The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-04-16

ways ne'S nj, hes naru ugnfer, ana
the man doesn't live who can bluff
him. But he's poor. and he wants to
be rich, and I guess that lets him out
All this was directly subversive of
Evan Blount's ideas of the conduct OF
affairs political in free country. but
he was willing to hear more. -WenY'
he said.
your .hew to the line men. SON. Reck-
on you'd like to try IT."
The young man who was less than
week away from the atmosphere of
the law school and its theories was
fairly aghast. That his father should
be coolIy proposing him for high Of
| fee In the state to which he was as
new as the newest emigrant seemed
blankly incredible. But when the In
credibility began to subside the despot-
ism of a machine which could propose
and carry out such unheard of things
doomed malehcent.
Pm afraid we are a good many
miles apart. father" he said, uncon-
1 sctously using one of his fathers ia
vorite speech forms, when the pro-
j posal had been given time to sink In
! America is supposed to be a free
country with a representative govern
ment. Do you mean to say that you
and a few of your friends can set
aside the viii of the people so far that
you can nominate and elect anybody
! You please to any Office in the stateY'
The farseeing eyes were twinkling
again. 'Oh, 1 don't know about our
being so far apart" was the depreca-
tory protest. You're just a little bit
long on theory, that's all, son. When
it comes down TO the real thing some
body has to head the stampede and
turn 1t, and If we don't do it the other
bunch will"
"What other bunchT'
''In this case it's the corporations
the timber people, the irrigation com
panies and, most of all, the railroads
~Gantry seems to think that the rail-
roads are prosecuted, or his railroad al
least"
The senator pulled his horse down
to a still slower walk. where die
you see Dick GantryT' he demanded
Evan told Of the meeting on the
veranda of the club. adding the fur
Their fact of the college friendship.
"Just happened sos did it" queried
the senator, that getting together last
Saturday night7"
why, yes; suppose so. Dick
knew was in Boston, and he said he
had meant to look me up"
l
comment; yes, reckon he did. And
he filed you up chock full Of Hard
wick McVickar's notions, of course.
guess that's about what he was told to
do. But we won't fall apart on that,
son. Tomorrow wen go down to the
city, and you can look the ground over
for yourself / want you to draw
your own conclusions and then come
and tell me what you'd like to do
Shall we leave it that way?
Blount acquiesced, quite without
prejudice to firm conviction that his
opinion when formed was going to be
based on the merits Of the case, upon
fair and judicial summing up Of the
pros and cons.
+ He felt that 1t would be striking at
the very root OF the tree of good gov
eminent to allow himself to be the
J candidate of the machine. But, on
the other hand, he saw instantly what
a power a fearless public prosecutor
could be In a misguided common
wealth whqaa the lack was not Of
good laws, but of men strong enough
and courageous enough to administer
them.
He would see If the good to be ac-
, complished was great enough to over
balance the evil-it was a temptation
to compromise, a sharp temptation,
and he found himself longing for Pa.
tricia, for her clear sighted comment,
which, he felt sure, would go straight
to the heart of the tangle.
/ 1t was that thought of Patricia and
his need for her that made him dis
trait and absentminded at the War
trace Hall dinner table that evening,
and the father, looking on, suspected
that Evans taciturnity was an ex-
preston of his prejudice against the
woman who had taken his mothers
place, and when the son, pleading
WEAKNESS, retreated early to his room
! the suspicion was confirmed.
You'll have to be patient with the
boy, little woman" said the master OF
Wartrace when Evan had disappeared
ST shouldn't wonder If Boston had put
some right queer notions into his head. .
The little lady looked up from her
embroidery frame with whimsical
smile wreathing itself at the corners
of the sensitive mouth. HE is a dear
boy" she said. land he is trying aw'
fully hard to hate me. But / shan't
49,.