The Washington herald., 1907-02-17
CHAPTER XIII.
Election Night.

Election Night.
! At last came the great day which was
TO tell whether their efforts we're a bril-
liant success or a dire fanure-there was
no middle ground-and the special train
took them TO the small city in which the
candidate lived. All the correspondents
were yet with him, as on the eventful
/ hlght following the eventful day they
must tell the world how Jimmy Graysor
looked, and what he said when the wires
| Drought the news good or bad A few
| Ialthlul political friends had been invited
also to stay with him 10 the end, and they
completed the group which would share
the hospitality Of the candidate. who must
smile and be the good host while the ma
tlon was returning his sentence. Harley
thought II bitter ordeal. but II could not
be helped
! After his recognition OF the great fact
that Sylvia and Harley loved each other
and belonged 10 each other, King" Plum
mer mad gone 10 Idaho for a while, but he
| reJolned them on the homeward journey
ana his spirits seemed fully recovered. He
afltted easily in conversation about hen
/ INTO the Old paternal relationship with
sylvia which became him 50 well. and he
/ never again alluded to that vain dream OF
iiiS thdt ne might be something alse. More
over, after his temporary alienation he
| Aad become more ardent Graysonite
thdn ever, and would not hear Of anything
/ Except his triumphant election. despite
/ eAc immense power Of the forces allied
against him.
While they changed ears often in the
/ West. the one that bore them 10 the can
didate.s town had been their home for
lseVefai weeks, and even the engine was
]
under the spell Of Jimmy Grayson. and
/ when he walked down their car steps for
The laSt time they cane around him in
their soilcd working clothes and wished
him success. It was scarcely dawn then
Ihe last was not yet white but Harley
could see sincerity written all over their
honest faces, and Jimmy Grayson. vino
had listened 10 ten thousand words OF
me same kind, some true and some
false. Was much moved
Sir said the engineer, at midnight
when the tale is told. / shall be tire,
hundred miles from here. but if you ar,
not the man. then It is a tale shall not
care To hear"
FRIENDS, said Jimmy Graysou, grave
1 ~ Il am glad to have your good wishes.
The good wish is the father of the good
act and whatever tale the coming nigh,
has 10 tell, let us endure IL without vaunt-
ing or complaint
! As Mr.. Grtyson and his friends walked
away In the growing dawn the railroad
men raised a cheer. A little later Harley
heard the puff, puff OF d locomotive. fol
I lowed by the grinding Of the wheels. and
| the train which had been their homo
whirled away into the West where the,
/ had seen and done so many strang,
/ things. Harley tried to follow il a while
VITA has eyes, because this was ike a
parting with "a human being an old and
/ faithful frio,ld. He felt. too. that th,
I most vivid chapter yet in his life was
closing. JuconsciOusly he raised his
hand and waived good-by; the others
noticing the act understood and were
silent.
All we're under the influence of the
morning, which was dawuing slowly and
/ i'll There are fine days ln November
yet We cannot depend upon f.. and nov.
| the month was in one Of its bad humors
l An overcast sun was struggling through
| brown, ominous clouds, and its light was
pale and cold. A sharp wind Whistled
against the houses, yet shattered and
silent in these early morning hours Tn,
city was still asleep and did not know that
the candidate had come home TO hear his
/ fate.
rs this ugly sky an omen Of ing' asked
I Churchill, who. despite his supercilious
nature and the fact that he representa-
an opposition newspaper. had come at
last under the spell OF Jimmy Graysou
and was in a way one of the band.
If it is "a gray sky for Mr., Grayson, Il
is gray SKY for the other man. too. ana
I draw no Inference from the circum.
stance" replied Harley.
Nevertheless. there was an oppression
over the whole grOup-perhaps it was be
cause they were 50 near the end, and
scarcely another word was said as they
walked along the silent street. eacI
thinking Of the day at hand and the night
/ TO follow.
The candidate had offered all the hos
pi.ality of his house. but none would ac.
( cept. not wishing 20 intrude upon thl
/ first freshness of his family reunion
I they intended TO register at the hotels
and come 10 his home later for the
news of the day. So they stopped at q
street corner, bade him a short farewell
and allowed him to go on alone.
But Harley could not resist the temp
tation of looking back. They had arrived
in the town two hours ahead OF time
and he knew that the candidates family
WIZ i4Vt NNA ~ iffANAll6 i4lAAf BAA ne tUNll
/ see the house behind its shield of trees
now swept of foliage, and already there
We're signs of life about it, He saw the
candidates wife run down the steps and
meet her husband and then he looked
away
This is one part OF Presidential cam
paign that we must not watch, he said
10 the group about him. and without a
word they walked TO their hotel. not
glancing back again. although more than
one in the group was secretly envious Of
/ Harley. because of the welcome that they
knew awaited him a little later
Ii was ii good hotel that received them,
and it was an Astounding breakfast that
awaited them there. Harley sat near a
window Of the dining-room, where be
could look out upon the street and see
the city coming TO life, a process that
began but slowly, because it is always a
holiday when the people cast their votes
for a President. Yet the city awoke al
last, men began to appear in the streets,
a polling booth opposite the hotel was
opened, and the Presidential election had
begun.
The diningroom was now filing UP, and
all around Harley and his friends rose
the hum Of interested talk. People were
beginning to speculate on the result. and
to point out the strangers whom Jimmy
Grayson had brought among them.
Harley presently went into the lobby
and found it crowded All there were
touched by a keen, eager interest. and
were balancing the chances. The cor
respondent. alert. watchful. saw that the
bulk of opinion was against Jimmy Gray
son. He saw, too, that while there was
much local pride In the candidate. il was
tinctured by envy. and here and there by
malice lie realized to the full the truth
OF the old adage that prophet is never
without honor save in his own country.
In that crowded lobby were men who
had been conspicuous in local public life
when Jimmy GTays0n was Il mere boy.