The San Francisco call., 1904-10-09

WHICH lie UdQ hdlCllSu lllC OOhA sc VI
the amended House bill % with interest
sharp-set, planning meanwhile with
Hildreth, the editor of the Daily Ar
gus, an expose which should make
plain the immense possibilities for cor
ruption opened up by the proposed
law; a journalistic salvo of publicity
TO be fired as a last resort.
The measure as amended had passed
the Senate without debate and had
gone back to the House. Here, after
the second reading, and in the very
hour when the Argus editorial was
getting itself cast in the linotypes,
there was a hitch. The member from
the Rio Blaneo, favoring the measure
in all its parts, and fearful only lest
corporation gold might find technical
flaw in il, moved that it be referred to
tse Committee on Judiciary for a re-
port on its constitutionality; and, ac-
cordingly TO the Committee on Judici-
ary it had gone.
Kent recalled the passing of the
crisis, remembering how he had hast
ened TO telephone the Argus editor to
kill the expose al the last moment. The
incident was now a month in the past,
and the committee had not yet report
ed; would never report, Kent imagined.
He knew the personnel of the Commit
tee on Judiciary; knew that at
on the list, made up at the beginning of
the session by his colleagues in the
army OF observation, as 'apprOacha
bles." Also, he knew by inference at
least, that these three men had been.
approached, not without success, and
that House bill %, with its fee-gather-
ing amendment, was safely shelved.
It's an ill-smelling muckheapi" he
frowned. recalling the incidents of the
crisis at the sugg estion let fall by the
two outgoing lobbyists. And SO much
Of this dog watch as isn't sickeningly
demoralizing is deadly dull, as Cren-
Shave puts it. If l had anywhere to go,
I'd cut the galleries for tonight
He was returning the newspaper to
his pocket when 1t occurred to him
that his object in buying it had been
TO note the stock quotations; a daily
duty which, for Elinors sake he had
never omitted. Whereupon he re-
opened it and ran his eye down the
lists. There was a decided upward ten
dency in Westerns. Overland Short
Line had gained two points; and West
ern Pacific
He held the paper under the nearest
electric globe to make sure; Western
Pacific, preferred, was quoted at fifty
eight and half, which was one point
and half above the Brentwood pur-
chase price.
One minute later an excited Iife-saver
was shut in the box of the public tele-
phone, gritting his teeth at the inanity
OF the central operator who insisted on
giving him "A-1224" instead of "a
1874, the Hotel Wellington.
No, no! Can't you understand? 1
want ve-thirty-four; one. two,
three, four; the Hotel wellington"
There was more skirling of bells, an
Of her inc ot Ioe
clerk of the hotel answered.
What name did you say? oh, it's
you, is it, Mr. Kent? Ormsby? Mr..
Brookes Ormsby? No, he isn't here:
he went out about two minutes ago.
What's that you say? Damn? Well,
L m sorry, too. No message that l can
take? All right. Good-by"
This was the beginning. For the
middle part Kent burst out of the tele-
phone-box and took the nearest short
cut through the capitol grounds for the
street-car corner At a quarter of nine
he was questioning the clerk face
to face in the lobby of the Wellington.
There was little more to be learned
about Ormsby. The clubman had left
his key and gone out. He was in even
ing dress, and had taken a cab at the
hotel entrance.
Kent dashed across to his rooms. and.
in feverish race against time, made
himself fit to chase a man in evening
dress. There was no car in sight when
he came down, and he, too, took a cab
with an explosive order to the driver:
124 TETON Avenue, and be quick about
it.''
1t was the housemaid that answered
his ring at the door of the Brentwood
apartments. She was a Swede. recent
Importation; hence Kent learned moth
ing beyond the bare fact that the la
dies had gone out. with Mr. Orms-
by?" he asked.
'Yaas; Aye tank it will pee dat yen
mans"
rather unhopefulIy. There were a
dozen places where Ormsby might
have taken his charges. Among them
there was the legislative reception at
Portia Van Brooks. Kent f1ipped a
fgurative coin, and gave the order for
Alameda Square. The reception there
was perhaps the least unlikely place of
the dozen.
He was no more than fashion
ably late at the Van Brock house.
and fortunately he was able to reckon
himself among the chosen few for
whom Miss Portals door swung on hos
pitable hinges at all hours Loring
had known her in Washington.
and he had stood sponsor for
Kent In the nrSt week or the eXile'S
residence at the capital. Thereafter she
had taken Kent up on his own account,
and by now he was deep in her debt
For one thing, she had set the fashion
in the matter of legislative receptions
her detra ctors, knowing nothing
whatever about it, hinted that she had
been an amateur social lobbyist in
Washington. playing the game for the
pure zest of itand at these functions
Kent had learned many things per
tinent to his purpose as a watch dog
for the railroad company and legal ad-
wiser TO his chief - things not named
openly on the floor of the House or of
the Senate chamber.
There was crush in the ample man
sion in Alameda Square, as there al
ways was at Miss Van Brooks "open
evenings" and when Kent came down
from the cloakroom he had to inch his
way by Titles through the crowded
reception parlors in the search for the
Brentwood party. It was unsuccessful
at first; but later, catching glimpse
of Elinor at the piano, and another
of Penelope inducting an up-country
legislator into the mysteries of social
small talk, he breathed freer. His hap
hazard guess had hit the mark, and