The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-10

at least six feet from the general delivery
window. and that neither he nor any one
OF the employees had subsequently touched
1t, except, possibly, when handing out the
little packet of mail called for by Paul
| Ladue in person. Whether Mr.. McKinnon
got that letter by fair means or foul il
was after 1t had passed from the postofice
into the hands Of the addressee, for since
Ladue. sr.'s. illness only to Paul had their
mail been delivered up to the very day of
his sudden and enforced departure. This
| complicated the problem, and there was
now no Paul to explain how he came to
| lose part with IT.
Moreover the postmaster being exceed
ing wroth at McKinnon, told several prom
| inent citizens that no less than thrice had
| McKinnon called on him at the office and
| endeavored to persuade him that 1t was his
bounden duty to open any letter that came
from st. Louis or the South for Paul La
due, and to ascertain their contents. On
the first occasion McKinnon clearly showed
| that he had been keeping watch on Ladue's
| mail by saying, There's big letter in
his box from st. Louis now" and the post
master admitted having gone with McKin-
non to the box, having taken the letter
| out and "hefted' II, he said, and stud
led the handwriting and superscription and
having allowed McKinnon to do the same.
but 1T was not opened by either Of them.
| he would never allow that. Questioned
| further. the postmaster admitted that one
day toward the end Of May young Ladue
| had come to him mad clear through"
and declared that some one had been tam
pering with his mail, and showed him one
| of those big, bulky missives in the long
Official envelope that had been sliced
open with sharp knife-must have been
In that condition when handed to him,
said Paul, although he did not discover 1t
until he reached the store. Every clerk in
the office protested his innocence, and the
postmaster had not the ghost of an idea
| who was the culprit.
Naturally matters looked squally for Nc
| kinnon He had been popular, but the bet
! ter class of people felt that Paul Ladue
| had been harshly, even outrageously dealt
| with, and that McKinnons insidious, If
, not fiery, speeches were the direct cause.
| Moreover there were many in the COM
| munity who secuted the story told regard
| Ing the letter. He found it, he declared,
| lying on his desk on the morning of the
great meeting. with a card bearing only
the words, See Within" The envelope was
| slit smoothly open. and, never stopping to
note the address thereon, he was amazed
| to find within another envelope, sealed, and
| the superscription was of such startling
Importance that he deemed II his duty to
exhibit 1T to friends-in fact, to everybody
| that they might know traitor-a spy
was In their midst. He might have erred,
but as a loyal American he conceived that
| nothing less could he do
But a revulsion of feeling had set in
| Before leaving for Washington there had
been ample time for Fred Benton to spread
abroad Ladue's declaration that nothing
| would persuade him to cast his lot with
| the South provided he could be permitted
| to remain here In peace. He felt that his
| duty was with his ageing father Elinor
| too, with flushing cheeks and flashing eyes
had told the tale from house to house. The
physician employed by Benton and others
| to go with Paul to Chicago came back full
| of sympathy for his patient and wrath at
the populace. Such was the state of feel
| ing that Gale, the would-be heroic leader
of public sentiment, awoke to the fact that
it might be wise for him to cross the lake
and visit kith and kin among the Wolver-
| ines, for city officials had come and asked
| ugly questions, and there was talk of ar
rest and indictment for melting riot. He
swore that no violence had been offered
| Ladue, that he had simply lied him along
| by the scruff of the neck" and that La
dues exhaustion was due to his own fran
| tic struggles. But the leading journals
morning and evening, denounced the whole
affair-McKinnon, who had been the Dem
| ocratic candidate for city attorney at the
| spring election, coming in for an especial
scoring from the Republican press, and
finding no defenders among the papers of
his own political persuasion.
McKinnon called at the Bentons and
asked to see Miss Elinor, and Miss Elinor
asked to be excused. Then he wrote to
her-a long letter, full of argument, ex-
PLANTATION and regret. and she answered In
| a short note, saying that she trusted he
fully realized the wrong he had done. hoped
| that his regret was sincere. and that he
would find means to make amends. and
that was all she would say. Benton, ST..
| quite approved her conduct at the time
for there had been words between the
partners unpleasant words Impartial
listeners were compelled to say, however.
that the words were Benton's own for
McKinnon hardly opened his lips except i'm
restrained and respectful protest II must
be owned that no sooner was Door Paul
well out of the way than McKinnon's
| words and deeds became almost saintlike-
| so meek, so forgiving and tolerant did he
become. He had even gone to the Ladues
| and talked to the unhappy old father. and
dilated on his efforts to turn the heart of
the crowd and protect Paul from indignity
or violence. He declared that it was due
to him that the troops were called out and
that the firemen came and drenched the
frantic crowd. He chose the hour when
he knew Elinor was visiting the stricken
mother. and he hung about until long after
dinner time, expecting her to come down
and be waylaid. Keen was his chagrin
when pert little Nina danced In and an
nounced that IL he were waiting for E,linor
Benton he was wasting his time She had
slipped out the back way nearly an hour
before.
Then McKinnon ordered supplies of var
ious kinds sent to the Ladues-some choice
claret and dainties in the way of fruit. but
Mrs. Ladue could not be induced to touch
either. Ladue himself was a total alb
stainer. The wine lay neglected In the
cellar. The children gorged themselves
with the fruit and no good was done by
the gifts.