Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1910-04-15
lie eyed her in a quizzically admir-

ing fashion as one might beautiful
but unclassified natural history speci-
men. She made no reply, but stood
waiting in patience for him to move
from between her and the door.
Caleb grinned
want me to apologize, s'pose?"
he grumbled.
"A gentleman would not wait to
ask"
Maybe you think a gentleman
wouldn't of said what I did, in the
first place, eh?"
eyes, | do think so. Don't your"
well, I'm sorry. Let it go at that.
Now let's get to work Say''-as they
moved across to their wunted places
at the big centre table, you oughtnt
to take offence at anything about me
this morning. You must know how
sore / am"
Whats the matter?"
CAS- if you didn't know You saw
how many kinds of a walleyed fool
made of myself last night. Isn't that
enough to make man sore? And to
think of it being taken down by those
newspaper idiots and printed all over
the country!"
He gave the nearby chair a kick,
avalanching the morning papers to
the floor.
"Haye you read those?" queried
Anice
mo. Why should I rub it in?
know what they"
why not look at them before you
lose your temper?"
Caleb snatched up the Star, fore
most journal of Granite. He glanced
down the last column of the front
page and over to the second.
Here's the story of the show just
as we dictated it beforehand" he com.
mented. List of guests Where in
thunder is that measly speech?
Have they given it column to itself?
Oh-way down at the bottom. In q
singularly happy little informal ad.
dress at the close of the evening Mr..
Conover mentioned his Forthcoming
candidacy for governor Is that all
any of them have got about it?''
''They have your pledge to run for
Governor blazoned over two columns
of the front page of nearly all the pa
pers. But nothing more about the
speech itself"
but how"
81 took the liberty of stopping the
reporters before they left the house,
and telling them it would be against
your wish for any of your remarks to
be quoted"
'FYou did that? Miss Lanier, you're
fine! You've saved me a guying in
every out-of-State paper in the East.
/ want to show my appreciation"
eff that means another offer to raise
my salary, | am very much obliged.
But, as I've told you several times
before, | can't accept it. Thank you
just the same"
"But why not? | can afford"
"But I can't Don't let's talk of 1t,
please"
"And every other soul in my EN-.
ploy spraining his brain to plan for
a raisei The man who understands
women-if he's ever born-won't need
to read his Bible, for there'll be moth
ing that even the Almighty can teach
him.
"But Miss Lanier, let all the rou>
tine go over for to-day. I've bigger
game on, and I've got to hustle. That
GOuaruorchir
"Yes?'
"That was the foolest thing / ever
did. 1t seemed to me at the minute
grand idea as wind-up for my crazy
speech. But l guess I'll have to pay
my way all right before I'm done with
last evening. The free lists sus-
pended as fairs I'm concerned"
''You mean there's some doubt OF
your getting the nomination." she
asked a sudden hope making her big
eyes lustrous.
Doubt? Doubt? Say, thought you
knew me better than that. Why, the
nominations right in front of me on
silver salver and trimmed with blue
ribbons. And the election, too, for
that matter"
"Then-the hope dying why do
you speak as you did just now?"
cts this way: I've held Granite
and the Mountain State by the nape
of the neck for ten years. I'm the
Boss And when give the word folks
come to heel But all this time rye
been standing in the background while
l pulled the strings. 1t was safer that
way and pleasanter. That's why I've
never took public office since | was
Mayor. And then it was only STEP
ping-stone to the Leadership. Now
I've got to leave the background and
pose in the Capitol There's nothing
in it for me, except better social po-
sition. That's lot, know. But I'm
not so sure that even such a raise is
worth the price"
"Then why not withdraw"
mot me! Withdraw, and be
laughed at by my own crowd as well
as the society click? It'd smash me
forever. No, sir! I'm in it, and /
got to swim strong The nomination
and the elections easy enough. But
just won handily' won't fill the bill.