Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1911-09-28

chance to say, since BlOunt had turn
ed abruptly and was already leaving
the club to go on to the hotel.
Since the election was now no more
than three days distant the Inter
Mountain lobby vas filled with groups
of %caucusing politicians. Notwith-
standing the position he had taken
and the open eyed fearlessness with
which he had discussed the political
situation publicly in every considera-
bic town in the state. Evan Blount
was still a puzzle to those whose Ways
were, by need and the force Of cir
cumStance. the reverse of straightfor-
ward.
Blount was halted half a dozen
times before he could make his way
to the elevator, and the pumping
process to which he was subjected at
each fresh halting space amused him.
1t was plainly evident that in spite of
all he had said and done a consider
able majority of the politicians were
still regarding him as in some sense
his fathers lieutenant. Somewhat to
his disappointment he found that Pa
tricia had gone out with his father
and his fathers wife to dinner; hence
he was forced to sit at a table in the
cafe with three of the %caucusing pol
~iticians and was obliged to find his
moderate pleasure in trying to make
their very evident perplexity lose moth
ing of its acuteness during the table
hour.
When he reached his office on Sat-
urday morning, after an early and
solitary breakfast at the hotel, the
young reformer scored. or thought he
had scored, his first small victory.
Among the envelopes on his desk was
one bearing the imprint Of the traffic
office. 1t inclosed a carbon copy of
the notice required by law of a pro-
posed change in freight rates.
Hastily comparing the figures with
the memorandum in his pocketbook,
Blount felt the tension relaxing for
the first time in weeks. At the long
last Gantry or his superiors had sur
rendered. The rates on lumber, cleo
trical supplies and other commodities
which had been given illegal preferen-
tails were to be reduced to the figures
given to the favored corporations.
Blount passed a busy Saturday, put
ting in most of his time at his desk.
Calling up the hotel in the afternoon,
he found that his father had taken
Patricia and Honoria for a drive in
| tho rpo1ctp1. and nt dinner fimn tho
automobile party had not yet return
ed. Blount went back to his office
after a hasty dinner and worked late
into the night. The eve of battle had
arrived, and he was striving to clinch
the nail of argument as we'll as he
could by writing many letters to the
political friends he had made in going
up and down the state.
The Sunday proved to be a very
quiet day, though the lobby Of the In
ter-Mountain was still the assembling
place for the gathering clans of poll
ticians. Blount went to church in the
morning because Patricia insisted
upon it, and his appearance in the pew
as a member of the Honorable David's
family would have caused fresh com
ment if there had been any church
goers among the visiting politicians.
After luncheon he borrowed the
roadster and tool Patricia for a drive.
The day was perfect, and the roads
were in good condition. When he
had put distance between them and
the Sunda. quiet of the city streets
he told Patricia of his experience with
Kittredge's special train.
do you think it was i%ntended?" she
asked when he had finished his story.
81 haven't the slightest doubt of it
now. More than that, l think the
telegram bearing Mr.. McVickar's
name was a bold forgery. But l am
bringing them to time" be went on,
eXulting owe his one small victory.
There is to be an evening up of
freight rates, and one more room of
the railroad house will be clean. l
believe Mr.. McVickar has meant to be
sair all along, but the overzealous
subordinate is always the hardest mar
TO handle.''
81 am glad,' she said. And in the
sunshine of her approval the young
maj spent a very happy afternoon.
AT breakfast Monday morning Evan
Blount again made the senator's party
of three a party Of four and at table
found a puZzling surprise lying in wait
for him.
The critical day Of days in the cam
paign had arrived, and it was sup
possible on every hypothesis that the
commander of an army would choose
any other day rather than this to be
absent from his post. But at the
breakfast table he heard his father an
nounce calmly that he was going to
drive out to Wartrace, for no better
stated reason than a purely routine
purpose of having a talk with his
ranch manager about the shipment of
a trainload of beef cattle.
While Blount sat in open eyed as
constituent the day was planned for
there and then. The arrangement
made was one that left Patricia free
| RI nyn0n nv, NJ ~ - A.. yYr.zAl