Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-01-13

cloD ana 0l&oOCo0s anu inc c0aS wa
good for his soul.
Often he found that Jeremy Apple
gate or one Of Jefsmy'B fellow scouts
I'D biased The t1ail tor him But SOME
times hs found skepttcs who asked per
tinent questions.
"Why should vote for ye7" asked
Dan Crisweil. citizen Of Baldwin
township. one evening.
John bagaa to patter the stock party
arguments. which carried conviction
neither to the skeptical Criswell nor
of sudden-to himself. He broke OF
abruptly In the middle of a sentence.
''As you say" he laughed uncomfort.
ably. "Why should you vote for me?"
docs sound kind o. foolish. don't 1T
Reckon ye won't have nothin' to do
with the tariff or the single gold stand
ard ner prosperity neither. The hull
party won't make We git after the law
breakers II ye're cheek by jowl with
Jim Sheehan an he don't want 1t.
What l want to know is are ye honest
-or will We take orcers?"
'That sounds logical" John assented.
"Its common sense. Only most can
didates think we're too simple to think
ont. An don't know AZ they're far
wrong" he added thoughtfully.
When John left. however. Criswell
shook hands with him cordially. II
guess I'll vote for ye-this time. I
can't swaller the hull ticket, though
stomach wouldn't stand 1t. Ye look
like ye'd be yer own man. Leastways.
I'll chance It."
And John replied. troubled. II won't
regard that as promise. I'm not
sure that you ought to vote for me-"
Another day he met one Sykes. a hill
farmer. little. wizened fellow who
looked as though he had worn himself
out in the struggle to wiring living
out Of the steep slopes.
II amt voting" he said.
"Well." John laughed cheerfully. 1T
can't get vote I'll be content with
Information. viii you tell me why
you won't voter
swell. If We will have It. Jim Sheehan
nominated We. If ye'd been the right
kind o. man he wouldn't "a had n0thin'
to do with We. Anybody he's fer. I'm
against I rec'lect when he come to
Piumville. nothin' but drinkin' bum
An now he's got rich. buildin' bad
streets an roads an taxin' me heavy
to pay fer it while 1t keeps me scratch
in to get the intrust on my mortgage
How do / know he's crooked? ! don't
know-I feel it. An I know that no
one gets the nomination less'n he says
So Or Murchell-an' they're tarred
with the same stick"
Johns face was grave. "Then you
ought to vote the opposition ticket I'd
rather you'd do that than not vote At
ALL"
The momentary flicker of passion
died down. whats the use" was the
reply. duly given. p However l vote
some Teller like Sheehan gifts on top"
John sought counsel from his father.
But to the Judge Caesar,s wife-that IL
to say, his party and all things thereto
appertaining-was above suspicion; not
20 the motives Of him who raised q
question. So he took his trouble to
ri Cranshawe. the Office visitor to
whom Johns Difference had attracted
Sheehan's attention. big man. kindly.
shrewd, with wisdom In the raw. He
listened sympathet!cally as John
poured out his tale.
"It's like what Sykes says. 1t amt
what We know-it's what we feel
When Jim sheehan gifts public con-
tract, We feel there's somethin' crook
ed about it. When a man gifts a nomi.
nation, we feel that he's made some
kind o. deal with Sheehan. When We
put up a man on our own hook. an
he's nominated-which amt often-we
find he's gone over to Sheehan. An
that amt feel. It's know. Jim shee-
hans represented; we amt. It amt
rightr'
"Then why don't you get together
and ight?"
We've got to Nve." Cranshawe ans
wered simply. I'VE don't lay by money
fast enough to keep US without work.
in. We amt got the time ner the
trainin' to make q good fight against
him. We've got no leader" His eyes.
through the bushy brows. rested with
an dlulOSL "lSuuI ASuS w tnS IAOu0
bled countenance before him. IAN
it'd take q large sized man fer the
job"
John just then felt very small.
He went to Plumville. an ugly,
grimy. busting. growing hive of work
ers, with its drones too. He had the
key to interpret what he saw. He
was permitted to go through the mills
and meet the men; he came out with
hands blackened from much contact
with their hands and in the smut he
felt sort of pride. What he had read
on the farmers brown faces he saw
on their red. scorched ones-the dull
eyed suspicion of those used to fattery
before election and neglect afterward.
Under the careful ciceronage of Shee-
hans lieutenants he was led into po-
litical club and saloon. where he shook
hands with many more men. who guz-
zled vast quantities Of liquor and
sneered openly ut his abstinence. He
was told that here he would meet
.'men who counted" he did meet such
men-brutish things. moral idiots,
ch1nloss croaturos hound together nv