Litchfield enquirer., 1872-12-12

By the way, this is between ourselves" added Pullwool ''You take it so, hope Word of honor, eh?''
 ''Why, if you have anything to commu- nicate that will help us, why, of course I promise secrecy, stammered the mayor, 'sYes, certainly; word of honor."
 Well, I've been looking about among those fellows little, D continued Ananias. sssl we kept my eyes and ears open. It's a way have. And I've learned thing or two that it will be to your advantage to know. Yes, sir fifty thousand dollars -the city has voted it and paid it, and the ring has got 1t. That's why they are all working so. And depend upon it, they'll carry the legislature and turn Slowburg out to grass, unless you wake up and do something
 'By heavens!" exclaimed the iracund mayor, turning red again. ''It's piece of confounded rascality It ought to be exposed
 ''No, don't expose it, put in Mr. Pull never works. Of course they'd deny it bers. I'll tell you what to do. Beat them at their own weapons. Raise a purse that will swamp theirs. That's the way the world goes. It's an auction. The highest bidder gets the article D
 We'll, the result of it all was that the city magnates of Slowburg did just what had been done by the city magnates of Fastburg, only instead of voting fifty thousand dollars into the pockets of the ring, they voted sixty thousand. With a portion of this money about him, and with authority to draw for the rest on proper vouchers, MT. Pullwool, his tongue in his cheek, bade farewell to his new allies. As a further proof of the. ready wit and solid impudence of this sublime politi- elan and model of American statesmen, let me here introduce a brief anecdote. Leaving Slowburg by the cars, he encoun- tered gentleman from Fastburg, who sa luted him with tokens of amazement, and said ''What are you do1ng here, MT. Pull wool?"
 70, just breaking up these fellows a little, whispered the man with the Devil in him. ''They were making too strong a fight. l had to sec some of them" put ting one hand behind his back and rub bing his fingers together, to signify that there had been taking of bribes. ''But be shady about 1t. For the sake of the good cause, keep quiet. Mum's the word"
 The reader can imagine how briskly the fight between the two capitals reopen ed when Mr. Pullwool re-entered the lob by. Slowburg now had it's adherents, and they struggled like men who saw money in their warfare, and they struggled not in vain. To cut very long story very short, to sum the whole of an exciting drama in one sentence, the legislature kicked overboard the bill to make Fast burg the sole seat of government. Noth- ing had come of the whole TOW, except that the pair of simple little cities had spent over one hundred thousand dollars, and that the capital ring. fighting on both sides and drawing pay from both sides, had lined it's pockets, while the great cre- ator of the ring had orammed his to burst ing.
 "What does this mean, Mir. Pullwool?" demanded the partially honest and entire ly puzzled Tom Dicker, when he had dis covered by an unofficial count of noses how things were going. "Fastburg has spent all its money for nothing. It won t be sole capital after all.
 'I never expected it would be" replied [ Pulfwool, so tiUk1ed by the Devil that was in him that he could not help laughing. 'I never wanted it to be. Why, it would spoil the little game This is a trick that can be played every year."
 ''Oh ? exclaimed Mr. Dicker, and was 9umh with astonishment for a minute.
 'Dia't you see through it before?' grinned the grand master of all guile and subtlety.
 'I did not, confessed Mr. Dicker, with mixture of shame and adherence.
 "Well," he presently added, recovering himself, "shall we settler"
 70, certainly, if you are ready smil- ed Pullwool, with the air of man who has something coming to him.
 ''And what, exactly, will be my share?' asked Dicker, humb1y
 "What do you mean?" stared Pullwool, apparently in the extremity of amazement ''You said ssaokS, didn't you?" urged Dicker, trembling violently
 "Well, snacks it is," replied Pullwool Haven't you had thousand?" ''Yes," admitted Dicker, '"Then you owe me five hundred?" MT. Dicker did not faint, though he came very near 1t, but he staggered out ! of the room as white as 8 sheet, for he was utterly crushed by this diabolical i'm pudence.
 That very day Mr, Pullwool left for Washington, and the Devil left for his place, each af them sure to find the other l when he wanted him, if indeed their roads lay apart.
 J. w. DEFoREsT.