The Alaska citizen., 1911-07-17

ever and whatever the girl was, he wanted her - honest or dishonest. arrogant or humble. rich or poor. he wanted her. Nothing 10 the con trary ever occurred to him At first she had awed him from the pinnacle of her social position. Awe changed to admiration. admiration had chang ed to the one thought of winning | her
 Lewis, Faugh, So much the worse i for Lewis! But she was betrothed i to Lewis, Well. what of il? ! The minute man gets what he | has wanted more than anything else
 in the world" Jim Warren philoso- l phized. there's something else he wants worse 1 want her and. by
 all that's holy. I'll have her." XIX
 Strange thoughts grew out of Jim Warren's sudden determination - dishonest thoughts. envious thoughts. | He put them all in the pot and l boiled them together. They simmered down to this: Position and wealth
 were necessary to win her and he had neither! Position he would win in this political game; money he
 could get. and all the more easily
 that she didn't care where it came , from. He was here in jungle of l temptation. All he had to do was to reach out both hands and pick hun l dred dollar bills from every bush i It can truely be said that today he
 and vine The Committee on Pub | l;, S,,, hn | garnered and he was chair man! l Then Railroads too,
 l The big idea? He shook his head ! impatiently as il recurred to him. A i Quixotic thing anyway, But the seal | ed packet in the safe-deposit vault? ] Perfectly simple Let it remain there l Nobody knew it was in existence | save the people in the bank-and not
 one person knew what was in ii save ! himself. Let il stay there and rot! | With money he could buy the smiles | that were now given to Lewis. lt i seemed strange that after all his i plans the one thing he wanted most i in all the world Edna Tillinghast
 would be possible to him only by l dishonesty. IL was not fiji that it i SIpiIh Dt So put So Dt Il. i IL happened a day or so later that | Tyson dropped down al the table
 where Jim Warren was at luncheon.
 Jim Warren looked him over 1 thoughtfully. His face and neck
 were fat and pudgy and coarse; an
 enormous diamond glittered on one
 of his thick fingers; another flashed
 in his tie
 ! Tyson" asked Jim Warren curi,
 ously. how many years have you
 been up here?"
 | Six Why?"
 1 What was your business?"
 Liquor"
 | "fou've made a fairly good thing
 of this job. haven't you? - that is. 1 you're well-to-do now" i Tyson licked the ashes from his ! cigar into the salad dish and turned his small eyes upon Jim Warren
 keenly He had an uncomfortable suspicion that Jim Warren was hon.
 est and being honest he was not
 a fit person to confide in. Then, too,
 there was something in his manner, in his quick. short questions, in the ] steadiness of his cerulean gaze. that disconcerted him.
 Whats the answer?" he inquired. i T was merely curious that's
 all" Jim Warren explained. Every body in the capitol seems to be
 very prosperous except me. l was wondering how they managed il. gave up two thousand year to
 come here at eight hundred. You get just what l do. yet you live at a i big hotel. with a suite of rooms and
 a valet. and an automobile and a i chauffeur. Are you still in the li-
 quor busness?"
 No" said Tyson I'm interested 1 in in two or three little things | that-er -" He stopped "On the level now. Tyson be- tween man and man. Jim Warren urged. Just because l was elected
 to this legislature as a labor man
 and a reformer there seems to be a popular impression that I'm here for
 my health. You didn't come here for your health, did you?' "Well-not exactly"
 What's the answer?" Tyson rolled his cigar around in his
 rosebud mouth, and his piggy eyes
 were blazing with curiosity. Finally 1 he said
 Warren. they tell me that you did hand Franques an awful wallop down in Warburton?' II did. l used him as far as he was useful, then passed him up." You know you can't do that in
 politics-but once"
 Why not?"
 Because you won't get second opportunity. Everybody up here knows about il. Even if it was in anybody's way tO-to-well. to slip you some thing he'd be afraid to-" He smoked
 on. Pm not saying that anybody
 ever does slip anybody anything up
 here. you understand"
 "Oh, mol" Jim Warren pondered
 the matter all the way through the
 entree. Did it ever occur to you why l turned down Franques Tyson shook his head
 He had deliberately betrayed
 Lewis; didn't know what he might
 do to me-
 After a moment Tyson arose lan-
 guidly and strolled out. At the door he turned as if to come back. but
 changed his mind.
 That night it was that Lewis drop
 ped in on Jim Warren again in the
 wretched, smelly lodging house in the dingy side street. Apparently he had in tn