The Detroit times., 1913-08-19

1--WE shall demand" she began de-
cisively, that the first act Of your
administration Is To 90 before the
grand jury and ask for the indictment
of Tanner and Dan Boydston and
Archie Curry for the giving and the
accepting OF brides on the county road
contracts for the last six years
he looked silently at her. Hem
minger shifted his hat nervously.
The proof" Miss Vance went on
is here. She laid the yellow slip OF
memoranda Oh the desk II was Gov
cred with careless entries, figures
authorizations To Harlan ii meant
nothing. This is Boydston's writing
--Boydston. the go-bet ween."
Those old yarns" Harlan murmur
ed; tho her dominance stilled him
He looked again at the paper. You
mean this is-proof?"
This and Boydston's confession.
Confession"
| 1T amounts TO that His admis
sions 10 Hemminger, his fellow board
member, on the way 10 the last deal
the l.indstrom Pocket deal-was put
through. He admitted he took money
he offered Hemminger five hundred
dollars TO keep silent on this. ="
She tapped the paper. Harlan
stared at her incredulously why,
saw Boydston coming from the bank
not an hour ago. There was q con
! ference of some sort. Father was
there. and Tanner and Wiley Cu-ran,
! There are rumors that Tanner threw
up the fight, and wants TO make an
! s9Feement with Wiley and his league
| hackers to keep their hands of the
county committeeship!"
"BoyGston," she retorted quietly,
has confessed, two weeks ago He
| dare not tell Tanner. He has been
! begging, threatening. pleading with
| MIR. Hemminger TO keep silence, and
| TO destroy thfs'-she fingered the pa
! per. Last Tuesday week ago this
was placed in my hands by a mis-
take. The silliest thing a bribetaker
ever did. and only bungling old
| father like Boydston could have done
! II. drove out to the DECKS place
to get a petition that the people have
! been circulating there TO divide thei-
| school district. That is the place
! Boydston sold to DECKS when he
moved TO town Well, this German
had charge OF this petition and kept
it in the crack of the chimney in
Boydston's old sitting-room When |
called Tor the petition his wife-who
can't read a word of English-handed
me an envelope, which | did not look
/ at until | came back TO town Then
when | went to file that petition |
didn't have 1t. Instead. these slips of
memoranda. = couldn't make any
sense of them But there were com
| putations OF money paid and money
| divide. all In Boydston's handwriting.
| studied it and the dates. and it struck
me curiously that the ates of the
transactions tailed with several coun-
| ~ board meetings. And then il dawn
ed on me like lightning flash. /
sent for hemminger. and we compar-
ed the notes with his recollections OF
| board tranactions. Why, Boydston
| had actually put Thad's name after
one division OF three hundred dollars
| between himself and Curry, couldn t
! believe such idiocy. Then Hemminger
took the memoranda TO Boydston and
| demanded an explanation, and Boyd
| ston collapsed in his front parlor and
admitted. He lost his nerve COM
pletely-begged and wept for Hem
minger not to show the memoranda
to allow him TO settle some way or
other; and. above all, not TO tell Tan
ner Hemminger brought the notes
back 70 me. Ever since we've been
wondering-and discussing you"
Harlan met her defiant gaze stead
| lily. "Well?"
THE county crowd put you in
Boydston, I'm his frenzy, declared it
would do us no good to publish the
notes He said the new district attor-
ney was Tanners man, Said we
couldn't get 1t TO the grand jury with
out you
The young man turne dhis serious
eyes on Hemminger 'Yes?"
Harlan" put in Janet, we decided
TO wait. | consulted no one. | was
afraid if We exposed 1t just before
election 1t would look like a roorback
of our people and would hurt Wiley
some way or other. You know to at.
tack the best families this way-with
Tanners money and power and the
Mercury ournal-well, we could not
prove the facts for weeks, End 1t
would look like mere politics On our
part. But you"-she watched him
coolly-"I made up my mind today
/ | wanted TO know what you'd do when
/ you're elected"
"Do?' He stared at her with a trace
Of anger. Janet, you ask what I'd
do? Blow the lid off-send Boydston
and Curry to the PEN Tanner. too.
| II can get him.
| She looked off through the widow
at the bank corner 1T will be a
tremendous job. Harlan, you, new
man-wholly without experience In
office, backing a combination that no
man here ever dared TO fight. The
money. the influence, the Best Peo-
pie"
/ He followed her glance out to the
country folk idling about the ancient
/ sidewalk OF the First National. Far
| Their down High-st.. under the leaf.
less naples. he could see the tidy
lawns. the prosperous houses, and
then his home. The Judge was slowly
driving in from lunch behind Old
Dutch. So long he watched, SO i'm
perturbably. that she could not guess
the struggle in his mind Not OF right
or wrong; but TO grasp issues dimly
/ limned beyond. One fights for ones
class, ones kind, ones heritage OF
thought and feeling; basic greed. the
instinct &c survice. vestigial prompt
ipgs from feudal privilege to protect
and exculpate-.-all battled in his sub
consciousness for delay and pretext