Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1913-08-23

49, lower Clark street, light
My~Vf>So ed by windows SO long
Ar Il lG unwashed that they
~ ~ looked like ground glass
W. 81 From the chandeliers,
black and sticky with
dead flies. shreds of It's
sue paper fiuttered, relics of some
boisterous fete an Italian society
had given there long ago. The
floor was damp in arabesque wrought
by a sprinkling can, for the janitor
had sprayed water there to lay the
dust he was too indifferent to remove.
Perhaps a hundred chairs were set In
amphitheatrical order. and before
them stood kitchen table, on which
was a white water pitcher, fianked by
a glass, thickened by various sedi-
mentary deposits within.
In the saloon below, at 9 O'Clock,
scores of delegates were already shut-
fling In the sawdust that covered the
floor, holding huge schOoners OF beer
in their hairy fists. gorging grossly at
the free lunch table, with bologna,
rank onions and rye bread. The foam
of the beer chung to their mustaches,
which, after each sip. they sucked be-
tween their lips. Most OF them man
aged, at the same time they were eat
Ing and drinking, by dexterous
sleight-of-hand, TO smoke cheap do
nestle cigars, and cloud OF white
smoke rolled along the low ceiling.
Each new arrival was greeted with
some obscene but endearing epithet.
and the room rang with laughter and
profanity. A keg of beer had been
provided by one of Conway's man.
ayers, and the bartender. wiping his
hands on a dirty towel, was rid, so
long as the keg lasted, of the RESPONSE
bility of keeping account of drinks,
and of ringing up the change on the
cash register. At II. o'clock the keg
was empty, the free lunch table aban-
doned to the flies. and the delegates
scuffled up the dingy stairs to the
hall. Half an hour later the chairman
of the senatorial district committee
pounded the kitchen table with a leg
of a broken chair, and shouted:
The convention will be In order"
This declaration made no impress
sion upon the babel of voices, the
laughter, the profanity the noise OF
shuffling feet and scraping chairs.
Finally the chairman of the commit
Tee, growing impatient, split the table
with his club and yelled:
Damn 1t all, boys, come to order!"
And then, eager to resign such diff
ncult command, he fastened to an
nounce:
The committee has named Honor
able John P. Muldoon to act as
temp'ry chairman"
He handed the chair leg to John p.
Muldoon, who, stroking back his curly
hair from his brow, began to beat the
table impartially.
All this while Underwood stood
against the wall, looking on. The
question that had been agitating him
for weeks was about to be decided,
but now that the ordeal was actually
upon him, the consciousness beat
aumbly against his brain, SO that the
whole scene lacked reality, almest In
terest He was daZed. He was about
to take his baptism of political fire,
and he trembled like a white novitt
ate.
Underwood belonged to one of the
oldest families of Chicago-the name
had been known there before the fire
His father, who had lately taken hin
into his law firm. continued to cling
In his conservatism to an old stone
house in Michigan avenue long after
his neighbors had abandoned thefl
mansions to uncertain boarders, and
either retreated farther south or ad
vanced to the North Side John I'm
derwood had come out of Harvard
with young lawyers ambition II
politics. an ambition that had the
United States senate merely as a be
ginning of its home stretch, and wher
the year rolled around in which stat,
senators were to be elected In tht
odd numbered districts he decided
that It was time to begin.
The newspapers had scented tn,
sensation that lurked in the candida
ture of a young man like Underwoo,
In the district like the First, and be
cause he went into what is called SC
ciety, promptly dubbed him a reform
er. and thus weighted he had set GU
upon his race for the nomination HI
liked to see his name In the newspa
pers. liked to think of himself as
reformer, though he was embarrasse
In this attitude by the fascinating fl
ure of the political boss he had hope
TO become-a well-dressed, gentleman
ly boss, of course, who, while at HON
In those saloons where he permitte
the convivial familiarity of the boy
nevertheless took his luncheons at hi
club. He fell into a way of speakin
Of the First as my district" spok
of II. in fact. as II he, instead {
Malachi Nolan and "Cinch" Conwa,
owned 1t. and when certain ward pol
hcians In the first days Of the can
paign called upon him, underwood
was pleased to lend them money, ju,
As he was pleased to comply with tn
requests of certain others who organ
lied the John w Underwood Fir!
Ward Campaign club. and sent a con
mittee to inform him that they wei
assembled in the club rooms ready {
transact business, and beer only for