The Honorable Senator Sage-Brush

declaration of principles, Evan Blount saw in the arrival of the Overland, wit

mpaign with a single purpose-the purpose of overthrowing the power of the machine in his native State. On the other hand, filial affection had pleaded eloquently. The battle for political honesty would inevitably involve his father; would, if successful, defeat and disgrace him. As often as he thought he had closed decisively with the idea

try. But, after all, it was chance and the swift current of events which seized upon him and swept him along, smashing all the arguments and fine-spun theories. Before he had gone ten steps in the direction of Gan

young man who, but an instant earlier, had been deaf and b

er in this confounded mob. Find her for me. I've got my reading-glasses on, a

nd a moment later he had found Patricia guarding a pa

hild!" was his b

hat this is the West to whic

ed. Then she answered his question; "Yes, this is the West I

gentleman, standing immovable, as he had been told to do, was blinking impatiently through his reading

hich you said could be dug out of your sage-brush hills, you'll pay our fare back home again-just mak

ld find in the rank of waiting vehicles, put his charges into it, and went with them to do the honors at the hotel. By this postponement of the visit to Gantry he missed a meeting which would have done something toward solving a

ook. "If you had seen his face when Lackner and I came away, you'd ha

the game that you were to fill him up with a lot of lies. I won't stand f

been present and invisible, would have seen a sour

ld like to sue us for libel, we could prove every word that was said-or prove that it was common report; too common to be doubted. And it got t

ered a few minutes longer on the station platform he could scarcely have failed to mark the side-tracking of private car "008," and h

a little later the vice-president entered the lobby of the

Blount in

I'll send a boy to hunt him up for you. You w

overnight. Is young Bl

friends of his-Mr. Anners and his daughter, from B

r. Hustle out another boy or

might have drawn him back suddenly to his problem and its unsettled condition. The incident was the meeting between his father and the r

functory hand-shake. "Let's find a place where we can f

d commanders tramped evenly abreast as if neither would give the other the advantage of an inch of precedence. In the sitting-room of the private suite the senator snapped the latch on the door, and pressed the

oint at once, Blount. Ackerton wired me that you had definitely annou

the blade of his pocket-knife under the lid when he said, with good-natured iron

you, face to face, and I'm not in the humor to spar for an opening. Do you mean to run

sticking your crow-bar in among the wheels this fall, McVickar, but

he one you had mapped out. And I added that you might name your own price for an

the price, if you

es on a clean administration. Naturally, we're not going to do any such Utopian thing as that.

s time, do you, Hardwick?" s

cal and sensible modus vivendi, and we shouldn't have now. But as a condition binding upon any sort of an arrangement, I am here to say that we can't let you nominate and elect yo

y eyes of the old cattleman. "What is the market quotati

omatic to show signs of a shortening temper. But D

en, dropping a heavy hand upon the arm of his chair: "This thing has got to be settled here and now, Blount. If you put your son in as public pr

and in a whole heap of different ways. It's

times, David; you are push

what will yo

y-if you insist upon a fight-I'll fight

ayed about the outer angles

end you've always been like the 'possum that offered

t goes once too often to the well is sure to be broken. You've got a joint in your armor now, Blount. Y

hem to blacklisting me, as you usually do," was the half-quizzical reply. Then: "I'm pretty well used to i

d to appear in the courts. We've got plenty of evidence, and by heavens we'll produce it! You put your son in as

y it," was the l

'll be hounded as a criminal. In our last talk together you had something to say to me about our not keeping up with the change in public sentiment; public sentiment has changed; changed so far that it is coming to demand

was the even-toned rejoinder o

e is clean and straight, Blount; a son for any father to be proud of. If that is the real reason why we don't want to have him instructing the grand juries of this State, it is also your best reason for wanting to keep the past decently under cov

ed conference the senator laid his cigar aside and

don't have all the fun. I won't say that you mightn't turn him if you went at it right; but you won't go at it right, and as matters stand now-well, blood is thicker than water, Hardwick, and if you hit me you hit him. I reckon, between us, we'll make out to give you as good as you send. That's all"-he rose to lean

ng when an interrupting tap came at the locked door. Blount got up and turned the latch to admit an office-boy wearing the uniform of th

king both date-line and signature, though the clerks in Richard Gantry's office were familiar enough with the hieroglyph that appeared at the bottom of the sheet. In hi

t's as clean as a hound's tooth. That is one of the things I'm banking on, David. If you do

ercely, and the ex-cattle-king took the two

e grated, his deep-toned voice rumbling like the burr of g

t stood up and re

ou were going to say. All right, David; you tell me to do my damnedest, and I'll

o the lobby. The electric lights were glowing, and the great gathering-place was beginning to take on its evening stir.

demanded; and the obliging clerk made the guest-line wait still longer while

came up with the returning bell-boy. "Mr. Blount, this is Mr. Hardwick

kar's voice or manner when he shook hands cordially

"Suppose you come down to the car with me for a private talk on legal matters. I'm inclined to think that we shall wish to retain you in a

uld be a place at their table for him-and another for his father, if the ex-senator would so far honor a poor college professor. There was an hour to spare;

he registry-clerk heard; and he saw, between jabs with his pen, the straight path to th

or his room assignment heard only the answer to the question which came over the wire from one of the upper floors: "No, Senator, Mr. Evan is not here; he has