第149章
"Look here,Hugh,"he said,"we may as well face the fact that we've got a fight ahead of us,--we'll have to start some sort of a back-fire right away.""You think Greenhalge has a chance of being elected?"I asked.
"I'm not afraid of Greenhalge,but of this fellow Krebs.We can't afford to have him district attorney,to let a demagogue like him get a start.
The men the Republicans and Democrats have nominated are worse than useless.Parks is no good,and neither is MacGuire.If only we could have foreseen this thing we might have had better candidates put up--but there's no use crying over spilt milk.You'll have to go on the stump,Hugh--that's all there is to it.You can answer him,and the newspapers will print your speeches in full.Besides it will help you when it comes to the senatorship."The mood of extreme dejection that had followed the appearance of the article in Yardley's did not last.I had acquired aggressiveness:an aggressiveness,however,differing in quality from the feeling I once would have had,--for this arose from resentment,not from belief.It was impossible to live in the atmosphere created by the men with whom Iassociated--especially at such a time--without imbibing something of the emotions animating them,--even though I had been free from these emotions myself.I,too,had begun to be filled with a desire for revenge;and when this desire was upon me I did not have in my mind a pack of reformers,or even the writer of the article in Yardley's.I thought of Hermann Krebs.He was my persecutor;it seemed to me that he always had been....
"Well,I'll make speeches if you like,"I said to Dickinson.
"I'm glad,"he replied."We're all agreed,Gorse and the rest of us,that you ought to.We've got to get some ginger into this fight,and a good deal more money,I'm afraid.Jason sends word we'll need more.By the way,Hugh,I wish you'd drop around and talk to Jason and get his idea of how the land lies."I went,this time in the company of Judah B.Tallant.Naturally we didn't expect to see Mr.Jason perturbed,nor was he.He seemed to be in an odd,rather exultant mood--if he can be imagined as exultant.We were not long in finding out what pleased him--nothing less than the fact that Mr.Krebs had proposed him for mayor!
"D--d if I wouldn't make a good one,too,"he said."D--d if I wouldn't show 'em what a real mayor is!""I guess there's no danger of your ever being mayor,Judd,"Tallant observed,with a somewhat uneasy jocularity.
"I guess there isn't,Judah,"replied the boss,quickly,but with a peculiar violet flash in his eyes."They won't ever make you mayor,either,if I can help it.And I've a notion I can.I'd rather see Krebs mayor.""You don't think he meant to propose you seriously,"Tallant exclaimed.
"I'm not a d--d fool,"said the boss."But I'll say this,that he half meant it.Krebs has a head-piece on him,and I tell you if any of this reform dope is worth anything his is.There's some sense in what he's talking,and if all the voters was like him you might get a man like me for mayor.But they're not,and I guess they never will be.""Sure,"said Mr.Jason."The people are dotty--there ain't one in ten thousand understands what he's driving at when he gets off things like that.They take it on the level."Tallant reflected.
"By gum,I believe you're right,"he said."You think they will blow up?"he added.
"Krebs is the whole show,I tell you.They wouldn't be anywhere without him.The yaps that listen to him don't understand him,but somehow he gets under their skins.Have you seen him lately?""Never saw him,"replied Tallant.
"Well,if you had,you'd know he was a sick man.""Sick!"I exclaimed."How do you know?""It's my business to know things,"said Judd Jason,and added to Tallant,"that your reporters don't find out.""What's the matter with him?"Tallant demanded.A slight exultation in his tone did not escape me.
"You've got me there,"said Jason,"but I have it pretty straight.Any one of your reporters will tell you that he looks sick."....
The Era took Mr.Jason's advice and began to publish those portions of Krebs's speeches that were seemingly detrimental to his own cause.Other conservative newspapers followed suit....
Both Tallant and I were surprised to hear these sentiments out of the mouth of Mr.Jason.
"You don't think that crowd's going to win,do you?"asked the owner of the Era,a trifle uneasily.