The Washington herald., 1913-10-05

81 suppose you'll want to renew
your mortgage on the first?"
81 think not, Mr.. Rice" Wiley
smiled IeisurcIy. "The Merchants
Bank, of EarlvilIe, will take it up
Rice looked up quickly "Ah, your
friend Purcell, l suppose?"
i've good many friends over
there Well acquainted these days. So
I'll take up that mortgage wherr it's
due. Eight hundred and forty dol
lars. interest and all, isn't it?'
Something like that. Drop in this
morning. Well look it up" Rice
fidgeted a moment. There's another
matter, Mr.. Curran. Come at H."
Mr.. Curran drew out his watch
lazily. He found it hard to conceal
his triumph. Cal Rice, of the First
National, coming to him, wanting a
conference! Beaten, Ell? And they
knew 1.-THE whole courthouse crowd J
They wanted to placate the victor,
that was it. In a flash Wiley guessed
it-Thad Tanner was going to offer
some compromise, plead for some
agreement with him-anything, so that
Thad might retain control of the
county committee. Curran in Con-
gress and solid as he was in the coun-
ty would dethrone Thad from his local
power sure as shooting fish in a
bucket!' All over town they had dis
cussed that days ago. If Thad lost
his grip some mighty unpleasant stor-
les of board contracts might come out.
They were gossiped about, had been
for years.
And now Curran thrilled with it. He
had felt it coming. He had told
Arne, and Arne had cried sourly !:
Kick the old .Son-of-a-gun out of
your shop if he ever comes to your
Rice's next words sealed it. The
banker shuffied nervously and then
went on: "Curran, you've been dead
wrong about your fight. We're not
er-againSt you-not at all-not at all.
And er-you'll come over at III"
Hardy" Wiley drawled with irri-
tating amiability. Expecting a tele-
gram from Gov. Delroy-something
about the campaign" He looked at
his watch again, conscious that every
man in the group was listening, and
in fifteen minutes would spread the
report that Thad Tanner was going
to quit the fight on Curran. Then he
said: Make it HIS, Rice. Best /
can do today"
"Ah, that will do-that will dor
Rice rubbed his palms and smiled.
Thank YOU. Mr.. Curran." He hur-
ried on as if some elaborate program
was to be arranged for Mr.. Curran.
Mr.. 'Curran looked about the group
of county politicians. The red-necked
Buydston was frowning evaSively. The
others were still. 1t was Curran's mo-
ment OF triumph lie went leisurely
down the street with his mail. Mrs.
Van Hart was driving into the Square.
She did not notice Curran of the
News, but Curran smiled airily. He
could afford TO be complacent to High
Street now. He was Curran, the i'll
surgent leader of the south counties /;
he had broken the ranks of the Re-
serve. He was friend OF the Gov
ernor. Best OF all, the country folk
knew him. He was their man." He
wished he could see Janet. He would
have liked to tell her this
At Ealf-past eleven-purposely he
had kept Rice waiting fifteen minutes
he Strolled over to the bank corner.
The door-a small one at the side
used by the ofhcers-opened before he
touched it. He had had an impression
that Rice had been watching him from
the shade of the window in front and
had scurried back to let him i'll. That
was another sense of his winning
Even now Rice bowed and trotted
ahead down the gloomy bank corridor.