 ,baker80 asked the planter in a tone which indicated no little interest4 8,why1 he jest set still for awhile10 said ,pole1 8an' me an' ,joe ,peters was a-wonderin' what he'd say4 ,he never did do anything sudden4 ,ef he ever gits thar he'll feel his way through heaven's gate4 ,i seed 'im keep a woman standin' in the store once from breakfast to dinner-time while he was lookin' fer a paper o' needles she'd called fer4 ,every now an' then he'd quit huntin' fer the needles an' go an' wait on some other customer1 an' then come back to 'er4 ,she was a timid sort o' thing1 an' didn't seem to think she had the right to leave1 bein' as she had started the search4 ,whenever she'd go towards the door to see ef her hoss was standin'1 he'd call 'er back an' ax 'er about 'er crap an' tell 'er not to be in a hurry--that ,rome wasn't built in a day1 an' the like4 ,you know the old cuss has some education4 ,finally he found the needles an' tuck another half an hour to select a scrap o' paper little enough to wrap 'em up in4 ,but you axed me what ,mayhew said to 'im4 ,you bet the boy was too good a trader to push a matter like that to a head4 ,he'd throwed down the bars1 an' he jest waited fer the old man to go through of his own accord4 ,finally ,mayhew axed1 as indifferent as he could under all his excitement1 #8,when do you intend to answer the letter you say you got from ,moore ,trotter8' 8#8,i've already answered it1' ,nelson said4 #8,i told 'em ,i appreciated the'r offer an' would run over an' see 'em day after tomorrow4'0 8,good1 very well said1 ,baker60 laughed ,captain ,duncan4 8,no wonder the young man's become rich4 ,you can't keep talent like that down4 ,but what did old ,mayhew say80 8,it was like pullin' eye-teeth10 answered ,pole1 8but he finally come across4 #8,well1' said he1 #8,i reckon you kin make yorese'f as useful to me as you kin to them1 an' ef you are bent on ridin' me to death1 after ,i picked you up an' give you a start an' l'arnt you how to do business1 ,i reckon ,i'll have to put up with it4' 8#8,i don't feel like ,i owe you anything1' said ,nelson as plucky as a banker demandin' good security on a loan4 #8,i've worked for you like a slave for three years for my bare livin' an' my experience1 an' from now on ,i am goin' to work for ,number ,one4 ,i said that ,i'd stay for fifty dollars a month on certain conditions4' 8#8,conditions8' the old man growled4 #8,what conditions do you mean8' 8#8,why1 it's jest this1' said ,nelson4 #8,i've had my feelin's1 an' the feelin's o' my friends1 hurt time after time by you turnin' folks off without credit when ,i knowed they would meet the'r obligations4 ,now1 ef ,i stay with you it is with the distinct understandin' that ,i have the authority to give or refuse credit whenever ,i see fit4' 8,that knocked the old man off his perch agin4 ,he wilted an' sat thar as limp as a dish-rag4 ,joe ,peters worships the ground ,nelson walks on1 an' as 'feard as he was o' the old man1 he busted out in a big chuckle1 an' rubbed his hands together4 ,besides he knowed the boy was talkin' fer the interest o' the business4 ,he'd seed no end o' good customers sent off fer no reason in the world than that ,mayhew was scared o' his shadow4 8#8,i'll never consent to that6' ,mayhew said1 mighty nigh clean whipped out4 8#8,well1 ,moore ,trotter will1' ,nelson said4 #8,that's one o' the things laid down in the'r proposition4' ,an' the boy went to the desk an' drawed out a sheet o' paper an' dipped his pen in the ink4 ,the old man set quivering awhile1 an' then got up an' went an' stood behind the boy4 #8,put down yore pen1' said he1 with a sigh from away down inside of 'im4 #8,it would ruin me fer you to go to ,darley--half the trade would follow you4 ,go ahead2 ,i'll keep you an' run the risk4'0 ,the planter had been listening attentively1 and he now said admiringly3 8,even at that early age the boy was showing what developed later4 ,it wasn't long after that before he became the old man's partner1 ,i believe40 8,the next year10 answered ,pole4 8,he saved every dollar of his wages1 and made some good investments that turned out money4 ,it wasn't a big slice of the business at fust1 but he now owns a half1 an'1 countin' his outside interests1 he's wuth a great deal more than old ,mayhew4 ,he's rich already1 ,captain40 8,so ,i've heard the women say10 smiled the planter4 8,women always keep track of well-to-do unmarried men40 8,it hain't spiled ,nelson one bit1 though10 added ,baker4 8,he's the same unselfish friend to me as he ever was1 and ,i hain't hardly got a roof to cover me an' mine4 ,but1 as solid as he always was1 he had a serious back-set about three years ago1 and all his well-wishers thought it was goin' to do him up40 8,you mean when he took to drinking10 said ,captain ,duncan interrogatively4 8,yes1 that's what ,i mean4 ,he'd formed the habit when he was a boy1 and1 along with his prosperity an' late work hours1 it begun to fasten its claws on 'im like it has on some other folks ,i know1 ,captain4 ,he had a lot o' night work to do1 an' ,thigpen's bar was right j'inin' the store4 ,nelson used to slide in at the back door whenever the notion struck 'im1 and he made the trail hot1 ,i tell you4 ,old ,mayhew kept a sharp eye on 'im1 an' ever' now and then he'd git powerful blue over the way things was a-goin'4 ,finally the old cuss got desperate an' called a halt4 ,he had a straight talk with ,nelson1 an' told 'im they would have to divide the'r interests1 that he wasn't a drinkin' man hisse'f1 an' he didn't want to be yoked to one that was soaked half the time4 ,it fetched the boy to his senses4 ,he come over to my house that night an' called me out to the fence4 8#8,i want to make a deal with you1 ,pole1' said he4 8#8,with me8' says ,i4 #8,what sort of a deal8' 8#8,why1' said he1 #8,i've made up my mind to swear off fer good an' all1 an' ,i want you to j'ine me4' 8,i agreed all right10 ,pole laughed4 8,in fact1 ,i was sorter in that business4 ,i'd promised every preacher an' temperance worker in the county to quit1 an' ,i couldn't refuse a friend what ,i was dispensin' so freely right an' left4 ,so ,i said1 said ,i1 #8,all right1 ,nelson2 ,i'm with you4'0 8,and how did it come out80 questioned the planter as he bowed to a wagon full of farmers going in an opposite direction4 8,his vaccination tuck10 ,pole smiled4 8,he had a mighty sore arm fer a week or so1 but he held out4 ,as fer me1 ,i was so dern glad to see his success in abstainin' that ,i started in to celebrate4 ,i did try at fust1 though4 ,one mornin' ,i went in the store an' seed ,nelson have sech a clean1 prosperous look an' so well satisfied with his stand that ,i went out with fresh resolutions4 ,what did ,i do8 ,i went to the barroom an' bought four pint bottles o' red rye an' tuck 'em home with me4 ,i set 'em all in a straight row on the mantel-shelf1 nigh the edge1 in front o' the clock1 an' was standin' lookin' at 'em when ,sally1 my wife1 come in4 ,she seed the display an' jest set kerflop down in her chair an' begun to whimper4 8#8,you hold on1' said ,i2 #8don't you cross a foot-log till the tree's down4 ,i'm tryin' a new dicker4 ,i've always heard that familiarity breeds contempt1 an' ,i've also heard that the hair o' the dog is good fer the bite4 ,now1 ,i've tried my level best to quit liquor by stayin' away from it an' ,i'm a-goin' to see ef ,i cayn't do it with its red eye on me all the time4' ,well1 ,captain1 the sweet little woman--she's a sweet1 dear little creature1 ,captain ,duncan1 ef ,i do say it myself40 8,i've always heard so1 ,baker10 the planter said4 8,she's very popular with your neighbors40 8,an' ,i'm jest t'other way10 said ,pole4 8,well1 ,sally1 she got up an' kissed me1 an' said that somehow she felt like my plan would work40 8,and did it--,i mean10 the ,captain recalled ,pole's spree of only the night before1 8,i mean did it work for any length of time80 8,i was goin' on to tell you10 answered the mountaineer4 8,that night fer the fust time sence my marriage ,i woke smack dab in the middle o' the night1 an' as ,i laid thar in the room filled with moonlight ,i couldn't see a blessed thing but that row o' bottles1 an' then my mouth set in to waterin' at sech a rate that ,i got afeard ,i'd ketch my death from sleepin' on a wet pillow4 ,it was certainly a struggle with the flesh4 ,i'd put my thirst1 when she's good an' dry1 agin any that ever tickled a human throat4 ,it 'ud take the blue ribbon at a state fair4 ,it's a rail thing2 it kin walk an' talk an' kick an' squirm1 but it won't be dictated to4 ,finally ,sally woke up an' said3 8#8,what's the matter1 ,pole8 ,hain't you comfortable8' 8#8,comfortable1 the devil6' said ,i4 ,i'm usually polite to ,sally1 but ,i felt like that wasn't no time an' place to talk about little matters4 #8,comfortable1 nothin'1' said ,i2 #8,sally1 ef you don't take that 8dog-hair0 out o' this house an' hide it1 ,i'll be as drunk as a b'iled owl in ten minutes4' 8'8,dog-hair80' said she1 an' then the little woman remembered an' got up4 ,i heard the bottles tinkle like sorrowful good-bye bells callin' wanderin' friends back to the fold as she tuck 'em up an' left4 ,captain1 ,i felt jest like0--,pole laughed good-naturedly--8,i felt like thar was a plot agin the best friends ,i ever had4 ,i actually felt sorry fer them bottles1 an' ,i got up an' stood at the window an' watched ,sally as she tuck 'em away out in the lonely moonlight to the barn4 ,i seed 'er climb over the fence o' the cow-lot an' go in the side whar ,i kept my hay an' fodder an' roughness fer my cattle4 ,then ,i laid down in bed agin40 8,that was certainly a courageous thing to do10 said the planter1 8and you deserve credit for putting your foot down so firmly on what you felt was so injurious1 even1 even--0 the ,captain came back again to reality--8even if you did not remain firm very long afterward40 8,well1 ,i'll tell you one thing10 the ex-moonshiner laughed again1 and his eyes twinkled in subtle enjoyment1 8it tuck ,sally longer1 it seemed to me1 to git to sleep after she got back than it ever had in all her life4 ,of all times on earth she wanted to talk4 ,but ,i shet 'er off4 ,i made like ,i was breathin' good an' deep an' then she set in too4 ,what did ,i do8 ,captain ,duncan1 ,i spent the best half o' that night out in the barn lookin' fer hens' nests4 ,i found two an' had to be put to bed at sun-up40 ,the planter laughed heartily4 8,there is one good thing about the situation1 ,baker10 he said1 8and that is1 your making a joke of it4 ,i believe you will get the under-hold on the thing some day and throw it over4 ,coming back to your friend ,floyd2 it's a fact that he gave up whisky1 but if reports are true1 he has another fault that is almost as bad40 8,oh1 you mean all that talk about ,jeff ,wade's sister10 answered the mountaineer4 8,yes1 ,baker1 a reputation of that sort is not a desirable thing in any community4 ,i know that many brainy and successful men hold that kind of thing lightly1 but it will down anybody who tampers with it40 8,now1 look here1 ,captain10 ,pole said sharply1 8don't you be plumb foolish6 ,ain't you got more sense 'an to swallow everything that passes amongst idle women in these mountains8 ,nelson ,floyd1 ,i'll admit1 has got a backbone full o' the fire o' youth an' strong-blooded manhood1 but he's1 to my positive knowledge1 one o' the cleanest young men ,i ever come across4 ,to tell you the truth1 ,i don't believe he ever made but that one slip4 ,it got out1 an' beca'se he was rich an' prominent1 it raised a regular whirlwind o' gossip an' exaggeration4 ,if the same thing had happened to half a dozen other young men round about here1 not a word would 'a' been said40 8,oh1 ,i see60 smiled the planter4 8,he's not as black as he's painted1 then80 8,not by a jugful60 said the farmer4 8,i tell you he's all right1 ,captain1 an' folks will know it 'fore long40 ,,chapter ,,iii ,springtown was about twelve miles west of ,darley1 only a mile from ,captain ,duncan's house1 and half a mile from ,pole ,baker's humble cottage and small farm4 ,the village had a population of about two hundred souls4 ,it was the county seat2 and the court-house1 a simple1 ante-bellum brick structure1 stood in the centre of the public square1 round which were clustered the one-storied shops1 lawyers' offices1 cotton warehouses1 hotel and general stores4 ,chief among the last mentioned was the well-known establishment of ,mayhew ,floyd4 ,it was a long frame building1 once white but now a murky gray1 a tone which nothing but the brush of time and weather could have given it4 ,it was only a week since ,captain ,duncan's talk with ,pole ,baker1 and a bright1 inspiring morning1 well suited to the breaking of the soil and the planting of seed4 ,the village was agog with the spirit of hope4 ,the post-office was filled with men who had come for their mail1 and they stood and chatted about the crops on the long veranda of the hotel and in the front part of ,mayhew ,floyd's store4 ,pole ,baker was in the store talking with ,joe ,peters1 the clerk1 about seed-potatoes1 when a tall countryman in the neighborhood of forty-five years of age slouched in and leaned heavily against the counter4 8,i want a box o' forty-four cartridges10 he said1 drawing out a long revolver and rapping on the counter with the butt of it4 8,what6 you goin' squirrel huntin'80 ,peters laughed and winked at ,pole4 8,that gun's got a long enough barrel to reach the top o' the highest tree in these mountains40 8,you slide around behind thar an' git me them cartridges60 retorted the customer4 8,do yore talkin' to somebody else4 ,i'll hunt what an' whar ,i want to1 ,i reckon40 8,oh1 come off yore perch1 ,jeff ,wade60 the clerk said1 with another easy laugh4 8,you hain't nobody's daddy4 ,but here you are4 ,forty cents a box1 full count1 every one warranted to make a hole an' a noise4 ,want me to charge 'em80 8,no1 ,i don't2 by ,god--,i don't6 ,an' what's more1 ,i want to know exactly how much ,i owe this house4 ,i went to a dozen money lenders 'fore ,i found what ,i wanted1 but ,i got it an' ,i want to pay what ,i owe ,mayhew ,floyd40 ,just then ,pole ,baker stepped up to the man's side and1 peering under the broad brim of his hat1 said3 8,looky here1 ,jeff ,wade1 what you shootin' off yore mouth fer8 ,i 'lowed at fust that you was full1 but you hain't drinkin'2 at least1 you don't seem that way to me40 8,drinkin'1 hell6 ,no1 ,i'm not drinkin'1 an' what's more1 ,i don't intend to let a drap pass down my throat till ,i've done my duty to me an' mine4 ,say1 you look an' see ef ,i'm drinkin'4 ,see ef you think a man that's in liquor would have as steady a nerve as ,i've got4 ,you watch me6 ,maybe it'll show you what ,i'm able to do40 ,turning1 he stalked out of the store1 and ,peters and ,pole followed1 watching him in wonder4 ,he strode across the street to the court-house1 loading his revolver as he went4 ,reaching the closed door of the public building he took an envelope from his pocket and fastened it to the panel by thrusting the blade of his big pocket-knife into it several times4 ,the spectators heard the hollow1 resounding blows like the strokes of a carpenter's hammer1 and then ,wade turned and came back toward them4 8,by gum1 he's off his nut60 said ,peters seriously4 8,he's as crazy as a bedbug40 8,it's my opinion he's jest comin' to his senses10 ,pole mused1 a thoughtful look in his eyes4 8,yes1 that's about it2 he's jest wakin' up1 an' the whole county will know it1 too4 ,by gum1 ,i hate this--,i hate it60 8,you hate what80 asked ,peters1 his eyes on the farmer1 who was now quite near them4 ,pole made no reply1 for ,wade was by his side on the brick walk beneath the wooden shed in front of the store1 his revolver swinging at his side4 8,you fellows keep yore eye on that envelope10 said ,wade1 and he cocked his revolver4 8,look here1 don't make a dern fool o' yorese'f10 said ,pole ,baker1 and he laid a remonstrating hand on the tense arm of the gaunt mountaineer4 8,you know it's agin the ordinance4 ,you know you'll git into trouble2 you listen to the advice of a friend4 ,put that gun up an' go home40 8,i'm my own boss60 snarled the man with the weapon4 8,you're a blamed fool too10 answered ,baker4 8,well1 that's my lookout40 ,wade glared over his shoulder and raised his voice significantly3 8,i want to show this town how easy it will be fer me to put three balls into the blackest heart that ever pumped human blood40 8,you'd better mind what yo're about1 ,jeff ,wade40 ,pole ,baker was pale1 his lips were tight1 his eyes flashing4 8,i know what ,i'm about4 ,i'm tryin' to draw a coward from his lair4 ,i'm not shore--,i'm not dead shore1 mind you1 but ,i'm mighty nigh it4 ,ef the guilty stand an' hear what ,i'm a-sayin' an' don't take it up1 they are wuss than hell-tainted4 ,you watch that white mark40 ,the bystanders1 several comprehending1 stood rigid4 ,pole ,baker stared4 ,wade raised his revolver1 aimed steadily at the mark and fired three shots in quick succession4 8,thar60 said the marksman1 with grim triumph1 8as bad as my sight is1 ,i kin see 'em from here40 8,by gum1 they are thar60 exclaimed ,peters1 with a strange look into ,pole ,baker's set face4 8,they are thar1 ,pole40 8,you bet they are thar1 an' some'll be in another spot 'fore long10 said ,wade4 8,now1 ,peters1 you go in the house an' bring me my account4 ,i've got the money40 ,wonderingly the clerk obeyed4 ,pole went into the store behind him1 and1 as ,peters stood at the big ledger figuring1 ,pole stepped up to ,nelson ,floyd1 who sat near a window in the rear with a newspaper in front of him4 8,did you hear all that1 ,nelson80 the farmer asked4 8,did ,i8 ,of course ,i did2 wasn't it intended for--80 ,the young merchant glanced furtively at ,peters and paused4 ,his handsome1 dark face was set as from some inward struggle4 ,there was a pause4 ,peters went toward the front1 a written account drying in the air as he waved it to and fro4 8,i was about to ask you if--80 the young merchant started to say1 but he was interrupted by ,baker4 8,hush1 listen60 ,there was the sound of clinking coin on the counter below4 ,the bell on the cash-drawer rang as the clerk put the money away4 8,thar1 ,i'm even with this dirty shebang60 ,it was ,jeff ,wade's raised voice4 8,an' ,i kin act when the proper time comes4 ,oh1 you all know what ,i'm talkin' about6 ,nobody kin hide a thing in these mountains4 ,but you'll all understand it better ef it ever comes into yore families4 ,i never had but one little sister--she was all the ,lord ever allowed me to have4 ,well1 she was married not more'n a month ago1 an' went off to ,texas with a man who believes in 'er an' swears he will make her a good husband an' protector4 ,but no sooner was the pore little thing gone than the talk set in4 ,it was writ out to her1 an' she writ back to me to stop it4 ,she admitted it was true1 but wouldn't lay the blame4 ,folks say they know1 but they won't talk4 ,they are afeared o' the influence o' money an' power1 ,i reckon1 but it will git out4 ,i have my suspicions1 but ,i'm not dead sure1 but ,i will be1 an' what ,i done fer that scrap o' paper ,i will do fer that man1 ef ,god don't paralyze this right arm4 ,ef the black-hearted devil is within the sound o' my voice at this minute1 an' stays still1 he's not only the thief of a woman's happiness1 but he's wuss than a coward4 ,he's a sneakin' son----0 ,nelson ,floyd1 his face rigid1 sprang up and went into ,joe ,peters's little bedroom1 which was cut off in one corner of the store4 ,opening the top drawer of an old bureau1 he took out a revolver4 ,turning1 he met the stalwart form of ,pole ,baker in the doorway4 8,put down that gun1 ,nelson2 put it down60 ,pole commanded4 8,jeff ,wade's deliberately set this trap to draw you into it1 an' the minute you walk down thar it will be a public acknowledgment1 an' he'll kill you 'fore you can bat an eye40 8,no doubt10 said ,nelson ,floyd2 8but the fellow has his rights4 ,i could never draw a free breath if this passes4 ,i owe it to the poor devil1 ,pole1 and ,i'll pay4 ,that has always been my rule4 ,i'll pay4 ,stand aside60 8,i'll be damned ef ,i do60 ,pole stood his ground firmly4 8,you must listen to reason4 ,it's deliberate death40 8,stand out of the way1 ,pole2 don't make me mad10 said ,floyd4 8,i'm goin' down4 ,i'd expect him to pay me1 and ,i shall him40 8,stop6 you are a fool--you are a hot-headed idiot1 ,nelson ,floyd6 ,listen to me0--,pole caught the revolver and held on to the barrel of it1 while the young merchant clutched the butt--8listen to me1 ,i say4 ,are you a-goin' back on a helpless little woman who gets married to a man who believes in her an' goes away off an' is on a fair road to happiness--are you1 ,i say1 a-goin' to publicly advertise her shame1 an'1 no doubt1 bust up a contented home80 8,great ,god1 ,pole60 exclaimed ,floyd as he sank on to the edge of ,peters's bed1 8do you think1 if ,i give him satisfaction1 it will----80 8,will it8 ,it will be in every paper from ,maine to ,california4 ,meddlesome devils will mark the articles an' mail 'em to the gal's husband4 ,a lot o' folks did the'r level best to bust up the match anyway1 by talkin' to him about you an' others40 ,nelson ,floyd stared at the floor and slowly nodded his head4 8,he's caught me in a more degrading trap than the other would have been1 ,pole10 he declared bitterly4 8,my conduct has branded me as a coward and left me without power to vindicate myself4 ,that's one of the ways ,providence has of punishing a poor devil4 ,he may have a good impulse1 but can't act upon it owing to the restrictions laid on him by his very sins40 ,pole looked down into the store4 8,never mind10 he said gloomily4 8,wade's gone40 ,floyd dropped the revolver into the drawer of the bureau and went back to his desk4 8,it's only a question of time1 ,pole10 he said4 8,he suspects me now1 but is not sure4 ,it won't be long before the full story will reach him1 and then we'll have to meet4 ,as far as ,i am concerned1 ,i'd rather have had it out with him4 ,i've swallowed a bitter pill this mornin'1 ,pole40 8,well1 it wasn't a lead one40 ,baker's habitual sense of humor was rising to the surface4 8,most any sort o' physic is better'n cold metal shoved into the system the wrong way40 ,there was a step in the store4 ,pole looked down again4 8,it's old ,mayhew10 he said4 8,i'm powerful glad he was late this mornin'1 ,nelson4 ,the old codger would have seed through that talk40 8,yes1 he would have seen through it10 answered ,floyd despondently as he opened a big ledger and bent over it4 ,mayhew trudged toward them1 his heavy cane knocking against the long dry-goods counter4 8,i'll have the law on that fellow60 he growled as he hung his stick on its accustomed nail behind the stove4 8,no rampageous daredevil like that can stand right in my door and shoot for mere amusement at the county court-house4 ,this isn't a fort yet1 and the war is over1 thank the ,lord40 ,pole glanced at ,floyd4 8,oh1 he's jest a little hilarious this mornin'1 ,mr4 ,mayhew10 he said4 8,he must 'a' met a mountain whisky wagon on his way to town4 ,anyways1 you needn't complain2 he come in here jest now an' paid off his account in full40 8,what8 ,paid off8 ,is that so1 ,nelson80 ,floyd nodded1 and then bent more closely over the ledger4 8,yes1 he paid up to date40 8,well1 that's queer--or ,i am1 one or the other4 ,why1 boys1 ,i had that fellow on my dead-list4 ,i didn't think he'd ever raise any money1 and if he did ,i had no idea it would drift our way40 ,floyd left the desk and reached for his hat4 ,pole was watching him closely4 8,post-office80 he asked4 8,yes40 ,the two walked part of the way to the front door and paused4 ,joe ,peters was attending a man on the grocery side of the house1 and a young woman neatly dressed1 with a pretty figure and graceful movement1 stood waiting her turn4 8,by gum10 ,pole exclaimed under his breath1 8that's my little neighbor1 ,cynthia ,porter--the purtiest1 neatest an' best little trick that ever wore a bonnet4 ,i needn't tell you that1 though1 you old scamp4 ,you've already found it out4 ,go wait on 'er1 ,nelson4 ,don't keep 'er standin' thar40 ,pole sat on a bag of coffee and his friend went to the girl4 8,good morning1 ,miss ,cynthia10 he said1 his hat in his hand4 8,peters seems busy4 ,i don't know much about the stock1 but if you'll tell me what you want ,i'll look for it40 ,turning1 she stared at him1 her big brown eyes under their long lashes wide open as if in surprise4 8,why--why--0 ,she seemed to be making a valiant effort at self-control1 and then he noticed that her voice was quivering and that she was quite pale4 8,i really didn't want to buy anything10 she said4 8,mother sent me to tell ,mr4 ,peters that she couldn't possibly have the butter ready before tomorrow40 8,oh1 the butter60 ,floyd said1 studying her face and manner in perplexity4 8,yes10 the girl went on1 8she promised to have ten pounds ready to send to ,darley1 but the calves got to the cows and spoiled everything4 ,that threw her at least a day behind40 8,oh1 that don't make a bit o' difference to us1 ,miss ,cynthia10 the clerk cried out from the scales1 where he was weighing a parcel of sugar4 8,our wagon ain't going over till ,saturday1 nohow40 8,well1 she will certainly be glad10 the girl returned in a tone of relief1 and she moved toward the door4 ,floyd1 still wondering1 went with her to the sidewalk4 8,you look pale10 he said tentatively1 8and--and1 well1 the truth is1 ,i have never seen you just this way1 ,cynthia4 ,have you been having more trouble at home8 ,is your mother still determined that we sha'n't have any more of those delightful buggy-rides80 8,it wasn't that--today10 she said1 her eyes raised to his in a glance that1 somehow1 went straight to his heart4 8,i'll tell you4 ,as ,i came on1 ,i had just reached ,sim ,tompkins's field1 where he was planting corn and burning stumps1 when a negro--one of ,captain ,duncan's hands--passed on a mule4 ,i didn't hear what he said1 but when ,i came to ,sim he had stopped plowing and was leaning over the fence saying1 #8,awful1 horrible6' and so on4 ,i asked him what had happened and he told me--0 she dropped her eyes1 her words hung in her throat and she put a slender1 tapering1 though firm and sun-browned1 hand to her lips4 8,go on10 ,floyd urged her1 8,tompkins said----0 8,he said10 the girl swallowed1 8that you and ,jeff ,wade had had words in front of the store and that ,wade had shot and killed you4 ,i--,i--didn't stop to inquire of anyone--,i thought it was true--and came on here4 ,when ,i saw you just then absolutely unharmed ,i--,i--of course--it surprised me--or--,i mean----0 8,how ridiculous60 ,he laughed mechanically4 8,there must be some mistake1 ,cynthia4 ,people always get things crooked4 ,that shows how little truth there is in reports4 ,wade came in here and paid his bill1 and did not even speak to me or ,i to him40 8,but ,i heard pistol shots myself away down the road10 said the girl1 8and as ,i came in ,i saw a group of men right there4 ,they were pointing down at the sidewalk1 and one of them said1 #8,he stood right there and fired three times4'0 ,floyd laughed again1 while her lynx eyes slowly probed his face4 ,he pointed at the court-house door4 8,cynthia1 do you see that envelope8 ,wade was shooting at it4 ,i haven't been over to see yet1 but they say he put three balls close together in its centre4 ,we ought to incorporate this place into a town so that a thing of that sort wouldn't be allowed40 8,oh1 that was it60 ,cynthia exclaimed in a full breath of relief4 8,i suppose you think ,i'm a goose to be so scared at nothing40 ,floyd's face clouded over1 his eyes went down4 ,a customer was going into the store1 and he walked on to the street corner with her before replying4 ,then he said tenderly3 8,i'm glad1 though1 ,cynthia1 that you felt badly1 as ,i see you did1 when you thought ,i was done for4 ,good-bye2 ,i shall see you again some way1 ,i hope1 before long1 even if your mother does object40 ,as they walked away out of his sight ,pole ,baker lowered his shaggy head to his brawny hands1 his elbows resting on his knees4 8,fool60 he exclaimed4 8,right now with his head in the very jaws o' death he goes on talkin' sweet stuff to women4 ,a purty face1 a soft voice an' a pair o' dreamy eyes would lead that man right into the fire o' hell itself4 ,but that hain't the p'int4 ,pole ,baker1 he's yore friend1 an' ,jeff ,wade is a-goin' to kill 'im jest as shore as preachin'40 ,when ,pole left the store he saw nothing of ,floyd1 but he noticed something else4 ,he was passing ,thigpen's bar and through the open doorway he caught sight of a row of bottles behind the counter4 ,a seductive1 soothing odor greeted him2 there was a merry clicking of billiard balls in the rear1 the joyous thumping of cues on the floor and merry laughter4 ,pole hesitated and then plunged in4 ,at any rate1 he told himself1 one drink would steady his nerves and show him some way1 perhaps1 to rescue ,floyd from his overhanging peril4 ,pole took his drink and sat down4 ,then a friend came in and gave him two or three more4 ,another of ,pole's sprees was beginning4 7,to be continued47 ,when ,beauty ,is a ,fatal ,gift ,,crawford--,it seems to be impossible to convict a pretty woman of a capital crime4 ,,crabshaw--,it wouldn't be if they allowed women to serve on the jury4 99 99 99 99 99 ,still ,hope ,,jaggles--,even the doctors can't kill off the mosquitoes4 ,,waggles--,perhaps they haven't tried the same methods they use on the human race4 99 99 99 99 99 ,all for the ,best ,,smith--,what do you think of the outcry against the childless rich8 ,,brown--,i don't blame them4 ,look how their children turn out4 ,how ,i ,dined ,with ,president ,grant ,,by ,b4 ,f4 ,,riley ,it was in ,november1 #ahge4 ,at that time ,i was a student in ,crozer ,theological ,seminary1 near ,philadelphia4 ,the country was just rallying from the effects of a long and disastrous war1 and as the centenary of the nation would occur the following year1 preparations were being made for the celebration of the event by a great exposition1 which was to be held the next year in the ,city of ,brotherly ,love4 ,this was the first of our great ,american expositions4 ,it will be remembered that this was called the ,centennial ,exposition4 ,general ,hawley1 now a senator from ,connecticut1 was made the superintendent of this first great national undertaking in the way of expositions4 ,in order to procure an adequate appropriation from ,congress1 ,general ,hawley and the ,centennial ,commission conceived the plan of bringing to ,philadelphia all the dignitaries and celebrities from ,washington4 ,they were to be shown the grounds and the unfinished buildings1 as well as the scope of the mammoth undertaking4 ,it was further proposed that the people of ,philadelphia should give a banquet to the distinguished visitors from ,washington4 ,this banquet was given in ,horticultural ,hall1 the only building that was sufficiently completed for such a function4 ,the sound of thousands of hammers and the swish of many saws resounded throughout the ,centennial grounds in ,fairmount ,park4 ,a magnificent train was to bring the distinguished guests from ,washington1 and it was to arrive in ,philadelphia at a given hour of the evening4 ,president ,grant and his ,cabinet1 both branches of ,congress and the judges of the ,supreme ,court were to constitute the excursion4 ,they were of course the guests of the city of ,philadelphia1 and on their arrival were driven direct to the hotels4 ,as might naturally be expected1 such an event and occasion set the city all agog1 and the ,philadelphia press was filled with the manner of their coming as well as the purpose4 ,public excitement ran high1 and the excursion was the subject of universal comment4 ,at that time ,i was an occasional correspondent of two ,alabama papers1 one a religious journal and the other a secular one4 ,aware that this was the most favorable opportunity ,i should ever have for seeing so many of our distinguished men1 ,i resolved to go to ,philadelphia1 and1 if possible1 come into contact with them4 ,no better plan was suggested than to present myself as a member of the press4 ,i imagined that there would not be the slightest difficulty in accomplishing this1 and that all that was needed was to represent myself as such1 and the opportunity sought of mingling with the great would be at once afforded4 ,decking myself in my best garb1 which was none the better for its long service1 ,i hied away to the city1 fifteen miles distant1 on reaching which the suggestion of a lean purse was followed in going to a cheap boarding-house4 ,after a scanty supper ,i went to the chief hotels where the great guests were already arriving1 bought an evening paper for two cents1 and found that a committee of citizens had been appointed to give information to all strangers relative to the trip and the banquet of the next day1 which committee was to be known by the red rosettes which they wore4 ,i threaded my way as best ,i could through the jammed corridors of the hotel1 jostling with army officers in brilliant uniforms1 and elegantly dressed statesmen1 until one of the committee wearing a rosette was found4 ,without apology1 and perhaps in rather an assertive way1 ,i began in a direct manner1 telling him who ,i was1 what ,i was1 and what ,i wanted as a representative of the ,southern press4 ,in reply to his question as to what papers ,i represented1 ,i frankly told him1 when he asked for my credentials4 ,but these were in the vocative1 and so ,i could produce none4 ,he eyed me very closely and with a distrustful look while ,i sought to atone for the absence of credentials by telling him that1 being in the city at the time of learning fully of the event1 ,i had not the means of obtaining the desired credentials4 ,after hearing my statement he told me that he feared nothing could be done1 and bluntly gave me to understand that he could do nothing4 ,once again ,i met him in the jam1 but he declined to notice me1 of course4 ,going across the street to the other hotel1 ,i mingled with the crowd1 and came upon two members of the committee standing together4 ,i presented my request to them1 and they said that they were members of the ,philadelphia press and gave me a most cordial reception4 ,when they asked for my authority to represent the ,southern papers1 and ,i had none1 they requested my card1 but ,i had not even a card4 ,they were evidently embarrassed1 for they showed a willingness to aid me1 but found themselves unable to do so4 ,after some courteous explanation they expressed regret at being unable to serve me1 and one of them handed me his card and asked me to apply at ,centennial headquarters1 on ,walnut ,street1 the next morning1 at eight o'clock1 and said that if anything could be done1 they were sure the ,commission would be glad to do it4 ,some time before eight ,i was at the ,commission headquarters the next morning1 and when the doors were opened ,i strode in1 asking for the gentleman whose name had been given me the night before1 and when ,i was presented to him he looked at me with a gaze of curiosity4 ,i told my story as it had been now several times repeated2 he listened with some impatience1 and asked for the credentials4 ,he listened to my explanation with a frown1 which indicated that he thought me a fraud1 and saying that he could do nothing under the circumstances1 swung his chair around and gave me no more heed1 until ,i more than hinted that perhaps ,i would be the only correspondent present from the ,south1 and that ,i felt some consideration was due me1 especially if the ,commission cared to have the people of the ,south attend on the forthcoming exposition4 ,the question of the ,north and ,south was a sensitive one at that time1 and he replied that the ,south could come if it desired1 and suggested that if ,i wished to remain away he did not object4 ,i replied that the ,south was clearly being discriminated against in the matter1 as representatives of the ,north were accorded the consideration which ,i sought4 ,he demolished me with a single blow when he said that they came properly accredited4 ,nothing seemed left now but to hasten to the hotels and see what could be done there4 ,i accosted another member of the committee of citizens1 but in no wise succeeded4 ,already the carriages were drawn up along the side of the street for several blocks1 awaiting the pleasure of the visitors from ,washington to go out to ,fairmount ,park1 where the buildings were going up4 ,baffled at every point here1 ,i stepped into the street-car and reached the park in advance of the procession4 ,here ,i met a medical student from the ,university of ,pennsylvania whom ,i had met before1 and ,i told him of my ups and downs1 very much to his amusement4 ,i had now practically given up the hope of being thrown with the national magnates1 but when they began filing through the great incomplete buildings1 and ,i stood with many others staring at them1 without distinguishing one from the other1 there came an hour of growing anxiety1 stronger than before1 to know them1 at least1 by sight4 ,i still felt within myself that ,i might succeed in getting into the banquet hall4 ,i mentioned it to my companion1 who sought to dissuade me from any further effort1 and said that it was folly to attempt it4 ,but when ,i saw the horses' heads turn toward the ,horticultural ,hall1 ,i bade the medical student good-bye1 and scudded across the park through the cutting ,november wind toward ,horticultural ,hall1 fully half a mile away4 ,when ,i reached it1 ,i found it strongly guarded by three cordons of policemen1 standing about twenty yards apart1 and surrounding the building4 ,this did not inspire much encouragement1 and nothing seemed so far away as the possibility of getting into the hall4 ,meanwhile the carriages were arriving1 and the distinguished guests were alighting1 and going rapidly into the hall4 ,an eager crowd of gazers stood near where the carriages stopped and were looking for dear life at everyone as he stepped from the carriages4 ,one ,congressman raised a loud laugh when he leaped out and said3 8,that other fellow is ,grant60 ,while ,i was thinking what ,i might do next1 several members of the committee wearing rosettes were seen coming toward the hall4 ,with some difficulty ,i reached them1 and the many-times-told tale was repeated about my being a correspondent from the ,south1 to which they listened with interest1 and said3 8,why don't you go along in80 8,the policemen10 ,i said4 8,have you a badge80 8,no10 ,i innocently replied4 8,we are out of them1 or we would give you one10 one of the group said4 8,come along with us1 and we will take you within the first line and send someone out to show you in40 ,within the first line of policemen they left me1 promising to see to it that ,i at once be shown in4 ,several minutes1 that seemed hours1 passed1 and apprehensions began to arise that at last ,i might slip in my arrangements4 ,my anxiety was quickened by a burly ,irish policeman approaching me with his club1 demanding to know what ,i was doing there4 ,i assumed a great deal of courage and replied that one of the committee had left me there on business2 and when he threatened to put me out1 ,i replied rather stoutly that he might get himself into trouble by tinkering with the official matters of the commission4 ,he used some ugly language1 and said that he knew his business1 and that he would let me stay only a few minutes longer and turned away on his beat4 ,he again approached me and hinted that ,i had misled him by my statement1 and that ,i must 8get out right away40 ,just at that moment a gentleman wearing a rosette1 and one whom ,i had not before seen1 appeared at the entrance of the hall and was giving some directions to policemen about the door1 when ,i hailed him rather unceremoniously and laughingly told him that ,i was in a fix and he must help me out1 that ,i was where the owl had the hen1 where ,i could neither back nor squall4 ,his face was a perfect interrogation point as he approached me1 and he evidently thought fast while ,i told him that this was a funny predicament for a correspondent to be in4 ,he listened to me throughout and said3 8,why1 yes1 this will never do10 and1 laying his hand on my shoulder1 led me within the first door1 and sent someone for somebody else to escort me into the banquet hall4 ,a gentleman soon appeared on the scene and asked for that correspondent who wanted to get in4 ,i told him ,i was the one1 and he took my arm and led me straight into the hall of banquet4 ,as ,i passed through suddenly ,i came wellnigh coming into collision with ,president ,grant1 who was standing over a grate warming his feet4 ,he stared at me as though he was afraid ,i might run over him1 and ,i caught a snatch of a conversation between himself and another gentleman1 who was obviously twitting the ,president on the size of his feet by relating an anecdote of a ,congressman on the streets of ,washington1 who was trying to trade with a bootblack for a polish1 and the shiner of shoes said that the job was such a big one he would have to take it by separate contracts4 ,at this bit of pleasantry ,grant grimly smiled and said nothing4 ,the improvised banquet hall was a scene of splendor4 ,the walls were festooned with flags and bunting and pictures1 and the floors at the base of the walls were adorned with flowers and evergreens1 while the long tables were covered with gold and silver plate1 cut-glass and branching golden candelabra4 ,running parallel with the wall on the left1 on a raised platform1 was a long table with sumptuous adornments stretching at right angles to the tables below4 ,the seats of this elevated table fronted those occupying the seats on the floor4 ,immediately in the centre of the table was the chair in which ,john ,hancock sat when he presided over the convention which adopted the ,declaration of ,independence4 ,this antique and high-backed piece of furniture was overhung with silken banners woven into appropriate designs and a field of stars4 ,this was the seat provided for the ,president4 ,just in front of him was an immense silver laver filled with perfumes1 while in the centre was a beautifully dressed roasted pig4 ,when the band began playing the guests took their seats1 and ,i sat on the seat within easiest reach4 ,when ,i looked over the hall ,i saw that ,i was the only one without a badge or decoration of some sort4 ,luckily for me ,i had a seat near a ,congressman from ,arkansas1 a gentleman who had been a ,confederate brigadier4 ,he was warm in his greetings to a young ,southerner and took great pains to point out to me the most distinguished of the guests4 ,while we were admiring the dainty souvenirs a negro waiter borrowed one of mine1 promising to return it soon1 and when he disappeared the ,congressman said3 8,you shouldn't have allowed that rascal to fool you2 he is not going to bring that back1 but wants it for someone else40 ,he was correct1 for ,i haven't seen the negro waiter since4 ,the banquet lasted more than an hour1 and the effects of the champagne were soon manifest from the increased boisterousness of the guests4 ,so far as ,i could observe1 ,i was the only one who declined the wine4 ,when the cigars were passed the guests dived their hands deep into the boxes and took hands full and filled their pockets4 ,as ,i did not smoke1 ,i took mine to the boys at the seminary who did4 ,the banquet being over1 the toasts began4 ,after a neat speech by the toastmaster1 he announced the first toast3 8,the ,president of the ,united ,states40 ,it was intended that this should be responded to by ,grant1 but he sat as unmoved as a statue4 ,cheer after cheer rang out1 and ,grant was called for in deafening chorus1 but he was imperturbable still4 ,my ,congressman neighbor remarked in a whisper3 8,now1 wouldn't ,i feel ashamed to be unable to say a word in response to such a demonstration as this60 ,as the ,president would not reply1 the other toasts were responded to by ,chief ,justice ,waite1 the historian ,bancroft1 ,james ,g4 ,blaine1 ,senator ,oliver ,p4 ,morton and one or two others of less distinction4 ,the scene ended amid vociferous songs1 oaths and other expressions of drunken disorder1 which were not calculated to inspire much respect in the young theological student for the law-makers and statesmen of the country4 ,making my way out of the hall1 ,i found that it was already dark on the outside4 ,i boarded a street-car and was soon on board a train going toward ,crozer1 and at nine o'clock was in my room surrounded by a host of the boys1 to whom ,i related the experiences of the day1 while the smokers in the crowd smoked my fine cigars4 ,and that is the way ,i dined with ,president ,grant4 ,the ,new ,york ,children's ,court ,,by ,,hon4 ,,joseph ,m4 ,,deuel ,author of the legislation creating the ,court and a ,justice therein ,a tribunal with an age-limit for jurisdiction is a modern innovation4 ,for two years one of that character has been passing through an experimental stage in the city of ,new ,york4 ,it has fully justified its creation4 ,it is experimental still1 in the sense that two years have been insufficient to exploit all its useful possibilities4 ,they are illimitable4 ,more than any in the world1 the success of this ,court depends upon the personality of the individual who wields its powers2 and1 however capable1 resourceful and aspiring1 he cannot be eminently successful unless back of him stands a strong1 healthy and encouraging public sentiment4 ,this is rapidly developing as parents come to know that each justice is a willing and enthusiastic ally1 ready at all times to join heartily with them to correct and encourage the boy or girl who has been tempted to go wrong1 rather than an ordinary minister of justice who measures each infraction of law with statutory precision4 ,when it is widely known that the primary object is not one of punishment1 but of municipal and communal salvage1 its possibilities for good will be greatly enhanced4 ,no one has ever sat with its presiding justice through an entire session without some expression of satisfaction with the ,court and the controlling policy in dealing with wayward youth4 ,said a minister of the ,gospel recently1 at the close of a forenoon session3 8,you are doing more good than all the ministers in the city40 ,this exaggerated commendation is cited simply to show that the experimental stage cannot be on the wrong tack when1 after careful observation1 men of intelligence give utterance to such convictions4 ,but every member of the community cannot see and judge for himself1 and this article is designed to give to all a correct idea of the ,court1 why created1 and its policy in dealing with offenders4 ,many strangers1 upon information not first-hand1 have been somewhat severe in criticism of a supposed sentimental leniency2 they have become warm supporters when brought into close range with its operations4 ,no useful purpose will be served by tracing the origin of the ,court or singling out and naming those who were instrumental in its creation4 ,it came naturally by the process of evolution in the matter of juvenile legislation4 ,its advent was timely1 for our civic conditions1 three years ago1 were breeding criminals more rapidly than at any other time in our history2 and a court to deal solely with the source of criminal supply was imperatively demanded4 ,one of the strongest arguments at ,albany for the bill was based upon these conditions1 and it was urged that when fairly in progress the prophylactic value of the ,court would be manifested in a reduced crime rate for the city4 ,no one then anticipated the volume and character of immigrants that have since deluged our ports4 ,parents with large families of growing children have edged into overcrowded tenement centres1 where their native tongue is almost exclusively spoken1 and have produced unwholesome social conditions1 that destroy the ,american theory of home1 by packing men1 women and children into one or two small and ill-ventilated rooms4 ,they are without means of subsistence4 ,the market demand for their labor is already supplied4 ,no employment at wages can be found1 and1 however abundant in that respect may be the prospects in other localities1 here the parents find themselves1 and here they insist on staying and taking chances4 ,children swarm the streets1 not only to get sunlight and air1 but to pick up pennies1 from whatever source available1 to pay rent and buy food4 ,and they are to become ,american citizens under such circumstances4 ,the fault is not with parents1 who are lured here by golden hopes1 held before them by competing transportation agents1 but is with the governmental policy that permits immigration to go on without intelligent direction4 ,possibly these people cannot be induced to go to parts of the country where there is a demand for the kind of labor they can give1 but their crowding into ,new ,york is working endless mischief in the men and women produced4 ,the records show that boys and girls who have lived here but a short time1 many less than a year1 others one1 two and three years1 get into difficulties and find their way to the ,children's ,court1 some for serious crimes and others for contravening state or local regulations of which both parents and child are ignorant4 ,the child stays away from school to peddle1 or beg1 or get money in other ways1 and1 if he or she succeeds in evading the police1 is hunted by a truant officer or runs foul of a 8,gerry0 agent4 ,be the infractions serious or trifling1 they add materially to the volume of child prisoners1 swell the inmates of reformatories1 increase the expense of city government and furnish material for keeping up the army of criminals4 ,dr4 ,david ,blaustein estimates that the square mile of territory bounded by the ,bowery1 ,mangin1 ,east ,houston and ,cherry ,streets contains a ,jewish population of #cej1jjj1 largely composed of ,russian immigrants4 ,if it contained no other races there would be a superficial area for light1 ventilation1 business1 recreation and living less than three yards square for each individual4 ,now for results4 ,mr4 ,coulter1 ,deputy ,clerk of the ,children's ,court1 in a published article recently stated that twenty-six per cent4 of child prisoners were of ,russian parents1 ninety-eight per cent4 of them coming from the lower ,east ,side and the largest majority from the square mile above mentioned4 ,the ,italian contingent is estimated at #djj1jjj1 which yields twenty-four per cent4 of the juvenile arrests4 ,russian and ,italian immigrants have a predilection for hiving like bees rather than for living like ,americans4 ,they have no inclination to go to those parts of the city where room1 light and ventilation are in abundance1 but select a locality where others speaking the same tongue have settled4 ,then begins the crowding process which drives other races from the neighborhood4 ,children run wild in the streets1 form undesirable associations and become easy victims to rapacious ,fagins everywhere abounding4 ,the parents do not learn our language with any degree of efficiency1 and acquire slight knowledge of our government1 its policies or ideals4 ,instances occur daily of witnesses that have lived here fifteen to twenty years who require an official interpreter to give testimony4 ,russian and ,italian nationalities furnish more than half of the business of the ,children's ,court4 ,it is not wholly racial1 because ordinarily the ,jew is devoted to his family1 is law abiding and is not prone to active crime4 ,upon this point ,mr4 ,coulter calls attention to the fact that with an estimated population of #ge1jjj ,jews in the ,bronx that borough furnishes but few juvenile criminals of this race4 ,he might have added that such as came were of a mischievous or trivial character except when boys from the congested centres made predatory excursions to that neighborhood4 ,the statistics gathered at the ,court do not furnish data from which to compute the length of time delinquents have been in the city4 ,this is generally brought out in the course of trial or investigation4 ,i have before me the trial record of several cases of recent occurrence4 ,in ,december last ,mrs4 ,rosie ,rosenthal1 of ,no4 #cbi ,stanton street1 brought ,isidore ,weinstein into ,court and asked that he be committed as incorrigible and ungovernable4 ,in the course of the proceedings it was developed that the boy was so bad at home in ,hungary that his parents sent him here to get rid of him4 ,he came in ,september1 #aijd1 with a man living in ,nashville1 ,tenn41 stopped one night with the aunt and then went ,south4 ,six weeks later the man shipped the boy back to the aunt because he was hopeless4 ,instead of committing him to an institution at an expense of two dollars a week to the taxpayers1 the whole power and influence of the ,court were bent on having him returned to ,europe4 ,another case was ,robert ,pries1 who pleaded guilty1 ,january #ac1 to stealing jewelry valued at one hundred and fifty dollars from a guest in a city hotel where the boy was employed4 ,he came from ,germany alone last ,august and had no relatives in this country4 ,he had been a bell-boy at the hotel three days and used a pass key to commit the offense4 ,raffael ,basignano1 illegitimate1 came from ,italy last ,july with a friend4 ,he was brought up in ,san ,malino by a woman1 not his mother1 known as ,philomena4 ,she came here1 settled at ,flushing and then sent money to pay his passage4 ,she died before his arrival2 he drifted to ,new ,york1 and then reached the ,children's ,court4 ,efforts to deport these last two are in progress4 ,these are types of many coming to this ,court for disposition4 ,taken in connection with the localities whence comes the largest amount of business1 it may be concluded that two factors are producing prisoners to an extent dangerously menacing the future good order of this city3 ,immigration laws and congested tenement centres4 ,if there be any fault with the former or in their administration the remedy lies with ,congress2 as to defects in the latter we must look both to ,albany and the local government for relief4 ,the ,children's ,court is battling against odds not anticipated when created1 and with creditable success4 ,scarcely a session passes without definite results1 and a parole day never goes by without some demonstration of the ,court's usefulness4 ,when the bill to create the ,court was pending1 its theoretical value had to be appraised by contrast with the system to be displaced4 ,its practical value is better understood by the same method4 ,in fact1 no true conception of its potency and usefulness otherwise can be realized4 ,formerly all children charged with crime1 delinquency1 want of proper guardianship or found in a state of destitution were taken to the various police courts4 ,in the matter of guardianship1 destitution and some of the minor offenses the magistrates had power to hear and determine4 ,in cases of felony and misdemeanor the police court was simply a sieve to separate those crimes and to send the former to ,general ,sessions and the latter to ,special ,sessions for trial4 ,in ,general ,sessions the cases had to be submitted to a grand jury and1 if indicted1 a trial followed before a petty jury4 ,there were discouraging delays4 ,few were indicted and scarcely any convicted4 ,those youthful offenders on returning home unscathed became heroes in the estimation of companions2 in their own minds they were immune to punishment because of superior skill and deftness4 ,they did not understand that escape was due to sympathy4 ,each became a missionary in crime to corrupt others2 became a chief of admiring associates and spent his time and energy in devising methods of pillage and robbery4 ,in consequence organized bands of youthful desperadoes sprang up in various parts of the city which were known as 8de gang40 ,a vicious boy with goodly sums of money in his pockets to flash before and spend upon impecunious associates can do more moral damage in a week than ,sunday schools can correct in a year4 ,ten years ago pickpockets in the teens were a rarity2 a few years later frequent arrests made the subject somewhat conspicuous2 in #aijj the arraignment of several in one day in the ,essex ,market ,court was quite usual4 ,several youngsters acted in concert1 each performed some important part in the process1 and all shared in the spoils3 a small percentage satisfied the younger lads who had slight experience in handling money4 ,ready money for theatres and cigarettes1 besides something to quiet parental inquisitiveness1 is an alluring bait to a child with slight moral supervision and guidance--far more fascinating than hard work or school drudgery and with promises of more freedom and luxury4 ,and it is such a simple matter to deceive unsuspecting parents who are unable to speak our language4 ,besides1 the young culprit knows how to weave fairy tales about some alleged employer that head off all investigations4 ,it is charitable to assume that confiding parents in their simple trustfulness have no conception of the temptations to which their children are subjected1 but the facts far too frequently indicate supreme indifference4 ,i have known fathers of girls just verging into womanhood to appear in ,court and testify that a disorderly house next door1 or in the same building one flight down1 was not a nuisance4 ,a father of this character whose child1 boy or girl brings home money never cares to know its source4 ,if the money comes no questions are asked1 or1 if asked1 the answers are never verified4 ,this kind of parent is typical of many now coming here1 and it is he or she whose progeny furnishes business for the ,children's ,court and recruits for the criminal ranks4 ,the youngster having started in with some weekly amount to carry home had to maintain it4 ,if it was not available when ,saturday came desperate chances were taken which often resulted in detection and arrest4 ,but conviction and punishment were rare4 ,fagins multiplied and recruits were plentiful4 ,picking pockets with so many pickers at work was a little overdone and larceny in all its forms was studied and operated4 ,we soon had the youthful burglar1 highway robber1 forger1 till-tapper1 wagon thief and pilfering employee4 ,the old system was making no headway against crime1 for the simple reason that it did not effectively operate against the source and lacked the requisite machinery for dealing therewith4 ,sympathetic leniency was too prevalent2 the time and thought of judges were taken up with adult cases2 little attention could be given to restraint and supervision4 ,even if these judges had the time and the inclination they were powerless because grand jurors failed to indict and petty jurors could not be persuaded to convict4 ,only recently a grand juror1 speaking of his work1 criticized a magistrate for sending a boy of seventeen to trial for larceny because the amount stolen was but a few dollars2 it did not dawn upon him that the boy was not at fault for stealing so little2 he probably took all he could4 ,it is the thieving propensity in the young1 not the amount stolen1 that most vitally concerns the community4 ,the amount1 by statute and by ,court custom1 is one factor in admeasuring sentence in adult cases2 with juveniles it is inconsequential1 and in no way decisive of treatment after conviction4 ,this is the spirit of the law also that permits felonious acts to be tried as misdemeanors if committed by children under sixteen4 ,treatment wisely can be determined only with some insight of the boy's disposition1 knowledge of his tendencies and information of home environment4 ,in other words1 thieving to some extent is a preventable evil1 and the treatment several boys should have may vary as much as a physician's prescriptions among an equal number afflicted with a like physical ailment4 ,the old judicial plan1 as it had continued for years1 sent the youngster home without a reprimand or a warning1 kept it up until all too late a hardened and confirmed criminal was the result1 and upon him were visited punitive and vindictive powers4 ,criminal propensities are akin to physical appetites in that they become habits by indulgence4 ,it is easier to keep a boy from smoking cigarettes than to break him of the habit after long practice4 ,on the same principle a youthful offender may be checked much easier than a hardened criminal can be redeemed4 ,such were the conditions when the ,children's ,court was created1 and such were the principles upon which it was founded4 ,it has been in existence and operation since ,september #b1 #aijb4 ,its policies1 plans and methods1 while not perfect1 stand in refreshing and encouraging contrast to those that preceded1 and it is exerting power and influence that may be measured with some degree of accuracy and satisfaction4 ,instead of delay ending in failures1 we have promptness bringing results4 ,children are not lugged from court to court1 often going to each several times before a hearing2 they come up for trial not later than the day following arrest1 and they do not have to return unless convicted2 even then many are permitted to go home with some sense of what they have done1 the reasons making it objectionable and the consequences sure to follow a repetition4 ,the quickness with which conviction follows the commission of an offense is of the highest importance2 especially if it be a serious crime1 such as larceny1 burglary1 etc4 ,it is one of the ,court's most valuable assets4 ,there is a total suppression of sympathy or sentiment during trial4 ,the prisoner is arraigned1 the charge is explained and then he or she must plead guilty or not guilty4 ,each has the benefit of counsel--if not employed by a parent the ,court invariably assigns one2 the trial proceeds at once if the plea is 8not guilty10 and at its close comes acquittal or conviction4 ,during all this time a dispassionate and methodical inquiry is pursued by strict legal methods1 in which the prisoner has the advantage of every technicality known to criminal practice4 ,the justice presiding is both judge and jury4 ,he has absolute control over future proceedings2 if there be a conviction1 therefore1 he divests himself entirely of pity or prejudice4 ,with him it is simply the elucidation of facts by strict legal evidence and reaching a conclusion that is logical and just4 ,there are objections and rulings1 demurrers to pleadings1 motions for new trials and motions in arrest of judgment4 ,frequently some bright boy defendant watches the progress of the trial with interest and learns something which1 never injurious1 may be of advantage4 ,the sad and possibly harmful thing is that he is on trial for a crime2 and yet that one feature may save him from a disastrous career4 ,the time for pity1 sympathy and sentiment on the part of the justice comes when he pronounces the defendant guilty4 ,then the character and attitude of the man upon the bench undergo a complete change1 for a duty far transcending that of weighing facts and reaching conclusions now devolves upon him4 ,this duty is to determine what to do with the youngster who has been convicted1 and upon this question the greatest mistakes may be made2 it is the one that weighs most heavily on the conscience of the ,court and is the most perplexing to the judicial mind4 ,the controlling principle in the solution is1 what is best for the boy is best for society2 he must either be committed to some reformatory presided over by persons of like religious faith as the parents1 or he must be permitted to return home4 ,either course may be dangerous4 ,to commit may blast his future2 to release may be iniquitous to him and a positive menace to others4 ,in order to decide the judge must learn all that is possible about the individual2 his habits1 disposition1 associations1 reputation1 home environment and previous record4 ,if the boy attends school his record there is obtained2 if at work the opinion of the employer is sought1 but in a way not to produce injury4 ,happily the law upon this subject permits the ,court to get information through any channel1 not even gossip1 rumor or hearsay is excluded4 ,in many cases several days are necessary to gather the material upon which the ,court finally acts4 ,the majority of the cases do not require postponement for this purpose4 ,the records of the ,society for the ,prevention of ,cruelty to ,children are so complete and instantly available as to enable us to know at the close of the trial whether there has been a previous conviction1 which is of the first importance4 ,if there be none1 a suspended sentence or a parole generally follows1 for it is believed that with the majority better results are obtainable through fear under freedom than by discipline under restraint4 ,there is a misunderstanding in the public mind1 and unfortunately with some of the police officers1 as to 8suspended sentence40 ,it means that criminal punishment is not then inflicted1 but may be the following week or month or some time thereafter1 but will not be so long as the youngster is of good behavior4 ,the boys understand that they will not be molested so long as no bad report reaches the ,court1 and the most of them act accordingly4 ,quite recently several on parole for engaging in street stone fights were separately asked what they did during the epidemic of stone battles that broke out in ,january4 ,they replied that they ran home and stayed there while the fight lasted4 ,a suspended sentence is quite apt to work in the same way with most boys1 for a second conviction would surely disclose the former1 and punishment then is severe4 ,occasionally a boy is sent to an institution on his first conviction as a safeguard against parents whose depravity and shameless indifference are positively detrimental1 and sometimes a child is permitted to go home and remain so long as the mother avoids drink4 ,good work has been done in both directions--the boy removed from iniquitous surroundings1 or these mended through parental affection4 ,a child is rarely committed for the first offense1 no matter how serious it may be2 there is a remand to the ,society for its officers to gather and report information of the individual and environment1 and then sentence is deferred and the child put on parole4 ,he goes home with an opportunity to earn a suspended sentence by his individual conduct1 which covers a wide range4 ,it is intended to correct every bad trait2 evil associations are to be avoided2 staying away from home nights must cease2 conduct everywhere--in the house1 on the streets and at school--must be exemplary4 ,during this time he is under the supervision of the parole officer1 to whom there must be a report each week and at the end of the period--four1 five or six weeks--appearance and report in ,court4 ,if a high standard of excellence is reached1 sentence is suspended2 if there is improvement1 parole is continued2 if the boy continues in his old ways1 sentence is imposed1 or there may be a short parole with certain commitment at the end if a radical change is not shown4 ,by these means the boy sees that others are interested in his welfare1 and he gets encouragement in all directions1 for neighbors1 noting the change1 treat him accordingly4 ,frequently he gets sufficient satisfaction out of the experience to determine that he will continue in the same way1 and in all cases he learns what he can do by exercising self-control2 it never works harm and often produces most gratifying results4 ,i mention a few as indicative of many within the experience of every justice holding the ,court4 ,in ,october last a widow had her only child1 a boy of fourteen1 taken into custody by the police for absolute incorrigibility2 he stayed out nights1 associated with bad companions1 would not work and was rude and insolent4 ,on the following morning the mother appeared in ,court to press the charge under oath and insisted that the boy be committed forthwith4 ,the usual practice was followed2 the boy was remanded to the ,society and an investigation ordered2 the report confirmed everything the mother had alleged1 and the few days of separation had in no way changed her determination to have the boy committed1 for1 as she declared1 she was completely discouraged1 and he was past redemption4 ,something about the boy led me in the opposite direction and ,i said to her1 8,i think we had better give this young man just one more chance10 and1 turning to him1 ,i said1 8,don't you think so1 my boy80 8,yes1 ,judge10 was the quick response4 ,after some conversation with the mother1 who finally relented1 a five weeks' parole was ordered4 ,on the return day both were in ,court4 ,the boy1 tidy in appearance1 stood erect and looked me manfully in the eye as he took his place before the bench4 ,the parole officer's report1 in writing1 told me that immediately following parole the boy had secured a position in a hardware store1 and by industry1 attention and intelligence had obtained a voluntary promise of increased wages2 that he had spent his evenings1 during parole1 at home1 which the mother confirmed and with moistened eyes she added3 8,i could not ask for a better boy1 and we are both happy40 ,the boy had found what he could do by trying1 and was satisfied4 ,it would be difficult to determine which was the prouder and happier1 the mother or son1 as they left ,court together4 ,a disorderly boy at school1 and an habitual truant1 coming up for commitment asked me to try him on parole4 ,he came back a month later with a school certificate of #ajj per cent4 in attendance and deportment4 ,a father brought his boy of fourteen to ,court for commitment because of prolonged disobedience1 which could not be corrected by chastening2 he was a nuisance in the neighborhood and the complaints sent to the house had utterly destroyed paternal confidence4 ,he was put on parole against the father's protest4 ,a month later the father reported a satisfactory change1 which1 as the parole officer's report stated1 had been noticed by the neighbors4 ,on request the parole was continued for a month1 when the report of father and parole officer showed almost perfect conduct4 ,on the father's special request the parole period was extended two months4 ,while these are exceptional cases they are by no means rare4 ,from this extreme there is a gradual shading downward to the point of absolute hopelessness1 when the subject is turned over to the disciplinary methods of a reformatory4 ,during the year #aijd out of #a1jih paroles #agj1 or #ae per cent41 were subsequently committed1 which shows satisfactory results of #hd per cent4 ,nineteen hundred and three was a trifle better with its #a1aag paroles1 of which #ac per cent4 refused to be benefited4 ,but if one-half of the lads can be redeemed or kept within reasonable bounds during character formative period1 the ,court will prove a success1 and intelligent citizens will regard the parole system as worthy of continuance and extension4 ,it is harmful to none and gives each a fair chance to test self-reliance and manhood2 it does not injure the boy past redemption1 but simply postpones commitment1 and is a wholesome demonstration to him that his misfortune is of his own choosing4 ,the boys generally understand that but one chance can be expected1 and coming back a second time on a serious charge the benefit of parole will be withheld4 ,this is not an inflexible rule4 ,if there are good prospects a second or even a third parole would not be refused4 ,but there must be more than mere possibility to secure a second and exceedingly strong assurances for a third parole4 ,one good test of its beneficence is the frequency with which parents ask that it be extended rather than terminated2 always on the same ground that the boy is better behaved at home and at school1 and is more careful of his associations4 ,there is another factor that gives the boys considerable worry and serves somewhat as a deterrent3 the 8,gerry ,society10 with its complete up-to-date record running back for thirty years4 ,when the time comes for pronouncing judgment a ,society representative--one or more always being in ,court--is called upon for the record of the boy and his family4 ,this is given in his presence1 and sometimes involves older brothers or sisters4 ,so that the youngster goes out of ,court convinced that it is impossible to hide any misdeed4 ,the services of the ,society and its officers are of inestimable value in the conduct of this ,court4 ,a feature of the ,court which would occur only to one who is a frequent visitor and careful observer of its proceedings is that of a practical kindergarten in civics to those most in need of instruction4 ,as to offenses involving moral turpitude--larceny1 burglary1 picking pockets1 etc4--the child and the parents know the act is wrong and why it calls for arrest and punishment4 ,but this is not true of a great many arrests2 possibly one-third of those made during any year4 ,there are many acts forbidden in a crowded city that would be unobjectionable elsewhere4 ,an arrest is sure to bring to the ,court a surprised and indignant parent4 ,such acts come under the classification mala prohibita and include bonfires1 ball playing1 craps1 cat1 throwing missiles1 jumping on and off street cars1 truancy1 peddling1 etc4 ,it is for the justice to explain why the act is condemned and forbidden4 ,bonfires may be taken as an illustration4 ,many arrests were made on the day of the last election1 and each boy confessed that the fires were political4 ,the boys assiduously gather fuel for days in advance and will burn it election night1 whoever is elected4 ,the lads were commended for political zeal1 and were asked whether they wanted to become good or bad politicians4 ,the answer1 of course1 was 8good10 and then they were informed that they had started out wrong1 because a good politician always studied how to save the people from needless expense2 that fires on asphalt pavement ruin an area that may require twenty-five1 fifty or a hundred dollars to repair1 which has to be raised by taxation1 and some portion of it each individual boy or man must pay either directly as a property owner or indirectly in the increased cost of rent1 clothing1 fuel1 groceries and other purchases4 ,other matters are explained on similar lines1 and often the eyes of some youngster will brighten as the explanation proceeds and at its close he will say1 8,i didn't know it was so bad2 ,i'll never do it again40 ,such a boy rarely comes back on a second charge4 ,these explanations are not made purely for instruction1 but to inform the child that behind all law interdicting ordinary acts there are good reasons and to state them so as to come within youthful comprehension4 ,the child is not the only beneficiary1 for the ,english-speaking parent absorbs some of the information1 and each goes away knowing why it is unlawful to build bonfires1 play crap or ball1 or do other things which result in arrest4 ,when time permits1 the non-,english-speaking parent gets his information on these topics through the official interpreter4 ,to punish a child1 or through him the parent1 for an act when neither understands why it is forbidden1 is extremely distasteful2 but such instances occur1 and punishment is inflicted because it is the only method for impressing clearly on their minds that the act must not be repeated4 ,thus far boys only have been mentioned2 but a like method of treatment applies to girls whenever there is occasion1 which is not often4 ,fortunately for the world in general and this city in particular1 the female sex is far less prone to crime and venality4 ,this is specially prominent in the ,children's ,court1 for1 eliminating improper guardianship--neither boy nor girl being responsible therefor--girl prisoners constituted but four per cent4 of the cases4 ,in the police courts women make up twenty per cent4 of arrests4 ,there were but thirty-eight girl defendants in a total of #a1jee larcenies1 six in a total of #b1hgj disorderly conduct cases1 two in the #ej robberies1 two in #aig assaults1 two in the #cdf burglaries2 of the three attempts at suicide all were girls4 ,it may truthfully be said that womankind is the crowning glory of the race and the sheet-anchor of progressive civilization4 ,much time is consumed with questions of improper guardianship1 of which during the year there were #a1ihc cases2 during #aijc1 #a1ehb4 ,these complaints are rapidly increasing1 partially because of ignorant and indifferent aliens4 ,but the machinery for dealing with such matters is so much better than formerly existed that more attention is given to the subject4 ,during the year preceding the establishment of this ,court there were but #eci such cases in the seven ,city ,magistrates' courts of this division4 ,there is greater firmness in dealing with them than with some transgression of the child4 ,while the subject of inquiry is under sixteen years of age the cases practically are of parental adjudication2 the fathers and mothers are on trial1 and it is one or the other that is disciplined if the complaint is well founded4 ,if the evil be drink1 which is true as to many of the cases1 it sometimes may be overcome if parental affection and desire to retain custody of the child are well developed2 if in surroundings coming within parental means to correct or in restraint and supervision which parents neglect to exercise1 the objection is overcome with most parents by a warning4 ,while testing sincerity and ability the child is permitted to remain at home4 ,in this way children are given approximately fair opportunity to develop proper and becoming tendencies4 ,the world would be tremendously shocked if it could know how many of its criminals1 paupers and vagrants are caused primarily by home environment and improper parental conduct4 ,a short time since a visitors' book was opened at the ,court and in it those who remained long enough to form an opinion have given expression thereto4 ,in closing ,i append the following excerpts3 8,a life-saving station02 ,morris ,k4 ,jesup1 president ,new ,york ,chamber of ,commerce4 8,profoundly impressed with an institution in which there is the highest promise02 ,bishop ,henry ,c4 ,potter4 8,it does one good to appreciate how great an advance has been made as is evidenced by such courts02 ,seth ,low1 ex-,mayor of ,new ,york4 8,the spirit of ,christianity practically expressed02 ,rev4 ,wm4 ,c4 ,bittings4 8,a most pathetic and interesting scene02 ,r4 ,fulton ,cutting4 8,a superb illustration of sanctified common sense and of applied religion02 ,rev4 ,r4 ,s4 ,mac,arthur4 8,the ,court is doing most excellent work02 ,george ,l4 ,rives1 ex-,corporation ,counsel4 8,a practical application of justice and ,christian charity02 ,dr4 ,norman ,fox1 ex-,mayor of ,morristown4 8,impressed by the hopefulness of the ,children's ,court02 ,adolf ,hartmann1 ,berlin4 8,the best work is always the preventative work02 ,rev4 ,w4 ,merle ,smith4 8,one of the best of the city's methods of improving the conditions of the future citizens of ,new ,york02 ,chas4 ,r4 ,lamb4 8,a long step in advance in social progress02 ,rev4 ,gaylord ,s4 ,white4 8,this ,court should be better understood02 ,wm4 ,t4 ,woods4 8,the work this ,court is doing in sustaining the discipline of the ,department of ,education is invaluable02 ,frank ,h4 ,partridge4 ,hon4 ,jacob ,h4 ,schiff1 ,rev4 ,rufus ,p4 ,johnston1 ,rev4 ,e4 ,s4 ,holloway and several other well-known citizens have visited the ,court since the book was opened1 but unfortunately their entries are so mixed with personal compliment as to make reproduction here inappropriate4 ,arguments on behalf of the ,court from those officially interested in its success are not needed when its ordinary sessions call forth such commendations from representative men4 ,what ,buzz-,saw ,morgan ,thinks ,,by ,w4 ,s4 ,,morgan ,much of our modern civilization is nothing more than refined savagery4 ,the yellow metal kills more people than the yellow fever4 ,harmony is simply stopping the wheels of progress to get rid of the noise4 ,saying that a thing is settled does not settle it4 ,all old party roads lead workingmen to roam4 ,shall our financial system be ,american or ,british8 ,don't surrender until you see the size of the enemy--and then don't surrender4 ,a man must open his eyes in order to see even as bright an object as the sun4 ,corruption in the best form of government makes it the worst of all4 ,the trusts owe their existence to yellow-dog politics4 ,with the control of the currency turned over to the bankers1 it will be in order to allow the hawks to feed the chickens4 ,the independent vote is a nightmare to the yellow-dog politician4 ,the ,beef ,trust is living in constant defiance of the law4 ,it is a greater menace to the rights of the people than a thousand highwaymen4 ,democratic statesmanship has gone to seed1 and the seed has germinated into a howl4 ,jefferson and ,jackson placed the mark of ,cain on bank money1 and the bankers have never been able to remove it4 ,the men who talk the most about 8sound money0 and the 8nation's honor0 are the greatest tax-dodgers4 ,take the corporation lawyers out of the important offices in this country and about two-thirds of them would be vacant4 ,the banker has no more right to regulate the quantity of currency that shall be used by the people than he has to limit the number of cattle that shall be raised4 ,enforced poverty is taking many a man out of the ranks of yellow-dog politics and making an independent voter out of him4 ,it always gives me a pain in the left hind foot to hear a man who wears a hoot-owl look on his face1 a quid of tobacco in his mouth and a double-barrel patch on the bosom of his pants talk about 8money that is good in ,yurrop40 ,about the only thing that ,bryan can reorganize out of the ,democratic ,party is a bob-tail flush1 and that is just what the ,republicans want him to do4 ,a stand-patter is a fellow who is too lazy to move1 or who has plenty of feed in his own trough and doesn't care for anyone else4 ,the ,beef ,trust might possibly make good its plea of innocence1 were it not for the fact that it has been 8caught with the goods40 ,the cotton growers who met in ,new ,orleans in ,january decided that the ,wall ,street 8bear0 was worse than the ,texas weevil4 ,yellow-dog politics is the spirit that moves a man to ride to hell in a two-wheel cart drawn by the ,democratic mule or ,republican elephant1 rather than to go to heaven by the independent route4 ,it is gratifying to know that a real effort is being made to 8control0 the railroads4 ,the failure of such an effort is the best evidence that it can't be done4 ,then will come public ownership4 ,the government has no more right to farm out to the bankers the privilege of issuing money than it has to grant to a few rich farmers the exclusive privilege of breeding short-horn cattle4 ,it is said that gold furnishes a stable currency1 but history teaches that it is the most cowardly money ever used4 ,in time of war1 when it is needed most1 it hides itself and paper money fights the battles4 ,the glory of war is a relic of barbarism4 ,it differs only in form from the ghoulish dances of the aborigines1 or the fiend-like performances of the ,dervishes4 8,war is hell40 ,its spirit is of the devil4 ,nine-tenths of the wars could be avoided4 ,they are caused by the selfishness of man4 ,in this day of progress and invention no man can define radicalism4 ,that which appears radical today is conservative tomorrow4 ,the leaven of a higher and better civilization is working in the hearts of the people1 and the day of emancipation from false systems draws near4 ,in the past ten years in this country the railroads have killed and crippled more people than all the wars in which this government was ever engaged4 ,put that in your pipe and smoke it1 and then howl against government ownership4 ,it is urged that the greenbacks should be retired1 because they constitute an 8endless chain0 to deplete the gold reserve in the ,treasury4 ,it should be remembered that no one ever uses the 8endless chain0 but the bankers4 ,the people don't want the gold2 they would rather have the greenbacks1 and they will take them without any gold behind them4 ,the way to break the 8endless chain0 is to abolish the gold reserve4 ,bryan seems bent on building up a straw party for the ,republicans to knock down4 ,in doing so he is playing into the hands of the ,republicans1 and he is using some good men for straw4 ,he is doing just what the ,republican bosses want him to do4 ,whether he has sense enough to see it1 does not alter the situation4 ,every move he makes tends to divide the ,democratic ,party and help the ,republicans4 ,the bold and brazen bag-barons of the ,beef ,trust will in all probability find some way to dodge the injunction issued against them4 ,there is an old saying that runs something like 8catch your cottontail before you cook it10 or words to that effect4 ,if there is no change in prices of cattle and beef1 you may rest assured that the beef barons are still robbing the people at both ends of the line4 ,for thirty years ,i have heard this talk of the better class of men in the ,democratic ,party getting control of it and bringing it back to its old-time moorings1 but the party is in a much worse condition today than it ever has been before4 ,that there are good men in it1 no one will attempt to deny4 ,the rank and file of the party are honest and sincere1 but the party is controlled by the most unscrupulous set of buccaneers that ever existed1 and1 under the system of primaries and conventions1 the people have no more show to win against the professional politicians than a goose would have in a running match with a red fox4 ,the party is not only divided and demoralized1 but it is disgraced in the eyes of the people4 ,the attempt of the party in the recent campaign to ape the methods of the ,republican ,party as practiced by ,mr4 ,hanna in #ahif and #aijj1 and its bid for ,wall ,street support1 were despicable beyond description4 ,a party that has for years laid claim to being a reform party1 that will stoop to such contemptible methods1 deserves not only the distrust of the people1 but their everlasting condemnation4 ,the ,heritage of ,maxwell ,fair ,,by ,,vincent ,,harper ,,synopsis ,,of ,,previous ,,chapters ,maxwell ,fair1 an ,englishman who has amassed a colossal fortune on ',change1 inherits from his ancestors a remarkable tendency to devote his life to some object1 generally a worthy1 if peculiar one1 which is extravagantly chivalrous1 even morbid4 ,the story opens with ,fair and ,mrs4 ,fair standing over the body of a man who has just been shot in their house--a foreigner1 who had claimed to be an old friend of ,mrs4 ,fair4 ,fair sends her to her room1 saying3 8,leave everything to me40 ,he hides the body in a chest1 and decides to close the house 8for a trip on the ,continent40 ,fair tells the governess1 ,kate ,mettleby1 that he loves her1 that there is no dishonor in his love1 in spite of ,mrs4 ,fair's existence1 and that1 until an hour ago1 he thought he could marry her--could 8break the self-imposed conditions of his weird life-purpose40 ,they are interrupted before ,kate1 who really loves him1 is made to understand4 ,while the ,fairs are entertaining a few old friends at dinner1 ,kate1 not knowing that it contains ,mrs4 ,fair's blood-stained dress1 is about to hide a parcel in the chest when she is startled by a sound4 ,,chapter ,v 7,continued7 8,hss--hss10 once more came the noise1 and this time she realized that it proceeded from the doorway4 ,with a frightened look she saw a man peering and smiling at her between the portires4 8,why1 who are you80 she asked1 involuntarily retreating toward the bell4 8,sh-h4 ,they are at dinner--a very good dinner1 from the smell1 too10 answered the stranger1 entering the room with an air of such thorough good-nature and easy friendliness that ,miss ,mettleby gained courage4 ,he was a little1 wiry1 dapper1 insinuating fellow whose cockney smartness of attire and knowing1 8between ourselves0 manner suggested almost anything1 from an upper groom or a veterinary's assistant to a rising young follower of the turf or a successful burglar with aristocratic connections4 8,i will ring10 said ,miss ,mettleby1 puzzled whether to scream or laugh4 8,oh1 ,i wouldn't do that1 you know10 suggested the visitor pleasantly1 more like one throwing out a friendly suggestion than a burglar intimidating a very frightened young governess4 8,you see1 miss1 ,i have business with ,mr4 ,fair--rather nasty business1 too1 and ,i never broach a disagreeable subject until after dinner1 do you80 8,but what do you mean by prowling about people's houses80 asked ,kate1 with a dignity born of growing assurance that the man did not contemplate her immediate murder4 8,oh1 ,i say1 let up1 miss1 you know10 deprecated the invader ruefully4 8,you see1 when you have passed a few hours back of pianos and under beds and in wardrobes you grow attached to a house1 don't you1 miss8 ,i'm that attached to this house that you'd be surprised if ,i was to tell you how much4 ,you'll be the governess now1 ,i dare say80 8,yes1 but on my word1 you are the coolest thief--0 replied ,kate1 and the cool one broke in3 8,oh1 oh1 pretty young lady1 recall that there wile insinuation1 you know40 8,well1 since you are so cool about it and come here where you are sure to be seen1 ,i'll believe you10 answered ,miss ,mettleby4 8,but what do you want8 ,really1 this is refreshing40 8,ain't it just1 miss80 acquiesced the cool one1 sitting down4 8,askin' your pardon1 ,i'll smoke4 ,now1 miss1 that we're so cozy like1 ,i'll ask you a few questions4 ,a dark foreign gentlemen called here about an hour ago40 8,perhaps he did--what of it80 asked ,kate1 with a very feeble effort to cover the alarm which his words created4 8,you saw him80 went on the stranger1 with an exasperating coolness4 8,if ,i did1 ,i don't see what business that is of yours10 retorted ,kate haughtily enough1 but inwardly quaking4 8,who are you1 sir80 8,i am ,ferret1 miss10 he answered1 rising and bowing2 8,mr4 ,samuel ,ferret1 of the ,scotland ,yard private detective force--your servant40 8,good gracious10 cried ,miss ,mettleby1 springing up in spite of her effort to betray no feeling4 8,a detective8 ,but why should you come here80 ,poor ,kate's alarm would have been considerably heightened had she only known that three or four other insinuating and evanescent gentlemen had been in and out of the premises for the past hour1 and that still more of them were at that moment watching the house1 front and rear4 8,well1 you see1 miss10 replied ,ferret1 trying by his manner to reassure the young woman1 8,i've been taking an interest in my foreign friend for a week4 ,he came here today4 ,i haven't seen him go away again8 ,have you80 8,no10 answered ,kate1 with an indifference which she did not feel2 8but he must have gone1 of course4 ,there is no such person about the premises4 ,i must ring and advise ,mr4 ,fair40 8,now1 really1 you know10 exclaimed ,ferret1 jumping up to intercept her2 8,i wouldn't do that1 would you8 ,when a gent goes into a house and don't come out again1 it is just possible to imagine that he is somewhere near that house1 not to say in that house4 ,you follow me1 ,i hope8 ,well1 my dear foreign friend came into this here very elegant mansion and he didn't go out of it again1 so by a stretch of fancy ,i think he may be in ,london yet1 and in that part of ,london which is up in your attic4 ,now1 don't jump4 ,if you make a row1 you'll frighten the great folks at dinner--such a deucedly good dinner1 too--and besides give my foreign friend advance knowledge of my little surprise party--,i just love surprises1 don't you8 ,and them there foreign gents can get out through a smaller hole than a self-respecting ,englishman1 let me tell you40 8,but who is the man80 asked ,kate1 forgetting her alarm as ,ferret1 with the oddest winks and gestures with his long thumbs1 delivered his speech4 8,and what is he doing here8 ,and what do you propose to do about it80 8,me8 ,what do ,i propose to do about it80 inquired ,ferret as if the thought that he would be expected to do something about it had just struck him4 8,well1 first of all1 ,i propose to ask you to be a nice young lady and help me a bit4 ,you see1 miss1 my friend don't mean any great kindness to ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,fair4 ,not a bit of it--that ain't like my friend4 ,in fact1 there's going to be a row--now1 now1 don't jump1 you know--,i was saying that there is going to be a row1 unless you and ,i prevent it1 you know40 8,then ,i insist upon telling ,mr4 ,fair at once--this is awful10 cried ,kate1 beginning again to believe that the alleged detective was simply a clever sneak-thief who was playing upon her ignorance4 8,hawful is it80 smiled ,ferret1 warning her to remain seated with a hand lifted eloquently2 8but it won't be hawful1 but just a pleasant little picnic if you will do just what ,i tell you4 ,come now1 don't be a fool1 miss1 but a dear1 good1 cool-headed young lady4 ,will you help me80 8,yes10 replied ,miss ,mettleby2 8of course ,i will do anything to help ,mr4 ,fair--,i mean1 ,mrs4 ,fair40 8,of course you will10 said ,ferret encouragingly4 8,i knew you was a ,christian the minute ,i see you1 miss4 ,you stop in this room until ,i come back4 ,i am going out to telephone1 you see40 8,oh1 we have a telephone in the house1 you know10 eagerly remarked ,kate1 not liking the idea of being kept a prisoner in the library while this man roamed about the house at his leisure4 8,yes10 jeered ,ferret2 8and it would be a fine thing1 wouldn't it1 for me to yell through your telephone downstairs that ,i wanted the ,yard to send me six constables at once to nab a foreign gentleman--with the foreign gent himself lying under the very mat on which ,i was standing4 ,innocent6 ,no4 ,i must go out to telephone--and if you sort of want to see me safe out of the house1 why1 come down to the door with me--yes1 that's it4 ,i want you to sit in the little room by the street door1 and when my friend goes out the door follow him--follow him1 miss1 you understand4 ,he will go across the street1 down the next street to the square1 turn to the left1 and call a cab at the corner4 ,you call the next cab and direct the driver to follow the first one4 ,watch him1 follow him1 don't lose sight of him40 8,but he wouldn't be such a fool as to go out by the front door10 replied ,kate1 thoroughly puzzled by ,ferret's mysterious instructions1 which she1 of course1 did not understand were merely attempts on his part to get her out of his way and fixed permanently in some known room4 8,never fear10 answered ,ferret2 8that's just what he will do4 ,he'll go out of the front door as if he owned the house4 ,in all likelihood ,i'll be over the way when he and you come out1 and then of course ,i'll follow him myself1 but if ,i ain't there1 you must do as ,i say4 ,follow him no matter wherever he goes--and then come to ,scotland ,yard and report40 8,i don't know about all this10 stoutly returned ,kate1 shaking her head4 8,why can't ,mr4 ,fair be advised at once8 ,this is all wrong--and strange40 8,but you see1 miss10 quickly protested ,ferret1 8,mr4 ,fair has private reasons for not wishing us to trouble the foreign gent1 so he wouldn't help us to nab him4 ,funny1 isn't it8 ,but it often happens that we poor detectives has to catch all sorts of gents in spite of the very parties on whose accounts we wants 'em4 ,the aristocracy has objections against appearing in court even against their own murderers4 ,now ,mr4 ,fair does not know this gent's little game and so he trusts him4 ,we've got to do all this business ourselves--and1 ,i tell you1 it's life and death4 ,so1 is it a go8 ,will you be a sensible young woman and not make a row1 and help me80 8,i will10 answered ,kate1 convinced by the fellow's irresistibly frank air--and moved by the comforting thought that her consent to his plan would at least get him out of the house--when she would of course advise ,mr4 ,fair of the whole matter1 even if it did spoil a good dinner4 8,that's a real lady for you10 gallantly remarked ,ferret4 8,now ,i'm off4 ,come downstairs if you want to see me out of the house--you suspicious young thing4 ,no8 ,all right4 ,thanks1 but you really must sit in that little room1 you know1 for he may be leaving the house at any minute40 8,i'll get my hat first10 replied ,kate1 8so that ,i can be ready to follow him if he goes out40 ,ferret slid noiselessly out of the library with a warning finger at his lips1 and ,kate congratulated herself upon having so cleverly deceived him4 ,she would hide the parcel containing the surprise and then send word to the dining-room that she must see ,mr4 ,fair at once4 ,she sat for a moment trying to think out the impressions which had been pouring in upon her in this hour of cataclysm and departure4 ,what had brought the foreign gentleman to the house8 ,what had he done to make him the subject of police suspicion8 ,and why should ,mr4 ,fair wish to protect him from the law8 ,and--oh1 how the thought came crushing back into her heart after being dislodged by the detective's sudden appearance--of what crime had ,mr4 ,fair spoken8 ,the temporary calmness that the diversion had purchased for her gave way now to all the torment that had preceded it4 ,springing up to carry out her resolution--action being at all events less dreadful than idle horror--she took the parcel from the table1 and going hurriedly across the room1 lifted the lid of the old carved chest4 ,she dropped the parcel into it--and fell4 99 99 99 99 99 ,allyne had just elicited a laugh by one of his characterizations of a certain great personage1 when the party at dinner heard a shriek that brought them all to their feet4 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,fair dashed upstairs with who can say what horror of expectancy in their minds4 ,they found the governess lying beside the chest in the library4 ,fair acted promptly4 ,he heard the others running up the stairs1 so as he raised ,kate from the floor he said to ,mrs4 ,fair2 8,sit on the chest1 ,janet--never mind why--and do not rise from it until ,i get them all out of here4 ,it is only ,miss ,mettleby1 the governess--she has fainted10 he added as ,mrs4 ,march and ,allyne entered followed by ,travers4 8,oh1 my dear ,mrs4 ,fair1 how pale you look--what has really happened80 asked ,mrs4 ,march anxiously4 8,miss ,mettleby has had a bad turn--that's all4 ,pray1 all of you go10 replied ,fair1 for ,mrs4 ,fair1 with a white face and vacant look1 sat as if unconscious of what passed4 8,allyne1 take ,mrs4 ,march down1 won't you80 asked ,travers1 to relieve the situation1 and then1 after ,allyne and ,mrs4 ,march were gone3 8,is there nothing that ,i can do1 ,fair8 ,my ,god1 man1 what does it all mean80 8,thanks1 old chap10 answered ,fair as he laid ,miss ,mettleby upon the leather lounge2 8nothing4 ,go down now1 or ,lady ,poynter will fear there is something serious the matter4 ,janet1 my love1 let ,travers see you down40 ,mrs4 ,fair suffered ,travers to lead her away1 walking in a trance4 8,kate--,kate10 said ,fair1 bending over the governess and chafing her hands which now began to twitch convulsively4 8,has he gone80 asked ,kate1 opening her eyes and staring nervously around the room4 8,there is nobody here1 ,miss ,mettleby10 quietly answered ,fair1 helping her to her feet4 8,are you better80 8,i must have fainted--how stupid of me10 replied ,miss ,mettleby1 getting herself together and shuddering as the reality came back upon her4 8,it is nothing1 ,mr4 ,fair4 ,now please go back to your dinner--oh1 how foolish and annoying of me to disturb you all in this way6 ,i will get my hat and take the air for a few minutes4 ,come40 ,they walked slowly out of the library1 and in the passage ,kate insisted on his returning to the dining-room while she ran up to her own room4 ,fair went down accordingly1 tortured with the fear that she had opened the chest4 ,miss ,mettleby1 hastily preparing for the street1 slipped out of the house and fled along to the corner1 where she took a cab and was driven off at a mad pace4 ,,chapter ,,vi ,about nine o'clock that evening ,mr4 ,inspector ,sharpe sat in his little office1 running his eye over the records of a day's departures from the steep and thorny path on the part of the very mixed and sorely tried people of ,london4 ,at that hour he was on duty also on emergency cases that might be reported at the ever-expectant ,yard4 ,so he glanced at his reports casually1 as one does who looks to be interrupted at any moment4 ,the bells in the steeples were chiming nine when a constable entered1 conducting a very agitated young woman who showed not only the usual nervousness of the layman in police offices1 but also a great deal of not very clearly defined personal anxiety4 8,well8 ,well80 asked the ,inspector1 without looking up from his reports4 8,i beg your pardon--but is this--80 asked a timid voice in return4 8,ah1 a lady10 exclaimed the ,inspector on seeing her4 8,beg pardon1 ma'am4 ,have a seat1 ma'am4 ,and now what can ,i do for you80 8,is this where they report things80 asked the girl apologetically4 8,bless us all10 cried out ,sharpe1 with a smile2 8they report some things here1 miss4 ,who are you1 now80 8,does it matter8 ,must ,i say who ,i am80 inquired the lady anxiously4 8,really1 you know1 ,i can't say as to that1 you know1 miss10 replied the ,inspector1 with a merriment which he frowned at when the constable began to join in it4 8,if you have something to report1 ,i must know who it is as reports it1 wouldn't you say8 ,but there1 now1 miss1 don't you be afraid of nothing4 ,out with it4 ,what seems to be a-troublin' of such a quiet-looking young person as you1 miss80 8,well10 answered the girl1 much encouraged by the humanity of the terrible officer whose uniform and surroundings appalled her at first1 8,i just wanted to report that he did go out and ,i followed him1 but he walked so fast that ,i couldn't keep up with him1 and he disappeared around the corner1 please1 sir40 8,he did1 eh80 laughed the ,inspector4 8,you wouldn't have no objection to mentionin' the gent's name1 now1 would you8 ,must have somebody's name40 8,why1 you know who ,i mean10 answered the girl1 with surprise1 as it did not of course occur to her that a number of young women had been asked to follow strange gentlemen about the streets that very evening4 8,you know who it was--the foreign gentleman1 you know40 ,the ,inspector burst into a hearty laugh at this1 but said sharply to his subordinate3 8,bellows1 if you laugh again1 ,i'll report you4 ,no1 miss1 ,i really can't say as ,i do know just who you mean4 ,you see1 we has such a lot of foreign gents to look after one way or another1 that we gets 'em sort o' mixed like1 sometimes1 you know4 ,who was your particular foreign gent and why did he walk so fast and why was you so keen to catch 'im80 8,this is very strange10 replied the girl1 beginning to think that1 after all1 she had been played upon by that horrid1 suave thief4 8,mr4 ,ferret told me to come here and tell you all about it1 you know4 ,at ,mr4 ,maxwell ,fair's1 you know--,carlton ,house ,terrace--please say you understand40 8,ah1 ,i see10 exclaimed ,sharpe1 at once showing the keenest interest and bristling with alert readiness both to hear and to act4 8,it's ,ferret1 is it8 ,bellows1 go and ask ,ferret to come here40 ,the constable departed to do as he was bid in spite of a gesture of protest from ,miss ,mettleby and her statement that ,mr4 ,ferret was not here but at ,mr4 ,fair's house4 8,now1 miss10 began the ,inspector1 when ,bellows closed the door after him1 8how do you come to be interested in this ,spanish conspiracy8 ,it was ,seor ,mendes that you followed1 eh8 ,why8 ,speak out1 now1 plain and square4 ,it's an ugly business for the likes of you to get mixed up in40 ,miss ,mettleby heard all this with a rapidly deepening feeling of guilty complicity in some dark plot1 and yet1 beneath this sickening dread1 she felt a vague hope that now she would glean some intelligent idea of the mystery into which she1 ,mr4 ,fair--all her world1 had been so suddenly plunged by the hurrying events of the past two hours4 8,oh1 you see1 sir10 she began2 8,i assure you that ,i know absolutely nothing at all about what ,mr4 ,ferret was about--nothing4 ,i am the governess in ,mr4 ,fair's family1 that's all4 ,and this evening when the family were at dinner ,mr4 ,ferret came into the library--nearly frightening me to death--and told me that a foreign gentleman was in our house who intended some sort of mischief to my kind employer4 ,so he asked me to watch the street door and to follow the man if he should go out before ,mr4 ,ferret returned from telegraphing or something4 ,and1 of course1 the whole thing is non----0 ,her pitiful little plot to divert police suspicion from her knight until the horrible evidence of someone's guilt--not his1 not his6--could be removed was nipped at this point by the entrance1 to her unspeakable surprise1 of ,ferret himself1 smiling and unruffled4 8,ferret1 do you know this young lady80 asked the inspector perfunctorily4 8,yes1 sir10 replied ,ferret1 with a salute--military to his chief and cavalier to the trembling ,kate4 8,she's the governess1 sir1 at ,mr4 ,maxwell ,fair's4 ,how are you again1 miss8 ,you are here rather earlier than ,i looked for you4 ,she's a regular corker1 sir40 8,silence60 snapped the ,inspector1 to whom discipline was all4 8,this young person was telling me that she watched as you requested4 ,go on1 miss40 8,well1 ,mr4 ,ferret had scarcely gone out when the foreign gentleman passed out of the street door and ,i immediately followed him10 went on poor ,kate1 with oozing hope that her blundering lie would be believed1 now that that gimlet-eyed ,ferret was here to observe her4 8,the man crossed the square and walked quickly down the next street40 ,she stopped4 ,ferret seemed to be whistling in mild but growing unbelief--conduct which he suddenly abandoned on receiving a wireless message of caution from the ,inspector4 ,the nimble mind of ,ferret caught his superior's point at once1 so he fell in with his policy and said1 as if to encourage ,kate to proceed bravely with her transparent and useful lie3 8,didn't ,i tell you he would do so80 8,be quiet1 ,ferret60 cried ,sharpe1 fearing that ,ferret would develop some new indiscretion4 8,go on1 miss1 go on4 ,you saw the gent turn the corner80 8,yes10 replied ,kate1 with fresh courage2 8he turned the corner and ,i ran after him4 ,there were many people in the narrow street into which he had turned1 but ,i kept him in view and----0 8,and you jumped into the next cab as quick as a flash--0 put in ,ferret1 when he noticed that her powers of creation were ebbing1 8and followed him until you saw him go into--go on1 go on1 miss--you're great1 you are40 8,alas1 no10 sighed ,kate1 fearing to venture to be so specific as to locate the mysterious man in a definite house anywhere4 8,alas1 no4 ,when ,i reached ,pall ,mall he had disappeared40 8,oh1 dam--that is1 you know1 ,i beg pardon--what a pity you missed him10 exclaimed ,ferret1 rapidly calculating what her game was4 8,it is only just gone nine10 remarked the ,inspector sternly4 8,when was it that you were at ,mr4 ,fair's house1 ,ferret8 ,this is very strange40 ,it was ,ferret's turn now to fear that the course of affairs reflected on his discretion1 and1 while he could hardly believe that the ,inspector had failed to perceive that the governess was fibbing1 he could not risk being thought a bungler1 for ,sharpe was a man of few words1 quick action1 and little given to reopening cases once he had decided them4 8,i am afraid the young lady has made a mistake10 ,ferret continued carefully4 8,it was dark and she probably mistook somebody else for the foreign gent4 ,you see1 sir1 ,i changed my mind and didn't go to telephone1 but stood immediately opposite ,mr4 ,fair's house until ten minutes ago1 and the gent had not come out of the door--that ,i can swear to40 ,ferret hoped that this bit of information would so shake the girl's confidence in her story that she would begin a new and contradictory one4 8,but he did go out10 sobbed ,kate1 truly shaken1 but with a woman's determination to see a thing through2 8,i say he did go out4 ,oh1 ,mr4 ,inspector1 tell me that you believe me6 ,there is no foreign gentleman at ,mr4 ,fair's house--so it will be very foolish for you to send any of those awful detectives there4 ,do1 do believe me6 ,i tell you1 sir1 that there has been no foreign gentleman at our house1 and anyway ,i saw him go out40 8,ferret1 come into my private office a minute10 said ,sharpe1 trying to retain his customary solemn and impressive expression4 8,please wait here for us1 miss4 ,nobody will come in to molest you40 8,my ,god1 what have ,i done now80 cried ,kate1 when the two terrible men1 with their cold1 businesslike1 lynx ways1 had gone4 8,but he did not do it--he did ,,not60 she moaned as she leaned her poor reeling head upon the edge of the ,inspector's desk4 ,they came back after a few minutes4 8,we believe your story1 miss10 began the ,inspector kindly2 8and ,ferret will be severely reprimanded in the morning for having annoyed you by going into your house4 ,now tell me anything more that you may know about this silly rumor--but be careful what you say1 for you may have to swear to the truth of it all in a court of law4 ,i shall take down what you say4 ,come1 now1 what is your name80 8,kate ,mettleby10 she replied1 with uneasiness as she thought of perjury2 8but really1 truly1 honestly1 there has been no murder at our house1 so ,i don't see why you should want me to----0 8,of course not1 of course not10 interrupted the ,inspector1 with a cordiality and candor that brought her immense relief2 8but1 you see1 the law compels us to look sharp into the ways of all foreigners4 ,the law is that all foreigners are guilty until they can prove themselves innocent--which is very seldom possible40 ,ferret made a little movement as if he were going to protest against quite such a bald bit of cruel treatment of an innocent baby1 but he remembered his duty and held his tongue4 8,oh1 is that the law80 asked ,kate1 with wide eyes4 8,but surely there must be some foreigners who are as good as ,english people40 8,there may be10 admitted the ,inspector sorrowfully2 8but the law don't believe it if it can help it4 ,now1 ,miss ,mettleby1 governesses and servants has opportunities4 ,they sometimes hear and see a good deal that is said and done by the gentry4 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,fair never quarrel1 ,i suppose1 about a party by the name of ,mendes1 do they80 ,the shrewd officer of the law regretted his words as soon as he had spoken them1 for ,kate sprang to her feet1 burning with shame and indignation4 8,you mistake1 sir60 she cried fiercely4 8,i am not a servant1 but the friend of ,mrs4 ,maxwell ,fair4 ,and if ,i were a servant1 do you suppose--,i despise your insulting innuendo6 ,and ,i tell you that ,mr4 ,fair is utterly incapable of the crime which ,i can see that your bloodhound1 ,mr4 ,ferret there1 thinks he has committed4 ,i am going40 8,you are going in a moment--when ,i allow you to do so10 returned the ,inspector1 anxious to retrieve his mistake1 but also desirous to let her understand that he had authority4 8,now don't be foolish1 miss4 ,you fly off into a rage quite unnecessarily1 ,i assure you4 ,mr4 ,ferret neither makes nor implies any charge of any sort against ,mr4 ,fair1 you know4 ,now be calm and simply answer my questions--you will have to answer them here or in court1 remember4 ,you have heard ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,fair speak of one ,don ,pablo ,mendes1 ,i suppose80 8,yes--many times1 but always with kindness10 replied ,kate stiffly4 8,good10 said ,sharpe benignly4 8,now we are getting on4 ,and this ,don ,pablo ,mendes has been at the house frequently1 has he not80 8,never1 as far as ,i know1 until today10 answered ,kate1 still far from mollified4 8,mrs4 ,fair has been--but1 no1 ,i sha'n't say that40 8,oh1 ,i say1 don't half say things in that way1 you know10 exclaimed the ,inspector1 nettled4 ,then1 coaxingly3 8,you see1 miss1 when a witness says half of a thing1 the law compels us to piece it out as we think best4 ,so out with it4 ,mrs4 ,fair has seen ,mendes somewhere away from home--you were going to say80 8,yes10 replied ,kate1 scarlet with shame at the man's seeming implication1 and not a little annoyed by his almost supernatural ability to piece out1 as he put it1 her half sentences2 8but1 sir1 ,i'd have you understand that ,mrs4 ,fair always consulted ,mr4 ,fair before meeting ,mr4 ,mendes--always40 8,no doubt10 answered ,sharpe1 with a look of lofty elevation above her implied rebuke4 8,now1 miss1 don't please see more than is in my words4 ,and don't be afraid either4 ,remember1 it is this ,spanish gent1 ,mendes1 and not either your ,mr4 or ,mrs4 ,fair1 that we are looking for40 8,thank ,god for that10 murmured ,kate1 beginning to break down visibly4 ,sharpe1 on a wink from ,ferret1 waited a few seconds while ,ferret fetched a glass of water1 which the wretched girl drank eagerly--with a poor little smile of thanks that made the susceptible ,ferret wish ,mendes had never been born4 ,this diversion greatly cleared the atmosphere at once4 8,do you happen to know who ,mendes is and why we want him80 asked the ,inspector finally1 with the air of a gossip rather than that of an inquisitor1 which had the effect he desired1 for ,kate looked up fearlessly now4 8,i have no idea10 she answered promptly1 glad to be able again to tell the truth4 ,then1 adding with the former tone of apology to truth3 8,all ,i ask is that you send nobody to our house--now that ,mr4 ,mendes has gone away from it4 ,you won't1 will you8 ,please1 please1 do not60 8,it would be nonsense to look for him when he's gone1 wouldn't it80 laughed ,sharpe4 8,and you know we never do nonsensical things when we know it4 ,that will do1 ,i think1 miss4 ,you may go1 if you wish40 8,thank you1 sir10 gasped ,kate1 with alacrity4 8,and don't you see that if ,mendes has committed some great crime he would be very likely to commit suicide8 ,so ,i don't see why you should think that--now1 don't laugh40 ,her last words were addressed to ,ferret1 who did not know that she had an eye on him4 ,when she closed the door and they heard her pass into the outer passage1 it was with anything but a smile that ,ferret looked up at his chief and said3 8,well1 by all that's holy--did you ever80 ,,chapter ,,vii ,miss ,mettleby took a cab and was soon stretched upon her bed more than ever torn and tortured by the perfect vortex of vague conjecture and too actual knowledge which now dragged her and the man she loved and her whole world down to some indefinite but certain ruin4 ,in the meantime ,inspector ,sharpe disposed of two cases that had just been brought in1 and then sending for ,ferret1 the two penetrating1 cool1 keen-scented gentlemen sat on opposite sides of the little table in the ,inspector's private office and discussed the rapidly developing situation4 8,but what the devil does it all mean80 inquired ,sharpe1 showing by his graver and tenser expression that the case was passing from an ordinary piece of blackmail1 involving a few unimportant foreigners1 to a very genuine mystery of much more serious aspect1 involving not an ,english gentleman merely1 but the particular ,english gentleman who was at that moment in the eye of the public4 8,mean8 ,mean80 answered ,ferret1 leaning back with an air of immense professional eagerness4 8,why1 man1 can't you see what it means8 ,in the first place1 something happened after ,i left the house that changed the dear little governess lady's mind4 ,she was told to leave the house1 to follow the ,cuban1 you see4 ,well1 the ,cuban didn't go out as the little one so prettily lied to you4 ,i know this because ,i had five of our trustiest men watching every entrance to the house4 ,so1 for some reason the girl has joined ,fair in his unaccountable effort to keep the rum chap out of our hands4 ,there was a row of some sort just after ,i left the house1 for ,wilson1 whom ,i let into the place1 saw them all suddenly rush up from the dinner-table1 but1 as they came back presently1 ,wilson didn't go up to the library--especially as he saw pretty ,kate slip out into the street4 ,getting thickish1 eh8 ,well1 sir1 the shot that we heard about seven o'clock was fired in ,fair's house1 for ,i saw his revolver lying on the library-table with one chamber empty4 ,how's that for your little game80 8,this is getting interesting10 muttered the ,inspector4 8,isn't it just80 answered ,ferret1 sitting up triumphantly4 8,and what did ,i tell you8 ,i knew there was a deal more than just an innocent bit of ,mendes's regular little practice4 ,the papers will be worth reading1 sir1 tomorrow or the day after4 ,i wish this governess1 though1 was out of it40 8,you have the house well watched80 asked the ,inspector4 8,rather10 answered ,ferret1 with one of his expressive winks4 8,wilson and ,banks and ,thorpe and two others4 ,they won't let very much get through their fingers4 ,another thing4 ,the ,fairs are closing the house tomorrow morning all of a sudden4 ,all the servants have been notified4 ,fair himself will spend the day at ,drayton ,hall--you know1 old ,sir ,nelson ,poynter's place in ,surrey--and the missis and the kids will go to ,paris4 ,i quietly read the two telegrams that ,fair sent off to engage the rooms for them in ,paris4 ,wilson will follow them1 while ,thorpe will run down to ,drayton ,hall tonight to see how things lie4 ,tomorrow after they have gone ,i shall give the house a thorough looking over1 ,i can promise you4 ,sharpe1 my lad1 we've struck a gold mine60 8,but what do you make of it all80 asked ,sharpe4 8,i confess that ,i'm in the dark4 ,have you got at the real situation80 8,walls have ears--and even minor police officials have a liking for knowing what their superiors are at--so1 your ear10 replied ,ferret1 going to the ,inspector's side and whispering to him4 8,lord6 ,you don't mean that80 exclaimed ,sharpe1 jumping up4 8,how's that for a bit of sensation for the newspapers8 ,maxwell ,fair--,phew60 8,but how ever did you come to talk to the young lady at the house8 ,was that quite prudent1 do you think8 ,isn't she a bit skittish80 asked the ,inspector when he resumed his seat4 8,poor little innocent6--what a fool she was to come here and tell us that he didn't do it1 eh80 8,oh1 the governess--ain't she a circus80 laughed ,ferret4 8,what a deep one to come and tell us not to send any horrid detectives6 ,you see1 she was in the library when ,i went up there during their dinner to have a look round for the cause of the shooting1 and1 incidentally1 for the ,cuban1 though ,i knew he must be higher up in the house somewhere--attic probably4 ,i had to get the blooming girlie out of the library1 so ,i opened up my little plan about having her watch for the ,cuban1 and she took to it like a trout after a fly4 ,that was before whatever happened a little while afterward which opened her eyes and changed her bearings4 ,when ,i went out of the house ,i let ,wilson into it1 to be ready to investigate the library when pretty ,kate came down to watch the door--but the row that sent them all hurrying from the dinner-table altered that4 ,i stood just over the way under a tree1 when out comes my little lady1 not following the ,cuban1 for he hadn't come out of the house1 but all by her lone and all of a blue funk4 ,she hops into a cab at the corner and ,i into the next one--and she got here half a minute ahead of me4 ,glory what luck we're playing to2 why1 it's better than----0 ,he was interrupted by the telephone bell4 ,the ,inspector answered it3 8,well8 ,who8 ,yes4 ,yes4 ,ferret is here--with me in my office4 ,what8 ,no8 ,wait--,ferret will speak to you4 ,good4 ,all right40 ,sharpe turned to ,ferret3 8,here1 ,ferret1 it's ,wilson--says something's up4 ,better get it yourself40 ,ferret grabbed the instrument eagerly4 ,the case was developing a trifle too rapidly4 ,what could ,wilson1 whom he had left under the stairs at ,mr4 ,fair's1 want so soon8 7,to be continued47 ,the ,say of ,reform ,editors ,when the ,german ,emperor rides on the railroads a detailed bill for every locomotive and every car used is sent him and he pays the bill4 ,in the ,united ,states when the ,president rides on the railroads no bill is sent him and no charge is made4 ,in ,germany the government owns the railroads and in this country they are private property4--,nebraska ,independent4 99 99 99 99 99 ,government ownership would adjust the matter of railroad rebates equitably4 ,and it would do more4 ,it would prevent the railroads extorting from the government untold thousands of money which they at present filch from the public treasury by excessive charge for hauling mail cars4 ,this money would come mighty handy in extending the rural free mail delivery system4 ,and it could be spent to good advantage in raising the salaries of the postal clerks who deserve so well at the hands of the people4 ,or it could be turned to account in lowering the price of letter postage4 ,there's a thousand and one better ways to spend the people's money than handing it over to the corporations that are always soaking it to the government every time they get a chance4--,what's ,the ,use8 99 99 99 99 99 ,if ,president ,roosevelt sincerely and vigorously attempts to obtain any reform legislation during his administration1 two-thirds of his support will come from the opposition4 ,his own party1 owned by and mortgaged to the few1 is absolutely powerless to effect any good4 ,there are a few prominent kittens in the party who simulate a little independent thinking1 but when the mother cat gives them a collective swat in the face1 they lie down and put their chins on their paws and mew in obedient accents that they are now good cats4--,chadron 7,neb47 ,times4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a certain ,wall ,street firm was engaged in doing business as curb brokers and 8washing0 a certain stock4 ,do you know exactly what 8washing0 stock is8 ,it is simply a fake auction on a big scale4 ,it is the kind of thing that puts a little man in jail if he is caught doing it4 ,it is the kind of thing that makes respectable fortunes for some of the big men4 ,this firm was engaged in 8washing0 a certain copper stock4 ,an officer of the dignified ,national ,city ,bank was interested in this stock4 ,he had agreed to take a certain amount of it at a very low price1 and he wanted to unload it on the public at a very much higher price4 ,the brokers proceeded to 8wash0 the stock accordingly4 ,let us say that the stock was worth fifty cents per share4 ,one broker bid fifty-five cents for a thousand shares1 and they all pretended that it was a legitimate transaction--in reality it was a fake bid and a fake transaction4 ,the other broker engaged in the skin game would then bid sixty cents for another thousand shares--and so it would go4 ,not one person engaged in the swindle was actually buying a single share of stock4 ,they simply bid back and forth1 pretending to buy it1 and putting the price up day by day4 ,the crowd of poor fools that believe in the 8honor0 of these disreputable ,wall ,street gamblers looked on at this mock auction1 this fake selling and buying of stocks1 amazed and excited by the constantly increasing values4 ,occasionally some gullible creature outside the combination that was doing the stock 8washing0 would come in and in good faith buy some shares1 actually paying his good money for the worthless stuff4 ,this went on until they had forced the price of the stock up to a high figure1 ten times what it was worth4 ,during this 8washing0 operation1 they had succeeded in working off a good deal of this stock on the public that believed the crooked sales were really genuine4--,new ,york ,journal4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,chicago ,union ,traction ,street ,railway ,company has issued bonds and stocks to the amount of #aab1ejj1jjj1 or at the rate of #ace1ejg a mile4 ,the capitalization of all the street railways in ,massachusetts only amounts to #aaj1jjj1jjj4 ,in ,massachusetts1 stock watering is prohibited1 and the average capitalization of trolley lines in that state is only #cij4fg per mile4 ,the sort of work done in ,chicago is theft1 and the men who did it1 although they occupy the chief seats in the churches1 are thieves4 ,there is not a preacher in the whole city that dare say so1 and that makes them accomplices of the thieves4--,nebraska ,independent4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,chicago ,record-,herald1 a ,republican paper1 refers to the fact that the ,federal ,grand ,jury returned indictments against ,senators ,mitchell1 ,burton and ,dietrich1 and says3 8,in each of these deplorable instances the charges involve corruption and moral turpitude--a bitter reflection for a legislative body proud of its traditions and jealous of its prerogatives and reputation4 ,the low tone of political morality receives a painful and striking illustration in these successive blows to senatorial prestige40 ,the ,record-,herald adds3 8,the possibility of further disgrace and degradation would be greatly diminished by substituting for indirect elections the plan of popular election of ,federal senators40 ,the ,record-,herald might also have said that the fact that there are a number of prominent ,united ,states senators who have not yet been reached by indictment and will perhaps never be reached by indictment1 who serve on the ,senate floor as the representatives of special interests1 provides another striking argument in favor of the popular election of senators4 ,the ,record-,herald might also have said that the fact that ,new ,york1 ,minnesota and ,nebraska have during the present year elected to the ,senate men who were picked by the railroads provides another strong argument in favor of the popular election of senators4--,the ,commoner4 99 99 99 99 99 ,an ,eastern woman1 who 8wants to do something for the poor laboring man10 threatens to start a school of physical culture for them in ,new ,york ,city4--,rocky ,mountain ,news4 99 99 99 99 99 ,bee stings cure rheumatism1 but a more drastic treatment is necessary for the man troubled with politics4--,eastern ,sunday ,call4 99 99 99 99 99 ,there are persons who1 with their backs to the future1 see no objects but those that are past4 ,of history in the making they know nothing4 ,such are those public men1 editors and statesmen who are now asserting that ,jeffersonism has given way to ,hamiltonism4 ,the truth is that ,jeffersonism has been giving way to ,hamiltonism ever since ,chief-,justice ,marshall began on the judicial bench to retrieve for ,hamiltonism the utter defeat it had suffered at the polls4 ,step by step the ,hamiltonian principle was built up by judges until the ,civil ,war1 and by judges1 ,congresses and ,presidents of all parties after that war4 ,but the day of ,hamiltonism is now passing4 ,a new regime is setting in4 ,the pendulum is poised for the swing back to ,jeffersonism4 ,those who think they see ,hamiltonism looming up ahead are really looking backward4--,chicago ,public4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we blame men for bribing legislators2 yet sometimes they are in the position of the fellow who is 8stood up0 by a footpad1 with the demand for his money or his life4--,san ,francisco ,star4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the pretentious ,apes1 in either finance1 literature1 religion or moral philosophy1 are making faces at ,thomas ,w4 ,lawson1 of 8,frenzied ,finance0 fame4 ,making faces1 through such mediums as ,collier's ,weekly and others of that ilk1 is all they can do4 ,the weekly tasks of a half-dozen of such writers1 the rapidity and the versatility of ,thomas ,w4 ,lawson shows that he could walk all over them in ten minutes4 ,the exhibitions of these hirelings exemplifies the old story of the frog trying to swell himself up to the size of the ox4--,the ,patriarch4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,populist ideas are well to the front4 ,it is difficult to pick up a magazine or newspaper of any kind now without finding favorable opinions of some ,populist measure1 particularly as to the reforms in voting and the management of monopolies4 ,the ,populists never stood so high in the respect and admiration of the people4 ,it is a time when state and local committees should be up and stirring4 ,whenever and wherever an improvement comes1 the ,populists will be the kernel of the problem4 ,the ,populists will be required to furnish the working plans and should be prepared to receive their friends4--,joliet ,news4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it is a lamentable fact1 but true nevertheless1 that there is more absolute want and poverty in these ,united ,states than ever before4 ,notwithstanding we have made so much cotton here in the ,south that we cannot sell it for enough to pay the cost of production1 there are thousands in our ,southland who are shivering with cold for want of needed clothing4 ,though our prairies have furnished trainloads of choicest cattle1 our people are forced to go hungry or pay robber prices for meat4 ,our coal mines have yielded coal enough to warm every hut in all the land1 yet thousands are freezing for want of fuel4 ,our charity associations are snowed under by the inordinate demands for help from the unemployed4 ,even in ,new ,york there are forty per cent4 more idle men today than ever before4 ,we ,southern people know but little of the effects of the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few men2 of the grinding poverty which prevails in the congested centres of population2 of the lavish extravagance of the pampered spawn of plutocracy and its parasites4 ,it will come to us later unless we set to work measures to check it at once4--,southern ,mercury4 99 99 99 99 99 ,while the bacillus of populism is still at work in the ,democratic ,party1 it has also attached the railroad arm of the ,republican machine4--,our ,standard4 99 99 99 99 99 ,our readers will remember the article we printed a short time ago by ,mr4 ,eltweed ,pomeroy1 showing how the voters of one ward of the city of ,los ,angeles1 ,cal41 8recalled0 an alderman charged with corruption4 ,that was the first time in the ,united ,states the ,recall has been used4 ,about six weeks ago ,san ,diego voted to amend its constitution by adopting the ,initiative1 ,referendum and the ,recall1 and the ,legislature has just ratified this4 ,we understand that ,pasadena has also just adopted the ,recall1 though it has had the ,initiative and ,referendum for about a year4 ,thus government by the people extends itself4 ,the evils of democracy can best be cured by more democracy4--,independent 7,n4 ,y474 99 99 99 99 99 ,reports of suffering from poverty in ,london are harrowing4 ,at a relief meeting on the #cast it was reported that #bjj1jjj people in that city alone are living on the verge of starvation4 ,in the midst of all this suffering there is something shocking1 in spite of the evident good intentions of those in attendance1 about the self-satisfaction of the luxurious persons constituting the relief meeting at which this report was made4 ,the meeting was held in the house of a duke1 whose great income flows unearned into his private coffers from the common inheritance of all ,londoners4 ,a duchess1 whose family lives in luxury on incomes also wrung unearned from people who work1 occupied the chair4 ,among those participating were other titled personages whose luxurious incomes are enjoyed at the expense of their starving fellows whose sufferings they had assembled to relieve4 ,but all they proposed to do was to spend pennies here and there for sweet charity4 ,sweet charity6 ,yes1 sweet2 so sweet to those who dole it out1 and so bitter to those who must humbly take it or starve4 ,not one word escaped the lips of any of this charitable assemblage in recognition of the element of justice4 ,to know that #bjj1jjj fellow men and women were on the verge of starvation excited their human sympathies2 but that the starving horde were starving because privileged drones and titled parasites revel in unearned incomes1 clearly manifest as is the relation here of cause and effect1 did not concern the relief meeting4 ,it was something like this that ,tolstoy had in mind when with characteristic simplicity and directness he said3 8,the rich are willing to do anything for the poor people but get off their backs40--,chicago ,public4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,democratic mule is dead4 ,the last echo of his heroic brays has died away4 ,his tail lies limp on the bare ground1 like the banner of a defeated army4 ,his ears lop together and lie stiff and lifeless1 like fallen flagstaffs from the conquered walls of a dismantled fortress4 ,there is no breath to moisten the lips that gave forth such pleasant music4 ,around him stand the doctors4 ,the autopsy begins4 ,dr4 ,bryan gently1 almost lovingly1 lifts the tail of the corpse and examines it carefully4 8,it was ,spinal ,belmontitis10 he says4 8,that's what killed him40 ,dr4 ,gumshoe ,stone is down on the ground examining the ears4 8,i think it was ,parkeritis40 8,it might be a complication of both10 answered ,dr4 ,bryan4 ,dr4 ,tillman gritted his teeth and spit like a cat4 8,i know a name for it10 he hissed1 8but ,i have no language to express it40 8,i pronounce it damphoolishness10 answered ,dr4 ,hogg1 of ,texas4 8,that's a slow disease10 chimed in ,dr4 ,daniel4 8,he's had it a long time10 said ,dr4 ,hearst4 8,but it never affected his voice10 suggested ,dr4 ,williams4 ,dr4 ,bryan blushed and dropped the mule's tail4 8,let's try a reorganization battery on him10 he said4 8,he's been organized and reorganized too often now10 grunted ,hogg4 8,let's prop him up anyhow2 maybe we can ride him again10 insisted ,dr4 ,bryan4 8,let's rest10 the others said1 and they all sat down4--,morgan's ,buzz-,saw4 ,influence of ,letters ,,johnson--,what do you think of those correspondence schools8 ,,bronson--,i guess love is about the only thing in this world you can learn by correspondence4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a ,bad ,break ,,suitor--,i'd marry your daughter if she didn't have a single dollar4 ,,rocksey--,then you're a bigger fool even than ,i thought you were4 ,get out of my house at once4 ,news ,record ,,from ,,february #g ,,to ,,march #g1 #aije ,government and ,politics ,february #g4--,the ,navy ,department awards contracts for armor plate to two companies belonging to the ,steel ,trust1 notwithstanding the fact that the ,midvale ,steel ,co41 which is outside the ,trust1 underbid the other two companies #ef per ton1 or over #ge1jjj in the aggregate4 ,secretary of the ,navy ,paul ,morton says the award was made because he feared the ,midvale ,steel ,co4 could not furnish the plates on time4 ,february #h4--,the charge is made in the ,wyoming ,legislature that ,united ,states ,senator ,francis ,e4 ,warren has three persons on the payroll who are never in ,washington and that the salaries are turned over to ,warren4 ,a resolution to investigate the charge is tabled4 ,the ,national ,red ,cross ,society is reorganized with ,honorable ,william ,h4 ,taft1 ,secretary of ,war1 at its head4 ,honorable ,judson ,harmon1 of ,cincinnati1 and ,f4 ,m4 ,judson1 of ,st4 ,louis1 are appointed special attorneys to investigate the granting of rebates by the ,santa ,f ,railroad4 ,representative ,comerford is expelled from the ,illinois ,legislature for making charges of graft against the members4 ,february #i4--,the ,president signs the bill providing for the building of railroads in the ,philippines4 ,february #aj4--,the ,united ,states takes over the custom house collections at ,monte ,cristi1 ,santo ,domingo4 ,february #aa4--;,it is announced at the ,white ,house that all the members of the ,cabinet will be reappointed except ,postmaster-,general ,wynne1 who will be made ,consul-,general at ,london4 ,george ,b4 ,cortelyou1 ,chairman of the ,republican ,national ,committee1 will be the new ,postmaster-,general4 ,february #ac4--,secretary of ,state ,hay announces that the arbitration treaties1 because of ,senate amendments1 will not be presented to the governments with which they were originally negotiated4 ,president ,roosevelt1 speaking at a ,lincoln ,day banquet in ,new ,york1 defines his position on the race question4 ,february #ae4--,the ,president sends the ,santo ,domingo treaty to the ,senate1 with a letter upholding the ,monroe ,doctrine1 but insisting that the smaller ,american republics must pay their debts4 ,february #af4--,president ,roosevelt orders a thorough investigation of the ,standard ,oil ,trust in accordance with the ,house resolution4 ,secretary of the ,interior ,hitchcock calls the lease of the oil lands of the ,osage ,indians to the ,standard ,oil interests 8a public scandal40 ,this lease was made during ,president ,cleveland's second term4 ,february #ag4--,six supporters of ,j4 ,edward ,addicks desert him in the ,delaware ,senatorial fight4 ,government agents start to ,kansas to conduct the inquiry into the ,standard ,oil ,co4 ,the ,west ,virginia ,state ,senate appoints a committee to investigate the charges that the ,governor of the ,state has been in collusion with ,standard ,oil agents4 ,february #ah4--;,isthmian ,canal ,commissioners assert that they are authorized by the ,president to retain fees received as directors of the ,panama ,railway4 ,president ,roosevelt receives a portrait of the ,empress ,dowager of ,china1 sent as an evidence of ,china's good will to the ,united ,states4 ,february #bj4--;,ex-,chief-,justice ,alton ,b4 ,parker appears before the ,new ,york ,court of ,appeals to argue a case in favor of the ,new ,york ,city ,interborough ,railway ,company1 whose chief owner is ,august ,belmont4 ,the ,united ,states ,supreme ,court sustains the ,kansas ,anti-,trust law1 affirming sentence of fine and imprisonment against ,edmund ,j4 ,smiley1 an agent of the ,missouri ,pacific ,railway ,company4 ,a special committee of the ,california ,legislature recommends the expulsion of five ,state ,senators on the charge of soliciting and accepting bribes4 ,the ,kansas ,legislature1 by concurrent resolution1 asks the annulment of the ,government's blanket lease of ,osage lands to the ,standard ,oil ,company4 ,february #ba4--,the ,government begins criminal prosecution of the ,beef ,trust before a ,grand ,jury at ,chicago called especially for that purpose4 ,despite the protests against it1 ,secretary ,hitchcock decides to extend the leases of the ,osage ,indian oil lands4 ,the ,illinois ,legislature orders an investigation of the oil pipe lines of the ,state1 and offers to loan the ,state of ,kansas #ajj1jjj to aid in the fight against the ,standard ,oil monopoly4 ,while ,j4 ,edward ,addicks has lost all but about fifteen of his supporters in the ,delaware ,legislature1 these decide to make the deadlock permanent and thus prevent the election of a ,united ,states ,senator at this session4 ,president ,truesdale1 of the ,lackawanna ,railroad1 criticizes ,president ,roosevelt's attitude on rate legislation4 ,at a dinner of the ,national ,roosevelt ,league given in ,new ,york a criticism of the ,president's message of condolence on the death of the ,grand ,duke ,sergius was loudly cheered4 ,february #bc4--,the ,interstate ,commerce ,commission hands down a decision that the ,santa ,f and ,southern ,pacific railroads have violated the law by entering into a pool4 ,february #bd4--,the ,department of ,justice begins an investigation of the ,tobacco ,trust4 ,the ,board of ,trade of ,new ,york ,city decides to begin a campaign to force an investigation of the ,telephone ,trust4 ,governor ,edwin ,warfield1 of ,maryland1 in a speech in ,new ,york warmly commends ,president ,roosevelt's policy on the negro question4 ,february #be4--,the ,isthmian ,canal ,commission reports in favor of the ,panama ,canal being constructed at sea level with two or three sets of locks4 ,despite the higher offer made by ,kansas citizens1 ,president ,roosevelt decides that the lease of ,osage oil lands to the ,standard ,oil interests must stand4 ,the ,democrats of ,chicago nominate ,judge ,edward ,f4 ,dunn for ,mayor on a municipal ownership platform4 ,secretary of the ,treasury ,leslie ,m4 ,shaw defends the action of his predecessor1 ,lyman ,j4 ,gage1 in selling the ,new ,york ,custom ,house to the ,city ,bank4 ,joseph ,v4 ,quarles1 of ,wisconsin1 whose term as ,united ,states ,senator ends ,march #d1 is appointed ,united ,states ,district ,judge4 ,the ,la ,follette men bitterly oppose the appointment4 ,february #bg4--;,four members of the ,california ,state ,senate are expelled from that body for accepting bribes4 ,the ,united ,states ,supreme ,court sustains the ,texas ,anti-,trust ,act under which two oil companies were forced to give up their licenses as a penalty for pooling4 ,february #bh4--,word is received at ,washington that ,colombia will resume diplomatic relations with the ,united ,states4 ,march #a4--,secretary of ,state ,hay1 in a letter to the ,haytian minister1 says that the ,united ,states has no intention to annex ,santo ,domingo and 8would not take it as a gift40 ,in the contest for the ,governorship of ,colorado1 thirteen ,republican members of the committee appointed to conduct the contest report in favor of seating ex-,governor ,james ,h4 ,peabody1 nine ,democratic members sign a report favorable to ,governor ,alva ,adams and five ,republican members refuse to sign either report4 ,march #c4--;,commissioner of ,corporations ,james ,r4 ,garfield reports on the ,beef ,trust1 his findings generally favoring the packers4 ,former ,land ,commissioner ,binger ,hermann1 of ,oregon1 is indicted in ,washington for destroying public records4 ,march #d4--,theodore ,roosevelt is sworn in as ,president of the ,united ,states in the presence of the largest assemblage and the most elaborate military display ever seen at an inauguration4 ,the ,doings of ,congress4 ,february #g4--,the ,senate passes the ,statehood bill1 but amends it to admit ,new ,mexico as one ,state1 leaving ,arizona as a ,territory4 ,oklahoma and ,indian ,territory constitute one ,state1 as in the ,house bill4 ,february #h4--,the electoral vote is canvassed by a joint session of the ,house and ,senate1 and the result is declared as #ccf for ,roosevelt and ,fairbanks1 to #adj for ,parker and ,davis4 ,the ,senate ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs disregards the wishes of the ,president and amends the arbitration treaties by striking out in each the word 8agreement0 and substituting therefor the word 8treaty40 ,c4 ,w4 ,post1 of the ,postal ,progress ,league1 asks the ,senate to expel ,thomas ,c4 ,platt1 of ,new ,york1 on the ground that ,platt is the ,president of the ,united ,states ,express ,co41 and is not a fair representative of the people on any question involving the interests of that corporation4 ,february #i4--,the ,townsend-,esch bill1 giving the ,interstate ,commerce ,commission power to fix railroad rates1 passes the ,house by a vote of #cbf to #ag4 ,february #aj4--,the ,senate begins the impeachment trial of ,judge ,charles ,swayne1 of ,florida4 ,the ,house ,republicans decide to stand by their own ,statehood bill1 refusing to concur in the ,senate amendments4 ,february #aa4--,the ,senate1 by an overwhelming vote1 amends the arbitration treaties1 thus virtually breaking with the ,president4 ,it insists that all treaties must be ratified by the ,senate4 ,testimony was introduced in the ,swayne impeachment trial to show that the defendant had falsely certified his expenses4 ,february #ac4--,representative ,john ,a4 ,sullivan1 of ,massachusetts1 makes a sensational attack on ,representative ,william ,r4 ,hearst1 of ,new ,york1 and ,mr4 ,hearst in reply shows that ,sullivan was once indicted for murder in ,massachusetts4 ,senator ,bacon1 of ,georgia1 introduces a resolution calling for the facts relative to the ,united ,states seizing custom houses in ,santo ,domingo4 ,february #ad4--,senators ,lodge and ,spooner defend the action of the ,senate in amending the arbitration treaties4 ,representative ,littlefield1 of ,maine1 warns ,congress that it is riding for an #hj1jjj1jjj deficit4 ,the ,senate passes the ,agricultural ,appropriation bill1 but amends it by prohibiting drawbacks on wheat imported to make flour for export4 ,february #ae4--,the ,house1 by unanimous vote1 adopts a resolution introduced by ,representative ,campbell1 of ,kansas1 which directs the ,department of ,commerce and ,labor to investigate the ,standard ,oil ,trust4 ,february #af4--,the ,house declares the ,senate's amendment of the ,agricultural ,appropriation bill a violation of the ,constitution4 ,the ,house passes the bill for the government of the ,panama ,canal zone4 ,february #ag4--,the ,house ,committee investigating the ,panama ,railway hears testimony to the effect that the commissioners pocket the fees paid them as directors4 ,the ,senate withdraws its amendment to the ,agricultural ,appropriation bill4 ,february #bj4--;,by the aid of #df ,democratic votes the ,naval ,appropriation bill1 providing for two new battleships1 passes the ,house4 ,representative ,baker1 of ,new ,york1 denounces ,president ,roosevelt for having sent a message of condolence on the death of the ,grand ,duke ,sergius4 ,representative ,william ,r4 ,hearst introduces a bill to make oil pipe lines common carriers1 thus taking them out of the exclusive control of the ,standard ,oil ,company4 ,friends of the freight-rate bill announce that they have abandoned hope of its becoming a law at this session4 ,february #ba4--;,a letter is made public from former ,senator ,william ,e4 ,chandler1 of ,new ,hampshire1 to ,senator ,elkins1 ,chairman of the ,senate ,committee on ,interstate ,commerce1 urging the passage of the rate bill and predicting that1 if this is not done1 government ownership of railroads will result4 ,the ,senate ,committee on ,naval ,affairs decides to report favorably the ,house bill providing for two additional battleships4 ,senator ,t4 ,m4 ,patterson1 of ,colorado1 says that if the government does not control the railways the people will demand absolute government ownership4 ,february #bc4--,the ,house ,indian ,committee decides to investigate the ,osage oil land lease4 ,senator ,chauncey ,m4 ,depew declares in favor of government regulation of railroad rates4 ,stuyvesant ,fish1 ,president of the ,illinois ,central ,railroad1 tells the ,senate ,committee on ,interstate ,commerce that ,president ,roosevelt1 in a private conference1 urged reduction of freight rates as long ago as #aijb4 ,the ,house and ,senate conferees on the ,army ,appropriation bill decide to give ,general ,miles retired pay instead of full pay1 as at present4 ,the ,senate passes the ,panama ,canal bill with the clause destroying the ,panama ,canal ,commission stricken out4 ,representative ,bishop1 of ,michigan1 attacks the ,river and ,harbor bill and accuses fellow-members of being under the influence of the ,great ,lakes dredge owners4 ,february #bd4--,the item of #acj1fjj for the rent of the old ,new ,york ,custom ,house from the ,city ,bank 7,standard ,oil7 is stricken from the ,civil ,appropriation bill by the ,committee of the ,whole ,house4 ,mr4 ,sulzer 7,dem47 leads in the attack on this item1 and the vote striking it out is #ij to #gg4 ,representative ,vandiver1 of ,missouri1 attacks the ,armor ,plate ,trust and asks the ,attorney-,general why it has not been prosecuted4 ,senator ,morgan1 of ,alabama1 starts a filibuster against the ,statehood bill4 ,february #be4--,senator ,hale1 of ,maine1 makes sarcastic references to the ,administration policy of 8browbeating smaller ,powers40 ,arguments are concluded in the impeachment case of ,judge ,charles ,swayne4 ,senator ,morgan1 of ,alabama1 lodges with the ,senate ,foreign ,affairs ,committee a formal protest against the action of ,president ,roosevelt relating to ,santo ,domingo4 ,february #bg4--,senator ,dryden1 of ,new ,jersey1 at the supposed request of the ,president1 introduces a bill establishing ,federal supervision of insurance4 ,democratic leaders bitterly attack the ,president's foreign policy in both the ,house and ,senate4 ,the ,senate votes in favor of the ,house appropriation for two additional battleships4 ,the ,democrats of the ,house prevent the reinstatement of the appropriation for rent to the ,city ,bank of ,new ,york1 enough ,republicans joining them to reverse the ruling of the ,chair4 ,the ,senate1 sitting as an ,impeachment ,court1 declares ,judge ,charles ,swayne1 of ,florida1 innocent of all the charges against him4 ,the ,house ,committee on ,interstate and ,foreign ,commerce resumes its investigation of the ,panama ,canal and ,railroad1 and brings out testimony to the effect that supplies were bought without bids1 and that the ,president's instructions were not always heeded4 ,the ,naval ,appropriation bill1 as amended by the ,senate1 directs the ,secretary of the ,navy to investigate the cost of armor plate and report to the next ,congress4 ,february #bh4--,the ,senate votes an amendment to the ,indian ,appropriation bill providing that a portion of the educational fund may go to sectarian schools4 ,senator ,kearns1 of ,utah1 in his farewell speech1 makes a sensational attack on the ,mormon ,church1 which he says is ruled by a 8monarchy40 ,march #a4--,the day is spent on the appropriation bills1 a large number of which are agreed to in conference1 and pass both houses4 ,the ,senate does not attempt to reinstate the item for the rent of the ,new ,york ,custom ,house from the ,rockefeller bank4 ,an objection by ,representative ,baker1 of ,new ,york1 prevents the ,president's salary from being raised to #ge1jjj4 ,the ,house votes itself #aij1jjj for mileage for the 8constructive recess40 ,march #b4--;,both houses spend the day on the appropriation bills4 ,the ,senate adopts the ,kean resolution for a railroad rate inquiry during the recess4 ,the ,senate kills the #aij1jjj mileage grab of the ,house4 ,march #c4--,the ,fifty-eighth ,congress practically completes its work1 both houses agreeing on all appropriation bills4 ,freight-rate legislation and the ,statehood bill go over to the next ,congress4 ,march #d4--,the ,fifty-eighth ,congress ends and the new ,senate convenes in special session4 ,general ,home ,news ,february #g4--;,august ,w4 ,machen and the ,groff brothers1 the ,post-,office ,department officials convicted in the postal fraud cases1 and whose sentence has just been confirmed by the ,united ,states ,supreme ,court1 are taken to prison4 ,it is announced that an international parcels post is to be established between ,great ,britain1 ,france and the ,united ,states4 ,the ,standard ,oil interests are reported to have made a #bj1jjj1jjj purchase of stock1 thus securing control of the ,santa ,f ,railroad system4 ,the ,interstate ,commerce ,commission hears the charges brought against the ,coal ,trust by the ,honorable ,william ,r4 ,hearst4 ,the ,board of ,aldermen of ,new ,york ,city takes steps for the construction of a municipal electric-lighting plant4 ,the ,state of ,kansas continues its war on the ,standard ,oil ,trust1 the ,state ,senate passing three bills providing for the erection of a ,state oil refinery1 for making pipe lines common carriers1 and for fixing freight rates in oil4 ,february #h4--;,henry ,c4 ,frick1 of the ,steel ,trust1 and ,henry ,h4 ,rogers1 of the ,standard ,oil ,company1 are elected directors of the ,santa ,f ,railroad4 ,elihu ,root1 former ,secretary of ,war1 leads an attack on the constitutionality of the ,new ,york ,state ,barge ,canal1 which is opposed by the railroads1 and which was supported by such an overwhelming majority in last fall's election4 ,february #aj4--;,in the hearing of the ,hearst case against the ,coal ,trust1 the attorney of the ,trust says in effect that the ,united ,states has no power over the corporation4 ,february #ac4--,the ,federal ,grand ,jury returns new indictments against ,senator ,mitchell and ,representatives ,hermann and ,williamson1 of ,oregon1 in the public land fraud cases4 ,february #ad4--;,a sensational war in high finance is begun between ,president ,alexander1 of the ,equitable ,life ,assurance ,association1 and ,james ,h4 ,hyde1 its ,first ,vice-,president and majority stockholder4 ,february #ae4--,the ,kansas ,house of ,representatives passes the bill for a ,state oil refinery already passed by the ,senate4 ,the ,new ,york ,legislature adopts a resolution directing an investigation of the ,telephone ,trust4 ,february #af4--;,a truce is patched up between the warring factions of the ,equitable ,life ,association on the promise of ,vice-,president ,hyde to mutualize the company4 ,february #ag4--;,governor ,hoch1 of ,kansas1 signs the bill appropriating #djj1jjj for the erection of a ,state oil refinery4 ,february #bj4--,mrs4 ,jefferson ,davis1 in a letter to the public press1 scores ,general ,nelson ,a4 ,miles for having placed her husband in irons1 and asks ,general ,miles to publish a photographic copy of her alleged letter of thanks4 ,an explosion in a coal mine at ,virginia1 ,ala41 entombs #afj men4 ,thomas ,w4 ,lawson1 in ,everybody's ,magazine1 continues his story of the formation of the ,amalgamated ,copper ,company1 outlines its devious operations under ,standard ,oil1 accuses ,james ,m4 ,beck1 ex-,assistant ,attorney-,general of the ,united ,states1 of perjury1 and attacks ,james ,h4 ,eckels1 ex-,comptroller of the ,currency1 for his part in the infamous ,cleveland bond deal4 ,february #ba4--,mayor ,george ,b4 ,mc,clellan and ex-,mayor ,seth ,low1 of ,new ,york1 appear before the ,legislature at ,albany to plead for a larger water supply for ,new ,york ,city1 claiming that a few dry years would bring a water famine to the metropolis4 ,president ,mellen1 of the ,new ,york1 ,new ,haven ,hartford ,railroad1 refuses to arbitrate with the firemen who threaten a strike4 ,fifty of the #afj miners entombed by the explosion at ,virginia1 ,ala41 are known to be dead1 and little hope is entertained for the remainder4 ,a manuscript copy of one of ,edgar ,allan ,poe's poems sells for #a1jjj in ,new ,york4 ,john ,w4 ,gates and ,joseph ,h4 ,hoadley claim to have secured control of the ,tennessee ,coal ,iron ,company4 ,february #bb4--,washington's ,birthday is generally celebrated throughout the ,united ,states and foreign nations4 ,president ,roosevelt is the chief orator at the ,university of ,pennsylvania1 which institution confers the degree of ,,ll4,d4 on himself and ,emperor ,william of ,germany4 ,a bust of ,washington is presented to ,congress by ,m4 ,jusserand1 the ,french ,ambassador4 ,a 8boodle fund0 of #fj1jjj is produced in court at the trial of ,charles ,kratz at ,butler1 ,mo4 ,thomas ,k44 ,niedringhaus1 ,republican nominee for ,united ,states ,senator1 is summoned as a witness in the case4 ,professor ,william ,osler1 in his farewell address to ,johns ,hopkins ,university1 states that men after forty years of age are 8comparatively useless10 and after sixty are entirely so4 ,president ,william ,r4 ,harper1 of the ,university of ,chicago1 undergoes an operation for cancer while thousands of students and friends pray for his recovery4 ,physicians find cancer1 but are unable to remove it4 ,colonel ,william ,f4 ,cody1 8,buffalo ,bill10 says he will apply to ,howard ,gould1 the millionaire1 for #abe1jjj furnished ,mrs4 ,howard ,gould when she was an actress4 ,february #bc4--;,general ,nelson ,a4 ,miles1 in the ,independent1 makes a rejoinder to those who had criticized him for placing ,jefferson ,davis in irons1 publishing several letters1 among them a note from ,mrs4 ,davis thanking him for 8kind answers10 and begging him to look after her husband's health4 ,standard ,oil stocks drop #aj points1 or #da1jjj1jjj in nine days4 ,february #bd4--,the ,new ,york ,state ,factory ,inspector finds immigrant boys who are virtually made slaves and compelled to work twenty hours a day without pay4 ,governor ,vardaman1 of ,mississippi1 employs troops to protect from lynching a negro accused of having assaulted a white girl4 ,frank ,h4 ,monnett1 ex-,attorney-,general of ,ohio1 reaches ,topeka1 where he will assist in framing a case in the ,supreme ,court to oust the ,standard ,oil ,company from the ,state4 ,the plan for mutualizing the ,equitable ,life ,assurance ,society fails1 and the war between the ,hyde and ,alexander factions goes on4 ,the ,vanderbilt interests purchase a majority of the stock of the ,boston ,maine ,railroad4 ,february #be4--,wall ,street sees a wild day on the stock market because of a reported merger of the ,new ,york ,central and ,union ,pacific railroads4 ,independent crude oil producers and refiners of ,kansas1 ,ohio1 ,illinois and ,indiana unite to fight the ,standard ,oil ,company4 ,a two-million-dollar fire sweeps ,hot ,springs1 ,ark41 causing several deaths4 ,richard ,croker1 former chief of ,tammany ,hall1 sails for ,ireland4 ,the ,engineering ,committee of the ,isthmian ,canal ,commission estimates that a sea-level canal can be constructed for #bcj1ejj1jjj1 and that the time occupied in building it will be ten or twelve years4 ,february #bf4--;,a five-million-dollar fire sweeps the river front at ,new ,orleans4 ,elevators and piers destroyed1 entailing future loss of export trade4 ,february #bg4--;,by the collapse of the second floor of the ,african ,methodist ,episcopal ,zion ,church1 of ,brooklyn1 ,n4 ,y41 eleven persons are killed and several score injured4 ,the ,alexander-,hyde fight in the ,equitable ,life ,assurance ,society is carried into the courts4 ,after making from #e1jjj1jjj to #h1jjj1jjj in wheat1 ,john ,w4 ,gates and his associates throw their holdings on the market1 causing a sharp decline4 ,march #a4--,three ,new ,york thieves testify that they have been dividing proceeds with the police to secure immunity from arrest4 ,march #b4--;,h4 ,rider ,haggard1 the celebrated ,british novelist1 visits the ,united ,states for the purpose of studying colonization plans for the poor4 ,march #f4--;,a general strike is declared on all the ,subway and ,elevated lines of ,new ,york ,city4 ,the ,russo-,japanese ,war ,february #g4--;,a growing peace sentiment is manifest in ,russia1 and press and public are becoming more outspoken against the further prosecution of a losing war4 ,general ,kuropatkin sends word of a raid in which fifty ,japanese were killed4 ,february #h4--;,admiral ,togo returns to his flagship1 and resumes sea duty4 ,tokio hears of skirmishes near ,mukden1 in which the ,russians were defeated4 ,february #aj4--,the ,russians retire from ,songchin in ,northeastern ,corea4 ,the ,russian ,baltic fleet is reported off ,madagascar on its way to the ,far ,east4 ,general ,stoessel says in answer to critics that he sacrificed glory to humanity in surrendering ,port ,arthur4 ,february #ab4--;,field ,marshal ,oyama reports two skirmishes in which the ,russians are defeated4 ,february #ac4--;,general ,kuropatkin reports that a ,japanese cavalry raid has destroyed several miles of railroad north of ,mukden2 also that the ,japanese have resumed the bombardment of ,lone ,tree ,hill4 ,february #ae4--;,a large force of ,russian cavalry moves against the ,japanese left in the vicinity of ,heikontai4 ,the ,russian third ,pacific squadron sails from ,libau on its way east4 ,february #af4--,russian attacks at ,waitao ,mountain are repulsed1 and the cavalry force1 which moved against the ,japanese left1 is forced to retreat4 ,february #ag4--;,general ,grippenberg1 who was removed from his command in the ,russian army after the battle of ,heikontai1 is given an audience by the ,czar1 and says that ,general ,kuropatkin refused to support him when victory was within reach4 ,february #ah4--,the ,russian strike closes a number of ,government factories and interferes with manufacturing and shipping of war supplies4 ,february #bj4--,russian cavalry passes ,japanese left flank near ,hun ,river4 ,movement of no special importance1 and losses insignificant4 ,russia's third ,pacific naval squadron passes through the ,great ,belt off ,denmark on its way to join the ,baltic squadron4 ,tokio gives out semi-official statement that ,japanese casualties at the battle of ,heikontai were near #aj1jjj4 ,february #ba4--,lieutenant-,general ,stoessel1 former commandant at ,port ,arthur1 lands at ,kaffa1 ,russia1 on his return from the ,far ,east1 and is received by a cheering crowd4 ,february #bb4--;,a ,cossack raid reaches nearly to the ,yalu ,river1 and destroys a ,japanese depot of supplies4 ,february #bd4--,the ,japanese move northward along the eastern coast of ,korea1 fortify ,port ,lazareff and threaten ,vladivostok4 ,the ,japanese move forward in the ,tsinkhetchin district1 and after desperate fighting force the ,russians to abandon their base at ,beresneff ,hill4 ,february #be4--;,a battle involving ,general ,kuropatkin's left flank opens south of ,mukden4 ,mr4 ,kogoro ,takahira1 ,japanese ,minister to the ,united ,states1 says that his country has made no peace advances to ,russia4 ,february #bf4--,the battle brought on by the flank movement of the ,russians is continued1 and ,general ,kuropatkin admits another defeat4 ,japanese capture the city of ,tsinkhetchin1 drive in the ,russian outposts and cross the ,sha ,river4 ,it is reported that ,oyama's artillery is even throwing shells into ,mukden4 ,february #bg4--;,a number of ,russian naval officers returning from ,port ,arthur are entertained by ,count ,cassini in ,washington4 ,other ,russian officers from the same siege land at ,victoria1 ,british ,columbia2 in interviews they speak disparagingly of ,general ,stoessel1 one expressing the opinion that ,stoessel showed himself to be 8not a hero1 but a coward40 ,fighting continues about ,mukden1 the ,japanese being the aggressors4 ,it is now certain that ,general ,kuroki has captured ,tie ,pass from the ,russians4 ,february #bh4--,the battle near ,mukden becomes general along a #ajj-mile front1 and involving #gjj1jjj men4 ,it is stated that the ,cossacks lost #b1jjj men at ,tsinkhetchin4 ,march #a4--,the ,japanese make a terrific bombardment of ,lone ,tree or ,putiloff ,hill1 employing for the purpose the great siege guns used at ,port ,arthur4 ,fierce fighting rages over the ,sha ,river bridge1 which is finally held by the ,japanese4 ,field ,marshal ,oyama gradually forces the ,russians back in the general battle about ,mukden4 ,march #b4--,the ,russian flanks are pushed backward and ,kuropatkin's entire army continues to retire before the onslaughts of the ,japanese4 ,march #c4--;,general ,kuropatkin is in retreat toward ,tie ,pass and a portion of ,oyama's army reaches a point eleven miles west of ,mukden4 ,the battle around ,mukden continues1 the results generally favoring the ,japanese4 ,march #d4--;,general ,kuropatkin's left flank suffers and his position grows still more critical4 ,march #e4--;,a fierce artillery engagement rages throughout the day and ,marshal ,oyama continues his flanking movement4 ,march #f4--;,general ,kuropatkin is hemmed in and vigorously attacks the ,japanese left centre4 ,marshal ,oyama relentlessly tightens his lines in an endeavor to trap his foe4 ,general ,foreign ,news ,february #g4--;,as a result of the massacre of ,russian citizens on ,january #bb1 the ,social ,democratic ,party of ,russia calls on workmen to march on the ,czar's palace with arms in their hands instead of ikons and petitions4 ,father ,gapon1 the ,russian revolutionary leader1 is reported to have escaped to ,switzerland4 ,general ,trepoff1 the 8man of iron0 who has been placed at the head of the police system at ,st4 ,petersburg1 threatens to close the universities because of the revolutionary sentiment there existing4 ,disorders continue in ,russian ,poland1 and several strikers are killed by the troops4 ,the assassin of ,soisalon ,soininen1 ,procurator-,general of ,finland1 is identified a former student at one of the ,finnish universities4 ,february #h4--;,because of the failure of the employers to concede the demands of their workingmen1 new strikes are declared at ,st4 ,petersburg1 ,vassili ,ostroff and other points in ,russia4 ,strikers tear up the ,siberian ,railway east of ,irkutsk4 ,maxim ,gorky1 the ,russian novelist1 is questioned in court and afterward returned to prison4 ,the students of one of the ,st4 ,petersburg schools refuse to attend lectures because of police interference4 ,because of the continued state of disorder in ,russian ,poland1 many refugees leave the country4 ,the new protocol between the ,united ,states and ,santo ,domingo is signed at ,santo ,domingo4 ,it provides for the territorial integrity of the island republic and for ratification by the ,united ,states ,senate4 ,the ,british ,government decides that ,john ,h4 ,gaynor and ,benjamin ,h4 ,greene1 ,american refugees in ,canada1 may be extradited and returned to the ,united ,states4 ,king ,oscar1 of ,sweden1 turns over the government to ,crown ,prince ,gustav4 ,february #i4--,many strikers are killed by the troops at ,sosnovice1 ,russian ,poland4 ,m4 ,rouvier1 the new ,premier of ,france1 submits a bill absolutely divorcing church and state4 ,german mine strikers denounce the action of their leaders in voting to return to work1 and thousands decide to continue the struggle4 ,february #aj4--,over sixty strikers are killed and hundreds are wounded by troops at ,sosnovice and ,lodz in ,russian ,poland4 ,strikes are being renewed to such an extent in ,st4 ,petersburg that the authorities are growing apprehensive4 ,february #aa4--,prince ,paul ,dolgorouki says that the ,czar must call a ,zemsky ,sober 7a popular assembly7 if he would avoid a revolution4 ,the strike at ,lodz now involves #ajj1jjj men4 ,four thousand ironworkers strike at ,kharkoff4 ,disquieting conditions are reported at ,batoum in the ,caucasus1 with a general tie-up of railway lines in the vicinity4 ,february #ab4--,three aeronauts make a balloon voyage from ,london to ,paris in a little over six hours4 ,the ,czar promises a commission1 including workingmen1 to deal with the labor problem4 ,russian conscripts and reserves mutiny in several provinces4 ,cossacks kill eighteen at ,kieff and wound over eighty4 ,franz ,kossuth1 the leader of the ,hungarian ,independence ,party1 is received in audience by the ,austrian ,emperor4 ,february #ac4--,the ,russian ,cabinet decides to adopt reform measures1 including some sort of concessions to the workingmen4 ,arguments are concluded in the ,north ,sea case before the ,international ,commission at ,paris4 ,decision1 it is announced1 will be handed down at a later date4 ,it is reported from ,essen that the ,german coal strike1 which has been one of the most important industrial struggles in ,german history1 is ended4 ,february #ad4--,king ,edward opens the ,british ,parliament4 ,the speech from the throne contains no significant passages4 ,february #ae4--,the strike in ,warsaw again becomes general4 ,the ,emperor of ,china approves a plan for a parliament of the empire's leading officials4 ,president ,castro1 of ,venezuela1 refuses to arbitrate the asphalt claims and other disputes between that country and the ,united ,states4 ,february #af4--,the strike at ,st4 ,petersburg1 which was reported to be abating1 breaks out with renewed force4 ,on a test vote the ,balfour government is sustained in the ,british ,house of ,commons by a majority of #fc4 ,the ,venezuela ,supreme ,court reaffirms its order sequestrating the lands belonging to the ,american ,asphalt ,company4 ,february #ag4--,the ,grand ,duke ,sergius1 uncle and brother-in-law of the ,czar and the most reactionary and influential of the ,grand ,ducal clique1 is blown to pieces by a bomb in the ,kremlin1 ,moscow4 ,the assassin1 who is dressed in the garb of a workingman1 is arrested4 ,february #ah4--,the ,russian strike spreads to the employees of many railways and to the telegraphers4 ,two ,russian officials are assassinated in ,transcaucasia4 ,consternation reigns among the rulers of ,russia1 and members of the royal family do not venture to appear in public4 ,the ,british ,government announces that in #aiaa it will take over the entire property of the ,national ,telephone ,company4 ,february #bj4--,three thousand ,russian students and professors1 in mass meeting1 denounce the ,czar1 demand constitutional government and shut up the ,university of ,st4 ,petersburg till ,september4 ,martial law is declared at ,tsarskoe-,selo1 the residence of the ,czar4 ,china expresses the desire to pay all her indemnity at once1 but some of the ,powers object1 as it deprives certain officials of commissions and interest4 ,sir ,john ,e4 ,redmond leads an ,irish attack on the ,british ministry4 ,february #ba4--,the ,home ,rule amendment offered by ,sir ,john ,e4 ,redmond is defeated in the ,british ,house of ,commons1 and the ,balfour government is sustained1 but by the reduced majority of #ej4 ,a general revolt against the ,russian ,government is reported throughout the entire ,caucasus region4 ,february #bb4--,the ,armenians seize three towns in the ,caucasus4 ,sir ,john ,e4 ,redmond renews his attack on the ,balfour ministry1 and the government majority is still further reduced to #db4 ,polish disturbances continue1 and all trains from ,warsaw on the ,vienna line are discontinued4 ,many bodies of slain strikers are found in the streets of ,baku1 a town in the ,caucasus4 ,workmen destroy factories at ,riga1 ,southern ,russia4 ,february #bc4--,the ,london ,times states that the ,czar has decided to call a ,zemsky ,sober1 or popular assembly1 to decide1 among other things1 as to the continuation of the war in the ,far ,east4 ,the ,german ,court1 on the other hand1 gives out the statement that the ,czar is determined to continue the war4 ,the ,tartars are turned loose on the ,armenians in the ,caucasus revolt4 ,the number of corpses found in the streets of ,baku is reported as high as #cjj4 ,the revolt continues in other towns in the region1 #dj1jjj ,georgians being involved4 ,the strike extends at ,warsaw and more railway lines are tied up4 ,leonide ,andreef1 a famous ,moscow author1 known as 8,the ,little ,gorky10 is arrested4 ,funeral services are held over the remains of ,grand ,duke ,sergius at ,moscow4 ,the ,czar attends a requiem at ,tsarskoe-,selo4 ,both ceremonies pass without special incident4 ,february #bd4--;,an unsuccessful attempt is made to assassinate ,president ,morales1 of ,santo ,domingo4 ,five persons are arrested4 ,the famous ,simplon ,tunnel through the ,alps1 leading from ,switzerland to ,italy1 is completed4 ,it is announced from ,london that ,sir ,henry ,irving1 the famous actor1 is so broken in health that he may never again appear on the stage4 ,a coffin believed to contain the long-sought remains of ,john ,paul ,jones1 the ,american ,revolutionary naval hero1 has been found in ,paris4 ,strikes and rioting continue practically throughout the entire ,russian empire1 many railway lines are tied up1 and moujiks are becoming fired with the idea of a general land division4 ,february #be4--,the ,international ,commission to inquire into the ,north ,sea incident concludes its sittings in ,paris and hands down its decision that the action of ,admiral ,rojestvensky1 commander of the ,russian ,baltic fleet1 in firing on the ,british fishing vessels was unjustified4 ,the ,warsaw railway strikes are reported partially settled1 but a street railway strike begins and disturbances continue4 ,severe fighting between the ,armenians and the ,mussulmans continues in the ,caucasus region2 leading officials and merchants are assassinated at ,batoum1 and revolutionary manifestoes in favor of a republic are circulated broadcast4 ,the ,countess of ,warwick begins an automobile tour of ,great ,britain for the purpose of assisting the various labor candidates for ,parliament4 ,a general railway strike begins in ,italy1 the workmen being dissatisfied with the treatment proposed to be given them under the bill creating ,state management of railways4 ,it is announced that the ,czar has decided not to call the ,zemsky ,sober1 and that he has irrevocably decided that the war with ,japan must go on4 ,february #bg4--,maxim ,gorky1 the famous ,russian novelist1 is released from prison only to be rearrested by order of ,general ,trepoff and banished to ,riga4 ,president ,morales lays before the ,dominican ,congress the protocol with the ,united ,states4 ,berlin's new cathedral is dedicated in the presence of the ,emperor and delegates from all parts of the world4 ,the ,czar1 in an effort to break the strike1 orders a raise of wages on ,state railroads and in ,government arsenals4 ,the disturbances in ,russian ,poland are augmented by a serious revolt of the peasantry in fifty villages4 ,a second ,kishineff horror is reported from ,theodosia in the ,crimea1 where forty-seven ,jews were killed and many more injured in a recent massacre4 ,february #bh4--,the strike situation in ,russia grows steadily worse1 especially in ,poland1 where a coal famine is threatened4 ,the ,russian ,council of ,ministers decides on more repressive measures and definitely refuses to call the ,zemsky ,sober4 ,march #a4--,the workmen selected by the ,czar to organize a commission on the labor situation meet and demand concessions from the ,government before taking further action4 ,lord ,selbourne is chosen ,british ,high ,commissioner in ,south ,africa in place of ,lord ,milner1 resigned4 ,march #b4--,the ,russian ministry votes to grant the people religious freedom4 ,the majority for the present ,british ministry is reduced to #bd4 ,march #c4--,the ,czar calls a representative assembly1 but without power except to consult and advise4 ,rioting continues in ,russian ,poland and a general strike is ordered at ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,march #d4--;,cossacks kill nine students and wound many more at ,tomsk4 ,march #e4--,the ,czar's action in calling an assembly has little or no influence on the ,russian situation1 which grows more grave4 ,obituary4 ,february #g4--;,joseph ,h4 ,manley1 prominent ,republican politician1 dies at his home in ,augusta1 ,me41 aged #fb4 ,february #h4--,rear-,admiral ,frank ,c4 ,cosby1 of the ,united ,states ,navy1 dies at the age of #fe4 ,february #i4--;,adolf von ,menzel1 famous ,german painter1 dies in ,berlin4 ,chief-,justice ,pardon ,e4 ,tillinghast1 of the ,supreme ,court of ,rhode ,island1 dies at the age of #fh4 ,henry ,w4 ,blodgett1 former ,united ,states ,district ,judge1 dies at the age of #hd4 ,february #aa4--,sylvester ,scovel1 the well-known war correspondent1 dies in ,havana1 aged #cf4 ,february #ad4--;,james ,c4 ,carter1 leading ,new ,york lawyer1 dies at the age of #gh4 ,february #ae4--;,general ,lew ,wallace1 the celebrated author1 dies at his home in ,crawfordsville1 ,ind41 aged #gh4 ,william ,cullen ,bryant1 publisher of the ,brooklyn ,times1 dies at the age of #ef4 ,february #af4--;,jay ,cooke1 once famous as a financier1 dies at the age of #hc4 ,february #bj4--,norton ,p4 ,otis1 ,member of ,congress from ,new ,york1 dies at the age of #fe1 at his home in ,yonkers1 ,n4 ,y4 ,february #ba4--;,jacob ,worth1 well-known ,brooklyn politician and race-track man1 dies at ,hot ,springs1 ,ark42 age1 #fg4 ,february #bc4--,w4 ,f4 ,g4 ,shanks1 a well-known ,new ,york newspaper and magazine editor1 dies in ,bermuda1 aged #fh4 ,february #bd4--,sidney ,dillon ,ripley1 ,treasurer of the ,equitable ,life ,assurance ,society1 dies from the effects of an operation for appendicitis1 at ,new ,york4 ,february #be4--;,edward ,cooper1 ex-,mayor of ,new ,york and only son of ,peter ,cooper1 dies at ,new ,york ,city1 aged #ha4 ,february #bg4--;,honorable ,george ,s4 ,boutwell1 former ,governor of ,massachusetts1 ,united ,states ,senator and ,secretary of the ,treasury1 dies at his home at ,groton1 ,mass41 aged #hg4 ,harry ,morris1 well-known ,american comedian1 dies at ,new ,york1 aged #di4 ,henry ,c4 ,whitney1 formerly one of ,chicago's leading lawyers1 dies at ,salem1 ,mass41 aged #gd4 ,richard ,a4 ,donnelly1 ,quartermaster-,general of ,new ,jersey since #ahij1 dies at his home in ,trenton1 aged #fd4 ,march #a4--,mrs4 ,jane ,lathrop ,stanford1 widow of ,leland ,stanford and famous for her gifts to education1 dies suddenly in ,honolulu4 ,subsequent investigation shows she was poisoned4 ,edward ,o4 ,wolcott1 former ,united ,states ,senator from ,colorado1 dies at ,monte ,carlo1 ,monaco1 aged #ef4 ,march #d4--;,h4 ,l4 ,muldrow1 ,assistant ,secretary of the ,interior under ,president ,cleveland1 dies at ,starkville1 ,miss4 ,gobbled ,it ,all ,,smith--,some of our rich men claim it isn't right to leave anything behind them4 ,,smythe--,that's their way exactly4 ,wherever they have been they have left mighty little behind them4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,legal ,acrobat ,,judson--,how did that expert come to contradict himself on the second trial8 ,,bludson--,the other side hired him4 ,extract from a three-column review in the ,san ,francisco ,examiner3 8,mr4 ,hastings has touched the very core of the matter respecting the proclivities of our doddering plutocracy4 ,throughout his book he has revealed that plutocracy in its true light and shown it to be something utterly conscienceless and debased4 ,no more scathing review of the situation1 as it is seen at present1 could possibly be given in a work of fiction40 ,illustration ,,shall ,,we ,,have ,a ,,king8 ,will the ,united ,states be a monarchy in #aige8 ,have you read 8,,the ,,first ,,american ,,king10 by ,george ,gordon ,hastings8 ,it is a dashing romance in which a scientist and a detective of today wake up seventy-five years later to find ,his ,majesty1 ,imperial and ,royal1 ,william ,i1 ,emperor of the ,united ,states and ,king of the ,empire ,state of ,new ,york1 ruling the land1 with the real power in the hands of half a dozen huge trusts4 ,automobiles have been replaced by pharmobiles2 air-ships sail above the surface of the earth2 there has been a successful war against ,russia2 a social revolution is brewing4 ,the book is both an enthralling romance and a serious sociological study1 which scourges unmercifully the society and politics of the present time1 many of whose brightest stars reappear in the future under thinly disguised names4 ,there are wit and humor and sarcasm galore--a stirring tale of adventure and a charming love-story4 ,net #a4jj1 postpaid4 ,all ,booksellers1 or sent postpaid upon receipt of price by ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine #aba ,west #db;d ,street1 ,,new ,,york ,,city 8,,tom ,,watson0 is the one historian through whom we get the point of view of the laborer1 the mechanic1 the plain man1 in a style that is bold1 racy and unconventional4 ,there is no other who traces so vividly the life of a people from the time they were savages until they became the most polite and cultured of ,european nations1 as he does in ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,france ,in two handsome volumes1 dark red cloth1 gilt tops1 price #e4jj4 8,it is well called a story1 for it reads like a fascinating romance40--,plaindealer1 ,cleveland4 8,a most brilliant1 vigorous1 human-hearted story this3 so broad in its sympathies1 so vigorous in its presentations1 so vital1 so piquant1 lively and interesting4 ,it will be read wherever the history of ,france interests men1 which is everywhere40--,new ,york ,times' ,sat4 ,review4 ,,napoleon ,a ,,sketch ,,of ,,his ,,life1 ,,character1 ,,struggles ,,and ,,achievements4 ,illustrated with ,portraits and ,facsimiles4 ,cloth1 #hvo1 #b4be net4 7,postage #bj;c47 8,the ,splendid ,study of a ,splendid ,genius0 is the caption of a double-column editorial mention of this book in ,the ,new ,york ,american and ,journal when it first appeared4 ,the comment urged every reader of that paper to read the book and continued3 8,there does not live a man who will not be enlarged in his thinking processes1 there does not live a boy who will not be made more ambitious by honest study of ,watson's ,napoleon 99 99 99 8,if you want the best obtainable1 most readable1 most intelligent1 most genuinely ,american study of this great character1 read ,watson's history of ,napoleon40 8,,tom ,,watson0 in these books does far more than make history as readable as a novel of the best sort4 ,he tells the truth with fire and life1 not only of events and causes1 but of their consequences to and their influence on the great mass of people at large4 ,they are epoch-making books which every ,american should read and own4 ,orders for the above books will be filled by ,,tom ,,watson',s ,,magazine1 #aba ,west #dbnd ,street1 ,new ,york ,city4