St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1902-07-16
POLITICS AND CORNELIA.

Cornelia subdued a laugh behind he0
fan. How funny he wasl Cornelif
had a provoking sense of humor ant
was always seeing jokes where none
was intended.
She moved her rocker farther into the
shadow and looked down on the mar
in the full glare of the street lamp
He had his profile turned at just the
right angle, as usual. 1t was hand
some profile, and Cornelia was so used
to it that when, on one occasion, he
failed to present it directly she asked
him, with one of her slow, inscrutable
smiles, to do so. He did not see the
sarcasm beneath her fun, and his in
sufferable conceit was undoubtedly
flattered.
Disagreeable thingsY" she said
lightly. "Why, what are they? Tell
Inc about them"
'Well, there's choosing among clerks
for promotion, for one thing, and dis
missing them when you can't keep
them, for another-widoWs and moth
ers who come weeping into your office
and faint on your sofa and have to be
taken home in cabs"
"Oh, dear, how sad! Do you have to
say who is to go? 1t must be very
hard"
at is. There are other things that
are just bores, like recommendations
for example. Hardly day passes but
some young fellow asks me for letter
to his chief or a senator or representa-
tive. Of course it's easy enough to die
tate few lines Of stuff just to satisfy
him, but it's bore to have him come,
especially when he comes again be-
cause the letter was no good"
"But aren't the letters any good?"
asked Cornelia in real surprise. 81
thought you had such-oh, such Won
derful influence now. thought any
letter Of yours would get any one any
thing"
The man looked up with a grim
smile.
"Oh, of course l can get anything
really want" he said. 'Ive fixed sew
eral men from my state very comforta-
bly,, but these others are just boys,
Miss Cornelia, looking out for a soft
snap. We men can't be bothered with
recommending kids"
weren't you ever kid yourself,
Mr.. Stokes" was on Cornelia's lips,
but she checked them in time. She
was thinking of one kid in particular
who like these others was looking for
soft snap. At least, he had told Cor
nelia it was soft snap because it
meant $4,000 year to him and some
thing more precious besides, but there
was hard work in it, and he knew it,
Cornelia knew all about it. When "the
kid" had asked her to marry him it
was not because she admired his clas-
sic profile (even she could hardly call
1t that, and instead of blaming herself
and fate she had found that life had
suddenly become grander, sweeter and
better worth the living. She wished
she could ask this man to help him, to
give him the letter the commissioner
required and which she knew the boy
was going to request. That hateful
red tape! The commissioner had said,
Eyes, undoubtedly young Beale is the
man for the place, but how are we to
give it to him when he seems to have
no political backing at all, whereas
that fellow Morris, who hasn't the
sense he was born with, has the whole
senate or near it"
"The kids don't understand the tricks
of the trade, you see," the man went
on. "They think letters letter and
60 off grinning, expecting to be in the
cabinet in four years and president in
eight They're too soft to know that
nine out of ten letters are shams and
not worth the paper they're written
on"
Cornelia felt distinct hatred Of this
man who could speak so cruelty. How
she detested him for saying "kids"
She wished he would go.
How do you manage with the re-
cipients of the ettersY she asked, to
make conversation. Don't they honor
all from the Hon. Gilbert Stokes"
mo" he replied. "They all know
the little finishing touch that makes it
important. If we mean what we say
and really want fellow to get job,
we pin a visiting card to the top Of the
letter. If there's no card, it means no
job, Simple, isn't it? When the let.
tiers go by hand, the boys think it's
little dodge to prevent forgery or some
thing of that sort, and we never have
any trouble"
Cornelia's throat frightened. CT
don't see how you can do that" she
said stit11y. "But-but l suppose
with a swift change of tone-"you
can't help it, of course. And how do
you do itY'
tits not much of a story" he said,
and it was not, but Cornelia listened
with breathless interest and was glad
that he wandered on from one topic
to another, requiring only monosyllabic
replies from her. She sat in the CRATE
full shadow above him, her cheeks
burning and her usually quiet hands
furling and unfurling her fan. When
be rose to 60, she said good night with
dnwonted cordiality and watched him
as he strobe down the street past the
merry doorstep parties out Of sight.
But long after the last noisy group had
dispersed she still sat there thinking.