Evening star., 1914-04-05

up at WILLIAMSON when you was IN the
Legislature. Don't you remember You
remember those child killers that made New
Orleans molasses out of garbage and glucose,
and how we used to shake EN- down just like
this? It's the same old game, only little
bigger, and instead of FIVE hundred that had
to split up with the boys, whole big, juicy
wad. Say, you amt going back on us now?"
MARSTON leaped to his feet, and faced
A'A Slippery Jim, who asked:
"Who put YOU where you are now, in this
Capitol, in this gaudy room, in this city,
where you mix with the swell mob? l done
it, amt that so?'
That's true enough, Jim, and am not
ungrateful; but-oh. confound it, Jim!
what can | say to you? You don't even
know that YOU We insulted me. l want to
tell YOU something. I've been washing my
hands during the two years | have been
down here,-washing them of things l did
when l was scarcely more than boy; of
things that | did not know were wrong, be-
cause had never been told they were wrong,
and | saw everybody around me doing them;
of things that were not even considered
wrong then because the conscience of the
people was asleep, but things that were
wrong, Just the same, and are wrong now,
Jim, which you know to be wrong, which l
big business for letting it break the law, and
for not making laws to prevent it from shak-
ing down others, and we would use that
money to keep ourselves and our gang in
power; but those days have passed forever
in this country, thank God, unless our con-
sciences should grow dull once more! | have
washed my hands pretty clean now, and l
don't propose to soil them again.
you don't" snarled Slade. AWell,
then, /"
"Now, wait a minute, interrupted Mars
isn't WILLIAMSON. You can't pull an old
one like that down here. Your scheme
wouldn't work. It's too coarse. Even if
hammered that bill through the House,
which l couldn't do, there are dozen Sena-
tors at the other end of the Capitol who
would block it for six years; not because
they're crooked, because they're not, but
because they've learned to think a certain
way and do it instinctively. The company
might be frightened into keeping Bronson
as president; but as for coughing up hun
quarter out of them. As for this rough
stuff of yours-on the level, if one of those
scientists saw you he'd put you in a glass
case down at the Smithsonian as rare
paeozoic fossil"
CHOP it, you simple-minded gink!" burst
~ out Slippery Jimin rage. ITO think that
I've educated you up to this! l was shaking
down guys for the coin, and making an hon
est living for my family while you was selling
papers and sleeping in O'Brien's cellar, and
yet you stand up there and try to tell me
that don't know nothing about my own
business! You talk like these ginks was on
the level themselves. Amt the l. c. been
grabbing off everything in sight, waterfalls
and-and cascades and things, that belong
to the whole push?'
u suspect that it has"
"Well then, is it wrong to make a dip
split the swag9 Amt we as good as the
l. c? They're trying to steal six hundred
million dollars, and all we ask is hundred
thousand. Now, Bob, as business man l
put this up to you as business proposition"
He thrust his hand into his hip pocket,
pulled out fat wallet, and slipped rubber
i Il E