The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1900-11-16
The "0Id Politician" ON Missouri and
st. Louis.
THE MIDNIGHT SLOT.


that one showed democratic los,
of "a and republican gain of 10
These figures were given as tn,
result of the poll, by one of the
clerks, who came over after the
count to sample our wet goods. III
that keeps up said I, the repub-
licans will carry the state for Gov
ernor. The loss without the gain
would do ii, OF the gain without
the loss would do 1t. There are
$500 election precincts in Missouri,
and the same ratio of republican
gain running through all of them
Will come so near wiping out
Stephens plurality of 43, 900 that 1t
will take mighty little democratic
losses to complete the work. At
this ratio the democratic majority
into st. Louis will not be more
than 10000, and the same ratio
in the precincts there will give
the city to Flory by 1000. don't
look for this, but If the republicans
can only hold their own in st.
Louis, Flory is elected by 1000
votes. If some of you fellows will
put on a pair of cow-hide boots
and kick me all over the woods
pasture until daylight for going
and putting up $500 on Dockery to
5000 on Flory, when already had
the bet nailed at events, I'll be
much obliged to you. | cont like
to be kicked, but when / have to
be I'd rather get somebody to do it |
than to do it myself"
"Never you mind" said one of
the crowd, "those fellows down in
st. Louis will sit up all night to
save your money"
"That's my only hope" said |,
and If that fails me, I'll never bet
again"
''The philosophy with which l
had consoled the Stephens notary
in the morning, did not avail me
much at night. Iknew the Steph-
ems machine in st. Louis was
prepared to play bold hand to
force the Endorsement of the gov
ernor, but feel pretty sure that
this sweeping change in the little
precinct was in was bound to go
over to the state, for have been in
politics long enough to know that
the first returns indicate unerringly
the trend OF an election. | could
see that it was going to be rightup
to the counting machine in st.
Louis to lay itself out between
then and daylight in the tallest
counting out and counting in ever
done in an election. And as knew
that the time was short and the st.
Louis republicans vigilant and
active, and the machine, perhaps,
not aware of the widespread re-
volt in the state, figured that there
was good chance to lose my
money after all. 1t seemed to me
that the whole thing would have to
come out so plain on the face of
the official returns, showing what
the prevailing sentiment of the
people was, that the chances of
danger in defeating the popular
will, would be too great even for
the most desperate ringsters and
machinists to take. 1t wasn't the
money, mind you, that | was
thinking of, but the fear of getting
the red sorrel horse laugh and of
losing all my prestige as a light
ming calculator in politics, appalled,
me. | went to the door about mid
night and looked off toward st.
Louis. The wind was blowing in
that direction, and | thought of the
news it was carrying into Demo-
cratic headquarters, and from there
to the Election Commissioners
ofhces, and from there to the polls.
The wind blew cold but knew it
was blowing colder in st. Louis, as
the agents of the machine rushed
from poll to poll telling the hench-
men what they were up against.
And all at once the meanness and
littleness, and unspeakable un-
manliness of it all came upon me,
and felt that not even for NOM
ent, or to save myself from loss or
ridicule, could hold even secret
or passive sympathy or aiiliation
with midnight scoundrelism seek
ing to defeat the will of free
people. ! went into the hut again,
xvrannad mvaelf In nv old army