diff options
| author | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:44:58 -0700 |
|---|---|---|
| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:44:58 -0700 |
| commit | 734f2df1f638b218d552e5559e4e2e13cf14a6b6 (patch) | |
| tree | cae3f993f678dab54c9022ea6f37d57a54ea5887 | |
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 14633-0.txt | 9129 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/14633.txt | 9522 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/14633.zip | bin | 0 -> 168750 bytes |
6 files changed, 18667 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/14633-0.txt b/14633-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..eaa6652 --- /dev/null +++ b/14633-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,9129 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14633 *** + +THE TRANSGRESSORS. + +STORY OF A GREAT SIN. + +A Political Novel of the Twentieth +Century. + +By FRANCIS A. ADAMS, +Author of "WHO RULES AMERICA?" + +Philadelphia: +Independence Publishing Company. + + + + +CONTENTS + + +BOOK I. + +HAIL TO THE SHERIFF OF LUZERNE. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER I. Clouds Gather at Wilkes-Barre 1 + " II. Harvey Trueman, Attorney 16 + " III. Conflicting Opinions 23 + " IV. A Quiet Afternoon at Woodward 32 + " V. An Unquiet Day at Hazleton 48 + " VI. A Stand For Conscience Sake 63 + + +BOOK II. + +THE SYNDICATE INCORPORATES. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER VII. An Anti-Trust Conference 74 + " VIII. A Startling Proposal 81 + " IX. Arraignment of The Transgressors 89 + " X. The Secret Session 110 + " XI. Martha's Premonition 124 + " XII. Taking the Secret Oath 135 + " XIII. The List of Transgressors 150 + + +BOOK III. + +THE SYNDICATE DECLARES A DIVIDEND. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER XIV. Birth of a New Party 163 + " XV. Choosing a Leader 169 + " XVI. Two Points of View 183 + " XVII. Opening the Campaign 189 + " XVIII. On to New York 197 + " XIX. Departure of the Committee 206 + " XX. In the Enemy's Stronghold 212 + " XXI. The Committee Reports Progress 224 + " XXII. Millionaires Sowing the Wind 230 + " XXIII. A Day Ahead of Schedule 241 + + +BOOK IV. + +IN FREEDOM'S NAME. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER XXIV. The Syndicate in Liquidation 256 + " XXV. Big News in the Javelin Office 263 + " XXVI. On to Wilkes-Barre 276 + " XXVII. Sister Martha Averts a Calamity 284 + " XXVIII. At the Dead Coal King's Mansion 298 + " XXIX. Peace Hath Her Victories 309 + " XXX. A Double Funeral 324 + " XXXI. The New Era 333 + + + + +BOOK I. + +Hail to the Sheriff of Luzerne! + + + + +THE TRANSGRESSORS. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +CLOUDS GATHER AT WILKES-BARRE. + + +There are few valleys to compare with that of the Susquehanna. In point +of picturesque scenery and modern alteration attained by the unceasing +labor of man, the antithesis between the natural and the artificial is +pronounced in many respects; especially at that place in the river where +it runs through the steep banks on which is situated the thriving city +of Wilkes-Barre. Here may be seen the majestic hills standing as +sentinels over the marts of men that crowd the river edge. The verdure +of these hills during the greater part of the year is the one sight that +gladdens the eyes of the miners whose lives, for the most part, are +spent in the coal pits. + +The picture would be perfect were it not for the presence of the +Coal-Breakers. These sombre, grizzly structures stand in a long line on +the west bank of the river, and appear to the eye of one who knows their +purpose, as the gibbets that dotted the shores of England and France +must have loomed up before the mariners of the Channel during the +Seventeenth Century, and when the supply of pirates exceeded the number +of gibbets, large as this number was in both lands. + +The breaker is a truly modern invention, which, had it existed in the +days of the Spanish inquisition, would have placed in the hands of the +malevolent fanatics an instrument of exquisite torture. It is +constructed to effect a double purpose, the achievement of the maximum +of production and the expenditure of the minimum of human effort. It is +the acme of inventive genius. To work the breakers, a man need have no +more intelligence than the tow-mule that plods a beaten path; and such a +man is the ideal laborer from the standpoint of the owners of the +breakers. + +But such men are not indigenous to America; they must be imported, and +that, too, from the most benighted lands of Europe. + +What an incubator of warped humanity the breaker has become! It saps +even the attenuated manhood of the aliens it attracts, and when they are +rendered useless for its ends, emits them to be a scourge on the earth. + +But the breakers are the monument of the civilization of the Nineteenth +Century, which esteems commercial as superior to mental advancement. + +As the drama to be unfolded will be enacted largely in this spot, which +nature fashioned on its fairest pattern, and which man has seared with +his cruel tool, a description of the town of Wilkes-Barre and its +environs is essential. The town is the creation of the Mines. Coal +abounds in the valley of the Susquehanna, and from the first impetus +given the coal industry by the establishment of railroads, the mines at +this place have been worked without intermission. The population of the +town has been increasing steadily for the past thirty years, until +to-day it reaches the proportions of a populous city. There is little +variety in the citizens; but the contrast they present makes up for this +deficiency. Broadly speaking there are but two classes, the magnates and +their mercenaries. The former live in the mansions on the esplanade and +constitute the governing minority. The coal miners and the workers on +the breakers, who eke out their lives in slavery, and who sleep in +quarters that make the huts of the peasants of Europe seem actually +inviting, constitute the vast majority. + +The most prosperous business of the town outside of the Coal industry, +which is, of course, monopolized by the magnates, is the Undertaking +business. There are almost as many establishments for the burial of man +as there are saloons to cater to his cheer. In contradistinction to the +custom in this country, the business has been taken up by others than +the worthy order of sextons. That this condition should be, is accounted +for by the fact that there is a paucity of churches in the town, and +that the sextons were unable to accomplish the work that devolved upon +their craft. Death is not attributable, in the main, to natural causes +in Wilkes-Barre; it is brought about by the engines of destruction which +the magnates are pleased to term, Modern Machinery. + +Association makes the mind incapable of appreciating nice distinctions +in regard to familiar objects or persons. Thus to the residents of the +town there is nothing abnormal in their condition. It is only to the +observer from without that the horrors of the Pennsylvania town are +apparent. That such a spot should develop in a State high in rank, and +among the oldest of those comprising the greatest republic, seems +incomprehensible. In the very State where the Declaration of +Independence was sent to the world, proclaiming that men are created +free and equal, and that the right of the majority is the supreme law, +how comes it that a settlement can be maintained where the rights of the +majority can be ignored and suppressed at the point of the bayonet? For +an answer to this question, comes the monosyllable--Trusts! + +Wilkes-Barre is a typical specimen community which may be taken as the +sample unit for a microscopic investigation of the conditions that have +created the modern institution of _voluntary slavery_. The scrutiny of +the specimen is given through the eyes of a resident of the town, and +the observations are his. + +"In a month then, they will shut down three of the mines, and will close +the Jumbo Breaker. You know what that means. I have asked the men of +Shaft Fifteen if they intend to starve, and they answered to a man that +they would sooner be shot than starve like rats in their homes." + +"What is that to me? Am I to look after every man who has ever blasted a +ton of coal in my pits or crushed in the breakers? + +"You tell the men of Shaft Fifteen, and of every other shaft in the +valley, that if they make a single move that threatens the property of +the Paradise Coal Company I will see that they don't 'starve in their +homes.'" + +"Then you will not arbitrate?" + +"There is nothing to arbitrate. I have no more work for the men. That +settles it. The world is big, and if they can find no work in +Wilkes-Barre, let them hunt for it elsewhere." + +"Mr. Purdy, I give you ample warning. The miners will declare a general +strike if you persist in locking out half of them now that the winter +weather has set in. The pits and the breakers can stand idle while the +demand for coal at an advanced price is created by an artificial coal +famine; but the miners have to be fed. They work like machines; but as +yet they have not learned the lesson of living without food." + +"Metz, I have given you my final answer. The mines and breakers close on +the day I stated." + +Carl Metz is the foreman of the largest of the Paradise Company's Coal +shafts, the "Big Horn." He is in consultation with Mr. Gorman Purdy, the +president of the company. Their closing remarks as just quoted are +uttered as they stand on the steps leading to the street from the +offices on the main square of Wilkes-Barre. + +The men nod to each other, and separate. + +"What did he say?" a man demands of Metz, in a weak voice. The +questioner is a typical miner. Death has placed its irrevocable stamp +upon him; he has served his three years in the pits; has been +transferred to the breakers when the signs of failing strength are +perceived by the mine overseer. In another year he will be in the hands +of the mortuary vulture; his last week's earnings will go to pay for the +hard earned grave that is grudgingly given "A Miner." + +"He says the mines will close." + +"Yes, and we will starve. Well, you can tell him that we won't." + +"I told him that the men were desperate." + +"And he laughed at you. Why wouldn't he? We have threatened to strike +for three years. It's getting to be an old story. This time it's our +turn to laugh." + +"What do you mean, Eric?" is the anxious query of Metz. He detects a +hidden significance in the miner's words. + +"Mean! Why I mean that we are _going_ to strike this time, and that it +will be the biggest fight the coal region has ever seen. + +"We can't get the mine owners to arbitrate, but we can get the coal +miners to unite. If one man is shut out to starve we will all go out." + +"And our places will be filled by imported miners," interjects the +foreman. + +"Not this time. We will have our pickets out in all directions, and +every train will be boarded. The men the mine owners bring on will be +told to keep away." + +As the men speak they are unconscious of the approach of the Sheriff of +Luzerne County. He has apparently been watching the movements of Metz. +All the morning he has shadowed the mine foreman, now he steals up +behind the two and stands within earshot. He overhears their words. + +"Let me tell you one thing," he calls out in a shrill voice, as he steps +up to them, "you don't want to forget that there is a Sheriff in Luzerne +County when you count on winning out in this strike." + +"We will do nothing that will require your attention," sententiously +retorts the miner. "We have had one taste of Pennsylvania justice, at +Homestead, and don't want another." + +"I have my eye on you two, and if there is any trouble I'll know whom to +hold responsible," continues the Sheriff. Then he walks on towards the +office of the Paradise Coal Company. He enters the building and is soon +in the private office of the President. + +The miners walk on in silence towards their homes in the East End of the +town across the Bridge. It is not a time to talk. These sturdy men have +a reverence for words; they use them only when the occasion requires. At +the door of the ramshackle hut that serves as the abode of Eric Neilson, +the men halt. + +"Eric!" says Metz, "I hope you will let me know of any steps that are to +be taken by the miners in your section. I have been in this region for +twenty years, and know where the rights of the miners end and the rights +of the mine owners begin. To back our rights we have nothing but our +bare fists; the mine owners have the city, state and Federal +authorities." + +"If there is anything to be done that will be of importance to us all, +you will hear from me," are Eric's reassuring words. + +Carl Metz knows the value of a promise from his fellow-workman. He is +satisfied. + +In the homely parlance of the mines, these men agreed "to keep tabs for +each other on the square." They will let no event of importance go by +without reporting it to each other, and in this way give each full +particulars of the movements of the miners. + +Metz turns back towards the centre of the city. He is bent on seeing +Purdy again, and of appealing to him to reconsider his "shut down" +orders. + +Hardly has he reached Market Street when he runs across the Attorney of +the Paradise Coal Company, a young and brilliant man who is one of the +products of the town school and academy, Harvey Trueman. + +"Good day, Mr. Trueman," is his salutation. + +"How now, Metz?" responds the preoccupied lawyer. "Have you some trouble +on your hands?" + +"It's the same old story, sir, only this time the men are determined to +strike. I have spoken to Mr. Purdy to-day. He refuses to yield a single +inch. + +"I thought it might be a wise thing to see him again and make the truth +clear to him, that the men will unquestionably resort to violence if +they are locked out at the opening of winter." + +"You let this matter stand as it is. I shall see Mr. Purdy in an hour or +so, and shall make it my duty to explain the situation. I know what the +men are likely to do, and what concessions will satisfy them. Metz, I +assure you we do not want trouble. If I have any influence with the +Company, matters will be satisfactorily settled." + +"When can the men have an answer?" + +"Not for a day or two, I suppose." + +"But they must know immediately, Mr. Trueman. You are aware that they +are dependent upon the Company Stores for their food. Well, the notice +has been posted that no more credit shall be extended after next +Saturday. This means that, for the men who are laid off, there is +nothing left but starvation." + +Trueman is troubled at this statement. He has always been an opponent of +the "Company Store" system; now he sees that it is likely to be the +potent factor in exciting the miners to revolt. + +"All I can promise you, is that I shall work in your interests and get +as speedy a reply as possible," he repeats. "By the by," he adds, "will +you come with me to my office now, I want you to go over some of the +details of the 'Homestead Strike' with me. I want to see what lessons I +can gather from it which will help me to advise Purdy in the present +trouble. You were in the Homestead strike, were you not?" + +By a nod of his head, Metz answers in the affirmative. + +They are seated in the office of the young attorney for the next hour, +during which period they review the events of the great iron strike of +'92; the reasons that led to it, and the similarity of the conditions +that exist in Wilkes-Barre. + +Having given Trueman the details of the Homestead affair, Metz explains +the existing grievances of the miners of Wilkes-Barre as follows: + +"The question raised by the miners is not one for advanced wages; it is +not one of reduced hours; it is not a demand for proper protection for +themselves in the mines. These things they have asked for time and +again--little enough for men who wear out their lives in the darkness +and damp of the mines. But these things they have never been able to +obtain. + +"A bare living is all that the mine owners would concede to the miners. +This living, meagre as it was, sufficed to keep life in the miners and +their families. + +"Now the miners are to be deprived of the crust of bread. You cannot +snatch the bone from a hungry dog, without danger. Do you imagine that a +man has less spirit than a beast? + +"The whole trouble, Mr. Trueman, arises from the formation of the Coal +Trust. I have all the facts in regard to this matter. And so far as that +goes, there is not a man in the labor organizations of this country who +does not keep in touch with the events of the day. The education of the +masses is a dangerous thing in a land that is ruled by force, fraud and +finesse, as the United States is to-day. + +"It is the Coal Trust that has brought on this threatened strike. + +"When there were independent coal companies, the condition of the miners +was better by far than it is to-day. The unrestricted operation of mines +made it impossible for any two, or even a considerable number, of the +mine owners to unite for the purpose of reducing the wages of the mine +operatives, and of increasing the price of the coal to the consumer. + +"But with the Trust in operation all restraints are removed. + +"The illegal traffic rates that the Trust secures, make it impossible +for any mine to be successfully worked that is out of the combine. + +"The first step that the Coal Trust took was to limit the supply of coal +at the height of the summer season, when big shipments are ordinarily +made. This afforded a pretext for an advance in the retail price. + +"To limit the supply, the Trust shut down work in half of the mines. + +"For the past seven years this practice has been followed. Now the +simple miners know what to expect. They have been submissive, because +the suspension of work came in the summer time when they could live on +little, and did not have to withstand the rigor of a Pennsylvania +winter. + +"Now the Paradise Coal Company announces that it will close down the +work on three of the mines next Saturday. This throws the men out in the +cold of November. If this plan is carried out it will bring on a long +and bitter strike." + +"I quite agree with you," assents Trueman. He puffs meditatively at a +cigar. + +"You are too young a man to remember the days of the Molly Maguires, +those awful days when murderers lurked on every road in the anthracite +coal field of this state. It was back in 1876 that the last of the +Maguires was hunted down. Of course there is no excuse for murder; yet +the Maguires were the result of a pernicious condition of wage +depression and degradation of humanity. + +"When the just demands of the miners were recognized the reign of terror +ceased. + +"But the Trusts have produced another organization of societies in this +state, bent on murder and arson. The Irish, English and Welsh miners, +who predominated in the region twenty years ago, are now supplanted by +Poles, Hungarians, Italians and the worst types of Lithuanians and +Slavs. These newcomers have brought with them the racial prejudices and +institutions that caused them to be enemies in their native lands; they +constitute a dangerous element in the population of this country. So +long as they are able to get food they remain passive, except for the +feuds they carry on amongst themselves. These immigrants are not +inspired to come to this land by reason of an appreciation of the +liberty that our Constitution vouchsafes to all mankind. They have been +brought here by the agents of the Trusts, because they are willing to +work for pauper wage. + +"I can tell you, Mr. Trueman, that in the strike that I feel will follow +the lock-out, there will be bloodshed. It may not be at the initiative +of the miners. But the fear of the magnates is now aroused and they will +not hesitate to employ force. Once the appeal to force is made, where is +it to end?" + +"All that you have told me, I shall report to Mr. Purdy," Trueman says, +as he extends his hand to grasp that of the plain, earnest miner. + +Metz departs, well satisfied with the progress he has made in advancing +the cause of the miners. + +Harvey Trueman goes at once to the private office of the President of +the Paradise Coal Company. + +He brings the strike matter up for consideration at once; and also the +case of a widow who is bringing suit against the company for the +recovery of damages for the loss of her husband who had been killed in +the mines. + +"You are to press the defence of this case for damages to a successful +termination for the company," are Mr. Purdy's last words, supplemented +by the remark, "I shall attend to the strike in person." + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +HARVEY TRUEMAN, ATTORNEY. + + +Harvey Trueman steps from the County Clerk's office into the corridor, +on the second floor of the Court House at Wilkes-Barre, with the +absolute knowledge that the case in hand is won. + +As he pushes his way down the stairway to the first floor where the +courtroom is located, he elbows through a throng of rough dressed +miners--Polaks, Magyars, and here and there a man of half-Irish +parentage, whose Irish name is all that is left from the Molly Maguire +days to indicate the one-time ascendency of that race in the lands of +the coal region. + +Certain victory within his grasp--a minor victory in the long line of +legal fights he has conducted for the Paradise Coal Company--he does not +smile. It is a cruel thing he is about to do. Cruel? He asks himself if +the sanctity of the law does not make the contemplated move right. +Harvey Trueman has a code of morals, an austere code, that has made him +enemies even among the people whose champion he has grown to be in three +years' practice of the law in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. + +He is a tall, slender, square-jawed man of thirty-six. His forehead is +high and broad and his hair is worn longer than that of other young +men--parted on the side and brushed back. He has thin lips and a mouth +of unusual width. His mouth-line is as straight as a bowstring, and when +he speaks, which is often, or smiles, which is not so frequent, he shows +an even line of large white teeth. + +There is something very earnest in the expression of Harvey Trueman's +face--a soberness that is seldom found in men under fifty. A straight, +strong nose, large nostrils and clean shaven upper lip that is +abnormally long; cheek bones that stand out prominently; gray eyes set +rather deep in his head for so young a man; a square chin protruding +slightly; and wearing a frock coat that falls to his knees in limp +folds, Trueman is a commanding figure, full of character. + +He is an inch over six feet in height. Among the miners who look +straight into the eye to read character, Harvey Trueman has been +pronounced an unflinching tool of the coal barons--one whose unbending +will means the ultimate accomplishment of any undertaking. + +Not one of the miners employed by the Paradise Coal Company has ever +known the young lawyer to take an unfair advantage. But he has upheld +the law for the proprietors of the mines when the men have made a fight +against the "company stores," where they are forced to spend the wages +made by the sweat of their brows down in the mines or on the breakers. + +Trueman is looked upon by all the miners of the region as a part and +parcel of the law, and all law is regarded by them as a thing made to +oppress the poor and aggrandize the wealthy. + +A simple investigation on the eve of the present battle has placed in +the hands of the young lawyer ammunition which will rout the enemy on +the first volley. + +But such an enemy! Above all things, Harvey Trueman is a magnanimous +foe. Now that he has his case won, he feels half humiliated. In the +court room, occupying a front seat while she awaits the arrival of her +lawyer, sits the widow of Marcus Braun, the Magyar miner. + +The miner was killed in Shaft Fifteen of the Paradise Company, which is +three miles down the river from the wagon bridge at Wilkes-Barre. +Standing at the bottom of the shaft when an elevator cage fell, upon +which were two loaded coal cars, he was crushed to a pulp. His widow is +suing for damages for the death of her husband. In the front seat with +her, in the court room, is her five-year-old boy, whom she must support, +perhaps by taking boarders at the mines, if the mine superintendent will +permit her to go in debt for the rent of a house in case her litigation +against the company is not successful. + +True, the rope by which the cage had been lifted and lowered had worn +thin, and the foreman had warned the superintendent the morning of the +accident that a new one was needed. But the poor Magyar at the bottom of +the shaft did not know it. He had in no way contributed to the +negligence which brought about his death. He knew his work was perilous. +In the law, it is a question whether or not the case can be successfully +defended by the coal company. + +Trueman's trip to the Clerk's office has been for the purpose of +ascertaining the miner's standing with reference to his citizenship at +the time of his death. With his experience in the practice, the lawyer +surmised that the Magyar was never naturalized. If he was not +naturalized, his widow has no standing in the court where the suit has +been brought. In that case, it belongs to the Federal Court, and his +widow and orphan, as well as the impecunious lawyer who has taken the +widow's case on a contingent fee, will not have the means nor the +fortitude to begin action in the higher court. + +Trueman discovers after a few moments of investigation in the Clerk's +office that his suspicion is well founded. The miner had never taken out +naturalization papers. + +Cruel? In the concrete, perhaps. The law is made for the multitude. + +"It is a legitimate defense!" Trueman murmurs to himself, as he passes +down the stairs. "The Magyar bore none of the burdens of citizenship. +Neither should he or his, share in the protection which the State of +Pennsylvania affords her citizens." + +"Will the Magyar's widow get anything?" asks O'Connor, one of the +half-Irish, half-Italian miners, whose elbow Trueman brushes as he walks +towards the court room. + +Trueman befriended O'Connor once in the matter of rent. + +"No. He was not naturalized!" + +"His blood be on old Purdy's head, then!" says O'Connor. "The mine boss +has said he will put her out in the street. She's already months back in +her rent." + +Trueman passes on as if he has not heard O'Connor, who is at the Court +House as one of the witnesses. + +As the young lawyer pushes his way into the court room his quick glance +catches the bent form of the woman in the front seat, clad in the +cheapest of black, and the open-eyed boy at her side. + +The proceedings are short. Trueman sits down at one of the tables inside +the bar enclosure and hastily dashes off an affidavit containing the +facts he has discovered, and a formal motion to dismiss. The Judge hears +the motion, which is opposed to in a half-hearted way by the lawyer on +the other side. The suit is dismissed. + +When she is finally made to understand what has happened, the widow +burst into tears. The boy, at sight of his mother's distress, sets up a +wailing that echoes through the whole Court House. In the hallway, the +bunch of miners from Shaft Fifteen gather about the weeping woman as she +comes out. One more instance of the heartlessness of the law which is +made by the men elected by the Coal Barons, is brought home to them. + +To these ignorant men, to whom the first principle of self-preservation +is that limit of erudition set by the coal barons themselves, whose +first and last lessons in life are to read correctly the checks of the +time-keeper and the figures on the "company store" checks which they +receive in payment for their work, what difference does it make that the +dead miner was a Magyar--not a full fledged American? + +He lost his life down in a coal mine where he went to dig coal that some +American, way off beyond the hills, might toast his toes on a winter's +evening. His life's work was to help keep the American public warm. In +return, all he asked was very poor food, a straw bed in a hovel, and a +crust for his wife should he be killed in the undertaking. + +There is much grumbling already on account of the company stores. The +walking delegate of the miners' union has ordered a strike in Carbon +County, adjoining, unless the Paradise Company shall reduce the price of +blasting powder sold to the miners, fifteen cents a pound. + +The miners leave the Court House grumbling. Soothing the Magyar's widow +in their rough way, they form a grim procession and trudge back over the +dusty road to the breaker and the row of hovels on either side of it. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +CONFLICTING OPINIONS. + + +An hour afterward Trueman is seated in his office, in the Commerce +building, on the public square of Wilkes-Barre, in the middle of which +is situated the Court House. On the same floor with his office are the +general offices of the Paradise Coal Company. + +Besides giving him distinction as a "corporation lawyer," which has its +effect in drawing outside clients, this proximity to the general offices +of the Coal Barons' syndicate relieves the young lawyer from the payment +of rent. For the convenience of having a shrewd attorney always at his +beck and call, Gorman Purdy, president of the company, is willing that +Trueman shall occupy the office rent free in addition to the liberal +salary which is paid him. + +While Trueman is successfully managing the legal affairs of the Paradise +Coal Company and achieving a brilliant reputation at the bar of +Pennsylvania, Gorman Purdy is "trying him out" with an entirely +different object in view. He desires to test the young man's mettle as a +man even more than as a lawyer. To accomplish this end it is most +important that Trueman shall occupy the office next the suite of the +great coal corporation. + +Lying on the lawyer's desk is an open envelope, by the side of which is +a check for one thousand dollars, being the amount of his salary from +the coal company for two months. In his ears still ring the plaintive +sobs of the Magyar's widow and the denunciation of O'Connor. + +"The mine boss will put her in the street!" + +In his mind's eye he pictures the dusty road separating the two rows of +miners' huts, down around the bend in the Susquehanna. He sees the +mountain beyond and the column of steam rising from a more distant +breaker, half way up the slope--a beautiful vision from the distance, +but how squalid in its dull gray misery to those who spend their lives +in its midst. + +At this moment the miners who were in attendance at court are trudging +along this highway, chattering their grievances to one another. The +widow and her boy bring up the rear, while the men march solemnly on +ahead, talking of their right to live--just to live. + +Across these mountains, in the city of Philadelphia, six score years and +more ago a convention once uttered the identical sentiments being voiced +by these serfs of the coal seams. Harvey Trueman has been a deep student +of the teachings of that convention. On the shelves of his library are +the well-thumbed writings of Washington and the Adamses and Thomas +Jefferson. He is a firm believer of the doctrines enunciated at Faneuil +Hall, and by Henry in Virginia. + +To-morrow, perhaps to-night, the widow's paltry chattels will be set in +the middle of that road by the sheriff. She will be dispossessed by the +Paradise Coal Company. A frail woman, pale with poverty of the blood, +shrinking with every breath she draws, because she knows the very air +she breathes comes to her over the lands of the Coal Barons--a haggard +widow of the mines will be deprived of her miserable shelter, not fit +for a beast of burden, by the richest coal corporation on earth. Why? +Because her abject misery is a lesson too graphic in its horrible +details to be constantly before the miners. Allowed to remain there, the +widow will breed trouble among the men who are all risking their lives +every minute of every working day, even as her husband risked his. +Dispossess proceedings do not come under the supervision of Harvey +Trueman, but he has ever been observant. A blind man may not remain in +ignorance of the human suffering in the coal regions of Pennsylvania. +Men in the general offices of the Paradise Coal Company see only the +papers and receive the returns. They ask not "Who put the widow of our +latest victim in the street?" + +The sheriff sees to the rest. All hail to the Sheriff of Luzerne! But +Harvey Trueman knows of these things. He has a mind that pierces the +thin walls of the miners' cabins and sees beyond the papers placed in +the sheriff's hands. + +"I suppose she will be hungry for three or four days," he tells himself, +"except for the crusts the other women give her. But in a month she will +be married again. If she had recovered a thousand dollars damages for +the life of her husband, one of the other miners would have had it in a +week." + +He picks up the check and glances at it for the third time. Then he +folds it and places it in his pocketbook. + +"I am paid the thousand dollars," he continues, "for keeping her from +getting it--for two months of my life spent in throwing up legal +barricades to prevent the miners from approaching too near to the +coffers of the Paradise Coal Company. If the Magyar's widow had +collected damages for her husband's death, there would be twenty more +suits filed in a fortnight." + +And so he appeases his conscience. He tries to be flippant, as he has +seen the officers of the great corporation flippant about such matters, +but in spite of himself his heartstrings tighten. Harvey Trueman is +acting a lie, and his heart knows it, though his brain has not yet found +it out. + +The office door swings open. A man of fifty-five enters--a short man +with a stubby red beard, a round face, and hair well sprinkled with +gray. He is dressed in a gray cutaway business suit and wears a silk +hat. His neckscarf is of English make, his collar is of the thickest +linen and neatest pattern, and his general appearance that of the +aristocratic business man whose evenings in a provincial city are spent +at a club, and in the metropolis at the opera. + +It is Gorman Purdy. Trueman's fondest hope--next to the one that at some +distant day, say ten or fifteen years in the future, he may sit in the +United States Senate--is that this man's daughter, Ethel Purdy, renowned +in more than one city for her beauty, may become his wife. Indeed, the +hope of the Senate and of Ethel go hand in hand. With either, he would +not know what to do without the other, and without the one he would not +want the other. + +"Trueman, we are going to have trouble with the men." Purdy draws a +chair up to Trueman's desk. + +"I've just been talking over the telephone to the mine boss at Harleigh. +The men there and at Hazleton hold a meeting to-night to decide whether +or not they will strike in sympathy with the Carbon County miners, +because of the shut-down. + +"Now, we've got to strike the first blow! The men over at Pittsfield and +at the Woodward mines will join the strikers if the Harleigh and +Hazleton men go out. We must get an injunction to prevent the committee +from the affected mines from visiting the other men. If they come it is +for the sole purpose of inducing the men to strike. Isn't that +sufficient grounds for an injunction?" + +"You can get your injunction, Mr. Purdy," Trueman replies, "but what +effect will it have if you haven't a regiment to back it up?" + +"We have the regiment! The Coal and Iron Police have been drilling in +the Hazleton armory. We can put three hundred men in the field from the +offices of the several works, armed with riot guns." + +"You may rely on me to get the injunction, Mr. Purdy," the younger man +says, after a moment's pause, "but I would not advise calling out the +Coal and Iron Police until some act of violence is committed by the +miners themselves. It may lead to bloodshed, may it not?" + +"Lead to bloodshed? Why not? For what have we been training the Coal and +Iron Police? The miners of the Pennsylvania coal region need a wholesome +lesson. They have no respect for property rights. Let them be incited to +a strike by the walking delegates and their battle cry is 'Burn! +Destroy!' + +"We want no repetition of the Homestead and Latimer riots. They were too +costly to the employers! Coal breakers and company stores are no +playthings for the whimsical notions of so-called labor leaders who do +not know the conditions prevailing in this region. They are too +expensive to be made the food of the strikers' torch. + +"Stop the strikers before they have a chance to blacken Luzerne County +with the charred ruins of the breakers! They'll be sacking our homes +next. Already their attitude is almost insufferable. People beyond these +hills do not understand the reign of terror under which these +foreign-born men hold the Wyoming Valley! + +"It has come a time when _we_ must shoot first, if there is to be any +shooting! I've had a talk to-day with Sheriff Marlin. It is fortunate +that we have a sheriff who has the grit to stand his ground. He says a +telegram or telephone message will summon him to Harleigh or Hazleton at +a moment's notice, and he will swear our Coal and Iron Policemen in as +deputies. + +"Whatever they do then will be legal--_Understand?_" + +Trueman looks straight at Purdy several seconds before he replies. + +"No," he says, flushing, "not every thing they do. I do not set my +judgment against yours, but I do counsel great caution in placing +Sheriff Marlin in command of the Coal and Iron Police. While you may be +correct in saying we must administer a quick and salutary lesson to the +miners, as deputy sheriffs your men might be tempted to shoot too soon." + +"Shoot too soon? If these men gather on mischief bent, we can't shoot +too soon!" + +Purdy in turn flushes, as he carefully scrutinizes Trueman's serious +face, which has grown suddenly pale. It is the first time his talented +young protege has ever shown the white feather. + +"Oh, yes, yes, Mr. Purdy--they--they can shoot too soon. Even deputy +sheriffs cannot commit murder with impunity. Fight these men with the +law. It's all in your favor! Sheriff Marlin could not step out there in +the street and shoot my fox terrier unless he could show someone's life +was in danger." + +With a show of impatience Gorman Purdy arises from his chair. He is +displeased beyond measure with the attitude assumed by Trueman. + +"Well, sir!" he says, "you should know there is a difference between +Harvey Trueman's fox terrier, so long as you are general counsel for the +Paradise Coal Company, and a man who marches along the highway with a +revolver in one hand and a torch in the other, his cowardly heart filled +with murder and arson! I am greatly disappointed with your views. +Perhaps it were better that I place the injunction proceedings in other +hands!" + +A sharp retort is on Trueman's lips, words not sarcastic, but stinging +in their earnest truthfulness, and wise beyond the years of the man +about to utter them. Each man has discovered that which is repugnant to +him in the other--that which has remained hidden through years of +friendship. + +The door of the office is unceremoniously opened, and a girlish voice +says: + +"Ah, father--I thought you must be keeping Mr. Trueman. Don't you +remember you promised me at breakfast you would not? Our ride was fixed +for three o'clock. It is now nearly four. Why, you both look positively +serious!" + +Ethel Purdy, gowned in a black riding habit which displays a dainty, +enamelled bootleg, and wearing a gray felt hat of the rough rider type, +gracefully poised on one side of her head, smiles incredulously as she +stands, one hand on the knob, looking in through the door at the two +men. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +A QUIET AFTERNOON AT WOODWARD. + + +Ethel enters Harvey's office just in time to avert a quarrel between the +Coal King and his attorney. In her presence both men resume their normal +reserve of manner. + +"So you have come for your afternoon ride?" Purdy inquires, in a +pleasant tone. + +"Well, my dear, you shall not be disappointed. The matter Harvey and I +were discussing can be deferred. Go and enjoy an hour's exercise. I +shall be home when you arrive." + +"Won't you go with us, papa?" + +"Not to-day. I have a Board meeting to attend." + +"I do wish you would pay as much attention to your health as you do to +business. You are not looking well. Have you forgotten what the doctor +told you about over-working?" + +"No, my dear; I remember his advice; but he does not know what a +responsibility rests upon me as the President of the Paradise Coal +Company. If I did not attend to the details of this business, there +would be a dozen competitors in the coal industry within a year. Even if +I cannot go with you every day, you have Harvey as an escort. You two +will not miss me. When I courted your mother, I should not have insisted +upon a third party accompanying us on our rambles." + +"Then we will join you at dinner," says Harvey, as he walks towards the +door. + +At the curb in front of the entrance of the office building, a groom +stands holding the bridles of three magnificent hunters. + +Harvey assists Ethel to her saddle and springs on to his horse. "Take +Nero back to the stables," Harvey instructs the groom. "Mr. Purdy will +not use him this afternoon." + +The riders are soon out on the turnpike that leads to Woodward. For a +November afternoon, the weather is delightful. The prospects of a +bracing canter over the mountain roads could not be brighter. The high +color on the cheeks of Harvey and Ethel show that they are not strangers +to outdoor exercise. Indeed they are types of perfect physical +condition. + +Since the day Harvey Trueman became the attorney of the Paradise Coal +Company, and the protege of Gorman Purdy, the young couple have been +constant companions. They have been encouraged to seek each other's +company by Mr. Purdy, who appreciated the worth of Harvey and who +secretly hoped that the brilliant young lawyer would become one of his +household. + +"I have spoken to your father," Harvey says, as the horses climb slowly +up one of the rough hills on the pike. "He has given his consent to our +engagement." + +"He's such a dear, good fellow, I knew he would not stand in the light +of making me happy!" exclaims Ethel. + +"Tell me all he said?" she inquires eagerly. + +"He told me that he was glad you thought enough of me to wish to have me +as your partner in life; that he had never had but one fear that you +might fall in love with some worthless snob, who would make you unhappy +and seek only the fortune which you would bring him. + +"Your father was kind enough to say that he believed I would continue to +be attentive to my business, and to his interests. What do you think he +is going to give you as a marriage dot?" + +"Don't make me guess. You know I am never able to guess a riddle." + +"He is going to present you with his new villa at Newport." + +"How could he have known that I was wishing for just that one thing? O, +won't it be jolly to go there and spend our honeymoon," Ethel exclaims +gleefully. + +"We will make your father come there and spend the summer. He really +must take better care of his health." + +Discussing the details of their cloudless future, the lovers enter the +dingy mining town of Woodward. The weather-beaten cottages, which never +have known a coat of paint, do not attract their attention. The groups +of ragged children playing in the dusty road, scurry out of the path of +the horses. On the hillside to the left stands the Jumbo Breaker, the +largest coal crusher in the world. Its rambling walls rise to a height +of several hundred feet up a steep incline. The noise of the machinery +within can be heard distinctly from the roadway. The grind, grind, grind +of the mammoth crushers, which sound as a perpetual monotone to the +townspeople, is lost on the ears of Ethel and Harvey. + +Not until they reach the center of the town do they realize they are at +the end of their ride. + +"We never rode those five miles so quickly before," says Ethel. + +"O, yes we have. Why, it has taken us longer to-day than ever," Harvey +replies, as he looks at his watch. + +"But of course it has not seemed long. We have had so much to talk +about. We must make good time on the ride home or we will be late for +dinner." + +They turn their horses and are off at a brisk trot back toward +Wilkes-Barre. + +On passing through the upper end of Woodward they have not noticed a +clump of men and women standing at the doorway of a miserable hovel, +setting back from the road. + +Now the men and women are in the road and block the way. + +"I wonder what can have happened," exclaims Ethel. + +"Another accident, I presume," is Harvey's answer. "It does seem as +though the Jumbo Breaker injures more men than any other in the +district. It's all through using the new crusher. It's dangerous. I said +so from the moment I inspected the model. But it saves a hundred men's +labor; the company will not abolish its use." + +They are now so near the crowd that the horses have to be reigned in. + +"Who's hurt?" Harvey asks of a miner. + +"Nobody hurt, sir, only the Sheriff putting out Braun's widow." + +The scene in the court room looms up before Harvey. He sees the bent +form of the miners' widow as she had bent over her little boy, weeping +at the decision of the Judge who had said that she could not claim +damages for the killing of her husband. He thinks of the check that is +in his pocket--the reward he has gained for winning the case for the +Paradise Company. A blush comes to his cheeks; his inner conscience is +awakened. + +In the doorway of the hovel stands Sheriff Marlin. He is superintending +the eviction. + +There are several miners in the group who had been at the court house. +They look at Harvey with glances which speak the thoughts they dare not +utter. + +Then, as a hunted fawn which will seek shelter of the huntsmen who are +to slay her, the widow rushes from the house. She runs to the head of +Ethel's horse and falls prostrate at the animal's feet. + +"In mercy's name, don't let them put me out to freeze," she wails. "It +is not for myself. I don't mind the cold; but little Eric, he will +freeze to death. + +"You give your horses shelter; will you let a child die on the roadside? +It is not my fault that the rent is not paid. My husband never owed a +cent in his life. He was killed in the mines, and the company will give +me nothing--nothing. I won't ask for charity. All I ask for is a chance +to work. I can break coal. I can dig it. I am willing to work even in +the Jumbo, till it kills me. Anything to get food and a roof for my +child." + +This tragic scene is enacted, before Sheriff Marlin and his deputies +grasp the situation. They do not long stand idly by and see the daughter +of the great Purdy subjected to this annoyance. With a bound the +sheriff, himself, is upon the woman. + +"What do you mean by stopping this lady?" he shouts, at the same time +grabbing the poor creature by the throat. "Back to your house and take +out your goods, or I'll burn them on the road." + +"Take your hands off that woman," cries Harvey. He stands in his saddle +and waves his hand menacingly at the sheriff. + +"Stop choking her! Do you hear!" + +With savage energy Marlin hurls the widow to the ground. + +"Do not be frightened, Miss Purdy," he says, in obsequious tone. "This +woman will not annoy you again." "You must excuse me, Mr. Trueman," he +adds, turning to Harvey. "But these mining folk cannot be handled like +ordinary people." + +The blush of shame has passed from Harvey's face; he is ashen. + +"Are you evicting this woman for non-payment of rent?" he asks. + +"She has not paid a cent since her husband's death, ten months ago. I +received orders from the company to turn her out to-day. She has been +making trouble here for the past month, and now that she has lost her +suit it's time she got out." + +"Mamma, mamma," cries the five year old boy, as he runs to his mother, +laying prostrate in the weeds at the side of the road. + +"Are you hurt, mamma, tell me?" and then he bursts into a flood of +tears. + +"Take that brat away," Sheriff Marlin says under his breath to a man. As +the deputy starts to pick up the child, it utters a piercing shriek. + +"Don't let them hurt the child!" cries Ethel, in utter horror. She has +till now been a mute witness to the heartless acts of the agents of the +law. + +Harvey jumps from his saddle, and is at the deputy's side. + +"Put that child down. I shall see that it is taken care of," he +declares. + +"Excuse me, Mr. Trueman," interposes Sheriff Marlin, "you must not +interfere with us in the execution of our duty." + +"Execution of your duty! You mean the execution of a woman and her +child. I shall not stand by and see the law violated. You have authority +to evict the widow for her debts; but you have no authority to assault +her. + +"How much does she owe?" + +"Eighty dollars," is the surly reply. + +"Here is the money," says Harvey, as he takes a roll of bills from his +pocket. + +"I cannot accept the money now," protests the sheriff. + +Then stepping up to Harvey he says in an undertone: + +"Mr. Trueman, the fact is, I have been told to put this woman out of +town; she will cause trouble if she remains. The miners are all in +sympathy with her because she lost the suit." + +"Who gave you such orders?" + +"Mr. Purdy." + +"When?" + +"This afternoon. I saw him just after you left the office. He told me to +get the widow out of town this very day, so I took the switch engine and +came out here." + +"Well, you will let the matter stand as it is. I intend to pay the rent +for the woman and see that she is placed back in the house." + +"You will be opposing Mr. Purdy. He explained the case to me and asked +my advice. We decided that with the widow in the town, the miners would +be more likely to carry out their threat than with her out of sight. You +had better let me carry out my orders." + +"I have made up my mind to see the widow restored to her home," Harvey +repeats. "Here is the rent money. I know the spirit of the miners better +than either you or Mr. Purdy." + +The sheriff takes the money reluctantly. + +Widow Braun is now sitting up, vainly trying to comfort her child. + +"You may go back to your home," says Trueman, as he bends over and helps +her to arise. "I have paid your rent and here is some money for food, +and for your next month's rent. I shall see that you get work." + +"May God bless you," cries the widow, bursting into tears. + +"You are my prisoner," Sheriff Marlin declares, as he places his hand on +the trembling figure. + +"On what charge," Trueman demands. + +"For getting goods from the company's store on her husband's card when +he was dead, and she had no money to pay for them," the sheriff asserts, +triumphantly. + +"But she has money to pay for the food she bought. And her husband's +card is valid until cancelled. You had better take care that you do not +overstep your authority. It is not the Widow Braun you have to deal with +now. I am interested in this case. I am the widow's counsel. She has one +thousand dollars to her credit on the books of the company's store." + +Sheriff Marlin is in a fury. He realizes that he cannot serve two +masters and he decides to be faithful to Gorman Purdy. + +"It is not my will that you are opposing, Mr. Trueman," he says with +emphasis. "It is your employer's." + +The word "employer's" grates on Harvey's ears. + +"Mr. Purdy is my employer, but he is not my master. I shall serve my +conscience before I do any man. But I do not believe that Mr. Purdy +would countenance this outrage." + +"What do you mean by saying that the widow has a thousand dollars to her +credit?" the sheriff asks. + +"I mean that she has this thousand dollars," and Trueman drew the check +from his pocket. "It is to be placed to her credit. I have something to +say about the company stores." + +"I shall take this business direct to Mr. Purdy," the sheriff threatens +as he walks off. + +The miners and their wives who have witnessed the quarrel between +Trueman and Marlin give expression to their feelings in whispered words +of praise for the young lawyer who bid defiance to the Sheriff of +Luzerne County, the most dreaded man in that part of Pennsylvania. + +The widow grasps Harvey's hand and before he can withdraw it she covers +it with kisses. Her tears of gratitude fall on his hand. He appreciates +that it is but tardy justice that he is doing to the poor woman. + +"You need have no fear of being turned out of your home," he tells her. +Then he springs back into the saddle. + +"Come, Ethel, let us start for home." + +The ride is finished in silence. Neither Harvey nor Ethel feels in the +mood to talk. On reaching the Purdy mansion the riders dismount, and go +at once to the library, where Gorman Purely is waiting for them. + +"Harvey, I am surprised that you should interfere with my orders," is +Mr. Purdy's salutation. "Sheriff Marlin has just telephoned me. He tells +me that you opposed his evicting the widow, and that the miners are now +likely to make serious trouble. This is the second time to-day you have +attempted to defeat my plans. I cannot understand what object you have +in antagonizing me." + +"You certainly misunderstand my motives," replies Trueman. "It is +because I have your interests at heart that I cannot see you pursue a +course that will lead to disastrous consequences." + +"Do you put your judgment above mine?" asks the Coal King, +sarcastically. + +"In ordinary business matters, in affairs of finance and in the conduct +of the mines I should not presume to dispute your judgment. But on the +propriety of assembling the Coal and Iron Police and of evicting a woman +who has the sympathy of the entire mining district I believe that I am +better able to judge of the effect these acts will have than you are, +for I come into close contact with the people." + +"The sheriff tells me you have placed a thousand dollars to the credit +of the widow at the Company's store. Is this so?" + +"I intend to do so." + +"It shall not be done, sir, not if I have the power to prevent it," +declares the Coal King emphatically, rising and pacing the floor. "You +must be out of your mind to make such a move, now, of all times, to +offer encouragement to the lawless element." + +"He did nothing wrong," interposes Ethel. "He prevented the sheriff and +his men from injuring the woman and her child." + +"Not another word!" Gorman Purdy speaks in a tone he has never employed +when addressing his daughter. + +"This matter must be settled, once and for all," he continues, +addressing Harvey. "There can be but one head of the Paradise Coal +Company. I wish to know if you will cease interfering with my orders?" + +"I have never objected to carrying out any order of yours that was +legal. As long as I am in your employ I shall continue to do as I have +done. But to tell you that I will do your bidding, whether legal or not, +that is something I cannot bring myself to do," Trueman replies, looking +the Coal King squarely in the eye. + +"I shall have no one in my employ who cannot obey me," Purdy says. He +then rehearses what he has done for Trueman; how he has advanced him to +the position of counsel to the company. "And all the thanks I receive is +your opposition, now that I need your support," he states, and without +waiting for a reply hurries from the room. + +When Ethel and Harvey go to the dining room they find that the irate +Coal King has gone to his private apartment, where his dinner is being +served. + +Harvey spends the evening at the mansion. + +As he and Ethel sit in the drawing room they discussed the events of the +day, and speculate on the result that will follow the quarrel with her +father. + +"My father will regret his hasty words," Ethel says. "He admires you and +places absolute confidence in you. Only yesterday he told me that there +was not another man in the world to whom he would confide his business +secrets as he has done to you." + +The lovers go to the music room. Harvey's voice is a remarkably rich +baritone. At Ethel's request he sings a ballad which he has recently +composed. + +Standing at her side as she plays the accompaniment, he sings. + + + "THE SEA OF DREAMS. + + "Sing me of love and dear days gone; + Sing me of joys that are fled; + Strike no chord of the now forlorn; + None of the future dread, + + Ah, let thy music ring with tone + That speaks the budding year; + The Winter's blast too soon will moan + Through the forest bleak and drear. + + Then sing but a line from the dear old days + We sang 'neath the moon's soft beams, + When we were young, in those gladsome days, + While we sailed on the sea of dreams. + + There are no songs that reach the heart, + Like those sung long ago. + New singers and their songs depart; + The old ones ne'er shall go. + + Nor is it strange that they should be + As balm to the sad heart; + They tell of love when it was young, + And all its joys impart." + +At eleven o'clock Trueman leaves the Purdy mansion and goes to his +hotel. To him it is clear that an irreparable breach has been made in +the relations between himself and Gorman Purdy. He knows the unrelenting +character of the President of the Paradise Coal Company. + +"It was a question of right and wrong," he muses. "I could not see a +woman and her child thrown out in the highway, when I knew that it was +through my skill as a lawyer that just damages were kept from them. The +law was on the side of the company; but justice was certainly on the +side of the widow. + +"Every day I have some nasty work of this kind to perform. It is making +a heartless wretch of me. A man can make money sometimes that comes too +dear." + +The next day, at the office, Purdy and Trueman have a long talk. It +results in Trueman withdrawing his objections to the assembling of the +Coal and Iron Police. As to the widow, a compromise is effected. She is +to be set up in business in a neighboring town where her case is +unknown. + +The thought that to break with Purely would mean to lose Ethel, turns +Harvey's decision when the moment comes to choose between duty and +policy. + +The work of preparing to defeat the pending strike is at once taken up, +Purdy and Trueman working in perfect accord. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +AN UNQUIET DAY AT HAZLETON. + + +Nearly two months have passed, and a mantle of snow covers the ground. +The rigorous December weather has come and is causing widespread +distress among the mining population of Pennsylvania. Forty per cent of +the operatives of the Paradise Coal Company have been laid off, as Purdy +declared they would be. This means that starvation is the grim spectre +in six thousand homes. + +The anomaly of miners in one town working at full time, and those of an +adjacent town shut out, must be explained as one of the insidious +methods of the Trust to create an artificial coal famine. + +Gorman Purdy, whose word is law in the Paradise Company, had determined +to exact an advance of twenty-five cents a ton from the retail coal +dealers. To do this he had to make it appear that the supply of coal was +scarce. This led him to close the mines in Hazleton. The miners in the +town sought to force the opening of the mines by bringing about a +sympathetic strike in the neighboring towns. To prevent this, the Coal +and Iron Police have been brought to Hazleton to intimidate the miners +and to suppress them by force if they make any concerted move looking +toward bringing on a strike. + +Preliminary to enforcing the order that debars such an army of men of +the means of support, the Coal Magnates, at Purdy's suggestion, have +massed three hundred of the Coal and Iron Police in the town of +Hazleton. This mercenary force occupies the armory, built two years +before by the benevolent multi-millionaire Iron King of Pennsylvania, +whose immense mills and foundries are situated some two hundred miles +distant. + +Sheriff Marlin is in command of the Coal and Iron Police. He has sworn +them in as deputies, and each bears on his breast the badge of +authority. + +The propinquity of Woodward and the other small towns to Wilkes-Barre +saved them from suffering the effects of a close-down. The Magnates did +not desire to have the scenes of distress brought too near their own +homes. So Hazleton and the outlying districts were selected to be +sacrificed to the arbitrary coal famine. Day after day the idle miners +congregate in the Town Hall to discuss their situation and to devise +some means of relieving the starving families. These meetings are under +the strict surveillance of Sheriff Marlin. Every letter that is sent +from the hall is subjected to his scrutiny. + +There will be no incendiary appeals addressed to the miners of other +districts. + +The newspaper correspondents, though they send accurate stories of the +awful condition of the miners and their families, are disappointed to +receive copies of their respective papers with their articles revamped, +and the essential points expurgated, to meet the approval of the +"conservative reader." + +"The committee on rations reports that the allowance for each miner and +his family must henceforth be reduced to two loaves of black bread a +day. As some of the miners have eight and ten children, an idea of the +actual need of relief from some source may be formed." + +Paragraphs like the above never reach the printed page of a newspaper +that has sworn allegiance to or is bound to support the Magnates. + +It is now December twentieth. The miners resolve to make a final appeal +to the Paradise Coal Company to at least start the mines on half time. +If the company grants this appeal, there will be joy in the miners' +homes for Christmas. + +Christmas is no more to the Magnates than any other calender day. The +necessary time for the creation of the coal famine has not elapsed, and +until it has there will not be another ton of coal taken from the pits. + +Harvey Trueman is expected to confer with the leaders in the afternoon. +He will deliver the appeal to the company, and the following day, +Sunday, the miners will know if they are to go back to work. + +"In the event of Purdy, the final arbiter, refusing to start up on half +time," says Metz, who is now the leader of the Miner's Union, "we can go +to Latimer and Harleigh, to-morrow. The mines will be closed; they are +only working them six days a week now. We will appeal to the men to quit +work unless the Paradise Company gives us a chance to earn our bread." + +"If the Harleigh men won't go out, they will at least give us some food +for a Christmas dinner," says a miner whose hollow cheeks tell of long +fasting. + +"Peter Gick died last night," a miner states as he enters the hall. "He +went to the ash dumps to pick a basket of _cinders_; on his way back to +his house he fell. He was so weak that he could not get up. The snow is +two feet deep on the road, and it was drifting then; it soon covered him +up. This morning his son, Ernst, found him. Of course he was frozen +stiff." + +"Where is his body?" Metz asks. + +"Sheriff ordered it buried by the police." + +"A public funeral might prove dangerous to the Magnates," observes Metz. +"Our modern rulers have profited by the experience of the ancients." + +Promptly at two o'clock Trueman arrives at the hall. + +The committee on resolutions present him with their petition. + +"I shall do all that I can to make the Company appreciate the condition +in which you are placed. You may depend upon it, there will be work for +you before Christmas," Trueman assures them at parting. + +"We shall want an answer by to-morrow morning at ten o'clock," the +miners urge in chorus. + +Harvey Trueman leaves for Wilkes-Barre on the mission of appealing to +the humanity of the Coal Magnates. + +Miners' wives and children stream to the Town Hall, to receive their +bread and rations. + +It is at such times as these, where the miners are ruthlessly shut out +of the mines, that the highest value of the Miner's Union is +demonstrated. From the slender treasury, which is enriched only by the +pennies of the miners during their weeks of employment, the money is +drawn to purchase the rations that must be had to keep the miners and +their families from actually starving when they can no longer buy from +the company store. + +To supplement the rations distributed by the Union, the Hazleton miners +have a small supply of medicine. This is as important as food. The +medicine chest was given them by Sister Martha, the ministering angel of +the mines. + +Martha Densmore was the daughter of Hiram Densmore, who had owned great +tracts of the coal lands. He had been forced out of the industry by +refusing to enter the combine which resulted in the formation of the +Coal Trust. At the time of his death, of all his fortune there remained +but a small part. Mrs. Densmore had not survived her husband a year. +Martha was left an orphan. + +She has an income of $6000, and could live a life of idleness did she so +desire. But it was her purpose from girlhood to be always on missions of +charity. She had loved Harvey Trueman. They had been schoolmates, and +would undoubtedly have wed had not the wreck of Densmore's fortune been +accomplished just as Trueman was leaving college. Gorman Purdy had been +quick to perceive the calibre of the young man and had brought him into +the Paradise Company. With father and mother dead, and with her heart's +longing unappeased, Martha determined to join a sisterhood, and devote +her entire time to ministering to the poor and the sick. + +The suffering of the miners of Hazleton attracts her sympathy and she +has come to the town from Wilkes-Barre. + +It is her presence in the town hall that makes even Sheriff Marlin curb +his blasphemous tongue. + +Her calm face, which wears an expression of contentment, if not of +happiness, is a solace to the miserable men and women who come to ask +for medicine. She always has a word of cheer. + +The life she has led for eight years has not aged her, and to judge from +her manner she would not be taken for a woman more than thirty. She is, +however, six and thirty; her natal day being in the month of March, the +same as Trueman's. And they are both the same age. In the school days +they celebrated their birthdays together. + +There is not a miner or one of his family who would not give up their +life, if such a sacrifice were necessary, to keep Sister Martha from +being injured. They have seen her enter a mine where an explosion had +occurred, when even the bravest of the rescuing party hesitated. They +have seen her in their own hovels, bending over the forms of their sick +and dying children. The yellow flag of pestilence never makes her +hesitate. + +By her practical acts of charity and humanity, she has come to exert a +wonderful influence over the humble citizens of Luzerne County. In this +present crisis Sister Martha is the central figure. + +In the Armory the Coal and Iron Police are playing cards and enjoying +themselves as men always can in comfortable barracks. + +So the winter night closes. The hearths of the miners are cold, their +larders empty; but the armory is warm, the police are well fed. + +"The Company refused to open the mines. They will, however, send thirty +barrels of flour to be distributed for Christmas." This is the message +returned by Trueman, on Sunday morning. + +There are sixty miners in the Hall. They decide to go at once to +Harleigh, to exert "moral suasion" on their fellow miners there. + +They start from the Hall unarmed, walking two by two. At the head of the +line of sixty men, one carries the Stars and Stripes; another a white +flag. There is nothing revolutionary about the procession. It is a sharp +contrast to the armed force of the Culpepper Minute Men, who, under the +leadership of Patrick Henry, marched to Williamsburg, Virginia, to +demand instant restoration of powder to an old magazine, or payment for +it by the Colonial Governor, Dunmore. The Minute Men carried as their +standard a flag bearing the celebrated rattlesnake, and the inscription +"Liberty or Death: Don't tread on me." + +The route to Harleigh is in an opposite direction to the armory. The +little column passes out of the town of Hazleton and is a mile distant +when the Coal and Iron Police learn of their departure. + +Instantly there is a bustle in the armory. + +"Form your company, Captain Grout," the sheriff orders. + +"Give each man twenty rounds. Tell them not to fire until I give the +order. When they do open fire, have them shoot to kill." + +The company is formed on the floor of the armory. It receives the +orders; one-third of the force is left to guard the armory. + +In column of fours the main body marches out, Captain Grout and Sheriff +Marlin in the lead. + +To catch up with the miners the column marches in route step. + +"We will head them off at the cross roads this side of Harleigh," the +sheriff explains. "There is a cut in the road there, and we can put our +men on either side. When the miners come within range I shall challenge +them. If they do not turn back, it will be your duty to compel them to +do so." + +Unconscious of the approach of the sheriff and his posse, the miners +march on. The road is heavy and they are so much run down by long weeks +of short rations that they cannot make rapid headway. + +Sheriff Marlin and his men are now at the cut near the cross roads. + +Captain Grout stations his men to command either side of the road. The +banks of the cut are fringed with brush, which affords a complete cover +for the men. + +"You keep out of sight, too, Captain," Sheriff Marlin orders. "I will +stop the miners. If they see you and the Coal and Iron Police they may +scatter, and some of them reach Harleigh." + +The ambuscade is complete. Five minutes passes. There is no sign of the +miners. + +"Can they have been told of our plan to head them off?" asks the +sheriff. + +At this moment the head of the procession of miners turns the corner of +the road. The American Flag and the White Flag are still in the van. + +The sheriff takes up a position on the side of the road. As the miners +come up to him, he calls them to "halt." + +"Where are you going?" he demands. + +"To Harleigh," replies Metz. + +"Who gave you permission to parade?" + +"We are exercising our rights as freemen." + +"Well, you cannot march in a body on the highways of Pennsylvania." + +"Then we can break up our procession and walk individually." + +"_In the direction of Hazelton_," Sheriff Marlin says, significantly. "I +know what you are up to; do you think that I am going to let you cause a +sympathetic strike in Harleigh because you are locked out? Not if I know +myself." + +When the miners come to a halt, the men in advance cluster about Metz +and the sheriff. + +Now thirty men surround the sheriff. + +Some of them are, of course, in advance of him. + +"Get back to Hazleton," Sheriff Marlin cries, at the same time raising +his arms above his head and waving them. + +He pushes his way through the crowd of miners to the edge of the road. + +Off comes his hat + +It is the signal which Captain Grout has been expecting. + +"Company, attention!" + +Two hundred Coal and Iron Police jump to their feet. + +"Get back to Hazleton or I'll take you prisoners," shouts the sheriff. + +But his words are lost. The miners are terror-stricken. The sight of the +police, armed with deadly rifles, has made the miners insensible to +every thought and impulse but that of self-preservation. + +They scatter up and down the road. + +"Don't let them escape to Harleigh," shouts the sheriff. Taking this as +an order, the police open fire on the men who have passed the sheriff. + +Crack! crack! go the rifles. + +Each shot fells a miner. They are practically at the muzzles of the +weapons. + +A miner rushes up the bank on the left to get out of the range of the +police on that side. He is riddled by the bullets from the opposite +side. + +Another dives into a snow bank; it affords him no protection. "Pot that +woodchuck," shouts Captain Grout to one of his men. + +A bullet is sent into the hole. The miner springs to his feet; then +drops dead. + +The line of carnage is now stretched out for two hundred yards. + +There is no return fire. So the armed police come out from cover and +pursue their victims. + +The police have lost all self-control. Each man is acting on his own +responsibility. + +Of the ten miners who run toward Harleigh, not one is spared. Three lie +in the road; the snow about them tinged with their life's blood. Another +is clinging with a death grip to a stunted tree, which he caught as he +staggered forward, with three bullets in the back. + +"Mercy! mercy!" cry several of the miners. But their wail is lost on the +ears of the Coal and Iron Police. The police are there to kill, not to +grant mercy. + +Now a miner falls on his knees and prays to God for protection. + +This attitude of submission is not heeded; a bullet topples him over. + +With their hands above their head, some of the men walk deliberately +toward the deputies. Indians will recognize this as the sign of +surrender, and will give quarter. But the deputies, with unerring aim, +shoot down the voluntary captive. + +It would not be so terrible if the miners were returning the fire, if +they were offering any resistance. But they are absolutely unarmed. +Their mission has been to present a petition to the miners of Harleigh. +The slaves of the South had enjoyed the right of petition. How could +these twentieth century miners anticipate that the sheriff would +massacre them on the highway for seeking to present a petition? + +"Have you shot any one?" asks one of the deputies of his nearest +companion. + +"Shot any one! Well, I should think I had. I've seen four drop. Here +goes a fifth." + +To stand, to run, to fall to the ground, all are equally futile as means +of escape. Extermination is all that will stay the fire of the police. + +Sheriff Marlin and Captain Grout stand in the middle of the road. Metz, +O'Connor, and Nevins, a mine foreman, are standing beside them. + +O'Connor carries the white flag; Nevins the National emblem. + +"Disarm those men," Marlin directs the Captain. + +"Disarm them?" Captain Grout repeats, inquiringly. + +"Certainly. They have sticks in their hands." + +Two deputies, who have exhausted their supply of cartridges in their +magazine rifles, stop reloading and rush upon Nevins. They beat him over +the head with their rifle butts. The flag is snatched out of his hands. + +O'Connor is dealt a blow an instant later. + +The subjugation of the unarmed miners is accomplished. + +One by one the Coal and Iron Police return. + +Some of them bring in captives who have escaped death, but who still +have felt the sting of the bullets. + +Of the sixty miners, twenty-three are killed outright; ten are mortally +wounded; twenty-one have less serious wounds. + +Six have run the gauntlet and are fleeing back to Hazleton. + +The triumphant march of the police to Hazleton is begun. + +"We will carry the wounded," says the sheriff. "They might get through +to Harleigh and Latimer." + +"We will round up the six who escaped," Captain Grout assures the +sheriff. He then details ten men to run down the miners who have eluded +capture. + +This is an easy matter, as the footprints of the miners are perfectly +distinct in the soft snow. On the six trails the men set off, as a pack +of hounds on the scent of game. + +This man-hunt results in an addition of _six_ to the list of the slain. + +Gorman Purdy's orders have been carried out. + +His police have been sworn in as deputies; they have met the miners and +have "fired first." + +The sanctity of the law enveloped their act. They shot as _Deputies_. + +They dispersed a band of miners who were on the highway, armed, +according to the sheriff's version, "with sticks," and bent on creating +trouble in Harleigh. + +Did it matter that the "sticks" were flag staffs on which were displayed +the White Flag of truce, and the Emblem of Liberty? + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +A STAND FOR CONSCIENCE SAKE. + + +News of the massacre on the highway can not be suppressed. A wave of +indignation sweeps over the country. Newspapers, clergymen, statesmen, +ordinary citizens are of one opinion, that the sheriff and his deputies +should be made to suffer for their dastardly acts. The result of the +agitation is a call for trial for a case of murder. The Grand Jury of +Luzerne County find an indictment against Sheriff Marlin and Captain +Grout. These men are placed on trial. + +Gorman Purdy at first is highly elated over the result of the sheriff's +summary action against the miners. "It has taught the miners a good +lesson," he asserts openly. + +The morning after the Grand Jury returns its indictment, Purdy enters +Harvey Trueman's office. + +The relationship between Purdy and Trueman is no longer strained. In +three months time Harvey will marry Ethel. He is to live at the Purdy +mansion until his own house can be built. + +"You have read the papers this morning?" Purdy asks. + +"Yes. It begins to look serious for the sheriff and Grout. I understand +that they are to be imprisoned to-day." + +"Now I want to have a talk with you about defending them." + +"Defending them!" exclaims Trueman. "You want me to defend them?" + +"It was in our interests that they acted," says Purdy, "and the least we +can do is to defend them." + +"It was not in my interests, nor was it at my suggestion that the Coal +and Iron Police were sent to Hazleton. You must remember that I +deprecated that step." + +"Well, we won't go over that matter anew, Harvey; the defense of the +Sheriff and Captain Grout is essential to the interests of the Paradise +Coal Company. You are the chief counsel of the Company, and I look to +you to secure their acquittal." + +"But you cannot want me to defend two men who are guilty of cold blooded +murder," protests Trueman. "I am the last man in the world to ignore the +sanctity of the law. When I see the highest law of the land trodden +under foot by an ignorant and arrogant sheriff, I wish to see the law +enforced against him as it should be against the commonest offender." + +"It's all very well to have high ideals of law and justice," Purdy +observes, with a cynical smile, "but you cannot be guided by them when a +commercial interest is involved. The conviction of the sheriff would lay +us open to the violence of the mob." + +"You can find a more capable man than I to defend the prisoners." + +"There is no one who is as familiar with the mining life as you are; I +have thought the matter over carefully before broaching it to you. There +is no way out of it, Harvey, you must take the case in hand. It is not +the company's request. I make it personal. I want you to do your best to +get these men off." + +"Mr. Purdy, I cannot comply with your request." + +"You refuse to oblige me?" + +"I refuse to defend men who I believe have committed murder." + +"I am an older man than you, Harvey Trueman, and I caution you to think +twice before you refuse to obey the request of the man who has made you +what you are." Purdy is white with rage, for he feels that Trueman will +remain obdurate. + +"It may seem an act of ingratitude, but I cannot suffer my conscience to +be outraged by defending the perpetrators of an atrocious crime." + +"Your conscience will cost you dear. If you do not defend this case you +may consider your connection with the Paradise Coal Company at an end. +You sever all bonds that have united us, and your marriage to my +daughter will be impossible. Is the gratification of a supersensitive +conscience to be bought at such a price?" + +"There must be something back of your demand," Trueman declares. + +"There is only the just claim that I have on you to work for my +interests." + +"Mr. Purdy, I was a man before I met you. I am indebted to you for my +present position; yet I am not willing to pay for its retention by +forfeiting my honor. If you insist on me defending the case, I tell you +I would sooner pay the penalty you name." + +Trueman's voice is tremulous. He realizes that his decision has cost him +not alone a position of great value, but all chance of wedding Ethel +Purdy. + +"You will live to regret this day, Harvey Trueman," Purdy cries +menacingly. "Whatever is due you from the Paradise Coal Company will be +paid you to-day. Henceforth you will find office room elsewhere. +Remember, sir, I forbid you to have any communication with my daughter." + +With these words Purdy walks out of Trueman's office. + +"It may be better for me to get out of this damnable atmosphere while I +still have a spark of manhood left," Trueman muses, as he sits at his +desk. "If I remained here many years more I should be as heartless as +Purdy himself. + +"I wonder how Ethel will act in this crisis? She loves me, that I would +swear to with my life, but can she sacrifice her fortune to marry me? I +cannot expect her to do so. No, it would be too much. I have money +enough to live but I could not support her in the style to which she has +been accustomed from her birth." + +For an hour he sits intently thinking. He reviews the past. At the +recollection of his school days and the first love he had experienced +for Martha Densmore, a sigh escapes his lips. + +"I might have been happy, had I married her," he says to himself. + +"But then I should not have become a lawyer. What good have I done in +the law? I have been the buffer for a heartless corporation. The +president of the corporation demands of me to do an act that is against +my manhood. I refuse and I am turned out like a worthless old horse. + +"I shall henceforth use my talents to some good. The Paradise Coal +Company and every other concern that is waxing rich at the expense of +the people will find that I can be as formidable an antagonist as I have +been defender. How could I have been blind to my duty so long?" + +Trueman arises and walks from his office. A thought is forming in his +mind. + +"I'll do it," he says aloud, as he reaches the elevator. + +"The miners have no one who is capable of prosecuting the case of the +people. The District Attorney and his staff have been bought off. Any +one of the injured miners has standing in the court, and can be +represented by counsel. Yes, there is O'Connor, I shall be his counsel." + +Trueman hurries to the east side of the town and hunts up the quarters +of Patrick O'Connor. The miner is still in bed; the fractured skull he +had received by the blow from the rifle barrel nearly proved fatal. + +In a few words Trueman explains how he had been driven to leave the +Paradise Coal Company; and how he is now determined to be the champion +of the people. + +"I believe you, sir," says O'Connor, feebly, "for you have always been +kind to me. But the rest of the miners think you are to blame for all of +their troubles; especially when they face you in court." + +"You will tell them to put faith in me, won't you, O'Connor?" + +"Indeed I will, sir." + +The door opens to admit Sister Martha. + +Harvey Trueman has not been face to face with Martha for eight years. + +"You here, Martha!" he exclaims. + +"I am here every day. My duty brings me among the sick." + +The two playmates of the happy school days walk over to the window and +talk in low tones for half an hour. Trueman tells of his determination +to be an antagonist of the Magnates, one of whom has attempted to buy +his soul for the sordid interests of a corporation. + +"You may be sure I shall be pleased to help you all I can," Sister +Martha assures him. "And I have many friends among the miners. It will +be some time before they will accept your protestations in good faith. +You must know that your masterful knowledge of the law has kept many of +them from winning their suit for damages against the Paradise Company. +If you do something to prove your sincerity it will win you many +friends." + +"If I appear as the counsel of one of the miners and prosecute the +Sheriff of Luzerne County, will that be sufficient to demonstrate my +sincerity?" Trueman asks. + +"It will make you their champion." + +"Well, you may tell the miners of Wilkes-Barre that I am to appear as +counsel for Patrick O'Connor in the coming trial. We will meet often +now, I hope?" Harvey asks as he leaves the room. + +"Whenever you come to this quarter of the city you will be able to find +me," Sister Martha responds. + +Events move rapidly. The trial is set for February first. Between the +day Harvey Trueman left the employ of the Paradise Company and the +opening of the trial he wins the name of "Miner's Friend." Eight damage +suits against the Paradise Coal Company are won for miners by his +sagacity and eloquence. + +He has been able to learn of the effect of the break in the friendship +between the Purdy's and himself. Ethel had been prostrated by the event. +For many days she had been actually ill. As soon as her health permitted +she had been sent abroad. She is now in the south of France. + +At the trial of Sheriff Marlin and his lieutenants, Trueman +distinguishes himself by the searching line of questions he puts to the +sheriff's deputies and two lieutenants, who are placed on the witness +stand. In cross-examination he succeeds in eliciting the fact that the +only "weapons" carried by the miners were the two flag staffs. + +He brings to court as witnesses men who had been shot in the back as +they had run to escape the deadly fire of the deputies. + +One of these men, carried to the court room on a cot, testifies that he +ran up the embankment and had fallen at the feet of one of the deputies. + +"I begged of him to spare my life; that I had a wife and six children. +He stepped back a pace and pointing his rifle at my head, fired. The +bullet grazed my temple. I rolled over. He thought I was dead. I lay +there motionless for several minutes. Then I was struck in the shoulder +by another bullet." + +This testimony causes a tremendous sensation. + +The defendants counsel asks for the recall of the witness the following +day. He is brought to court and answers two questions. Then with a groan +he turns on his side and dies in the presence of the crowded court and +before the very eyes of his assassin. + +The trial is a travesty on justice. The jury is composed of men known to +be in sympathy with the prisoners. The deputies are in court each day +fully armed. They make no pretext to conceal their pistols. This is done +to influence the jury to believe that the deputies had shot in +self-defense. Both Sheriff Marlin and Captain Grout are acquitted; but +they are not vindicated in the eyes of the people of the United States +or of Wilkes-Barre. + +Trueman emerges from the trial as the recognized champion of the people. + +It has taken twelve weeks to try the case. The cost of this victory for +the Coal Barons is one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. + +Sister Martha and Harvey meet frequently. She is a great aid to him in +getting information from the miners. She is inspired by the grand +results that Trueman realizes for the poor miners whose cases he +handles. She hears him mentioned as the candidate for some office, and +asks him if he would accept it. + +"I do not wish to mix in local politics," Trueman tells her. "I might +accept the office of Congressman; but it is impossible to elect a +candidate of the miners in Pennsylvania." + +Early in May a call is sent out through the several States for delegates +to attend an Anti-Trust Conference in Chicago. This Conference is deemed +urgent as the outgrowth of an atrocious move on the part of the Magnates +who seek to vitiate the laws of the United States as applied to capital. + +Martha asks Trueman if he will accept the appointment as a delegate from +the State of Pennsylvania. He signifies his willingness to do so; but +doubts if the miners outside of Wilkes-Barre hold him in high enough +esteem to so honor him. + +"I have not done enough yet to redeem myself for the years that I stood +as the barrier to the poor getting their deserts," he declares. + +But the election shows that he is recognized as a faithful friend of the +people. At the Conference it is believed he will win recognition for the +claims of the miners, for justice, and for the Federal enforcement of +the laws of common safety in the mines. + +The ten months that have passed since the afternoon he won the case +against the Magyar's widow, have been the most momentous in his life. +They have taken him out of the service of a soulless Company and put him +in the position of leader of a million miners. + + + + +BOOK II. + +The Syndicate Incorporates. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +AN ANTI-TRUST CONFERENCE. + + +From the hour that Trueman was selected as a delegate to the great +Anti-Trust Conference to convene in the city of Chicago, he has devoted +his hours, day and night, to study. In making his advent in the +conference, he enters the arena of national politics; he means to go +prepared. Martha has prevailed upon him to accept the nomination as a +candidate for the State of Pennsylvania, and he has been elected by the +unanimous vote of the Unions. This exhibition of confidence on the part +of the toilers of the state has made a deep impression on him, and has +fixed his resolve to do something that will be worthy of his +constituents. + +The sudden transition he has undergone from being the staunch supporter +of the coal barons, to becoming their bitterest opponent, has left many +of the opinion that he is working some deep scheme for the undoing of +the unionists. Nor is this opinion confined to any small number. "He +changed his views too quickly," is the general sentiment in the ranks of +the small unions where Trueman is not personally known. This lurking +suspicion was what had operated strongly at first against securing +Trueman's consent to be a candidate. Martha has worked quietly, +assiduously, among the men she knew, and who placed absolute faith in +her advice. She has been the direct means of bringing about his +election. + +Now he is to leave her, and must face the supreme opportunity of his +life. + +It is not without a pang that he bids her farewell. She has come to be a +source of great comfort to him since his enlistment in the ranks of the +humble. The schoolday acquaintance has been renewed. He has learned to +appreciate the fact that he was the cause of her having donned the dress +of the sisterhood. His ambition to rise in the world made it impossible +for him to yield to the dictates of his heart and the mental vista that +opened before him at the close of his college course, did not have her +in it. The woman he saw there must be the favorite of fortune. He had +selfishly abandoned certain love for possible fortune and in the active +life to which he was at once introduced, all thoughts of Martha had been +driven from his mind. + +But Martha had had no counteractant to soften or obliterate the thoughts +of her blasted hopes. The refuge of the convent appealed to her as the +one remaining avenue by which she might escape from her youth and its +recollections. + +It is impossible for Trueman and Martha Densmore to ever again be +lovers; the inexorable ban of the church is between them. Yet they can +be friends. And Trueman feels that in Martha he has found his firmest +friend and advisor. + +"You will hear from me from time to time," she says as they part. "I am +confident that you will do your duty; that you will awaken the finer +instincts in the delegates. With the scenes that have surrounded you in +Wilkes-Barre, you cannot be an advocate of violence as a means of +settling the struggle for the restoration of the rights of the people." + +"It shall be my untiring labor to avert the adoption of any measure that +entails an appeal to force," Trueman assures her. + +On his arrival at Chicago he finds the convention already in session. An +hour in the hall convinces him that the result will be nugatory. The +radicals are in the majority and the proposals they make are temporary +expedients that look only to appeasing the demand of the masses for +action against the usurpers of the public rights. + +With a view to defeating the objects of the conference, the Magnates +have contrived to send a number of their hirelings as delegates. These +are among the loudest in demanding impossible remedies. It is not long +before Trueman discovers who these spies are, and he loses no time in +exposing them in open conference. + +This action brings him into prominence. + +"Who is this delegate from Pennsylvania?" asks Professor Talbot, a +venerable scholar sent by the Governor of Missouri to represent that +state, of Nevins, a neighboring delegate. + +"He is a convert to the cause of the people," comes the quick reply. + +"A tool of the Coal Barons, you mean," observes a New Yorker. "I knew +him three years ago when he was the attorney for the Paradise Coal +Company," he continues, "and a more relentless man to the miners never +was known in Pennsylvania." + +"Yes, I know. He was once a counsel for the Paradise Company," assents +the champion of Trueman. "I know his record from A to Z. You can't find +a straighter man in this conference. He has come out for the people and +I believe he is sincere." + +"Whoever he is, or whatever he has been," says the Professor, "it is +evident that he has the power of reading character. He was not here two +hours before he detected the presence of the goats in our fold." + +"Would you like to meet him?" asks Nevins. + +"Indeed, I should be pleased to do so." + +Professor Talbot and the friendly delegate approach Trueman. + +For an hour or more the three are engrossed in animated conversation. +Professor Talbot is delighted to find that Trueman is conversant with +the most complex questions of the hour. + +"I shall make it a point to have the chairman call upon you for an +address," he assures Trueman at parting. + +For three days the sessions of the conference are devoted to partisan +discourses. There seems to be no hope of reaching middle ground. The +newspapers ridicule the utterances of the speakers as the vaporings of +demagogues. And they are little else. + +On the fourth day, true to his promise, Professor Talbot gets the +chairman to call upon Trueman for a fifteen-minute speech. + +From his first words Trueman wins the attention of the audience. His +voice is full and far-reaching; his language simple, and it is possible +for every one to grasp his meaning instantly. He chooses to win the +delegates to his way of reasoning by force of the truth he utters rather +than by appealing to their senses by a display of forensic and +oratorical ability. + +In the few minutes allotted to him, he reviews the industrial conditions +of a decade and shows where the insidious principle of class legislation +has undermined the prosperity of the people to bestow it upon the few. +In an unanswerable argument he pleads for the restoration of the rights +of the majority; by a rapid review of the causes that have led to the +downfall of the nations of the past, he shows that the unjust +distribution of the fruits of labor must inevitably lead to the +disintegration of the state. + +His peroration is a fervent appeal to the delegates to reaffirm the +equality of man; it calls upon them to adopt resolutions advocating the +government control of all avenues of transportation and communication, +and for the strict regulation of all industries that affect the common +necessities of life. + +"There is no law above that of the Creator. He did not fashion some of +his children to be damned with the brand of perpetual servitude; He did +not anoint some with omnipotence to place them as rulers over the many. +When He made mankind in His image, it was to have them live in fraternal +relationship. There should be no competition for the mere right to live. +Until God's design is declared to be wrong, I shall never cease to +counsel my brothers to live true to the Divine principles of liberty, +equality and fraternity." + +With these words he closes his address. + +There is no means for measuring the exact effect of his words. The +plaudits of an audience are an uncertain criterion. + +In the final vote that is taken, after three other delegates have +spoken, a resolution is adopted calling for the appointment of a +standing committee of three to continue the investigation of the Trust +question until another year. + +This result is not satisfactory to the radicals, yet they make no open +objection. To Trueman it is a source of gratification to know that the +heretical proposals of some of the delegates have been voted down. + +The conference is on the point of closing when Delegate William Nevins +moves that the chairman of the special committee be empowered to +increase the number of the committee to forty at his own discretion. +This motion is adopted. + +The conference ends. It has exemplified the old adage of the convention +of the mice to discuss the advisability of putting a bell on the cat. +All agreed that it would be for the good of micedom; yet no mouse had a +feasible method to advance for affixing the bell. The papers in every +city tell of the failure of the Anti-Trust conference to agree upon a +plan of action. + +The millions of toilers bend lower under their burdens; the Magnates +tighten their grasp on the throat of labor. + +In all the United States there is but one man who holds a solution of +the problem of emancipating mankind from commercial servitude. This man +has been a delegate. He has spoken but a few words; he has been present +as an auditor. + +His hour for action is soon to come. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +A STARTLING PROPOSAL. + + +The special committee has been directed to hold meetings at intervals of +a month and to have a report ready by the first of the following +January. Thirty-seven of the most intelligent and earnest of the +Anti-Trust members have been placed on this committee by its chairman. +The meetings are now secret. + +The first meeting is held in the hall that had been used for the big +meetings of the conference. After this the meetings are clandestine. + +The comment that was provoked by the conference of the radical leaders +of the Trust opposition died out in the usual way, and then the interest +in the efforts of the special committee was confined to the few people +who realized the earnestness of the men who had decided to take the +Trust problem up and bring it to a speedy settlement. + +Day by day the members of the committee met to discuss the phases of the +all absorbing question. + +The managers of some of the largest corporations are warned of these +secret deliberations and institute a vigorous investigation. The aid of +the police is secured, and the officers of a dozen of the shrewdest +private detective bureaus are put in possession of the few facts that +have been ascertained. In a hundred directions public and private +sleuths are set in motion. But their untiring efforts are unavailing. +They have to combat a more adroit, more nervy and more intelligent force +than they have ever before been brought in contact with. + +The Committee of Forty has its ever watchful sentinels on guard, and +every move of the detectives is anticipated and provided against. + +Thus matters progress until on the night of June tenth a startling +climax is brought about by the report of the secretary of the committee. + +At this memorable meeting there is a full attendance. The chairman, in +his call for the meeting, has intimated that very important business +will be transacted. He has in mind the discussion of a plan for +awakening the interest of the wage-earners in the effete Eastern States, +and the reading of a report. + +What actually transpires is a surprise to him, as it is to all but three +of the committee. + +When the routine of business has been gone through with, the chairman +announces that the meeting will proceed to the consideration of new +business, if there is any. + +William Nevins, the man who had carried the Stars and Stripes at +Hazleton, now a committeeman who has always taken a subordinate part in +the work, asks to be heard. + +Supposing that he is to speak on the one subject uppermost in the minds +of the committee, the chair recognizes him. Rising from his seat in the +back of the room Nevins walks to the front of the hall, and standing +before the chairman, half turns so as to face the men in the assembly. + +From his first words it is apparent that he has a matter of grave +concern to impart. The attention of all is engaged. + +"Mr. Chairman," he begins, "I am unaccustomed to speech-making; yet on +this occasion I feel that I am capable of expressing myself in a manner +that will be clear and forceful. I am to tell you a few truths, and in +uttering the truth there is no need of depending on rhetoric or oratory. + +"As you all know, I am a poor man. How I came to be reduced to a +position little better than beggary is not known by any of you, for I +have studiously avoided airing my troubles to any one. To-day I intend +to tell the story. It will cast some light on the subject that we will +be called upon to discuss later. + +"We have no time to hear the life-story of any one," sententiously +observes a man in the front seat. + +"But you will have to take time to hear me," retorts Nevins, and he +continues. + +"I was a graduate of Yale, in the class of 1884. My name was not Nevins, +then. After a year spent in travel in Europe I returned to the United +States and began to practice my profession of a civil engineer, in the +city of New York. My father had died when I was a child and had left my +mother a fortune of about $40,000. From this sum she derived an income +of $2000 a year. She gave me an allowance of $800 up to the time that I +began to work as an engineer. + +"Two years after I had entered the office of a leading railroad I +planned an extensive change in the working of the road and submitted it +to the president. He approved of the suggested changes and put the +matter before the board of directors. Shortly afterward I was informed +that I could proceed with the work. The work was accomplished and the +officials were more than pleased. They made me chief engineer of the +road and a stockholder. I soon had a considerable block of stock. Then a +great Magnate looked at the road with covetous eyes, and ruin came upon +us. + +"The stock of the road was depreciated and borne down on the Exchange +until the road became insolvent. All my money was in the road, and when +the crisis came I found myself stranded. The King of the Rail Road +Trust, Jacob L. Vosbeck, bought up the stock and then raised it to even +a higher figure than it had ever before attained. + +"Ill-luck followed me and I have gone down, down, until I can scarce +make a living as a draughtsman in a shop. The curse of monopoly has +caused my ruin. I did not succumb to fair competition. I am now enlisted +in a fight against the usurpers of the free rights of the people, and I +declare to you all, that I am in this fight in dead earnest. By an +appeal to justice we can gain nothing. + +"I was one of the sixty miners who were attacked on the highway at +Hazleton by the High Sheriff of Luzerne County. I witnessed the mock +trial in Wilkes-Barre. I have thought of all the possible means the +Trusts have left to us, and find that there is but one available. + +"They have all the money and all the agencies of the law; they have +intimidated the humble and ignorant workingmen until these poor +creatures are no better than serfs, and to be assured of bread, they +work as voluntary slaves. + +"What is there for us to do but to fight the magnates with their own +weapons? Intimidation is their deadliest method. The horrible picture of +a starving family is held up before the wage-earner, and he is asked if +he will vote to put his wife and children on the street. He is told that +if he will accept starvation wages, the Trust will let him make such +wages. In desperation he accepts the terms. + +"What I propose is to intimidate the criminal aggressors so that they +will fear to make their fortunes at the expense of the honest, hard +working and credulous people. + +"How shall it be done? Ah! it is a simple matter." + +Here the voice of the speaker becomes husky, and he turns to face the +chairman of the committee. In almost a whisper he exclaims: "I propose +to give them an object lesson. They have given many to us." Again he +resumes his normal voice. + +"Have you not seen mills closed before election time so as to coerce men +to vote as the mill owners directed? Has not this suspension of work +brought distress, starvation, death, to thousands of homes? Is it not +murder for men of wealth to resort to such means to win an election in a +free country? + +"Well, I now propose to form a syndicate--a Syndicate of Annihilation!" + +"Mr. Chairman," cry half a dozen voices. "Mr. Chairman, Point of order! +Point of order!" + +Before the chair can recognize any of the speakers a general commotion +ensues. Men begin discussing with one another excitedly; there is a +perfect bedlam. + +All the while Nevins remains standing as if awaiting an opportunity to +resume his speech. + +At the expiration of some minutes order is restored so that his voice +can be heard. "Permit me to explain," he cries. + +The committeemen, as if acting by a common impulse, cease to squabble, +and are attentive again. + +"I propose to hear the circumstances under which each of you has been +brought to the condition that leads you to combine against the Trust; +and if there is sufficient ground for belief that you will be zealous +workers in my syndicate, I will admit you to membership. No man who has +not had a more serious grievance against the Robber Barons than I have +outlined, will be eligible. _I have told you but one incident of my +case._ + +"The work that I shall outline to you after hearing your stories, will +require stout hearts to carry it into execution. + +"It cannot be accomplished by fanatics. It requires the concerted +efforts of men of sound judgment; men of courage. The assassin is a +coward at heart--the political martyr must be valiant." + +The novelty of the suggestion that has just been made is the first thing +that appeals to the minds of the committee. They begin to realize the +horrid character of the proposition. Much discussion follows. Men want +to know what Nevins means by a Syndicate of Annihilation. Whom does he +intend to murder? Annihilation and murder are considered synonymous. + +To all questions Nevins replies that the details will be given as soon +as the men recite their grievances. + +Professor Talbot and Hendrick Stahl, the two men who are in the secret +with Nevins, advise the members of the committee to comply with the +demands. + +Then begins the strange, startling recital of the stories of human +distress. Of the forty men of varying professions and trades, there are +those who tell of their efforts to stand up under the weight of the yoke +of commercial despotism. Each man is of impressing character and strong +individuality. + +The chairman, Albert Chadwick, is the first to tell his story. It is the +prelude to the concerted cry of the oppressed--the cry which has sounded +through the ages as the one never varying note in the music of the +universe; the dread inharmonic monotone that marks the limitation of +humanity, exhibiting man's inability to convert the world into a +paradise. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +ARRAIGNMENT OF THE TRANSGRESSORS. + + +Standing upon the little platform which serves as a rostrum, Chadwick, a +man of fifty, seared and bent, lifts his hand to command the attention +of the committee. + +He is a figure that would do credit to the brush of a great artist. His +appearance is that of a man who has been deprived of the power of +looking at the world as a place of rest; he is a bundle of nerves, and +at the slightest provocation bursts into a storm of irascibility. A +tortured spirit lurks in his soul and is visible in his stern, tense +features. + +As he begins the recital of his grievances against the Trust, it is +apparent that he means to give the audience an embittered story. So the +attention of all is centered upon him. + +"Human liberty is the boon which man has sought since the dawn of +creation; it has furnished the incentive for his struggle to reclaim the +earth from the domination of brute force; it is the inherent idea that +the founders of this Republic sought to embody in the Constitution. But +Liberty must have as a complement unhampered opportunity," are his +opening words. + +"The man who is dependent upon another for his livelihood is not capable +of enjoying real liberty, or of attaining happiness. When the men of a +nation are debased to a position of minor importance, where they can +only act as servants, they lose the stamina necessary to make them good +citizens. This condition now prevails in the United States. + +"My own experience will exemplify this statement. + +"Forty years ago I attained my majority. I was a citizen of the state of +Pennsylvania, and considered that I was a freeman. By the death of my +father I had come into a fortune of fifty thousand dollars. I lived in +the oil region, and sought to engage in the oil industry. To this end I +purchased land contiguous to a railroad. On my holdings a well was +located which yielded three hundred barrels of oil a day. + +"No sooner had I begun to operate my well than the agents of the Oil +Trust, which had then but recently sprung into existence as a menace to +individual refining, came to me with a proposition to incorporate my +well in the Trust's system. The well was capable of earning a net profit +of seventy thousand dollars a year. The Trust offered me a paltry two +hundred and thirty thousand dollars for my plant. This I refused to +accept, for the actual value was one million dollars. + +"Then by crafty insinuation the agents of the Trust intimated that +unless I sold my property and accepted inflated stock in the Trust and +allowed my well to be absorbed in the system, I would find myself +opposed by the mighty consolidation. Still I refused to abrogate my +right to conduct an independent business. + +"Failing to allure me by their offers, which would have proved valueless +in the end; or of intimidating me by their threats, the agents reported +to the office of the Trust that I was obdurate and must be disciplined. + +"Accordingly pressure was brought to bear on the railroad over which I +sent my product to a market. The railroad discriminated against me; it +gave the Trust a rebate on all oil shipped over the road and made me pay +the full schedule rates. Even against this detrimental condition I was +able to sell my oil at a small profit. + +"I might have survived the unequal struggle had not the 'pipe line' +system been introduced. By this the Oil Trust transports its oil to the +sea-board at a cost that enables it to undersell all competitors. And +for a time the price of oil was reduced, and all the minor competitors +were driven into bankruptcy or forced to sell out to the Trust at a +ridiculously low figure. + +"Owing to my well being centrally located I was able to hold out longer +than many others. + +"John D. Savage, the Oil King, realized that some more potent means had +to be devised to crush me. This means was found in the expedient of +'Sacrifice' sales. At every depot where I sold, the agents of the Trust +offered to sell oil at figures lower than I could possibly sell it. I +lost my trade. In an effort to retrench, my fortune was consumed, and +from a position of affluence I descended to beggary, and had to join the +ranks as an employee. So bitter was the animosity of the Trust that it +sought to rob me even of the opportunity to earn a living. I have been +hounded from post to pillar; my life has been made miserable. I have +seen my family want for bread. + +"And all because I withstood the assault of the Oil King. + +"As an American I protest against the existence of a corporation that +can set at naught the mandates of the law; a corporation that can, with +utter impunity, resort to arson as a final means of gaining its illegal +end, as the oil Trust has done, again and again. + +"I thank God that I still possess my fore-fathers' spirit of resistance +against oppression. There are few men who are in want, or in actual +dread of being thrown out of employment, however unremunerative, who +will assert their right. A nation composed of such men is not free, no +matter what its form of government may be. + +"I am ready to do anything that will restore the right to the individual +citizen to engage in business; I am ready to make a stand against the +few plutocrats who now usurp the avenues of human activity; and I +believe that we will be able to enlist men in support of the idea that +the rights of the majority transcend the aggressions of the oligarchy of +American capitalists." + +As Chadwick concludes his statement, Hiram Goodel, a delegate from New +Hampshire, obtains the floor. + +"Coercion is the word that epitomizes my grievance against the Trusts," +he begins. "It was by the exercise of coercion that I was driven out of +business. I conducted a retail tobacco store in Concord, in my native +state. My business sufficed to insure me a decent living, and a +comfortable margin to be husbanded as a safeguard for my declining +years. I had a wife and three sons. My sons were all under age, and I +kept them at school to provide them with good educations. + +"There was competition in my business; such natural competition as is +met with in all pursuits. It did not, however, prevent my making a +success of my business. + +"Then came the Tobacco Trust. It set out to control the retail trade. +This was to be effected by the inauguration of a system of "consigning" +goods to the retail stores with strict provisos that the retailer would +not handle the product of any concern out of the Tobacco Combine. In +order to ingratiate themselves with the store-keepers, the Trust +managers at first offered terms that were so far below the current +prices that a majority of the stores bound themselves to handle the +Trust goods exclusively. + +"Three years passed, in which the independent tobacco manufacturers +strove to hold out against the ring. Then came a crash. + +"I had opposed the innovation of binding myself to buy from one concern; +for I felt intuitively that as soon as the Trust was all-powerful it +would begin to exercise dictatorial sway over the retailer. + +"My fears were soon justified. + +"The Trust advanced the price of its goods to the retailer, and +compelled the trade to sell at the same retail figures. + +"When this system of extortion was successfully launched the Trust +determined to reward its patrons, as a means of pacifying them for +reduced profits. + +"The reward came in the shape of discriminating against the +store-keepers who still handled the goods made by the fast vanishing +opposition concerns. + +"I was informed that unless I signed an agreement to use only the Trust +brands of cigarettes and tobacco no more goods would be sold to me. As +the Trust embraced all of the leading brands, that meant that I must go +out of business. + +"My puritan blood boiled at the thought that I must submit to the +tyranny of a band of robbers. I determined to fight to the last. Four +years of business at a net loss, drove me into insolvency; then a +mortgage was placed upon my freehold, to be followed by foreclosure. I +still struggled on, under the delusion that I was in a free land and +that the Trust iniquities would not be permitted to crush the individual +citizen forever. The decision of the courts of the several states where +the Tobacco Trust was arraigned, upholding the Trust, disillusioned me. +But it was too late, I was a ruined man. + +"My sons were forced to work in the cigar factory of the local branch of +the Trust; and I was obliged to apply for a patrimony from the +Government, as a veteran of the war for the emancipation of man from +slavery. On this slender pension I now live. + +"Can anyone blame me for being a volunteer in the crusade against the +most insidious and dangerous foe that has ever assailed a land; a foe +that seeks to entrench itself by emasculating the citizens and degrading +them to a position of servants of mighty and intolerant masters?" + +There is a pause. The aged speaker trembles with emotion. + +"I am an old man, over seventy years of age, yet whatever vigor remains +in me will be expended in my last battle with the destroyers of free +government. + +"What right has Amos Tweed, the Tobacco King, to tax me? + +"I was born a free man; I fought to free an inferior race. Alas, I have +lived to see the shackles placed upon the wrists of my own sons. So help +me God, I shall strike a blow to make them free once more." + +Overcome with the exertion of delivering his fervent speech, Hiram +Goodel totters. He would fall, did not the strong arms of Carl Metz +support him. + +"Where is the man who can view this picture of patriarchal devotion, and +hesitate to give significance to the prayer that freedom may again be +the inheritance of the youth of America," demands Nevins in thrilling +tones. + +It is apparent that the recital of the grievances of the members of the +committee is making a deep impression on every man. + +Horace Turner, a farmer from Wisconsin, who had migrated to that state +when it was in its infancy, preferring its fertile plains to the rocky +hillside homestead in Vermont, is the next to speak. He is sixty years +of age, well preserved, temperate and fairly well educated. + +"I can quote no higher authority than the Holy Bible," are his opening +words. "If in that book we can find authority for complaining against +tyrants; if we can find a prayer that has come down from age to age, +shall we not be justified in uttering it? + +"Are these words from the Psalms meaningless? 'Deliver me from the +oppression of Man; so will I keep thy precepts.' + +"There is vitality in this cry from the oppressed; because the oppressor +exists. You and I are both victims of oppression. + +"I am a producer of wheat, the great staple of this country. You are all +consumers of my product. When I cannot make a living by producing wheat, +and you cannot purchase it without paying tribute to a band of +speculators, there must be in operation a damnable system of oppression +to bring about this condition, for it is not natural. + +"The Wheat Trust determines what price I shall receive for my wheat; it +sets the price at which you shall buy it in the form of bread. + +"Whether there is a bounteous crop or a short one, the Trust still +controls the wheat and flour and arbitrarily fixes their price. + +"When the newspapers assert that the farmers enjoy the advance of the +price of a season's crop, they state an absolute falsehood. + +"By the system that prevails in this country to-day, as a result of the +Wheat Trust, crops are sold a year in advance. There are never two years +of exceptionally large crops; so the benefit of the advance of one year +does not go over to the next. + +"The farmers of this country are compelled, by the present system, to +pledge their next year's crop to the local wheat factors who control the +elevators. The purchase price is determined by the factor. The farmer +receives a certain number of bushels of 'seed' wheat from the factor, +agreeing to repay him with two or two and a half bushels of the coming +crop; a large percentage of the remainder of the crop is pledged to the +local store-keeper for the goods that the farmer must have to do his +work and to live upon. + +"Wheat is the medium of exchange. The Trust's price is the measure of +value. Why? Because the farmer cannot sell to any one except to an agent +of the Trusts, as the Trust has arranged traffic rates with every +railroad; and the wheat, if bought by any one outside of the Trust, +could not be transported to a market and sold at a profit. This +statement is indisputable. + +"The Wheat King, David Leach, depresses the market when the crop is to +be sold, and so gives a semblance of reason for the inadequate price he +allows the farmer. + +"It is the farmer who does the planting; he has to run the risk of the +loss of the crop by drought, or excessive rain; he has to do the +harvesting. Yet he does not share in the just profits of the sale of his +product. + +"And the consumer is made to pay exorbitantly for the bread that keeps +life in his body. + +"If there were no Wheat Trust, no speculation in wheat and no +discriminating traffic rates, bread could be sold at a fair profit for +three cents a loaf, and the farmer would still be able to get a higher +price than he averages now. + +"I have toiled as a farmer for two score years, and all I have in this +world is a farm of two hundred acres, valued at thirty-six hundred +dollars, on which there is a two thousand dollar mortgage at six per +cent. When the interest is paid and my yearly expenses are defrayed, I +am lucky to have one hundred dollars to my credit in the bank. For the +past six years I have been obliged to send whatever I had remaining to +my son, who has married and who is struggling to live in Milwaukee. He +is engaged as a brakeman on the railroad that exacts thirty per cent. of +the value of every bushel of wheat I raise. + +"I am not one of the discontented, homeless vagabonds who the Plutocrats +declare are alone demanding the destruction of Monopoly. I am a citizen +who can foresee the inevitable result that will come from a perpetuation +of Commercial Despotism. I am not afraid to assert my opinions, nor will +I fear to act on any suggestion, that will insure independence to the +farmer and to all the citizens of the Republic." + +Donald Harrington, a delegate accredited to Maryland, now begins his +arraignment: + +"It will not be necessary for me to take the story of my ruin back to +the beginning; you are interested only in that part which has to do with +the effect of the Trusts upon me. + +"I could say that they were the sole cause of my downfall, but in this +statement I should be doing the Trusts an injustice. I felt the first +downward impulse given me when I was a lad of sixteen. I had entered the +employ of a banking house and was a clerk in their counting room. It was +my especial duty to see that the books of the company were put in the +safes at night. This duty I faithfully performed for more than three +years. + +"One day I was tempted to steal. + +"It was an easy matter for me to take a sum of money from the drawer and +make away with it. I was not detected in the first peculation; this +encouraged me to take more. So matters went on until I was guilty of +having stolen a sum aggregating ten thousand dollars. I knew that I +could not keep the game up much longer, for the annual accounting would +disclose the deficit. + +"Of the sums I had taken, I had less than half saved. I did not know how +I was to get out of the position in which I was placed. Then the idea +struck me that I might make the entire sum good if I could make a +successful turn on the Exchange. + +"This I determined to try. + +"From the first I was successful. Soon I had three times the sum +required to make up my peculations. + +"I restored the money to the safe and breathed easily. + +"This was my first venture in dealing with other peoples' money. + +"The experience led to my entering upon a career as a banker and broker. + +"For eight years I was actively engaged in rolling up a fortune. I was +sought out by the Magnates of many of the largest Trusts, and they +extended me unlimited credit. + +"When the country was precipitated into a panic in 1893, I was not one +of the sufferers; I was one of the scoundrels active in bringing the +distress upon the people. I aided in the establishment of the +all-powerful Money Trust. + +"Later I was interested in a big mining scheme. It appeared to me to be +one of the best things in which to invest money. I put the bulk of my +fortune in the mining stocks, and lost. + +"In attempting to retrieve my losses I dissipated my fortune to the last +cent. + +"The whole of my career as a banker was of a criminal nature. Nearly +everything I had touched was a speculative venture. The cursed practice +of watering stocks to three and four times their actual value was the +common work of my days. + +"At the end I was caught in the net which I had so often thrown out to +ensnare others. My former partner, James Golding, the Napoleon of +Finance, wrought my undoing. + +"All of this leads to this conclusion: + +"I am an enemy of the Trusts now, because I know their methods; I know +the results that follow the practice of fictitious speculation. Before +you all I acknowledge that my past has been of the darkest and most +disreputable nature. + +"I also wish to state that I have experienced a change of heart. It has +not come upon me solely because I have lost my fortune; I have felt it +creeping upon me for the past three years. In my inmost heart I feel a +beating that will not be stilled unless I am engaged in the work of +destroying the power of the accursed Trusts. + +"That there is a chance on earth for a man to redeem himself, I am +confident. I have heard the call and have responded to it. I am resolved +to use the rest of my strength in battling with the enemies of the +people. And I am the more in earnest since I can never forget that I am +personally responsible for the distress of hundreds. Widows and orphans, +young and old, all have been my victims. + +"What object Nevins may have in getting us to recount our grievances, I +do not know; but if it will lead to any good result, he may depend upon +me to give my untiring aid. + +"I have but a word to add. Since my ruin, I have seen my wife and only +child, a daughter of twenty, languish and die before my very eyes. This +has embittered me against the men who have worked the ruin of the masses +more than anything else. I have pledged myself to avenge the sufferings +of humanity. I shall be doing something for the good of the race; +something to atone for the evil deeds I myself have done." + +There is nothing in the recital of Harrington's life's history that is +of an exceptional nature. True, no one present is aware that he had at +one time been the head of the great bond issue plot. + +But the delegates are looking for something of a far different tone than +a mere recital of crime and a fall from affluence to penury. Several of +the committeemen are on their feet demanding the floor. + +Cyrus Fielding, the delegate representing the federation of stone +masons, is recognized by the chair. + +Fielding is a man of short stature, his eyes betray a lacklustre that +might be the result of over-indulgence in liquor or want of rest; he is +thin and poorly clad, his face is cleanly shaven. At every pause in his +speech he runs his fingers through his thick dishevelled black hair, and +finishes this mannerism with wiping his forehead with the back of his +hand. His delivery is awkward and these repeated movements intensify +this awkwardness. + +"I have a grievance against the Trusts that dates back as far as my +birth. I never had a fair start. My father was a victim of the power of +gold and I inherited his misfortune. + +"My first work was as a helper in the great Pennsylvania Iron Trust's +works that are owned by that old man, the self-styled philanthropist, +Ephraim Barnaby, a hypocrite of the first water, who goes about the +world asking people how he can best dispose of his fabulous fortune. + +"From the rank of helper I soon rose to the position of foreman of the +moulding shop. This was a most important place and I felt proud that I +had attained it in so short a period as three years. + +"It was my ambition to learn all I could relating to the work in the +iron industry. Toward this end I spent four hours every night in reading +and experimenting. At the end of another three years I had a fund of +knowledge that put me in the front rank as a constructing engineer. + +"But I was not a graduate of a college of engineering, so I could not +get the degree. The opportunity of utilizing my practical knowledge by +forming a competing company was closed by the bar of traffic rates. + +"My employers advanced me to the rank of superintendent of the shops in +the largest iron manufacturing city in the state. I had to be satisfied +with a position under the iron masters. + +"Then came the memorable strike that led to the killing of the men by +the paid detectives of the Iron Masters. + +"The claims of the men were just, and as a man I could not side against +them. I put my fortune in with them. The details of the strike are known +to you all. The story of the shooting of unarmed mill hands at the +instance of the mill owners will never be forgotten; it has marked an +era in the history of this country. + +"Well, I was a conspicuous figure in those days. The strikers hailed me +as a champion; the mill owners first sought to win me over; then they +contrived to do away with me. Three times I was assaulted by murderous +men who had been hired to kill me. + +"When their schemes of violence failed they resorted to the most +effective method of destroying me. They discharged me and refused to let +me return after the strike was declared off. Not satisfied with having +turned me away from their mills they dogged my every step. Since that +day I have been unable to get employment in any mill in this country. + +"As I am acquainted with the methods of the iron trade I have been able +to give the trade Union many valuable points. It was upon my suggestion +that the amalgamation of the unions was effected. + +"From my intimate knowledge of the manufacture of iron I know that the +item of wage is less than fifteen per cent. of the cost of the completed +casting, yet the tariff on manufactured iron is on the average thirty +per cent. Where does the additional fifteen per cent. go? To fatten the +pockets of the favored manufacturer. But that is only half the story. +The fifteen per cent. that is supposed to protect the American laborer, +does it go for this end? Not at all. All of you are familiar with the +wage schedules in the iron industry. They have not been advanced five +per cent. since the imposition of the high tariff. So the manufacturer +gobbles more than ninety per cent. of the tariff bounty. + +"It is because I keep telling the iron workers this truth that I am +hounded by the minions of the Trusts. + +"We have allowed ourselves to be robbed long enough. I am an American to +the back-bone, and I propose to fight the men who have disputed this +country till I die. + +"Let me say that to whatever Nevins may propose I am willing to lend my +support, provided the ends he seeks to obtain are honorable and the +means reasonable. + +"As I am talking I cannot keep out of my mind the home which the Iron +Masters destroyed. I had a wife and two children who loved me and were +the idols of my heart. I saw this home destroyed. I saw my children +turned adrift and their mother forced to work to support them; for +during the first three years after the strike I could get nothing to do. + +"With these memories which had as a climax the deaths of two nearest and +dearest to me, I have nothing left to live for but the fulfillment of my +resolve to break the power of the Monopolists who have control of this +country." + +"This meeting will be protracted to the middle of next week if we all +take a half hour or more to tell our tale of woe," observes one of the +committee who cannot foresee the end of the discussion. + +The chairman asks if the members wish to limit the time of the speakers +to five minutes, and this proposition meets with the approval of all. + +So the remaining stories are told in short intensive sentences which +describe the heart-breaking history of men who have been trodden down +under the heel of monopoly. + +There are examples of every type that can be imagined. Men who have been +defrauded of their ideas and patents; others who have been the victims +of unjust legislation, the dupes of the speculator, the betrayed friends +of men who have ridden to fortune on the backs of those who gave them +their first start. + +Under the new ruling, the first man to be recognized is Herman +Nettinger, a man known to all the assemblage as an anarchist. He had +been admitted to the councils on the supposition that the best way to +pacify and placate the Anarchistic element was to offer them full +representation in the work of regenerating the government. + +Nettinger had been one of the few men who succeeded in eluding the +police during the days of the reign of anarchy in Chicago in 1885. + +He is a man of gigantic build, and of imperturbable placidity. When a +soldier in the German army had provoked him to the point where he had to +fight, this modern Titan had seized his tormenter and without apparent +effort had dashed the man's brains out by butting him against the wall +of the barracks. For this episode Nettinger had been compelled to serve +eleven years in the military prison. + +During these years he had familiarized himself with the teachings of the +socialists, for his companions were, many of them, students of +sociology. Upon his release he had come to this country. He invented a +compressed air motor, but the American Motor Trust robbed him of his +patents. + +In the space of five minutes Nettinger strives to defend the theory of +anarchy. He denounces all government as a make-shift, and asserts that +man should accordingly dispense with the forms of government and depend +upon animal instinct to regulate the social community. He names Samuel +L. Bell, chairman of the International Patent Commission, as the man who +contrived to rob him of his patent rights. + +The meeting adjourns at the conclusion of this harangue. + +In the hour that has passed the elements for a political revolution have +been brought together and combined by a master mind. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE SECRET SESSION. + + +It is apparent that the views of the men who have the most serious +grievances against the Trusts are yet to be heard. Most of the members +are glad that the meeting of the previous night had adjourned so as to +afford time for them to consider the salient points of the remarkable +proposal that had been sprung by Nevins. + +One of the members, who was conspicuous at all of the meetings, a man of +pinched features and diminutive form, a veritable Pope Leo, as it were, +makes a motion, as soon as the meeting opens, that three of the members +be heard, and if their stories in any way coincide with the general +views of the others, the pledge of the remaining men, that they hold +equally strong opinions, be sufficient to admit them to the standing +necessary for the exposition of the plan. + +As a means of expediting matters, the committee adopts this resolution +and the three men who are to tell their life's history are chosen. The +first of these is a man of the world, a fallen idol of society, who had +lately joined the ranks of the oppressed as a consequence of dire +financial difficulties. + +When he made his advent in the company of the desperate men of Chicago, +he had adopted the name of Stephen Marlow. + +This name is sufficient, for the men with whom he comes in contact are +not occupied in searching genealogies. They are working for results. +Marlow is in every sense of the word a leader. He has the grace of +manner and the personal charm that at once attracts men. His physical +development makes him the envy of the male sex and the idol of the +feminine. In stature he is slightly under six feet, with broad shoulders +and a fullness of figure that impresses one with the fact that he is a +good liver, yet withall muscular. + +A pale complexion, strongly marked features and high forehead, with dark +brown hair and clear brown eyes, make him a conspicuous figure in any +assemblage. + +As he rises to address his fellow-committeemen on this momentous +occasion, a flush of excitement adds to his attractiveness. He is a man +of thirty-five, with the experience of a man of fifty. + +"Were I to take the course pursued by those who have already spoken to +you," he begins, "I might take you back to the scenes of my childhood +and portray pictures of affluence and luxury that few of you could quite +appreciate. But the days of my childhood are gone; I am a man and have +to fight the battles of men, so I shall limit myself to the few facts +that are pertinent to the discussion before us. + +"In the past six months I have made the sudden transition from the +highest stratum of society to the one in which I am to-day. We cannot, +and do not desire to pose as contented men, or as men who are looking +for mild solutions of the problems that are now pressing for settlement. +I cannot, therefore, affront you when I say that by being among you I +prove that I am a radical reformer. + +"What you will be interested in learning will be the reasons that +impelled me to come here. + +"There is not a single thing to be hidden from you. I am here for the +purpose of satisfying a revenge. + +"My every fibre is quickened by the desire to see the men who caused my +downfall brought to my level. + +"I am selfish in my purpose; so deeply rooted are my resolves to be +avenged that I here and now state to you that any thing radical that may +be proposed by this committee shall receive my full support. + +"And do you blame me? Listen to my reasons: + +"Six years ago I entered the employ of Stephen Steel, the New York +banker. He is a man whom the people of the city and the country at large +look upon as a paragon. His words are constantly quoted in the papers; +his advice is sought by men of affairs. + +"My friends told me I was indeed fortunate to be associated with such a +prominent man. + +"Well, he was a schemer. At every turn he was on the lookout for a +chance to get at the wealth of others. I had not been in his employ more +than a month when I discovered that he was at the bottom of a plot to +loot the treasuries of three of the largest banks. His scheme was +diabolical. It would have entailed the loss of the savings of thousands +of small depositors. + +"With this knowledge in my possession, I did not know just what my duty +was. To shut my eyes to the affair and let it culminate in disaster to +innocent thousands, would have been a simple matter. For several days I +was in a quandary, but my conscience at length conquered. I mustered up +courage enough to speak to my employer. I chose for my time the hour +after his return from church on Sunday. He had passed the plate with the +unction of a saint. Men and women had looked at him and inwardly said: +'What a fine man Mr. Steel is; if there were only more like him.' + +"At the first intimation I gave him that I looked upon his plans as +illegal and immoral, if not absolutely criminal, he attempted to prove +to me in a plausible argument that bankers have a right to look out for +themselves, no matter who it hits. + +"'This plan of mine,' he said, 'is just a stroke of financiering; it is +what any man would do if put in my place.' + +"This did not satisfy me, and the expression of scorn that came over my +face did not escape him. + +"From attempting to prove the righteousness of the case, he then took to +berating me for interfering with his business. Had I not enough to do to +attend to my affairs in his office, without prying into his outside +dealing? Was it a matter that he must lay before his manager? These were +the questions he put to me in sharp tones. + +"I saw that it would be useless to argue with him so I arose and said: + +"'As you will not listen to reason, as you are a hypocrite and a +villain, I shall be compelled to quit your employ. But I wish to inform +you that I shall expose this diabolical plan. It shall not be carried +out if I can prevent it, and you know that I am in possession of the +facts.' + +"At this statement his anger knew no bounds. He railed at me as a +trickster. He charged me with wishing to blackmail him. Then seeing that +this was not the way to gain his point, he adroitly shifted his lines. + +"Would I not take a share in the profits that were to be made? Did I not +see that banking was a business in which every advantage was to be +seized and worked for all that was in it? At length he offered to let me +in his firm as a partner. This last offer was one that a man would have +been more than human to set aside without weighing. + +"He saw me hesitate. It was not the hesitation that comes as a +forerunner of surrender; it was the pause that a man will make when he +has to confront a momentous problem that is to have an effect on his +after-life. I did not intend to accept his alluring terms; it had been +my resolve at the outset to leave his employ should he refuse to abandon +his scheme of loot. + +"In the few seconds that I stood facing him, the light of lust came in +his eyes, he became the incarnation of greed. A snake that sees its +quarry edging inch by inch toward the fangs of death could not have had +a more exultant, triumphant look shoot from its treacherous eyes. + +"'You will be a man,' said he; 'you will listen to reason.' He uttered +these words not as a query, but as an assertion of fact. + +"'I shall do as I have said,' was my reply, and I walked toward the +door. + +"'But you do not mean to say that you refuse to become a partner?' he +ejaculated in amazement. + +"'That is just what I mean. I tell you once for all that I will not be a +party to such crimes as you propose to commit.' "'Then I warn you, young +man,' he thundered, losing his self control, 'that if you attempt to +thwart me in my business I shall make it uncomfortable for you in this +city. + +"'Yes, I tell you now once for all, that you will find me the most +unmerciful enemy that was ever known. I have too much at stake to let a +fool of a man upset me. + +"'Do you think that the world will credit the utterances of a nobody as +against mine? Why, you will be lodged in an insane asylum. I shall have +that matter fixed at once. + +"'By the way, where are the bonds that I entrusted to your care last +week?' + +"'What bonds?' I demanded hotly. For even then I saw the purport of the +question. + +"'What bonds? Ah, that will not satisfy a jury.' + +"And the banker chuckled at the thought that he had struck upon the +proper weapon with which to crush me. + +"In the confidence of his own power, and no doubt as a means of avoiding +publicity, he thought that the affair had gone to a point where he might +appear magnanimous. "'I do not hold any ill will toward you,' he +continued, 'it is as a friend that I speak. You are suffering from a +sensitive conscience, which is out of place in this age and generation. + +"'I can pity you, but of course it would be impossible for me to allow +sentiment to rule me in business. + +"'We will let this evening pass out of our minds. You will return to +your duties, and in the future let my outside matters be distinct from +your work and concern. But remember, not a word of this to any one.' + +"As the last few words were spoken we walked as if by common impulse +toward the door. + +"I bade him good-night, and the next minute I found myself on the +sidewalk. It was winter, and the cold bracing air soon made me alive to +the events that had occurred in such quick succession in the banker's +parlor. + +"My mind was in a flurry. What was I now to do? Did my silence at +parting indicate that I had accepted his offer to return to work as his +clerk? + +"With a muddled brain I walked on and on until I found I had reached the +entrance of the Park at Fifty-ninth street and Fifth avenue. I entered +the park and sank exhausted upon a bench. + +"Then I began to review the words of our interview. + +"It all became clear to me. I was in the power of an unscrupulous man. +He could throw me into prison at a word; if this was not to be desired +he could have me declared insane and put in an insane asylum. My word +was as naught against his. So I determined to work in his bank until I +could get the evidence that I needed to prove my case. + +"I had misjudged my man, for a week later he called me into his private +office and informed me that he had no further use for me. + +"_His bank wrecking scheme was successfully carried out._ + +"In vain I sought to awaken the interest of the press. The story I told +was not credited. I lacked documentary proof. When the crash came the +editors realized that I had told the truth. But it was too late. + +"When I began to look for employment, I found that my name had been +blacklisted. Wherever I go, from Maine to California, I am confronted by +an agent of my arch enemy. I cannot even hold a position as a day +laborer. + +"The damning brand of the magnate is on me, and employers are warned +against me. And all because I possess a conscience that would not stoop +to crime. I have stood out against retaliating as long as I can. Now my +vow is given to be avenged on Steel and his ilk." + +Of all the committeemen none has a more distinguished bearing than +Professor Herbert Talbot. He is a scion of an honorable New England +family; the advantages of refined home surroundings and a college +education have combined to give him a polish that should win him the +respect and admiration of all who know him. + +From the day of his graduation from one of the leading universities he +had begun to teach his favorite study, political economy. At fifty years +of age he found himself the recognized authority on economics, a +professor in his alma mater, and the recipient of honors at home and +abroad. + +That was in 1894. What a difference a few years has wrought. Now he is +an outcast, driven from his position in the faculty by the order of +Rufus Vanpeldt, the Woolen King, the patron of the university. Talbot is +reviled by his fellow-collegians, and ostracized from the society in +which he had always been a leader; and all because he has had the +manliness to express the truth on the political conditions of the +country. + +He has advocated the reduction of the tariff to a reasonable point; he +has been a staunch supporter of the income tax; his views on the money +question are deemed heretical and he is dismissed from the circles of +learning. + +From being the submissive hireling and servitor of the educational +institution, he entered the political field as their most powerful +adversary. He is one of the leaders of the Anti-Trust movement. When the +committee of Forty was organized, he had been one of the first selected. + +Many of the committee await his speech with lively interest. Whatever +view he takes of the proposition they determine to adopt. He is the next +member to be called upon. + +In an impressive, convincing argument he approves of the proposition. +Not that it is faultless, but because it offers the only remedy for the +vicious condition of the country's social condition. + +In presenting the arguments in favor of the adoption of the proposition, +Professor Talbot demonstrates that the centralization of capital in the +hands of a few men is the gravest mistake that a republic can permit to +occur. It creates an oligarchy that is more pernicious than one of class +distinction, since such a one can be coped with, while an oligarchy of +wealth possesses so many ramifications that it is practically +unassailable except by direct and physical means. + +"It is the common belief that labor-saving inventions are accountable +for much of the distress that exists in this country," he says, "but +this is not so in so far as the inventions themselves are concerned. + +"The evils that have followed the introduction of labor-saving machinery +are the results of capitalists seeking to squeeze the last cent of +profit out of their enterprises. + +"When an inventor produces any improvement in manufacture he does the +world a good; when the manufacturer who adopts this invention, at the +same time discharges his adult male operatives and substitutes child +labor, he vitiates the good that has been done and works a great harm to +society. + +"The crying evil of to-day is _child labor_, and the labor of women in +trades and at work that is manifestly fit only for men. + +"I shall make no lengthy appeal to you to adopt a direct means of +securing your rights. I shall set you an example by announcing that I +pledge my support to Mr. Nevins in anything that he may do that has for +its object the emancipation of the women, children and men of this +country from industrial slavery. + +"There is a living to be had for every inhabitant on the earth if he +will work. We in America should guarantee more than subsistence to our +citizens. A life of plenty is here for all if the social conditions can +be readjusted." + +Peter Bergen, a socialist who represents Kansas, is the last to speak. +His views are those of the radical. Nothing but instant centralization +of all the land and property of the country to be owned and operated by +the people as a whole, appear to him to offer an adequate solution of +the social problem. He is ready to aid in any movement that is +calculated to bring this condition about. He rails against the tyranny +of landlordism. + +"What justification is there to the laws that will permit an alien to +hold land idle in this country until American energy improves the +surrounding property? What justification is there in permitting an alien +to withdraw rents from this country without paying a tax toward the +support of the Federal government? + +"I have fought for this country; I have paid a land tax on my farm and a +tax on everything I consume. What does the alien land-holder pay? +Nothing. + +"I am ready to defend my home and country now. I will ever be loyal to +it, for it is the best in the world. + +"Its government is not perfect; it is our duty to make it so. + +"Let us confiscate the lands of expatriated Americans as an initial +step. + +"The man who will not contribute to the support of the government does +not deserve its protection." His words are uttered with vehemence. + +When he concludes this recital of personal grievances against the +Trusts, the chairman announces that at the next meeting the members will +be given full particulars of the purpose of the syndicate. + +The forty men separate, each carrying with him the conviction that at +length the time has come when something definite is to be decided upon +in the war against Trusts. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +MARTHA'S PREMONITION. + + +Trueman remains in Chicago after the close of the Anti-Trust conference +so as to be present at the National convention of the Independence +party. He is one of the delegates at large to this convention, and hopes +to be able to exert an influence over its deliberations, now that he has +won some renown as a speaker. + +In the rush of the sessions of the Anti-Trust conference he had had no +time to keep his promise to Martha. Once only had he sent her a note +telling her of his safe arrival in the city. It had not occurred to him +that she would be anxiously awaiting a letter from him containing his +views on the results of the conference. Why should a woman be interested +in such matters? + +It is with unbounded surprise therefore that he receives the following +letter from her: + + WILKES-BARRE, JUNE 13. + _My Dear Friend:_ + + It has been so long since I have heard from you that I take + the initiative and write to ask you to forward to me as soon as + possible, an article embodying your views on the recent Anti-Trust + conference. I have a special reason for wishing this + before the assembling of the Independence convention. To + be frank with you, I have a premonition that you will be + honored with the nomination for the Vice-presidency. Your + friends in Pennsylvania, and in the other Eastern states, are + working for you. I am handicapped by being a woman, yet + in some ways it has proven advantageous to me. + + By my peculiar intimacy with the families of this district, + I became acquainted with the fact that your name is being + mentioned as a possible candidate for the office. As soon as I + learned this, I set to work to 'boom,' as the politicians would + say, the incipient movement. Last night I was assured by + O'Connor, the local leader, that you were sure of the support + of the delegations of Pennsylvania and New York. For this + reason I can wait no longer for a letter from you. + + Let me know at once if you look favorably on the proposition + of being a candidate for the high office. + + Are you a member of the Committee of Forty? And what + is this body? + + As ever your friend, + + MARTHA. + +Here is a revelation. + +Unknown to him, his friends, and especially Martha, are at work planning +for his nomination as a candidate for the office of Vice-president. The +idea of his achieving such a success has never entered his mind. + +How can an unknown delegate hope to receive the support of the +convention. It seems unreasonable, and he is on the point of writing to +Martha that the effort could not help but end in a ridiculous farce, +when an interruption prevents him from doing so. A card is brought to +his room. It bears the simple inscription: + +A FRIEND. + +"Invite the person up," Trueman tells the servant. + +The apartments he occupies are in a quiet boarding house on Lincoln +Avenue. He has been in the house six weeks, during which time no one has +ever called to see him. + +A minute passes in which he ransacks his mind in an attempt to think who +can have any business with him. It is half-past eight at night. + +A loud rap at the door announces the visitor. + +"Come in," calls Trueman. + +"Good evening, Mr. Trueman." It is William Nevins who speaks. + +"O, it is you, Mr. Nevins," exclaims Trueman. + +"I owe you an apology," he continues, "for being surprised at seeing +you; but the fact is I am a stranger in Chicago and have had no +visitors. When your card came I could not imagine who could wish to see +me." + +"I am well aware that you are a stranger in this city," Nevins replies. +"And as I am little better off I thought that I would drop in to have a +chat with you." + +"We were delegates at the Anti-Trust Conference and will have much to +discuss," says Trueman, in his most affable manner. "I certainly am glad +you thought of me. Take a seat, and make yourself as comfortable as the +quarters will permit." + +They seat themselves near the table. A pipe and a jar of tobacco lie on +the table. + +"Will you smoke?" + +Nevins shakes his head negatively, saying as he does so: + +"I cannot talk and smoke at the same time. To-night I want to talk. + +"The fact is I have become interested in you since your speech at the +close of the conference. + +"You will remember it was I who suggested that the committee appointed +to investigate the Trust question be increased to forty. + +"When I made that motion I had an object in view. I was anxious to have +you become one of the committeemen." + +"Then the full committee has been appointed?" Trueman asks. + +"The forty committeemen have been named. You are not among them, and the +reason is that the chairman is jealous of you." + +"He can have no reason to be jealous of me." + +"The fact remains that he is. I strove to get him to appoint you. He +flatly refused to do so. I could get no reason from him. So I concluded +that he fears you would outshine him in the work that the committee +contemplates doing. Your speech was masterly. I am not given to +flattery. I say candidly that it was the best delivered at the +conference. + +"Since I failed to get you on the committee of forty, I come to see if +you will aid me in a project that will make the committee superfluous; I +have an idea that the trust question, monopoly and the other social +problems can be speedily solved." + +"You did not speak at the conference; that was the place to propound +such an idea," interposes Trueman. + +"Quite true. But I held my peace there, because it was not a place to +bring forth the plan that I have evolved. You will agree with me if you +will hear me through. + +"My plan requires in the first place the services of an honest man--one +who is proof against the blandishments of the Plutocrats--who will spurn +the offers of gold and office that will be tendered him by the men of +wealth when they perceive that he is on the eve of winning the popular +support. + +"Such a man is hard to find in this age of commercialism which has all +but quenched the spark of true patriotism in the hearts of the people. I +have sought for the ideal leader in all the States and was on the point +of giving up the quest in despair when I suddenly came upon him. Once I +determined that the man had been found, I set about learning his record. +It appears that he is the product of evolution. From the servant of the +Plutocrats he has come to be their most powerful adversary. In him the +people will recognize the long-looked-for deliverer." + +Here Nevins pauses for a moment to let his words sink into the mind of +his interested listener. + +"Mr. Trueman," he resumes, "I have decided that you are the man to lead +the people out of their bondage." + +"I certainly feel complimented at your estimate of my integrity," +Trueman replies, "but you greatly overestimate my ability and the hold +which I have upon the people. + +"It was by the merest chance that I was elected to the position of +delegate to the conference. I have really little influence with the men +of my own State. This you must know if you have made a careful +investigation." + +"I know why you are not the recipient of the full support of the men of +Pennsylvania. They cannot conceive of a man changing his views so +thoroughly as you have. But this lack of perception they will overcome. + +"I want you to assure me that you will become the leader of the +Independence Party. If you do this I, in turn, will assure you of the +nomination for the Presidency. + +"That I am not speaking of impossibilities you will be able to +understand when I show you the proof of the power I hold to elect the +man I decide upon. + +"If I am not mistaken, you are opposed to violence as a means of +rectifying the social conditions of the people of this country." + +"It has been my purpose to defeat every proposition that advised force," +comes the quick response. "I am too vividly acquainted with the horrid +results that follow an appeal to force. + +"My hope is that the people will regain their rights by the proper +exercise of the ballot. + +"If they discard their all-powerful weapon to take up the sword or the +torch, the end must be the destruction of popular government." + +"Were you in the position of the chief executive you would follow this +view? You would be as determined in suppressing violence as you were in +preventing crime of any other sort? Your gratitude to the people for +electing you would not blind you to your duty in preventing them from +instituting a reign of anarchy? I am correct in this supposition?" + +Nevins looks Trueman in the eyes with a glance that seems intent on +reading his inmost thoughts. + +"I should do my full duty under the constitution," Trueman declares +emphatically. + +"But, really," he adds, "I cannot appreciate this situation. It is +inexplicable why you should interest yourself in my behalf to the extent +of seeking to bring about my nomination for the Presidency." + +"My reason is not hard to divine. It is not you whom I am working for; +it is the people. + +"In you I find the proper agent to fulfil the mission of a leader in an +hour of grave importance. + +"Older men lack the power of attracting the masses. Of the young men +whom I have studied, none has the ability, the needed environment that +you have. + +"Men are creatures of circumstances only when they permit themselves to +drift. If one cannot propel himself to a given haven of success he +should at least anchor in a place of safety. + +"With you it is only necessary that you give me the sign, and you will +become the master of circumstances. You will be the man to lead the +people to the plane of high civilization that their government makes it +possible for them to attain." + +For three hours Nevins continues to unfold in detail the plan he has for +accomplishing the nomination of Trueman at the coming convention. He +shows his prospective candidate letters pledging the support of a +majority of the State delegations to the man whom he should designate. +In explanation of his power as a leader Nevins states that he has been +the secret agent of the Allied Unions for three years, that he has been +deputized to select a man to be presented to the convention as a +possible candidate. If the man proves acceptable the delegates +representing the unions will support him. + +"The Committee of Forty is working for you," he says in conclusion. +"Their work will bring them in all sections of the country and they will +be able to influence a great number of the people." + +He gives no hint of the true mission of the committee. He knows that +Trueman would repudiate the party that would resort to so drastic a +means of rescuing the people. + +"Have I your consent to bring about your nomination?" he asks. + +"I shall have to give this matter much thought. You shall have my +answer-- + +"To-morrow night," Nevins interjects. "Delays are dangerous. The +convention meets in two weeks time." + +"To-morrow night, then," assents Trueman. + +Nevins leaves abruptly. He does not wish to weaken the effect he has +produced on Trueman by further discussion. + +When he finds himself alone Trueman walks back and forth in the cramped +room. He is weighing a question that has never before been put to a man. + +There is no doubt in his mind as to the sincerity of Nevins. It is clear +that this strange man, who, in a matter-of-fact way, asserts that he +holds the power of a great convention in his grasp, could have used it +for base ends; he could have chosen a man of less inflexible character +than Trueman. + +"If I can bring myself to believe that it is because of my honesty that +Nevins has selected me, I shall give him my consent." + +Trueman makes this mental reservation, then turns to the table and +writes a long letter to Martha. He sets the matter before her, tells her +he will enter politics, and asks for her advice. Regarding the Committee +of Forty, he tells her all he knows, which is to the effect that it has +been appointed to investigate the work of the Trusts and to make a full +report at the next Anti-Trust Conference. + +He then goes to his bed. It is daylight before his mind has exhausted +itself. He sleeps until midday. On awakening he renews the consideration +of Nevins' proposal. At eight o'clock in the evening Nevins arrives. + +Where Nevins had been the one to speak the night before, Trueman now +enters upon an exhaustive interrogatory. He asks for the most minute +particulars of the events that have brought him to the notice of Nevins. +To all his questions there is an instant reply. At the conclusion of +three hours Trueman definitely makes up his mind to try for the +candidacy. + +"You may work for my nomination," he says, "and be assured if I am +nominated I shall strive to be elected. + +"If it is the will of the people to elect me I shall be faithful to the +high duties of the office." + +Nevins bids his protege good night, assuring him that they will keep in +constant communication. + +The Committee of Forty, which is in session in a hall on the outskirts +of the city in the vicinity of the stock yards, is surprised when, at +midnight, Nevins appears before them to announce that he has selected +Harvey Trueman to be the candidate for the Presidency on the +Independence ticket. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +TAKING THE SECRET OATH. + + +Eternal vigilance is the policy of the Magnates in keeping their sleuths +ever on the alert for the unearthing of the plans of the anti-trust +advocates. In every city detectives are untiring in their efforts to +discover the work of the Committee of Forty. It is suspected that the +committee is to obtain damaging evidence against some of the most +oppressive of the monopolies and bring the full story of the wholesale +robbery of the people out as a climax in the coming campaign. + +By diligent investigation the detectives learn the names of the +thirty-seven men who have been added to the committee by the appointive +power of the chairman. It is also ascertained that the forty men are +still in the city of Chicago. + +This fact is open to several interpretations. It may indicate that the +committee has determined to work from a central office; or that the +committee is a blind, intended to mislead the detectives into watching +it while another agency is at work. The importance of discovering the +true mission of the committee is therefore most urgent. + +To inspire the detectives to solve the question, the Plutocratic +National Committee secretly offers a reward of $5000 to the man who will +obtain the desired information. + +In holding their daily meetings the Forty observe the greatest caution. +Each member goes to the appointed place alone, avoiding as much as +possible attracting the attention of the detectives whom they know are +on the lookout. It is not their intention to have any mystery connected +with their existence, yet they wish to work unhampered by the servants +of the Magnates. + +For its semi-monthly conference the committee meets at Drover's hall. +The deliberations are not open to the public; still, no attempt is made +to conceal the fact that there is a meeting. + +Nevins and the other leading members decide that the secret meeting at +which he is to develop his plan shall be held in a place where there +will be no possible way for a spy to creep in. + +They select a deserted rolling mill on the edge of the river in North +Chicago. This mill was one of the most prosperous in the city prior to +the consolidation of the iron industries. Immediately following the +combine the mill had been closed and the work that should have gone to +it was transferred to the Trust's great plant in Pittsburg. + +For eight years the fires in the furnaces have been extinguished; the +incompleted iron work that lies about the ground has been given over to +the ravages of rust; desolation is the master of the mill. + +The spot is an ideal one for a secret meeting place. The police never +enter the grounds except at long intervals, when the inspector of the +precinct is on his rounds. This official makes a perfunctory survey of +the mausoleum of dead industry. In his report the entry, "Iron works +vacant," sufficiently describes the place. + +On the night of the secret meeting the members arrive at the mill by +various routes. There are three entrances on land and a wharf extends +along the eastern limit of the enclosure. Five of the delegates cross +the river in a skiff. + +At nine o'clock all the men are present. They gather on the second floor +of the storage shed, a brick structure one hundred by one hundred and +fifty feet in area, and three stories high. There are no windows in its +bleak walls. On each floor in the wall that faces the interior court of +the mill enclosure are two corrugated iron doors. These doors are +closed, and effectually exclude the light from without, as well as any +light that might be made within. On the floor where the committee meet +there is a rough plank table that was used by the machinists of the +mill. + +At this improvised tribunal the Forty meet to discuss the regeneration +of the nation. + +Two candles at either end of the ten foot table serve to reveal the +dense darkness rather than to dispel it. The flickering-lights fall on +the faces of the men as they sit on the floor in a semi-circle. Their +eyes are alone perceptible, and the several members are unable to +distinguish one another. + +The voice of one speaker after another issues from the darkness, +producing a supernatural effect upon the assemblage. The nerves of even +the most intrepid are at a high tension. + +A gust of wind rattling the iron doors causes the men to start; the +lowest whisper is intensified to what seems a sonorous shout. In this +strange theatre, the actors in what is to be the greatest world-drama, +wait to be assigned their parts and to play the first act. + +Nevins is the stage manager; he has chosen the settings; has assembled +the caste. Now it is his duty to give the signal for the curtain to +rise. As with the dramatists of old, he decides to introduce his +production with a prologue. + +Advancing to the centre of the semi-circle he begins the explanation of +his plan of salvation. + +Is it destined to end as many thousands have done, in miserable failure? + +"What I propose will strike you as the ravings of a man who has lost his +last grain of sense," he begins. "Yet I am prepared to demonstrate that +the plan is not only feasible, but that it is the only one which can be +put into execution and carried through to a successful issue. The greed +and the power of the Trust Magnates is insatiable. They will not make +the least concession to the people. The day for arbitration is at an +end; the time for the people to act is at hand. + +"Every means of defence against the Trusts has been absorbed by them. +What are we to do, surrender meekly, or fight? + +"History shows us how terrible a thing war is--especially revolutionary +war. Now, I have thought out a plan by which war and its attendant +calamity can be averted and the people be reinstated in their power. + +"There is not a man here who would not enlist to-day at the call for +troops. Many of you have already proven yourselves patriots by your +service in the field and on the ships of the United States. + +"Now, it is not always necessary to be on a battlefield in order to show +courage. Men can be heroes in the humble walks of life. + +"What I want of you is a pledge that you will stand by me to put out of +existence the deadly foes of this country. I want you to swear that you +will not flinch when the moment comes for you to fight, even to the +death. + +"Are any of you unwilling to swear that you would fight the foes of our +country to the bitter end?" + +No one speaks. The excited condition of the speaker impresses the men +strangely. They do not know just how to take him. + +"I shall at the next meeting name forty men, each of whom has been an +enemy of the United States; each of whom has seen the growth of his +private fortune built upon the ruin of homes; each of whom has opposed +every measure for the alleviation of the condition of the masses of the +people. + +"Many of them are known to you as offenders of national notoriety. You +have mentioned them in your recital of grievances. + +"You all know of the bloody history of the Czar of the Lakes, Anthony +Marcus. The graves of the murdered sailors and longshoremen are a +sufficient indictment against him. + +"Need I tell you of the horrors that have been daily perpetrated by the +ruthless oil magnate, Savage, in my own State of Pennsylvania? + +"Is the right to check competition by the use of the torch to be +conceded to him? Is murder for the sake of commercial advantage to be +sanctioned as our national policy? + +"The ancients were never so free or so powerful as when their citizens +exercised the right to proscribe unworthy citizens. + +"Let us constitute this meeting into a forum and issue our list of the +proscribed. When the list is read I shall be glad to substitute others +for the names I have selected. + +"The people are too subservient to aid us in carrying out the edict; so +I propose that we each select a man from this list of forty, and that we +then see that the edict is enforced. _We shall thus rid the earth of its +chief transgressors_. + +"When the French revolution was brought on, the world knew nothing of +the possibilities of combined wealth as an agency for the improvement of +the condition of the human race. Now we are familiar with all of the +wonders that can be accomplished by the combining of money into +corporate form. + +"We also know that at the present time all of the combined capital of +the world is held in the hands of a mighty ring of magnates. The +civilized world's billion of people slave for the benefit of a few +thousands, who have usurped the prerogatives and the rights of the +whole. Nowhere is this condition more aggravated than in this country. +We were all born freemen and we find ourselves to-day at the mercy of a +few thousand plutocrats. The advantage of improved production is being +kept from the people. We are denied our heritage. + +"We cannot fight the magnates in the open, for they have attained +control of the army and the judicial forces of the government. We face +the alternative of submission or revolution. + +"What does it avail if we send Representatives to Congress who are tools +of the magnates? What does it avail if Congress enacts laws which the +executive refuses to enforce? + +"The ballot has become a weapon to destroy those it should protect. +Elections ruled by coercion are a mockery. + +"I am in favor of inaugurating a scientific revolution. There is no need +to raise a guillotine in the city's square and drag to their death those +who are living upon the life's blood of the many. This is the crude way +to reach a desired end. + +"The world is never lastingly horrified and deterred from evil by the +mere letting of blood. Crime can be obliterated only by reformation of +the criminal element of society. Condemnation of individuals who are +caught is productive of little good. + +"The destruction even of an army momentarily shocks; but in the one +breath the people will cry, 'war is hell; let us have war, for peace +sake.' And when war comes it never affects the cowards, the usurers, the +rogues; they stay at a safe distance from the scenes of action, and, +with the instinct of the hyena, they profit on the nation's calamity. +Our trusts are the result of the jobbing that was started during the +Civil War, and which has never lagged since. + +"The fight that I would have you make is against forty cowards and +scoundrels who are sucking the very life out of the country--the forty +who represent the high council of the magnates. Let it be a personal +fight, a tourney; you the Knights Errant who ride against the dragons. + +"When the world awakens some morning and reads that at a given hour the +forty Robbers of America were sent to their eternal resting place with +their crimes on their heads, the shock will not pass away in a day. It +will be far different from reading of a battle fought six thousand miles +from Washington. Then will be the time for the men who have the good of +the people at heart to reestablish them in their rights. + +"Money is the god that the Nation is asked to worship. It makes fools of +the majority and knaves of the rest. + +"It will take some unprecedented occurrence to stir the masses. The +firing on Fort Sumter shook the Nation more than the carnage of +Gettysburg. The Nation has come to be apathetic on a vital question; +even more so than in the ante-bellum days. The dry-rot of Commercialism +is consuming us. We are governed by dividend worshipers. We must act, if +our manifest destiny to be a lasting republic is to be fulfilled. + +"If the taking off of the forty men would do the work that I wish to see +done I would be glad; but it will require a sacrifice on our part of +more than our prejudice against taking of life. We shall each have to +kill our man, and then commit suicide." + +"What!" ejaculate several. + +"We shall be obliged to commit suicide. There is no other course open +for us, for if, on the announcement that the forty men have been +murdered, there is not the still more surprising statement that the +murderer of each is found dead beside the slain, the effect will be +common-place, and everyone will say it is a cowardly plot to kill forty +of the 'best citizens.' There is no way out of it. You would all gladly +fight with an enemy of the country to the death. To rescue the flag from +the enemy you would face a hail of lead. + +"This flag of Freedom is defiled to-day by the Magnates. You are asked +to rescue it. It was snatched from my hands on the highway as I went to +present a petition to my fellow citizens. + +"When each of us has been allotted his man we will work to the +accomplishment of the plan at the given time. On each there will be +found a letter explaining what led to the killing of the public enemy. +These forty letters will appear in the papers throughout the land; they +will be compared and found to be counterparts; then the public mind will +grasp the significance of the seeming murders. It will then be regarded +as an act of deliverance. In place of being regarded as murderers we +shall be recognized as men whose love of country impelled us to +sacrifice our lives unhesitatingly. + +"By the blotting out of forty of the chief despots, and the publication +of the reasons; and by the announcement that the people are determined +to regain their rights, the road to National Ownership and Control of +Public Utilities, and the regulation of the finances and commerce by the +government, will be materially cleared. + +"In fact, I am confident that the next election after this object lesson +will find the robbers ready to sell at a just price and the people eager +to come into possession of their own?" + +"We will time the execution of our design so that it shall occur on the +13th of October, four weeks before the National election. The +Independence Party will have as its candidate a man who is known for his +honesty and ability; who is an avowed opponent to force either by the +magnates or the people. The people will be eager to entrust their safety +in his hands. + +"The dread of a repetition of the edict of Proscription will cause even +the supporters of the Robber Barons to prefer the election of the +people's candidates, than to face the results of the election of a +Plutocrat." + +The Chairman interrupts the speaker: "We will not take a vote on this +question to-night, so I should suggest that the meeting be brought to a +close. This will afford us all time to further consider the +proposition." + +The meeting closes in silence. There is a stern anxious look on the +faces of many of the men; others look as if they are on the point of +fainting. They reach the court-yard and seem relieved to get a breath of +fresh air. + +The two members who represent the Anarchistic element are the most +depressed. They speak to several of the men from the socialistic orders +and try to get at the reason why they shall have to commit suicide for +doing what they believe to be the best thing for the world. No one is +able to give any very good reason, so the two anarchists go to their +homes in any thing but a serene frame of mind. + +At the meeting held the following night, the members discuss the +momentous proposition in all its details, the result being that they all +agree to pledge themselves to the carrying out of the edict of +annihilation. + +Without unnecessary ceremony each member of the committee takes the +preliminary oath that Nevins demands. The reading of the list of the +proscribed is postponed for a week. + +From the time the committee decides to take the serious step, there is a +decided change in the attitude of many of them toward William Nevins. +Some of the men have a vague notion that he is not sincere; that he is +an agent of the Magnates. + +Not that he has said a word that would lend color to this belief, for, +on the contrary, it was he who expressed his views freely as originator +of the drastic plan. It comes rather as the result of his being superior +to his colleagues in many ways. His reserve of manner, his invariable +good judgment and the exhibition of his erudition, instead of endearing +him to the members, make them distrustful of him. + +A free expression of the feeling that exists is not made, however, until +the evening of the allotment. This is the occasion which the men who +hold Nevins in disfavor have determined shall be made the moment for his +dismissal from the council and for a change in his plan, if not a total +rejection of it. + +Before the appointed hour of the meeting, these skeptics meet in secret +conclave. + +"It will be our duty to-night to decide upon the means by which the plan +we have been considering may be carried into execution, or abandoned," +states the chairman of this impromptu meeting in a perfunctory tone. "If +there is any preliminary matter to be discussed, I am ready to entertain +it." + +This brings three of the men to their feet. + +Coleman, the delegate from California, is recognized. + +"Mr. Chairman, I am opposed to allowing any man to take part in this +work who is not in thorough sympathy with the rest of the committee. It +would be a manifest impossibility for this very dangerous and +unprecedented undertaking to be launched with the possible danger of +there being a spy in our company. + +"I am not prepared to say that there is such a spy here, yet until it is +satisfactorily demonstrated that we are all of us true friends of the +laboring men of the country, I shall be against proceeding to the +further outlining of the plan. + +"It is not enough that a man profess friendship. He must be able to show +by his acts that he has done something for his fellow-men besides +theorize." + +These views are quickly seconded. Then follows a talk among the men as +to what each of them has done to establish a record as a friend of the +masses. From the statements and the corroborating testimony of +dissenters, all of the members, with the exception of Nevins, pass +satisfactorily. He has no acts to his credit. No one admits knowing of +him outside of his work as a committeeman. Not one of those in +attendance at this special meeting will speak a word in his behalf. + +At this juncture, when it looks as though he is to be ruled out of the +committee and his plan repudiated, Hendrick Stahl asks to be heard. + +As Stahl is a member of high standing and the leader of a strong labor +party in Minnesota, he is permitted to speak. In a few forceful words he +denounces the men for their ungenerous suspicion; he tells them that he +has known Nevins as a friend and co-worker for years. + +Not without a visible degree of dissatisfaction the objecting members +accept the situation and agree to attend the meeting to hear the reading +of the list of proscribed. The men present do not know that Nevins had +planned the seeming rebellion to test the sincerity of the men whom he +is to take into his full confidence; that he has Professor Talbot and +Hendrick Stahl working as his lieutenants. + +Nothing now standing in the way of the plan, the men await the hour for +the night session. They are eager to hear the reading of the list. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE LIST OF TRANSGRESSORS. + + +At length the hour arrives in which the men are to be given the names of +the transgressors. It would be disastrous to have any knowledge of the +affair fall into the possession of the sleuths of the Trusts; so every +precaution for secrecy is observed. The loft of the deserted mill is +again chosen as the place of meeting. A thorough search of the +storehouse is made, and then the committee assembles in the narrow +semi-circle. + +After the meeting is called to order, there is an apparent apathy on the +part of a number of the Eastern members. When questioned they freely +admit that they do not believe their constituents would sanction the +drastic measure. + +Nevins is absent on his visit to Trueman. He has arranged with Professor +Talbot and Stahl to delay the meeting and put the members through +another test. + +The proposition is argued anew. + +It is explained that each man is called upon to make an equal sacrifice; +that there is no difference in declaring one's patriotism by enlisting +in the army or navy to fight a common foe, or in being one of a +numerically small and intrinsically strong army of forty. The Trusts and +Monopolies have proven a menace to the people, and can consequently be +looked upon as a foe to the government, to be dealt with accordingly. + +A unanimous decision to carry out the plan is reached. + +At this juncture Nevins appears. + +He asks permission to proceed with the reading of the list of the +proscribed. He is recognized and begins his startling speech. + +"In the lapse of years one is apt to forget the springs from which the +wells of human action are fed; it is commonly the lot of man to sink +into a state of mind that is at once unreceptive and unretentive. The +result is that at the age of thirty he finds himself incapable of +grasping new and difficult conceptions. This is the reason why so many +injustices are permitted to exist in the world. Men in their youth are +thoughtless; in their mature and old age they are neglectful or +willingly negligent. + +"A degree of success or a degree of failure has a like tendency to blunt +the finer qualities of the mind. A man with a competency will not take +the troubles of his fellow man to heart. The unfortunate man who has not +the wherewithal to support his family is in no position to take the +initiative in a labor movement or in a political revolution. + +"So the work devolves upon the few men who have the means and the +inclination to strive for the betterment of humanity. + +"Yet even these men are not always capable of judging events by their +true proportions and relations. + +"Advancement is the one thing that reformers fear. The ends they would +attain are almost always reconstructive; they are never creative." +Nevins utters these words with impressive emphasis. + +"These remarks I have made by way of prelude to the matter I shall now +proceed to discuss directly and earnestly. + +"We are each and all convinced that the pernicious system of fostering +monopolies that has been instituted in this country can have but one +result, the undermining of our popular institutions, and in their place +the substitution of moneyed Plutocracy. This result is abhorrent to +every true American. + +"Now, there is no way to put an end to monopolies except by the people +rising in their might and reassuming their own. + +"The hypocritical advice of the leaders of the great universities, that +the people ostracize the Magnates, has now ceased to satisfy the +exigencies of the case. What sort of ostracism would the President of a +University endowed by the millions of a Magnate, propose to have +enforced against his master? + +"Another of the proposals emanating from the hireling counsels of the +Trusts, is that the methods of the Trusts be placed under the +searchlight of publicity. A pretty programme, indeed, were it not for +the fact that the very men who propose this method of dealing with +monopolies would be engaged by the Magnates to defend them from +exposure. + +"To invoke the aid of the courts is to be brought face to face with the +servants of the Trusts. Where is the Attorney-General who can +successfully prosecute a Trust? The only one who was ever sincere in his +attempt met an insurmountable barrier in the courts before which he +arraigned the guilty. + +"And the votes of the people, do they avail? + +"The executives and legislators whom they elect are false to their +pledges. + +"The great sin of this country is the worship of gold. Human life is +held as secondary to the dollar. + +"Who then shall deliver the people from the bondage that has come upon +them? + +"Unguided, they are as a flock of sheep without a shepherd. False +prophets, mercenary leaders, are an abomination. They have been and are +to this day, the clogs in the wheels of progress. + +"The work of rejuvenation must be done by an intrepid few. It cannot be +entrusted to visionary men, to fanatics, to men who detest government of +any form or to men who are willing to suffer present ills rather than +face temporary discomfiture. + +"To carry on a crusade one must surrender self. + +"If our plan did not embrace more than the annihilation of forty of the +Transgressors it would not be raised to a higher plane than wholesale +homicide. + +"But we are to follow the course which the Plutocrats have traversed. +They have destroyed individual liberty; they have entrenched themselves +in our halls of legislature by bribery; our executives are their +puppets; our courts are their final buttress. To reclaim the rights of +the people we must reach the powers in control; the actual men who +engineer the scheme of public loot. These men have sacrificed human +lives to attain their ascendency. We must demand, we must enforce an +atonement. + +"Because we are to deal with the chief transgressors, who represent a +small number, our deed will be regarded in the light of murder. + +"Were the magnates in the field as an open foe our assault upon them +would be hailed as an act of heroism. Shall we be deterred by +consideration of a difference in mere words? + +"I propose to vindicate these so-called murders, which we are to commit. +The atonement will be frightful. Will it be more so than the conditions +which necessitate it? + +"Are the lives of forty soulless men to be compared with those of +thousands who are yearly sacrificed to sordid commercialism? + +"Are we to extend our commerce at the price of a life for every dollar +of foreign trade? + +"Men prospered in this country before the reign of the Trust Magnates; +men grew rich through ordinate profits, and the prosperity of the +country was the prosperity of all. To-day men seek to enrich themselves +by preying on the necessities of their fellowmen. + +"Can the cry of tyrants and sycophants drown the wail of the innocent +children and women who have been chained to the wildcat car of Modern +Commercialism? + +"In compiling the list of Transgressors, I have selected no man merely +because he is possessed of great wealth. There are many millionaires who +have earned their fortunes by honest endeavor and in strict conformity +with the laws of the land. I have discriminated against those who have +prostituted the laws of God and man; not a man whom I shall declare +proscribed but he is known to all men as stained with the blood of +innocents. + +"'The voice of the people is the voice of God.' This voice cries to us +from four million mothers' mouths for deliverance from tyrants who +compel them to work for a living even in the hours of their pregnancy. +The child laborers of this land of freedom raise a piteous plea. + +"Do you wait for an actual rain of hell-fire as a sign that God's will +is not being done? + +"It is our duty to strike a blow at Plutocracy that shall destroy it for +all time. We will act as sovereigns of the land. In us resides the +supreme rights of mankind. Our edict cannot be enforced by the courts, +so we will act for ourselves. + +"The names I read are not given in any fixed order; each man is equally +guilty." + +Here Nevins takes a slip of paper from his pocket and begins to read: + +"By reason of his treasonable act in furnishing the Nation's defenders +poisonous food while they were engaged in actual war, and for continued +vending of deleterious food to the citizens at large; for his +conspicuous participation in the formation of the monopoly of the meat +products of the country, for the purpose of extorting tribute from the +masses, I name Tingwell Fang as one of the transgressors. This man has a +fortune of $200,000,000; more than the life earnings of 2,000 men +engaged in ordinary pursuits for a period of thirty years each. + +"Judge if God ordained that one man should be possessed of such fabulous +wealth when His Son gave as our prayer, 'Give us this day our daily +bread.' + +"As the controller of the Wheat Trust, by which the grim hand of famine +is laid on the nation, and a tax levied on our subsistence, I name David +Leach as another of the transgressors. He has collected $100,000,000, in +sums of one and two cents from the millions of men, women and children +of this country. He stands between us and our daily bread. + +"I need not portray the sufferings that are inflicted on the nation by +the presence of the Coal Trust. From the miners to the consumers the +tale is one of ever-increasing awfulness. Man to-day, who must live in +the northern and temperate regions of our country, cannot endure the +cold of winter without artificial heat. He cannot go to the virgin +forests, for the land is owned by private individuals; he cannot go to +the mines, for they are the property of the coal barons. He must +purchase the coal that is needed to heat his home. + +"This makes coal not a luxury, but one of the necessities of life. + +"In the hands of the Trust the price is raised to the highest possible +point. The monopoly is complete; the demand perpetual. + +"Every home where coal is consumed is a witness to the rapacity of the +Coal Trust. I therefore name as one of the transgressors, Gorman Purdy, +President of the Coal Trust, the man who ordered the massacre of the +miners at Hazleton; who has driven widows and orphans from the mining +towns to let them starve on the highways. He is the possessor of +$160,000,000, the equivalent of the earnings of 10,000 miners for +forty-five years. + +"I name as a transgressor, Ebenezer J. Sloat, President of the Leather +Combine. His single fortune is $80,000,000. This man succeeded in +effecting a consolidation of all of the leather producers; now the +nation pays the Trust a royalty on every pair of shoes that is sold. + +"He has driven the cobbler out of existence and has set children and +women at the machines which turn out completed shoes, on which not a +single part has to be made by skilled labor. + +"It is not in the trades alone that the Transgressors are to be found. +They have developed in high places. + +"I name as one of the proscribed, ex-Supreme Court Justice Elias M. +Turner, who, at the demand of the Magnates, recanted his judgment on the +question of constitutional taxation, and left the humble citizens to +bear the burden of taxes while the Trusts and Monopolies go practically +exempt. This act of betrayal to the public weal is the more atrocious as +it was done by a man who had been invested with the highest honor that +the nation could bestow upon the ermine. + +"If the wearer of the robe of justice outrages his garment is it to +remain an invulnerable shield against our righteous condemnation? He who +doles justice, must himself be its chief exemplar. + +"Another of the high servants of the people who has betrayed his fellow +countrymen, is ex-Attorney General Lax. It was his masterful policy of +inaction that permitted the trusts and monopolies to intrench themselves +during the four years that he stood as their buffer, against all efforts +of the several states to curb them. + +"Entering the office as a man of moderate means he left it possessed of +a fabulous fortune--the bribe money of the Magnates. And not content to +retire from office, and cease his nefarious trade, he is to-day the +counsel for the Money Trust. It is his mind that conceives the +interminable means for forcing the Government to issue bonds for the +benefit of the Banking Syndicate?" + +"It was Herbert Lax who made me a bankrupt," exclaims one of the +committee. "He caused my brother to commit suicide. If ever there was a +cold-blooded villain, Lax is the man." + +"His acts were those of charity compared to some of the Transgressors," +observes Nevins, before he continues to announce the list. "Is the +bankrupting of men to be compared with the heinous crime of enslaving +children? + +"The Cotton King, Herod Butcher of Fall River, who thrives on the life's +blood of ten thousand minors--pitiable slaves of his looms, is one of +the transgressors who must atone for a life-long career as a merciless +infanticide. + +"No man is so base that he would stand by and see a child ruthlessly +slain. Yet the nation stands supinely in the presence of a system of +factory labor which tolerates the inhuman employment of children. The +hazy halo of legality is between the transgressor and the people; and +men remain unmoved. + +"It was for humanity's sake that our countrymen gave their life +ungrudgingly on the battle-fields of Cuba. But what of the inhumanity at +home? A word spoken against an American manufacturer is a crime in the +eyes of the Magnates, and the offender is chastised accordingly." + +"I have three sons who grew to manhood, stunted and untutored, who had +to work for their daily bread in the mills of Herod Butcher," declares +Martin Stark, the Rhode Island committeeman. + +"Judas D. Savage is another of the transgressors. A hundred flaming oil +wells lit by the torch of the incendiary, hired by his gold, wrote his +proscription on the scroll of high heaven. + +"And Roger Q. Alger, of the defaulting Savings Bank dynasty comes to you +recommended by the cries of anguish that have been uttered by thousands +of widows, orphans, struggling husbands and provident wives, who have +awakened to find their savings distributed as booty to the Barons. + +"But what need have I to recount the misdeeds of this list of men. If +the first man or woman whom you meet on the street cannot give you a +description of them that will stand as an indictment, then consider the +men I name innocent!" + +He then completes the reading of the list. There is a painful silence +when he ceases to speak. The Forty seem absorbed in deep thought. The +chairman finally speaks: + +"You have heard the reading of the list," he says. "If it is your desire +to substitute names for those mentioned, now is the time to propose the +change." + +"I move that the list be adopted as read," Carl Metz suggests. + +"I second the motion," says Professor Talbot. + +Every committeeman votes for the adoption of the list. + +The names are written on slips of paper and placed in a hat. As each +committeeman passes the table he draws a slip. + +"You have all signified your willingness to carry out the terms of the +edict of annihilation," the chairman explains. "It now remains for you +to redeem your pledges. If there is one of you who regrets the step he +has taken it is not too late to withdraw." + +There is profound silence, and the men stand immovable. + +"Two months from to-day then, October 13th, our Syndicate of +Annihilation will declare its dividend; this will require the summary +taking off of the Forty Transgressors and our self-immolation." Chadwick +pronounces these words slowly, impressively: + +"We will separate to-night never to meet again in this life. + +"If we are true to our purpose we will not have died in vain." Without +formal partings the men leave the store-house. + +Nevins is the last to depart; he draws the remaining slip. It bears the +name of "James Golding, Bond King; capital, $400,000,000; occupation, +United States Treasury Looter." + + + + +BOOK III. + +The Syndicate Declares a Dividend. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + +BIRTH OF A NEW PARTY. + + +"You will soon find that my assertion was based on absolute knowledge, +for your nomination will be unanimous," Nevins declares to Trueman as +they sit in private conference, on the eve of the Independence Party's +convention. + +"Then you do not credit the statement that the Eastern delegations have +become disaffected?" + +"That's only one of the rumors which the Plutocrats have set afloat +since they unearthed the fact that you are to be a candidate for the +vice-presidential nomination. Gorman Purdy is the instigator of all +these adverse stories. He has not forgotten that you were once his most +promising pupil." + +The President-maker and his intended candidate are in daily +communication; they have become firmly attached to each other in the +short period of their acquaintanceship. This is not to be wondered at, +for there is a striking similarity in their temperaments. Each is +endowed with keen perception and wonderful magnetism. Their combined +influence has brought to their support the most contumacious of the +delegates. On the issue of the following day the hopes of each are +centered. Nevins has asked his young champion to visit him at his rooms +in an unpretentious hotel on Clark street; there are details for the +work of the morrow that have to be carefully planned. + +"In your speech you must dwell upon the causes which led to the +formation of the new party," Nevins explains. "This must be done +briefly; but it will pave the way for your demonstration that a new, a +young man must be called upon to make the fight against the intrenched +robbers. + +"As you know, I have striven for ten years to bring about the present +propitious circumstances; it has been an almost impossible task to get a +convention of men who are susceptible of being made to nominate a young +and untried man for so exalted an office. + +"But all of the political conditions of the hour indicate that the bold +proposal will be accepted." + +"I have caused a most thorough canvas of the delegates to be made," says +Trueman, "and they are almost unanimous in declaring that they will +support me for the second place on the ticket. When sounded on the +proposition of voting for a young man for the head of the ticket, they +demur." + +"That is just as I have planned matters should stand before the +convening of the delegates," replies Nevins, with a self-complacent +smile. + +"All of the older men will have spoken before you are called upon. The +sharp contrast that will be presented in the staid and uninspiring +speeches of your predecessors, and your fervid, fluent and convincing +call to action, will lift you to the position of the logical candidate. + +"No successful statesman has ever been unmindful of the practical side +of politics. A speech may create a whirlwind of enthusiasm for an +orator; yet if there is no one to guide the tempest it is soon spent. I +shall be on the watch for the moment that must see your name put in +nomination. + +"When it comes, I shall put you in nomination." + +"Day by day I am learning that politics is not a game of chance," +observes Trueman, meditatively. "It is a science, with as much to master +as the science of war, which it resembles most strikingly. + +"A year ago I should have scoffed at the idea that I would be engaged in +planning and in carrying out a campaign to capture a convention. Yet it +is absolutely necessary to make these preparations." + +"How many hours did I spend in convincing you that politics is an exact +science?" Nevins inquires, with a faint smile, as he recalls the +struggle he has gone through with before he could get Trueman to consent +to the methods that had to be adopted to effect his nomination. + +"I know that you had an obstinate pupil. I hope that I have not been +instructed in vain." + +"I have no fear on that score. You will fulfil the mission that is +manifestly set for you. Keep the thought of the people uppermost in your +mind when you are speaking, and it will give you the needed inspiration. + +"Come, we will review the bill of complaint which the people find +against the Trusts." + +They rapidly name, in chronological order, the events that have been +instrumental in bringing about the degradation of labor. There is the +primal generator of universal distress--the private corporation--which +operates with all the functions of an individual, yet is free from even +the most ordinary obligations that are enforced upon the individual; +from the private corporation has sprung the Trust, a consolidation of +corporate bodies which intensifies the evils that exist under the former +institution, and as an inevitable consequence of Trusts comes private +Monopolies. These last have been the direct cause of awakening the +people to a realization of their condition. For each aggression of +corporate wealth the people have been forced from their position as free +men to that of servants. The climax is reached when the Monopolies adopt +the paternal principle of pensioning their employees, thus making of +them retainers in name, as they have long been in fact. + +"I shall leave you to your thoughts," says Nevins, in parting. He walks +to the entrance of the hotel with Trueman. When his friend departs he +returns to his room. + +Three of the Committee of Forty are awaiting him. They have come for a +short consultation. At the convention they are to be the trusted +lieutenants of Nevins. + +There is no money to be distributed; no patronage to be pledged for the +support of delegates. The preliminary arrangements of battle are +strangely dissimilar to those of any preceding convention that has been +held in this country for half a century. + +The magnitude of the cause that brought forth the Democracy in the days +of Jefferson, and the Republican party in the days of Lincoln, is again +attracting true patriots; the cry of a people which has long been +outraged is demanding to be heard; it has reached the ears of a faithful +few who put country above price. It is of such material that the new +party is composed. + +A young and untried soldier was called by the sage of the Revolution of +1776 to take command of the Continental army. What is to prevent a +repetition of our history, now that another crisis has to be faced? Of +the committee there are few who do not feel assured that Trueman will be +capable of fulfilling the duties of the office to which they seek to +elevate him; they are not certain, however, that they can secure the +nomination for him. + +Trueman is hopeful; yet he cannot drive from his mind the rumors of +disloyalty that are constantly brought to him. + +In the minds of the Plutocrats it seems utterly impossible for Trueman +to even obtain the vice-presidential nomination. It never occurs to them +to regard him as a probable candidate for the higher office. Nevins, +alone of all men, is confident of the result of the morrow. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + +CHOOSING A LEADER. + + +Chicago, the city of immeasurable possibilities, the twice risen +Phoenix, scene of the fairyland of 1893, when the wonders of the world +were assembled for the fleeting admiration of man, is the arena in which +a battle is to be waged that shall be remembered when the other events +that add to the fame of the municipality shall have passed into +oblivion. + +To the citizens of Chicago a convention has come to be regarded as an +every-day occurrence. If it is not a convention of one of the great +parties, then some lesser body is in session; always some band of +delegates is reported as either arriving in or departing from the city. +There had been little stir when the Plutocratic convention was in +progress three weeks before. The result of the proceedings was +foreordained. + +But with the convening of the delegates of the Independence Party the +apathy of the people gives way to intense interest. They realize that at +least there will be a lively contest over the choice of a leading +candidate. + +Political forecasters have been chary of expressing opinions, for the +much depended on precedent is lacking. Here is a new party, which is to +make its second appeal to the people. Where its strength will lay, whom +it will select to be the standard-bearer of its radical platform, these +are questions that baffle the most astute observers. + +The morning of the opening session of the convention finds the vast +auditorium of the Music Hall where the meetings are to be held, crowded +with spectators. It is impossible for one-tenth of those present to hear +the speakers; they come not to hear so much as to breathe the surcharged +air of the political storm which it is known will be fostered. The thin +blood of the modern civilian is acted upon by less boisterous and gory +scenes than those which sufficed to stir the audiences of the Roman +circus; yet the human susceptibilities are the same in all ages, and +differ only in expression. In the battle of voices, the audience will +shout its approval or hiss its disapproval; at the pleasure of the +throng a speaker can be silenced, his victory snatched from his very +grasp. + +Six thousand people are in their places by ten o'clock. The police have +been compelled to shut the doors to exclude the crowds who would be +satisfied merely to get inside of the building. A murmur fills the +place, although no one is speaking above the normal tone; the combined +sound resembles the distant boom of a cataract. Here and there in the +galleries a splash of color indicates the presence of a woman. The value +of feminine headgear is for once clearly demonstrated; it serves to +differentiate the sexes. + +On the floor of the auditorium the long avenues of chairs are vacant; a +dozen men are busy arranging the location of the state delegations. +Guidons bearing the names of the states are put in position. At the +press tables, at the foot of the speakers' platform, hundreds of +reporters are industriously grinding out "copy" for their papers. A +formidable army of messenger boys is lined up along the base of the +platform. They are a reserve, to be used in case the telegraph service +should break down. + +Immediately in the rear of the speaker's table is the indispensable +adjunct of American politics, the brass band. At 10.15 o'clock the +leader of the band gives a signal, and the "Star Spangled Banner" is +played, six thousand voices joining in the best known phases and the +chorus. + +Now the delegates arrive. The New York contingent walks to its place in +the middle of the hall. Ex-Senator Sharp is at their head, followed by +the prominent county leaders. Their appearance is the signal for an +outburst from the galleries. Cheers and hisses are about evenly divided. +The conservatism of the New Yorkers makes them the bone of contention. + +"They will try to rule this convention in the interests of Wall Street, +as they did in the Democratic convention of '96," observes a man in the +West gallery, to the man next to him. "The theory of majority rule that +was good enough for the founders of the country, does not seem to hold +much force now-a-days." + +"No," replies the first speaker. "The rule of the majority has been +repudiated. It would have been inimical to monopolies, so the Magnates +have nullified it. They did the same thing with silver in '73. There +could be no money trust with bi-metalism." + +"Do you think the Eastern delegations are strong enough to dominate this +convention?" + +A tumultuous shout drowns the reply. + +"Texas! Texas!" cry a thousand voices. + +"California, she's all right!" cry as many more. + +Delegates from the above-named states appear at two entrances. + +By eleven o'clock the convention is assembled. The chairman rises and +pounds on the table with his gavel to quiet the audience. + +"We will open this convention with prayer. It is the desire of our party +to lift itself out of the mire of partisan politics, and nothing is more +fitting than that an invocation to the Almighty should constitute our +initial performance." + +An unknown clergyman from Iowa is called to offer prayer. He is listened +to in absolute silence; the great horde of men and women hold their +breath; religion at least is not extinct in the people. Following the +prayer comes the routine work of passing on credentials and appointing +committees. This is done with celerity. The men are anxious to begin the +real business. + +As the last committee is named, a delegate from every one of the States +is on his feet clamoring for recognition. + +"Illinois has the floor," the chairman announces. This is done as a +matter of courtesy to the state in which the convention is being held. + +Congressman Blanchard, representing a Chicago district, is the man who +receives recognition. + +As he steps upon the rostrum the cheering is deafening. He is the +favorite son of the state and this is the supreme moment in which he may +launch his boom for the presidential nomination. + +The power of his oratory is of a high order. He makes the fatal error of +being non-committal; his friends see that the chance has passed him. + +Favorite sons from a dozen states strive for the prize; yet for one +reason or another are unsuccessful in carrying the convention, or of +awakening the enthusiasm of the audience. + +"No one has spoken from Pennsylvania," remarks the man in the gallery. + +"There are few orators of note in that state now," he adds. + +"There are very few; but their small number is counterbalanced by the +quality of the men. Have you ever heard Trueman?" + +"I never heard him speak, but I have read his speeches. He seems to be a +true friend of the people." + +"Let us call for a speech from Pennsylvania," suggests the observant +auditor. + +"Pennsylvania! Pennsylvania!" shouts the impulsive man beside him. + +"Pennsylvania!" comes the instant response in every quarter of the +auditorium. The audience realizes that the great Keystone State has not +been heard from. + +The uproar increases. Men stand on their chairs and wave their hats, +shouting themselves hoarse. + +"Pennsylvania, what's the matter with Pennsylvania? She's all right!" + +The man in the gallery draws a flag from beneath his coat and waves it +frantically. + +"Trueman, Trueman! Speech!" + +The cry changes instantly. + +From his eyrie, Nevins, the omnipresent, flutters his commands. Under +his spell the tumult rises. Delegates from Nebraska and Louisiana rush +to the Pennsylvania section and seize Trueman. He is borne to the +rostrum across a veritable sea of men. + +Now Nevins hides the flag, and as though a switch key had cut off the +current from a dynamo, the confusion subsides. + +Now only fitful shouts can be heard; they come like the final rifle +cracks in a battle. + +Trueman has gained his feet and stands erect, facing an audience that is +already fired to the white heat of spontaneous combustion. + +He is saved the necessity of working for a climax; it is prepared. + +"Pennsylvania has come to this convention to be heard," he cries. + +This happy introduction catches the crowd. They give a long, hearty +cheer and then are silent. + +"The delegates from the Keystone State are here to aid in producing a +platform that shall contain the declaration of the right of mankind to +labor. + +"The work of this convention is not to be the single effort of one State +delegation; it is not to be that of any prescribed body; but must +reflect the united opinions of the American people. + +"I shall speak, therefore, as a representative of all liberty-loving +men, and shall express their hopes and aspirations as I have found them +to exist. + +"It is the ever constant belief of the people that popular government is +the only form that is compatible with Divine ordination; that all men +shall be protected in the right to live, to labor and to prosper +according to their deeds and deserts. + +"These principles are the basis upon which our republic was built; they +have served as the inspiration of our lives; for their perpetuation men +have given up their lives on the field of battle, on the altar of +martyrdom, and for these principles the vast majority of the citizens of +this country are to-day ready to make any sacrifice." + +A storm of applause momentarily checks the speaker. + +"When a man devotes his energy to honest toil it is for the purpose of +securing to himself and to his family the blessings of thrift; the +safeguard for honorable old age. In his effort he should be protected by +every means that a strong government can devise. The 'millstone' should +not be pledged or pillaged; the struggle of life should not be made +hopeless by compelling a man to slave for mere subsistence." + +"Hear, hear!" come shouts from the galleries. + +"Our people have seen the Republic dragged from the line of righteous +progress and diverted into the unnatural path of Plutocracy. Insidious +methods have been resorted to by those who have wrought this +transformation. Sophists have told the plain, credulous workers that +industrial combination in the form of Corporations and Trusts is the +result of a natural law of evolution. But what is the truth? The great +consolidations that have been effected during the past few years have +resulted from the enactment of statutory laws. These laws have emanated +from the brains of men, paid by the Trust magnates to undermine the +republic. No more treasonable acts were ever committed than by the men +who have sold the rights of a free people to a band of unscrupulous +money worshipers. + +"The continuance of this country as a Republic depends upon the +restoration of the independent citizen. To-day there are fewer men +engaged in independent work, as manufacturers and merchants, than there +were ten years ago; to-day the great bulk of the wealth of the country +is concentrated in the hands of a few thousand men. These men have +become the masters of the Nation; on their payrolls are to be found +three-fourths of all the working inhabitants of the land, men, women, +and children. + +"Men, women and children, I repeat, for where is the man who can earn a +sufficient wage to provide proper food and raiment for his family by his +single effort? + +"As the hope of the people rests on the recovery of the independence of +the individual, the platform of this party must declare unequivocally +for the abolition of all forms of private monopoly. This must be the +main plank in our platform." + +These words, uttered in a voice that reaches the remotest corners of the +auditorium, call forth a tumultuous shout. + +"With private Monopolies destroyed and the channels they control opened +to the people, the billions of revenue that now go to increase the +fortunes of the Masters of Commerce, will be enjoyed by the toilers who +create our National prosperity. + +"The statistics of the future shall record the existence in this land of +thousands, hundreds of thousands of independent business men. The +columns devoted to enumerating the Child Labor of the land will be +dispensed with; there will be an increase in the number of mothers and a +decrease in the number of women who are forced to earn a living by +manual toil. + +"The platform we adopt must contain a plank providing for the imposition +of a tax on a man according to his ability to pay. There is no sanction +for a law to govern a community, however large, however populous, if +this law is in contradiction of the principles that govern a household; +for we cannot conceive of a government that is not built on the +household as the unit. + +"Where is the father so inhuman that he will demand of the stripling, +the infirm, the feminine members of his family to procure the means of +support, before he has exhausted every other effort that can be made by +himself and his stalwart sons? Even the insatiate Trust Magnates, were +they suddenly to be reduced to penury, would shield their wives, their +daughters and their indigent. + +"Then who shall say that this Republic, a household on a mammoth scale, +is not justified in collecting the taxes necessary for its maintenance +from the incomes of the rich, and not from the paltry possessions of the +wage-earner? The hundredth part of the income of the rich will more than +pay for the legitimate expenses of the Government. + +"I am a firm believer in 'vested rights' and carry my adherence +back to the dawn of creation. Then it was that God vested mankind +with the right to live upon this earth. He endowed man with the +ability to earn a living, and gave to each and every man an equal +inheritance--opportunity. + +"Any laws that man has made which abridge this right of equal +opportunity are unconstitutional in the broad sense of being at variance +with God's will. Applied to our Constitution, the vested right of the +people to the equal opportunity to labor is higher than the right of the +few to retain the fruits of the labor of the many. + +"I advocate the taxing of the incomes of our citizens before we tax +their wages, which is their capital." Cheers interrupt the speaker for a +full minute. + +"It is my hope, the people's hope, that the bulwark of this country be +once more as it was for a century, not a standing army of idle soldiers, +but an active army of free men, busied by day in the fields and in the +workshops; resting by night under cover of their homes, surrounded by +their happy families; an army that is ready at an instant's call to +fight for the protection of their Flag and their Homes." + +"The united armies of the world would hesitate to face the legions of +contented freemen. Our power in the world will be increased more by a +fleet of merchant ships than by squadrons of steel battleships. + +"We want a National Militia, to be composed of every able bodied man, +who in the hours of peace prepares against the possibility of war. We +want a Navy strong enough to represent our interest on every sea; a +Naval Reserve strong enough to convert our Merchant Marine into the +greatest fleet in the world, should need arise. + +"We want, and we will succeed in getting the Army of the Unemployed +mustered out. + +"With us rests the duty of selecting a mustering officer; a man to carry +out the wishes of the people; a man who is temperate in his judgment, +unswerving in his purpose and unimpeachable in his integrity; a man in +whom the people may place full confidence. With such a man as a +candidate on the platform we shall adopt, the will of the people cannot +be thwarted. + +"We can frame the platform. Where is the man?" + +"Trueman! Trueman!" comes the cry. + +From mouth to mouth the name passes; now it is shrieked by an entire +state delegation; now by the entire assemblage. Louder and louder +becomes the cry. It is chanted, sung, shouted, shrieked. Men who have +shouted themselves hoarse utter it inarticulately. + +In the centre of the floor there is a movement; the guidon of New York +is moving. It is being borne toward the Pennsylvania delegation. + +Another and another state guidon follows in its wake. The convention is +in an uproar. + +Ten, twenty of the delegations are now swarming about the standard of +Pennsylvania. The galleries keep up the incessant shout of "Trueman! +Trueman!" + +A hundred men are clustered about the speaker as he stands, awed by the +outburst of enthusiasm. He is picked up and placed on the shoulders of +his friends. + +The delegations who have rallied to his support now number forty; they +are moving toward the platform. The men carrying Trueman go to meet +them. + +The climax is reached. Trueman is carried round and round the hall, the +enthusiasm of the delegates reaching the point of frenzy. Every +delegation is now in line. Without waiting for the formality of a motion +to adjourn, the convention marches from the building; its candidate at +its head. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + +TWO POINTS OF VIEW. + + +On the way to the hotel after the exciting incidents of the day, which +have culminated in his nomination, Trueman has time to reflect. The +poise of a man of his sterling character is not easily disturbed; yet he +feels misgivings as to the ultimate result of the pending campaign. The +odds are so uneven. On the one side the millions of concentrated +capital, commanding the servile votes of the dependent operatives; on +the other, eternal principles, supported by a few resolute men who will +have to inspire the Nation to action. + +"If I only had the encouragement of Ethel," Harvey soliloquizes, "it +would be nothing to face the foes of my country. But I must make the +fight alone. She is separated from me now by a wider barrier than ever. +As the champion of the people of Wilkes-Barre I became the antagonist of +her father, and she had no choice but to remain with him. + +"And yet, at our parting, there was a tremor in her voice which told me +that her love for me was not utterly dispelled. + +"Sister Martha tells me that Ethel is not happy, that she has ceased to +be the social butterfly, the cynosure of the fashionable set in +Philadelphia and New York. + +"As the inconspicuous leader of the working men of a Pennsylvania mining +town I might have won her, even against the opposition of Gorman Purdy. +As a candidate for the Presidency, on the Independence party's ticket, +my hopes are idle." + +He enters his room and finds a telegram on the table. + + "VENETIA, L.I. + + "As a friend I congratulate you on the honor you have + achieved; I wish that circumstances would permit me to aid + you in attaining victory. E.P." + +In all the world there is no treasure more precious than the yellow slip +of paper which Harvey holds in his hand. It is a proof that Ethel has +not forgotten him; it even foretells that if victory were to rest on his +standards, he might claim a double prize--the Presidency and a bride. + +"What right had I to expect that Ethel could descend from her sphere to +share the uncertain fortunes of a social reformer?" he muses. + +"The conditions of life that have been fostered in the United States +since the era of the multi-millionaire make the problem of marriage more +complicated than ever before. How can a woman, born to luxury, hope to +find marital felicity with a man dependent on his daily wages for the +means of supporting himself and family? + +"To say that she may bestow her wealth upon her husband, does not solve +the problem; it modifies it by adding a potent deterrent; for a man who +will be dependent upon his wife for support, lacks the essential +qualifications of a good husband. + +"The sharp lines of class distinction now drawn in the country are the +cause of most of the unhappiness that attend matrimony. It is the +opinion of others, not the needs of self, that engender discontent. + +"I must win a position in the world which will demand the respect of all +men; then I shall offer Ethel, in place of the ill-gotten millions of +her father's fortune, the name and love of an honest and respected man. +And I will be honest and respected, even as President. + +"What a commentary on human frailty the records of our latter day Chief +Magistrates present. Each has been of humble origin. He has risen by +virtue of fearless championship of the cause of the masses. Once in the +office of the Presidency, all uprightness and independence has left him +and he has worshiped at the feet of the Idol of Gold. + +"To win the Presidency will be to inaugurate an era of real National +prosperity, in which the labor of the people will be insured just +remuneration. To win Ethel will be to abolish the distinction of class." + +At the very hour Harvey Trueman is pondering over the grave conditions +that keep him from making Ethel his wife, she is thinking of the mockery +of her riches, which furnish her with every attribute to happiness but +one--that eclipses all others--the heart's desire. + +From the days that she had first known Harvey as the brilliant +counsellor, she has felt that inextinguishable love which thrives on +hope, and which will not diminish, even when hope is banished. Harvey +and she had been friends. His brains had won him admittance to the +social class in which she moved. When their attachment had grown to +love, and he had asked her father's consent to their marriage, Gorman +Purdy, the man of millions, had not hesitated to sanction the union. + +What a joy had filled her heart when Harvey told her of his love! What +happiness could have equalled hers when she received the news from +Harvey that her father was willing that they should marry? + +What has caused their separation? + +This is the question that remains as yet unanswered in her mind. + +"Is it possible that there can be such a divergence in the views of two +men on a question of right and wrong," she asks herself, "that they will +sacrifice the happiness of the one woman they profess to love, rather +than agree upon a compromise, or one or the other change his views?" + +"My father loves me; he lavishes his wealth upon me; I am his only +child, his only comfort. He remains a widower so as to give me an +undivided love. Yet he will not consent to my speaking of wedding Harvey +Trueman. He tells me that Harvey is an enemy of mankind; a man who is +seeking to disrupt civilization; that every word he utters is intended +to inflame the minds of the people; to incite them to anarchy. + +"And Harvey, can his words be false when his actions are so generous? +What prompted him to give the miner's widow a thousand dollars? Was it a +desire to do an act of charity, or was it as my father tells me, the act +of a demagogue? + +"How am I, a woman who knows nothing of politics or the principles of +government, to decide a question that divides nations? + +"What does all the advanced civilization of to-day amount to when it +stands as a barrier to happy marriages? + +"I cannot exchange places with a woman of the mining districts. My life +has been so different that I should be miserable." + +As she philosophises Ethel glances about her boudoir. It is midnight. +From her open window a refreshing breeze comes from the sea. Venetia, on +the Long Island shore, where Gorman Purdy has built his palatial +residence, is always fanned by ocean breezes. On this particular night +in August the moon shines full and bright. It gives a soft tone to the +luxurious apartment in which America's richest heiress lies tossing +restlessly on her bed. + +"How impossible it would be for a miner's wife to exchange places with +me," Ethel sighs. + +"I am envied by every woman in the land. And still I am unhappy; O, so +unhappy. + +"The fetters of wealth are as binding as those of poverty; they are not +appreciated by the world, and those who wear them are never pitied. If +only Harvey is elected President, and my father's fears are not +verified, perhaps--" + +Ethel does not dare to express the hope that wells in her heart. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + +OPENING THE CAMPAIGN. + + +A National Headquarters at the height of a Presidential election is of +all places in the world the busiest. Men there seem to concentrate the +pent-up energy of four years in the four months that are devoted to the +campaigning; they work day and night, regardless of sleep or food. A few +hours rest, taken when a momentary lull will permit, must suffice; a +hurried meal must appease their appetite. Meetings have to be arranged; +funds distributed to the various committees; literature has to be +prepared and distributed; doubtful districts need the attention of the +ablest spell-binders; the movements of the opposing parties have to be +met and counteracted. + +Especially is the present campaign an exciting one. The strain on old +party lines has at length snapped. The two leading parties in the West +and South are disrupted. While not utterly disorganized, the same +parties have suffered serious disintegration in the manufacturing +districts of the East. + +On the virtual ruins of the effete political organizations, the spirit +of the people finds utterance through the agency of the new party which +chooses as its name the "Independence Party." Vitalized by the infusion +in its body of the energetic and patriotic young men of the country, the +new party sprang into the lists, as it were, full grown. Its period of +adolescence has been as rapid as the transit of a comet. Yesterday it +had not existed, even in the minds of dreamers; to-day, in the +convention of one of the great political organizations an attempt was +made to throttle the voice of the majority. The voice of a single man +rose high and clear above the tumult; it was the voice of a Moses come +to lead his people from bondage. And that people were quick to +appreciate the importance of the presence of a great leader. The +convention cast aside all conservatism and cant; it produced a platform +that offered to mankind the direct and constitutional means for the +restoration of general prosperity and the re-establishment of the +principles of equality. + +In the first struggle against the entrenched power of corruption, the +new party had been defeated, not by reason of a disinclination on the +part of the people to support it, but because of the coercive methods +employed by the Trust Magnates. In the momentous campaign of 1900, the +vote of the people being divided, the candidate of the Democracy was +elected. He was a man of worth and was eager to do the people's bidding. +This, however, was not productive of any good to the people, as the +President had a House and Senate hostile to him. Thrice his first +Congress had attempted to impeach him, and they were deterred from +carrying out their partisan measure only by the ominous demonstration of +the laboring men in all sections of the land. + +Now, the greatest election ever held in this country is on; the forces +have met on three occasions and know each other's methods; they know +also that the result of the vote at this election will decide the future +of the country--it will continue to be a Republic in fact as in name; +or, if the Plutocratic party dominates, the dynasty of the first emperor +will be established. + +The Chicago Auditorium is selected as the quarters of the Plutocratic +contingent. The corridors of this magnificent hotel are crowded night +and day by throngs of visitors. Men from every state are there to +consult with the campaign committee. The grim visaged chairman of the +finance committee, Anthony Marcus, is always at his desk in an inner +room. Millionaires troop into his presence in a ceaseless stream; they +come with their bankbooks in hand and after a short interview with the +Powerful One, they depart, reassured that their millions are safe. They +pay their tithe to the Protector of American Plunderers. + +Anthony Marcus is in many ways a remarkable man; he is exempt from the +imputation of being a little man in any sense. His ideas are daring; +they can contemplate the debauchery of the Senate; the purchase of the +President, and the disruption of the Supreme Court; they cannot stoop to +the committal of petty larceny. So every dollar of the funds raised for +the expenses of the campaign is spent in purchasing votes or in buying +off dangerous leaders of the opposition. + +As fast as the funds are received they are distributed, and the method +of their final disposal is outlined by the great moving spirit. He seems +to possess infinite power of grasping the minutia of politics. None of +his lieutenants dares to misappropriate the funds turned over to him. +All know that their master has a disagreeable faculty of unexpectedly +asking for an accounting. + +"We will win by a margin of thirty-one votes in the Electoral College," +Chairman Marcus tells every one who inquires as to the probable result. +"This figure is based upon the canvass I have had made in the doubtful +states; it will not vary from the count by one vote." + +It is impossible to get the chairman to give an amplified statement as +to which he considers the doubtful states and as to how the canvass has +been conducted. + +One of the morning papers in Chicago, which takes an impartial stand, +and accordingly seeks to publish all of the news, creates a sensation by +the publication of a tabulated statement of the contributions paid into +the treasury of the Plutocratic party. This table shows a total of +forty-seven millions of dollars. + +With such a sum to expend, and with the knowledge that the chairman of +the finance committee will see that every dollar is properly +distributed, it is not unreasonable to suppose that a house to house +canvass of the doubtful states has actually been made. The corruption +fund provides more than three dollars for each voter in the land. + +Did Marcus think that one hundred million dollars will be necessary, he +would demand that sum, and it would not be withheld by the prosperous +band that derives its wealth from the law-makers whom Marcus elects. + +What a contrast is presented by the headquarters of the Independence +party. It is in a dilapidated hall in the western part of the city. The +only feature of the furnishings in keeping with the times, is the Bureau +of Publicity. This provides the campaign committee with telegraphic and +telephonic communication with the country at large. + +The instruments are arranged on two plain deal tables. In its appearance +the room is more like the editorial room of a hustling Western newspaper +than the headquarters of a political organization that is aspiring to +elect a President of the United States. The floor is bare; obsolete gas +fixtures afford the artificial light that is made necessary day and +night. The chairs and benches that are scattered about the room, are of +the type commonly seen in cheap music halls. There are no ante-rooms, no +council chambers and no secret cabinets. + +A campaign fund of but two hundred and sixty thousand dollars has been +raised through the agency of the labor organizations. This comparatively +paltry sum is being doled out in niggardly fashion by a finance +committee who feel reluctant to part with a single dollar unless assured +that it will have a hundred fold its natural effect on the result. + +There are some causes that do not need money to make them successful, +and the people's fight against Plutocracy is one of this kind. It needs +only the awakening of the people's interest to make victory certain. + +The surest way of gaining the public ear is by sending out speakers. +There is no dearth in the supply of brilliant orators who offer their +services. They foresee that the crucial test is to be given the +Institution of Popular Government and they wisely align themselves on +the side of the people. + +No stream of Millionaires comes to the Independence Party's +Headquarters; no line of retainers Stand with open hands to receive the +funds of fraud; there is as sharp a contrast between the two +headquarters as there is between the platforms and candidates of the +parties. + +Harvey Trueman is the guiding spirit at Drover's Hall. It is Tuesday, a +month before election. He visits the Hall for the last time before the +verdict of the people shall be recorded. + +"I am going to New York to-night," he tells his friend Maxwell, the +Chairman of the Speakers' Committee. "You had better notify the leaders +all along the line that I am prepared to make short speeches at every +available place." + +"Have you made arrangements with the railroads?" asks Maxwell. + +"It will not be necessary for me to consult with them; I have outlined +my route so that I can make connections on one road or another and go +through to New York in sixty hours. This will give me time to make +twenty short speeches." + +"When do you reach New York city?" + +"Friday night. It will be about seven o'clock. I want you to arrange for +a meeting in Madison Square Garden. It may cost us two thousand dollars, +but it will be money well spent." + +"We cannot get the Garden; not if we offered five thousand dollars. It +has been leased for three months straight by the Plutocrats," Maxwell +replies. + +"Then get the New York Committee to obtain a permit for an out-door +meeting. I will speak to twenty thousand people in New York on Friday if +I have to address them from a house-top." + +"One of the best places for an out-door meeting in New York is on West +street, between Cortlandt and Spring streets," suggests an operator who +has overheard the conversation. "That's the broadest thoroughfare in the +city." + +"Yes, that is a splendid place," acquiesces Trueman. + +"Have the meeting located there, Maxwell." + +Maxwell departs to carry out the order. + +A dozen men are soon receiving final instructions from their leader. +They hear the plan for the invasion of the East, and all agree that it +will be a wise move, and one which the enemy cannot counteract in so +short a time as will be left. + +The Judas that is present in almost all human conclaves, is among the +loudest in his remarks of approval. + +"You could do nothing that would give the Plutocrats a harder rub than +to speak on the eve, as it were, of election, in the hotbed of +Plutocracy," he assures Trueman. + +After a few minutes of further conversation on this line, the betrayer +departs. He is closeted with Marcus an hour later. The scheme for a +counter demonstration in New York is quickly formulated. + +Unconscious of the treachery that has been practiced, Trueman prepares +for the trip East. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + +ON TO NEW YORK. + + +In all the evening papers the announcement appears that Harvey Trueman +is to start on a tour of the East. The fact that he will leave the city +by train from the Union Depot is carefully suppressed, except in the two +comparatively unimportant journals which advocate the election of the +people's candidate. + +But the managers of Trueman's campaign have come to know what has to be +combatted. Handbills are hurriedly printed and distributed in the late +afternoon along State, Clark and Dearborn streets, and on the +intersecting streets in the centre of the business locality. These +hand-bills announce that Trueman will deliver his farewell speech to +Chicagoans that night at seven o'clock at the Adams street Bridge. + +At six o'clock the crowds begin congregating; they come from all +sections of the city; they are of every type, from the cowboy of the +Stock Yards to the Street Railway Magnate. All are intent on hearing the +captivating orator. + +Ten thousand people huddle in an area of five blocks. They know that +they all cannot hear Trueman; yet they hope to catch a glimpse of him, +and perhaps hear him make a short speech in their immediate +neighborhood. + +It is 6.50 when a hansom conveying Trueman hurries down Adams street +from State. The crowds cheer and yell. From a trot the horse attached to +the vehicle is forced to proceed at a walk. + +"Speech! speech!" cry the excited men as they surge through the narrow +thoroughfare. + +Trueman stands up in the hansom and leaning forward explains that he +cannot stop to make a speech at every corner. + +The few words he addresses to the crowd seem to satisfy their demands, +and they at once subside. + +Slowly the speaker approaches the throng at the Depot steps. In crossing +the bridge he twice has to comply with the persistent demand for a +speech. + +Now he is on the platform. + +His voice works a magic spell on the audience. They have been +boisterous, fretful, even at times disorderly. Not a dozen words are +uttered by Trueman and the silence, save for his ringing voice, is +intense. + +"I am leaving you that we may be assured of the support of the East," he +begins. + +"That you are with me and are determined to vote for your rights I do +not doubt for a moment. You are men who have learned the lesson of life +in the school of experience. A truth once grasped by you is not soon +forgotten. You all know who are your enemies." + +"Down with the Plutocrats!" howl the people. + +"As you stand before me, men of might, one a mechanic, one a laborer, +another a tradesman, another a railway employee, is there any one of you +who wishes to vote to deprive his fellow-workmen of the right to earn a +living? Is there a single man among you who is striving night and day to +corner the food of the land that he may starve his brother-workmen into +paying him tribute? Is there a man among you who is living on the +distress of his fellows, brought about by his wrecking the bank in which +they have hoarded their savings? + +"No, there is none such here. + +"Then there should not be a voter here who will cast a ballot to put in +power men who seek in public office only their personal ends. The +Plutocratic ticket has not a man on it who is not an agent of the +Trusts. Do not take this assertion on my authority. Investigate the +ticket for yourselves." + +Here the assembly cheer wildly. + +"I want you to roll up a majority in the city of Chicago which shall +demonstrate to the world that the citizens of the Star of the West are +among the staunchest patriots in the Union." + +With the whistling and shrieking of the crowd in his ears, Trueman steps +from the platform and makes his way to the train. The trip East is +unique. It differs from the ordinary Presidential campaign tour in so +much as there is no attempt to have reception committees meet the trains +on which the candidate travels; there is no speaking from the rear +platform of the trains. The depots are owned by the Plutocrats and no +crowds are permitted to congregate to hail Trueman. + +At Toledo, Columbus, Philadelphia and Newark, Trueman changes trains and +goes to a public square where he addresses the populace. As he nears New +York the enthusiasm of the crowds abates. In Newark the Plutocratic +missionaries have spread the seeds of falsehood and have made such +telling use of coercive threats that the people are actually hostile to +Trueman and his party, deeming them Anarchists. The protection of the +police is needed to prevent the most violent of the men from attacking +the speakers. In the attempt to suppress supposed law-breakers, these +misguided citizens become lawless themselves. + +At Jersey City there is a great crowd blocking the passageways of the +terminal. Trueman is forced to mount one of the mail cars and make a +speech. No sooner has he finished, then he is surrounded by the +reporters of the New York papers. + +"Mr. Trueman, are you aware that the Plutocrats have arranged for a +torchlight parade for to-night, as a counter demonstration to your +meeting?" one of the reporters asks. + +"Yes, I received a telegram at Philadelphia informing me to that +effect." + +"The line of march is from the Battery north on Broadway to Cortlandt +street; west on Cortlandt to Harrison street, and north on that street +to Spring," explains another reporter. + +"This means that they will run the parade parallel with the river front +and one block from West street. It will be timed so as to pass just as +you are making your address," he adds. + +"You may inform the managers of the parade that I will be delighted to +have them send their army of intimidated workmen down to West street, +and I may be able to entertain them. + +"Those who come within reach of my voice will, I think, hear news that +will hold them, as against a brass band and fireworks. If not, then they +would be better off in the wake of the procession," exclaims Trueman +icily. + +"Where do you propose to make your first speech?" asks a youthful +reporter. + +It is a superfluous question in the minds of all the older newspaper +men. They smile inwardly; but the answer this query evokes sends them +all flying to telephones. + +"I shall make my first speech at the Battery, where the paraders may +have the benefit of a little plain truth." + +The group of Independents are now on the ferryboat. + +Across the river the myriad lights of the metropolis give the scene air +appearance as of fairyland. The night is overcast and the clouds act as +a reflector to the million lights in the city below; the sky line of +Brooklyn is a dull salmon color. A chill October wind sweeps from east +to west. It is a bad night to speak out of doors. Upon reaching +Cortlandt slip Trueman descends to the lower deck and is among the first +to leave the boat. He crosses West street unobserved, and on reaching +the Elevated Station at Cortlandt street, boards a down-town train. With +him are three of the committee of arrangements. The remainder of the +party go to the platform at the foot of Barclay street to address the +crowd and announce the cause of Trueman's delay. + +When the South Ferry is reached Trueman sees that Battery Park is packed +with people. He descends to the street and wedges his way to the music +stand in the centre of the park. Without much difficulty he manages to +climb upon the stand. + +As a piece of good fortune an electric light shines full on his face as +he turns to the crowd. + +Up to this moment people think that the tall man with the slouch hat is +seeking a point of vantage from which to view the formation of the +parade. + +It does not require two glances, however, to assure the people that the +man before them is Harvey Trueman. + +"That's Trueman, or I'm a liar!" shouts an Irishman. + +"That's who it is," blurts a man beside him. + +"What is he doing down here? I thought he was to speak on West Street?" + +Some of the men in the crowd now begin cheering. They cry: + +"Trueman! Trueman! Rah! rah! rah! Speech! speech!" + +The proper moment has arrived. Trueman takes off his hat and waves it as +a sign for silence. The cheering and the rumor that Trueman has suddenly +appeared, turns a sea of people in the direction of the music stand. +Fully eight thousand men are within the radius of his voice. He speaks +at first in a high metallic key; but after the first minute or so he +reaches his normal voice, which with its fullness and exquisite +modulation makes his oratory remarkable. + +Here is an occasion where rhetoric will prove available; the crowd +before him is composed for the most part of the better element, so +called for reason of its disinclination to change existing conditions. +If a sense of justice in this great mass of humanity can be aroused it +will impel each and all to yield to the will of the orator. With sharp +sarcasm he refers to the precautionary action of the Plutocrats to +prevent his addressing a New York audience. Do they fear he may convert +it? + +Rapidly he pictures the scenes of intimidation he has witnessed in the +west and northwest. Is New York chained to the wheels of the Plutocratic +chariot? + +As the first sign of sympathy answers his appeal, he urges upon his +audience the necessity of declaring anew the independence of the people. +The fervor of his speech affects the crowd; the indescribable impulse to +yield to the will of a fellow-man who commands the power of oratory, +asserts itself. At the declaration of a principle of government which is +trite in itself, there is a scattered cheer; an apt epigram evokes a +storm of applause. Trueman wins the full sympathy of his audience; they +are his to command. + +"I am expected to address an audience at the foot of Barclay street. It +will afford me unbounded pleasure if I may tell them that the meeting +will not be disturbed; that you have decided to apply to politics the +same spirit of fair play that you would demand in a street brawl." + +"We're with you," cries a man. "You're all right." Trueman steps from +the music stand. The crowd gather about him, shouting and cheering for +him. + +"This is an Independence parade," some one shouts. + +"Forward, march, for Barclay street!" becomes the general shout. Trueman +is pushed on toward the edge of the Battery Park till the line of +carriages in which some of the members of the parade were to ride is +reached. He is lifted into one of the carriages and the march for the +West street stand is begun. The line of march leads along State street +to Battery Place; here it turns west to the river, and thence up West +street. The traffic which chokes that thoroughfare in the day is absent +and the broad expanse of street affords an excellent concourse. + +With the clashing strains of three bands, the shouts of thousands of +men, the flickering lights of torches and Roman candles, Trueman +approaches the audience which has been impatiently awaiting him. Flushed +with the pride of his victory he mounts the stand to address ten +thousand men in the citadel of Plutocracy. His advent in New York is a +signal triumph. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + +DEPARTURE OF THE COMMITTEE. + + +By the last election for President a man has been put in office who is +the acknowledged tool of the Trusts and Monopolies. He has avowedly +sealed his independence by accepting a nomination brought about by the +ring leader of a syndicate of Railroad Magnates and Steel and Oil Kings. + +The people are in such a depressed condition that it is believed no +determined opposition to the dominant party can be conducted. So this +man is a candidate for re-election. The few intrepid men who succeed in +keeping the people's party in the field are derided and denounced as +anarchists. Their very lives are threatened, and in one instance a +Governor of the people being elected, he is immediately assassinated. +But for the certainty of the Plutocrats that their money will win them a +victory, all the leaders of the Independence party would be forcibly +done away with. + +The prospects of the coming election look dubious for the people. On +August thirteenth the Committee of Forty determined to take the step for +re-emancipation. The time to strike the telling blow at monopoly is +approaching. The men all know what the work outlined will entail, and +they have brought themselves to look at the matter in much the same +light as the originator of the unparalleled expedient. + +"We have been forced into adopting the plan of annihilation," Professor +Talbort declares to Henry Neilson, a fellow committeeman with whom he is +traveling to the Pacific coast. + +"I agree with you," replies Neilson, "it is the only course open to us; +we have given every other proposal careful consideration. They would +only temporarily avert a conflict." + +"I have pondered on the question of how our acts will be accepted by the +people," the Professor resumes. "I believe they will hail our acts as +those of deliverance." + +"They will appreciate that we gave our lives for them," Neilson declares +unhesitatingly. + +All of the Forty act with similar coolness. + +Men of action are not as a usual thing great talkers; so it is with the +members of this committee. They waive much that would be deemed +essential by less resolute and active men. How the several annihilations +are to be effected is a matter left for each man to decide for himself. +He will have to carry out any plan he devises, and it is considered as +the best policy to let his method be known to no one else. This is the +surest way of avoiding a possible miscarriage of the plan. + +The failure of one of the forty men will not then involve the remaining +thirty-nine. Every contingency is weighed. The chance of one or more of +the men going insane because of the frightful secret, is taken into +account and the idea that each man shall decide the details of the +course he is to pursue is adopted. + +"I am glad that we parted without formality," Nettinger declares to the +group of committeemen who are his companions on a train that leaves +Chicago for the South. + +"It would have unnerved us to speak of our meeting as '_the last_'" says +another of the group. "I have faced danger in my life, but I regard this +as the most astounding departure that has ever been made in the +interests of humanity." + +"The future of the Republic is at stake," observes a third. "How will it +all end?" + +This is the question that is uppermost in the minds of all. + +"There is no time left to weigh the effects of defeat," Nettinger +asserts. "Each of us has but one thing to do, and to do this +successfully he has pledged his life. No man can do more." + +The eleven disciples, as they separated after the crucifixion, each to +pursue a separate course, inaugurated the preaching of a great and +potential religion, and their work is the most momentous in history. So +it may prove that this Nineteenth Century aggregation of men united for +the purpose of benefiting their fellowmen, is of tantamount influence on +the human race. + +From acting as component parts in a body that exists as a moral protest +against the wrongs of the world and the unrelenting hands of the +usurpers of the right of the people, these forty men go forth as an army +of crusaders. + +On the committee of forty there is not a man who has not argued his +conscience into a state of appreciation of the worthiness of the action +he is to perform. + +It is past midnight. Two months from this date, on October thirteenth, +the fulfillment of the vows the men have taken, must be made. In the +sixty days that are to intervene will any of these intrepid wills bend +under the pressure of mental anxiety? Will any of them prove a modern +Judas? + +Nevins is the last to quit the store-room. He is nervous, almost +hysterical; his thin classical features are distorted and tense, as +though he were undergoing actual physical pain. And indeed to his +sensitive nature, the events of the night are sufficient to unnerve his +mind and body. + +He is to meet Carl Metz and Hendrick Stahl in the morning, to start for +the East. + +"The syndicate of annihilation is now incorporated," he observes, half +aloud. "I am no longer the promoter; now I assume a place as one of the +avengers of the people. God alone knows how repugnant this plan for +physical vengeance is to me, yet it is better than to permit a storm of +anarchy to come upon us. And the conditions that exist cannot long +continue." + +Although every man has been called upon to make a personal sacrifice +there is none who makes a greater one than he. It is not alone the +relinquishment of his position in the world as a patient and industrious +worker; his sacrifice of love; the obliteration of his hope for +preferment, but the extinction of life itself at an age when all men +cherish it most highly. + +Nevins is in the heyday of manhood; his forty years and six having been +spent in the perfection of his mental and physical forces. He is +equipped with a quick, perceptive brain that grasps the intricacies of a +problem almost intuitively; his logic is profound. Years of study have +made his mind a storehouse of knowledge. + +To Nevins, in the allotment of the proscribed, has fallen the head of +the money trust, a multi-millionaire banker, a financial Magnate known +throughout the civilized world as the most rapacious miser on record. +This man has repeatedly shown that he has no regard for honesty of +purpose, and his moral appreciation is imperceptible. To recount the +deeds of cunning, of fraud, of gigantic robbery that he has committed in +his relentless quest for wealth, would be to retell the story of wrecked +railroads, enormously profitable bond issues and Wall street panics of +the past decade. The obituaries of the hundreds he has ruined afford the +best method of arriving at a partial conception of his power for evil. + +"What a privilege to rid the world of this genius of evil!" is Nevins's +inward comment as he reads the fatal slip and sees that upon him has +fallen the lot to execute the sentence of annihilation upon James +Golding, the King of Wall street. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + +IN THE ENEMY'S STRONGHOLD. + + +After an absence of weeks, during which time Harvey Trueman carries the +war into the very heart of the Magnates' strongholds, he returns to +Chicago. His first mission is to visit Sister Martha. She had been kept +in touch with his movements by short notes and aggravatingly brief +telegrams, which he sent her as occasion permitted. In the papers she +finds but meagre notice of the progress which the Independence party is +making, for the censor of the press has effectually silenced all the +important mediums. The News Associations, even, are brought under the +ban and are given to understand that a violation of the orders of the +Plutocratic Party will mean a forfeiture of all privileges of +transportation to papers using the offensive news. + +The meeting of these two ardent patriots is fraught with emotion. +Trueman is the more moved by reason of the knowledge that he is regarded +by Martha as the embodiment of all virtue, wisdom and power. He feels +his incapacity to fill this exalted role, especially as the unrequited +love he bears for Ethel Purdy is still burning in his heart. + +"You do not seem yourself to-night," Martha tells him frankly. + +"No, that is true; I have so much to think about; so many details to +keep in mind that I suffer from abstraction when I am not under the +stress of actual labor." + +Trueman is seated beside a table in the centre of the Sisters' Home, +which has come to be the only haven of rest he knows in the whole world. +He is in a communicative mood, and appreciating that the woman before +him is an interested listener he is ready to review the events of the +campaign. + +"I have so many evidences of treachery in my own camp that at times I +despair of the result of the struggle," he says, half despondently. + +"It is the accursed power of gold that is fighting you," Martha breaks +in vehemently. "O, if we could only have a few thousand dollars to fight +them with their own weapon." + +At the mention of so paltry a sum to be pitted against the unlimited +millions of the Magnates, Trueman cannot repress a smile. + +"I know it may seem ludicrous for a woman to talk politics," continues +his gentle adviser, apologetically. "Yet it would not take as much as +you imagine to nullify the effect of the millions of bribe money and +tribute money that the Plutocrats are spending. + +"What would you have me do with the money?" + +"Use it in enlightening the people as to their true condition. It is +impossible to conceive of men who would knowingly sell their birthright. +The perfidy of the press is the sin of sins in this age of unbridled +iniquity," she declares, her face flushing with indignation. "Free +speech has not yet been totally interdicted. Speak to the people; tell +them to emancipate themselves." + +"You make me wish, almost, that your sex was not debarred from the +exercise of suffrage," Trueman declares. "If I receive as staunch +support from the men of the land as I have already been accorded by the +women I shall triumph at the polls. + +"Let me recount the events of the past few days that I have only hinted +at in my letters. It will make you glad that you were born a woman. + +"When I reached Milwaukee, ten days ago," continues Trueman, "I found +that the committee of coercion had anticipated my arrival and had issued +its edict against the citizens turning out to see me. The police had +received their instructions to keep the streets clear, and they were +untiring in their efforts to earn the approbation of their masters. The +train arrived at one-thirty in the afternoon. Ordinarily there would +have been a large crowd at the depot; to our surprise we found the depot +and the adjoining streets practically deserted. + +"As our party moved in the direction of the hotel, I noticed that a +woman was keeping pace with us on the opposite side of the street. She +was dressed in a modest gown and would not have attracted attention had +she not continually turned her head to look behind her. + +"Yielding to an impulse of curiosity I turned my head and saw that at +the distance of a block a squad of police was following us. Then it +dawned upon me that the woman was endeavoring to give our party the cue. +When the steps of the hotel were reached I felt impelled to see where +the woman would go. She stood on the corner of the street for half a +minute and then disappeared around the corner. + +"Half an hour later I was handed the card of a 'Mrs. Walton.' Upon going +to the reception room I found that the strange woman had come to see me. + +"Her first words, 'Are we alone?' made me feel that I should have a new +element to meet. I suspected a trap of the enemy. When I assured her +that she was at liberty to speak, Mrs. Walton went directly to the +point. + +"'I have come to offer you the support of the women of Milwaukee,' she +began, 'and that means a great deal at a time when the men are afraid to +say their souls are their own. + +"'The women of this city are not under the yoke and they trust to you to +put off the day of their subjugation, if you cannot put them in safety +for all time. + +"'We have realized that the hour for woman to assert her power has come; +she cannot vote, nor does she aspire to that questionable right, but she +can influence the votes of the men with whom she comes in contact. + +"'You have come to a city that is as effectually closed to you as if it +were walled and the gates were shut in your face. The press, the police, +the labor organizations, every power has been subsidized to work against +you. I know every move that has been made. For there's not a word +uttered that is not brought to the council of women's clubs. + +"'The moment it was known that you were to visit this city the order +went forth that you were not to be permitted to hold a public meeting. +You were not to be refused the right to speak; that would have been too +bold and brazen an act for even the Plutocrats to carry out. It was +decided that the same ends could be accomplished by preventing the army +of mercenaries and wage-slaves to parade the streets. The corps of +"spotters" were sent out. + +"'You are a witness to what end. The streets were deserted. They will +remain so during your stay.' + +"I was on the point of interrupting the woman, but she exclaimed, 'Don't +interrupt me.' + +"'I was appointed a committee of one to wait upon you and extend you the +offices of the Women's League,' she continued. 'While waiting in the +depot I overheard the orders of the Captain of Police to the Sergeant. +He told his subordinate not to allow you to collect a crowd on the +street, and detailed a squad to follow you to your hotel. + +"'If you have any message to deliver to the men of Milwaukee you may +depend upon the seven thousand women who are enrolled in the League to +scatter it for you. I can tell you that there is no other way open to +you.' + +"I was too surprised to reply for a moment. When I finally formulated a +response, I told her that the facts she had just furnished me were of +such an extraordinary nature that I should be obliged to give them my +most careful consideration, and that if she would call again in an hour +I should be able to tell her what use I could make of her offer. + +"When I was alone I hastened to rejoin the members of the Committee who +had accompanied me on my trip. + +"I asked them if they were aware of the conditions that existed in the +city. They told me that the Chief of Police had just informed them that +we could not hold a meeting outside of a hall. 'Public safety' was given +as the cause of this order. + +"Then I hastily recounted the incident of the visit of Mrs. Walton. Some +of the committeemen were skeptical and advised me not to have any +dealings with the woman. I, however, was favorably impressed with her. + +"At the expiration of two hours she returned. I had a long talk with +her, in which I told her how her League could be of benefit to me if it +would impress upon the men the necessity of voting for their rights. She +assured me that my messages would be carried into every mill and factory +in the city. + +"I held a meeting in the hall that the local Independence party had +secured. The attendance was made up exclusively of staunch party men. +Outside of the hall stood a dozen policemen and a half dozen spotters. + +"None of the workmen of the city dared to attend the meeting." + +"And this is Free America!" exclaims Martha, under her breath. + +"Yes, this is America; but, is it free?" asks Trueman. + +"From Milwaukee I went to St. Paul and Minneapolis. The same condition +existed in these places. I turned to Detroit; the result was the same. + +"I resolved to advance into the one State that the Magnates believe they +control absolutely. From Detroit I went to Philadelphia. The reception +that awaited me there is one that I shall never forget. My native State +is so utterly dominated by the Trust Magnates that the free-born +citizens do not dare to attend public meetings." + +"What is the use of the secret ballot if men cannot go to the polls and +register there the opinion they hold?" Martha asks, with irony in her +voice. + +"Ah, the secret ballot is but another of the illusive baits which the +rich wisely throw out to the poor to keep them in submission. It is +secret only in name. The results of an election are what count. The +Magnates have so intimidated the masses that they are no longer +possessed of the spirit to vote according to their thoughts," Trueman +replies sadly. + +"The Pharisees have preached the doctrine of the sacredness of 'vested +rights' until the people, in many sections of the country, have come to +regard the right of property as paramount to the right of mankind to +life and liberty. + +"Every act that would alleviate the sufferings of the people is at once +stigmatized as anarchistic; while the aggressions of the men of money in +the legislatures, and through executives, are upheld as justifiable +means for the proper protection of property. + +"My trip to the West and East has made me doubtful as to the result of +the election. In New York City alone is there a tendency to support me." + +"Oh, do not say that you have lost hope," expostulates Sister Martha. + +"It is not my intention to intimate that I have done so, to any one, +other than to you." + +"Ah, I cannot believe that a just God will see you defeated!" + +"As matters stand now it will take almost a miracle to elect me. I have +studied all the elements that enter into this campaign. It will be the +last one that can be conducted with the semblance of order. Four years +from now, if not before then, the conditions will be ripe for a +revolution; the oligarchy of American manufacturers and bankers will +have reached its height and will be on the point of dissolution. The +perfected mechanism of government that it will have established, will be +in readiness to be turned over to the people. + +"Socialism of a rational sort will result from the sudden and sharp +revolution. History will not be enriched by a new chapter, but be marked +by the repetition of its most frequent story--the fall of empire and the +establishment of a new government. In the end of all governments at the +same point, is the strongest argument in support of the theory of +reincarnation; a state, as a being, has its birth, mature age, and +decay. None seemingly is endowed with the attribute of immutability. It +was the fond hope of our forefathers that the United States should prove +the exception. Imperialism was the reef on which the classic empires +were wrecked; commercialism is the danger that threatens our ship of +state." + +"You must take a brighter view of the situation," insists the sensitive +woman, to whom these lugubrious words are as dagger thrusts. "You must +fight as if there was not the shadow of a doubt but that you will be +successful. I have a premonition (woman's intuition, if you prefer), +that you will be the victor in this struggle." + +With these words of encouragement ringing in his ears, Trueman departs. +He has yielded to the human weakness which prompts a man to confide his +inmost thoughts to woman. Kingdoms have been destroyed, empires have +crumbled in a day; the world's greatest generals have seen their +carefully designed campaigns fall flat, all through the treachery of +women in failing to keep secret the confessions of their confidants. + +The admission that Trueman has made of his misgivings as to the result +of the election, if it were made public, would shatter his every chance. +The world will not lend its support to a man or a cause that admits its +hopelessness. A forlorn hope, however forlorn, has never wanted +volunteers. + +Fortunately Trueman has made a confidant of a woman unselfishly and +devotedly his friend, and who has the good sense to realize that his +untrammeled utterances to her are for her alone. + +It is eleven o'clock when Trueman reaches his party's headquarters. He +finds his supporters working with the feverish energy that attaches to a +desperate situation. The soldiers of a beleaguered fortress man the guns +with a disregard to fatigue and danger that is inspiring; the men at the +pumps, when the word goes forth that the ship is sinking, work with a +frenzy that defies nature; so it is with the leaders of the Independence +party. They are fighting against appalling odds, yet they do not stop to +question the result. "Work, work, work!" is the command they obey. + +"The indications from the Southern States are brighter than ever," one +of the committeemen tells Trueman. + +"Judge for yourself," adds another, and he hands the candidate a +telegram. It is from New Orleans. Trueman reads it aloud: + + "CHAIRMAN BAILEY, National Headquarters, Independence + Party, Chicago, Ill.: + + From a canvass of the cotton belt the indications are that + our party will carry all the Southern States with the possible + exception of Louisiana. This doubtful state can be carried if + speakers are sent there. + + (Signed) EDWARD B. MASON." + +"Is there any way of complying with this request?" Trueman asks. + +"We may be able to send three speakers down there the latter part of the +week," says the Chairman of the Speakers Committee, after consulting his +schedule. + +"Have you heard from New York to-day?" Trueman is asked by the +Treasurer. "You know we have been expecting to hear the result of the +forecast there." + +"No, I have had no word. It is barely possible that the message has been +intercepted." + +As Trueman speaks the telegraph operator approaches and hands him a +message. + +"Here is the message!" cries Trueman. "It is from Faulkner. He says that +the city of New York will be about evenly divided; and that in the state +we can rely upon the counties along the canal. He ends up by stating +that the result in Greater New York may be assured if I can go there and +fight in person." + +"Then you will go?" inquires Mr. Bailey. + +"Yes, I shall go there at once and try to be there for the close of the +campaign." + +The routine of the night's work is resumed. Trueman leaves to take a +much needed rest. + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + +THE COMMITTEE REPORTS PROGRESS. + + +As the time approaches for the carrying out of the plan of annihilation, +the spirits of the forty vacillate from joyousness to despair at the +thought, now of the glorious page they are to give to the history of the +world and now, of the terrible means that an inexorable fate compels +them to use. Each passes through varying moods. The ever present thought +that the day will soon arrive on which each will have to commit two +deeds of violence, the one, to take a public enemy out of the world's +arena once and forever; the other, the extinction of self, is enough to +keep the mental tension at the snapping point. + +Yet, not a man weakens. The stolid march of trained men toward +inevitable death is the only counterpart to their action. And their +unfaltering fulfillment of the work allotted them is the more remarkable +as each works independently. It is one thing to be impelled forward by +the frenzy and madness of battle; to be nerved to deeds of valor and +self-sacrifice in the face of impending disaster, such as shipwreck and +fire; but it is quite another thing to deliberately carry out a plan +that taxes the will, the heart and the conscience, and that too, totally +unaided by the presence or sympathy of others. This is what these forty +men have determined it is their duty to perform. + +Nevins is in New York to receive reports from the members of the +Committee. A month has passed since their departure from Chicago. From +most of the men he receives letters in which they tell of their success. +No mention is made of the men to whom they are assigned, yet the reports +seem to assure Nevins that the plan will not miscarry. + +"I have twice been sorely tempted to abandon my mission," writes Horace +Turner, the plain, honest Wisconsin farmer. "My heart and not my +conscience has been weak. But strength of purpose has come to me. I +realize that our undertaking is one that the populace will not sanction +at the start; it is not one that we can hope to make acceptable to the +public mind until it comes to a successful issue. + +"The world does not look with favor upon reforms or revolutions until +they are accomplished facts. And this is the reason history records the +events of every advance of man in letters of blood. This advance is not +to be an exception in this point so far as the spilling of blood is +concerned; it is to be exceptional in regard to the quantity that is to +be sacrificed. + +"The revolutions in politics that have preceded it, the reformations in +religion, have necessitated the butchery of thousands of men and women; +the overturning of existing conditions and the impediment of the human +race for generations. + +"This reformation will measure its sacrificial blood in drops. It will +have as many martyrs as it had tyrants." + +It is the preponderance of reasons in favor of their adhering to their +oaths that prevents the members of the Committee of Annihilation from +faltering. + +At forty points through the world these unheralded crusaders are +silently arranging their campaigns against the enemies of the common +weal. For the most part the men who have been named on the proscribed +list are residents of the chief city of their respective states; they +are men who have walked the path of life rough-shod and have stepped to +their exalted positions over the prostrate forms of their fellowmen. +They are what the world is pleased to call the "Princes of Commerce." + +To become acquainted with the habits of his quarry; to fix upon a plan +for inflicting death upon him, which will be certain, and to be prepared +to carry this programme out at the appointed time, these are matters +that each of the forty has to arrange. + +They call into requisition all of their talents, all of the skill that +has made them men of mark in their respective professions and vocations. + +When Hendrick Stahl became sponsor for Nevins he felt that he had not +misplaced his confidence, yet it was impossible for him to be +unacquainted with the movements of the originator of the Committee of +Forty. He so arranges his affairs as to be in New York at the end of the +month to meet him. On his visits he seeks Nevins and spends the night +with him. + +"I have perfected my plans," Stahl tells his friend. "At first it looked +as though I could not get acquainted with my man, but I finally struck +upon a course that led me directly to him. I perfected the details of a +mechanism to do away with manual labor on a machine which he employs in +his factory. When I suggested the adoption of it and proved that I could +make the improvement, he became interested. I meet him every day. On the +thirteenth of October we will examine the model." + +Nevins opens a letter bearing a postmark, "Edinburgh, Scotland." The +letter simply states: + +"I am enjoying the hospitality of one of the Transgressors. He and I are +great friends. We are arranging to substitute a counterfeit substance +for the new armor plate ordered by the government. + +"By our plan the government will be defrauded of thirty million dollars. +The armor plate will not stand the test of heavy projectiles. But we can +'fix' the inspectors. My _friend_ is delighted at the prospect of giving +the United States Government another batch of worthless armor plate." + +This particular Transgressor is Ephraim Barnaby, the Pennsylvania iron +king. He is the master of the greatest iron and steel concern in the +world. His wealth is counted by scores of millions; he has palaces in +this country and abroad. His domination over the lives of the thousands +who slave in his foundries is kept unshaken by reason of the fact that +he coats the bitter acts of oppression of which he is constantly guilty, +with ostentatious gifts in the name of benevolence. He presents the +cities of the country with public libraries. + +This philanthrophic iron master has erected an armory for his private +detectives for every library he has established for the people. To make +a life of unparalleled achievement as an amasser of money terminate in +glory is well within his power, but avarice is the chief occupant of his +heart. With sixty and more years on his head and so much wealth that he +cannot by any possibility spend one twentieth part of his yearly income, +the iron master still has an insatiable thirst for gold. To the Forty +who know every detail of his career, this man above all others is the +one whom they despise. His hypocrisy makes him the most despicable of +the proscribed. Chadwick is proud that to him has fallen the lot of +exterminating this Transgressor. + +From other letters received by Nevins it develops that not one of the +men has failed in locating his man and in laying the net which is to +enmesh him. + +The proposal of a supposed inventor to create a machine that will reduce +cost of manufacture, leads the merchant prince into a trap. He rejoices +at the thought of reducing the expense of wage and of maintaining the +price of goods to the consumer. + +An improved explosive interests the mine owner It will cost him less and +can be sold to the operatives at the same price. It is more dangerous to +use, but that does not deter him from seeking to utilize it; for it is +the operatives who will have to run the risk in the mines. + +A substitute for oil is the lure that compels the Oil King to pay +respectful attention to another of the committee. The same prospect of a +substitute for sugar demands the attention of the Sugar King. To each of +the Transgressors there is held out as a bait the needed promise of gain +at the public expense. + +Thus the details of the pending tragedy are perfected. + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + +MILLIONAIRES SOWING THE WIND. + + +While the work of the Independence party is being conducted with all the +vigor that its scanty financial resources will permit, the opponents of +popular government are pushing their campaign in all directions, aided +by inexhaustible money, and all the influence that attaches to the party +in power. The Plutocratic convention which had been held in Chicago +promulgated a platform that pledges the party to institute every form of +legislation calculated to appease the demands of the people. + +That the pretences of the platform are insincere is a fact that every +one is well acquainted with; yet so potential is the power of the party +that it is able to persuade men against their best judgment, and those +whom it cannot bring to its support by argument are forced to align +themselves on the side of phitocratic government by the force of +coercion. + +Where in 1900 the Trusts employed four million men, they now have on +their pay rolls more than ten millions. This represents seventy-five per +cent. of all the able-bodied men in the country. The tradesmen in every +city are as effectually dominated by the Trust magnates as if they were +on their payrolls. Through the general establishment of the system of +"consignment," by which goods are placed on sale in small shops, under +covenants with the Trusts, the retailers are made to sell at the prices +dictated by the manufacturers. It is useless for a retailer to rebel; he +has either to handle the goods of the Trusts or go out of business +altogether. + +To realize how far-reaching this system is, it will suffice to cite the +case of the retail grocers. Their staple articles, such as sugar, flour, +salt, coffee, tea, spices and canned meats are all controlled by Trusts. +If the retailer attempts to sell any article not manufactured by the +Trusts, his contumacy is taken as a cause for all the staples he has "on +sale" to be reclaimed by the Trusts. This leaves him with practically +nothing to sell. + +Where a man, more pugnacious than the majority, attempts to fight the +Trusts, his stand is made futile by the Trust immediately establishing a +rival store in his neighborhood, where goods are sold at an actual loss +until ruin comes upon the recalcitrant tradesman. + +This is the story of all trades. It is the condition that exists in all +lines of manufacture as well, and the system reaches even to the +farmers. They have either to sell their products at the prices offered +by the Trusts or run themselves into inevitable bankruptcy. They may +dispose of one year's crop, but the next year they are doomed to find +themselves without a purchaser. Failing to intimidate the farmer, the +Trust will bring its influence to bear upon the purchaser--he will +either be absorbed or annihilated. + +From being a nation of independent producers, the people of the United +States have been slowly and insidiously pushed back to a position where +more than nine-tenths of the people are the servants of the remaining +few. With the changed condition has come a deterioration in the spirit +of the masses. They are apathetic, and take the scant wage that the +Trusts condescend to pay them. The efforts to regain a place of +honorable independence are becoming weaker and weaker. + +The enervating effects of urban life have told on the millions who live +in the great cities. The number of men who can stand the rigor of +out-door life, and the exigencies of labor afield, grows smaller year by +year. + +Adulterated food, sedentary work at machines which require practically +no skill to operate, and dispiriting home surroundings have brought +millions of men to a mental and physical condition which makes them +little better than slaves. + +These truths Trueman and his co-workers endeavor to impress upon the +people. In some districts the audiences evince interest in the +arguments. In others the speakers are met with open derision. + +"We are content to work in our present places," some of the laborers +assert. "Are we not sure of getting our bread as it is? If we were to +bring on a revolution where would our next day's wage come from?" + +To this argument, which exhibits to what a debased position the +wage-earner has sunk, the Independence party leaders who have formed the +party of the fragment of free-minded men that still remains, marshal all +the arguments of logic and political economy. They appeal to the pride, +the decency of the men, to drag themselves from the slough into which +they have fallen. The appeals are fervent, yet their effect seems +uncertain. + +The terror of "lock-outs," of massacres done under the seal of the law, +is vividly recalled. + +In 1900 the people had made a desperate effort to throw off the yoke of +the Trusts. They had failed and been made to feel the lash of their +victors. Eight years have passed, during which the Trusts have become +impregnable, the people impotent. + +Trueman is in St. Louis on a flying trip. This city of two millions is +the great centre of the labor organizations. + +It is Friday night, and the local headquarters is the scene of wild +excitement. It resembles nothing more closely than a camp on the eve of +battle. Leaders from all districts of the city are on hand to receive +final instructions, as in a camp they would be given ammunition, rations +and assignment of positions. The determined expression that marks the +face of a man who is set at a task which involves his entire future, is +upon every man who enters the headquarters. The fountain of their +inspiration is Trueman, who has a word for everyone. He seems to be +everywhere and to be able to do all things. + +From the hour of his triumph at Chicago he has won the support of the +rural districts. Mass meetings have been held in villages, hamlets and +cross-roads in all the States. In the smaller towns the people have +likewise hailed Trueman as their deliverer. It is the good fortune of +those dwelling outside of the cities to be still in possession of the +dormant spirit of independence. They have been crushed, yet not cowed by +the Trusts. + +The fact that they are self-supporting in so far as procuring the actual +necessities of food and shelter, make them capable of retaining a hope +for emancipation from Trust domination. + +The wage-slaves of the cities are in a condition actually appalling. It +is part of Trueman's campaign to go amongst the shops and factories in +the environs of the cities to talk with the men, and to picture to them +the results that will follow their voting in their own interests. He has +seen poverty in its most direful forms. + +The evening has worn on until it is within an hour of midnight. +Reporters come and go; the last of the committeemen has said good night. +Trueman is alone with his secretary, Herbert Benson. + +Benson, a young newspaperman, volunteered his services at the opening of +the campaign. He is a brilliant writer, and what is of more consequence, +he is beyond doubt an ardent supporter of popular government. There are +few men in the journalistic field who are free thinkers. The +universities, colleges and academies in which the higher branches of +study can be pursued, have all been brought under the power of the +Magnates. Endowments are only to be obtained by observing the commands +of the donors. The chief offence which an institution of learning can +commit is to tell the truth regarding social conditions. For this reason +the men who enter journalism from college, are unfitted to grasp the +social problem; or if, in the case of a few, the true conditions are +realized, they find it expedient to remain silent. Excommunication from +the craft is sure to follow any radical expression in favor of +socialism. The press is free only in name. + +A strong friendship exists between Trueman and Benson. + +"Tell me candidly, Benson," Trueman inquires, "do you think there is a +chance of my carrying New York City and St. Louis?" + +"I am satisfied that you will have a clean majority in both. My belief +is based on personal observations. I have been in all quarters of the +cities, and have questioned workmen in every industry. They seem of one +mind. Your Convention speech converted them." + +"What do they say about it?" + +"Why, it makes it clear to them that with a fearless and noble leader, +the masses can express their will. You showed to the world that reason +_can_ rule passion. It needed but a word from you to have precipitated a +revolt in the party which would have spread through every state. To most +men in your position it would have appeared that out of the tumult and +confusion, they would have come out with a decided advantage. But you +gave no thought to a personal advantage; it was the good of the people +that actuated you. And now you are to reap your reward. What was plain +to the inhabitants of the rural districts from the start, is now +manifest to the toilers in the cities, especially in this city and +Chicago." + +"This condition must be known at the Plutocratic Headquarters. What is +being done by the managers there, to overcome the sudden change in the +public mind? I hear so many stories that I am at a loss to tell which is +true and which false." + +"The local committee of the Plutocrats has abandoned all hope of +coercing the people. This evening it sent out a letter of instruction to +the manufacturers calling upon them to exercise drastic measures to +prevent their operatives from voting; but this is only a blind," replies +Benson. + +"The Chairman of the National executive committee at the same time held +a conference with the chief labor leaders. These leaders were offered a +flat bribe if they prevent the men whom they represented from voting. +Eight out of the ten who were present accepted the bribe, which was +$50,000, in cash. Two declined. One of these afterwards went to the +local treasurer and agreed to deliver his people into bondage for +$100,000. His terms were acceded to. + +"The one who spurned the bribe has been given to understand that if he +divulges the nature of the meeting, his life will be the penalty. +Notwithstanding this, he has just informed me of the matter. I had to +pledge not to make public the information he gave me. But we can +counteract the influence of the labor leaders." + +"In what way?" Trueman asks, with deep interest. + +"You have made a great mistake," he continues, before Benson has time to +reply. "You never should promise to keep a secret. Publicity would have +been our sure means of thwarting their design." + +"If I had not promised to keep the secret I should not have learned of +the plot," protests Benson. "I have an idea that we can bring the labor +leaders to terms. We are driven to the wall by the Trust Magnates, who +will stop at nothing. We must do what instinct would suggest. The labor +leaders shall receive notice that if they attempt to prevent the people +from voting, their blow at public suffrage will bring on a revolution. +It will be on treacherous leaders of the people that the vengeance will +fall." + +"No, no, that will never do. I cannot consent to the use of a threat of +violence," declares Trueman, with emphasis. + +"But this is not a question of what you may or may not consent to," +replies Benson. "It is what I will do. I know what I say is certain to +be true. To avert an uprising I shall warn the labor leaders myself. You +will have no part in this matter. I am determined that the vote of the +people shall be recorded at this election." Benson hurries from the +room. + +He is soon in secret conference with the leaders at Liberty Hall. They +are inclined to scoff at his assertion that the people will resort to +violence if they discover that they have again been betrayed; but when +Benson repeats the circumstances of the compact between the Magnates and +the Labor leaders, with every detail and word, they realize that their +positions as leaders are endangered. + +With threat and bribe they seek to win Benson to silence. He withstands +their blandishments; at the suggestion of a bribe he flies into a +passion. + +These men are cowards at heart; they have taken the gifts of the +Magnates for years, and have contrived to pacify their followers. Now +that they are brought face to face with the possibility of exposure, +they tremble at the thought of the popular denouncement that will come +upon them. They even weigh the chances of physical harm that may befall +them. Secretly planning to get the bribe money, they agree to make no +attempt to coerce the vote of the people. + +"The first word of intimidation or coercion which is spoken will be my +signal to expose you," Benson tells them at parting. + +The Trust Magnates remain ignorant that they are sowing the wind. They +receive daily reports from the leaders telling of their success in +intimidating the masses. To every demand for money the Magnates +willingly respond. It is an election where money is not to be spared. +Benson and his faithful corps of workers keep a vigilant watch over the +Labor leaders. + +When the Magnates arrange for a great parade, Benson warns the Labor +leaders not to attempt to force any workingman to march. This causes the +parade to turn out a dismal failure. + +"We must have more money," the leaders assert. + +Two millions of dollars is set aside for use in St. Louis alone. Against +such odds can the Independence party win? + + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. + +A DAY AHEAD OF SCHEDULE. + + +It is two o'clock P.M., on October twelfth. In sixty minutes the New +York Stock 'Change will close. The day has been exceedingly quiet; +brokers are standing in groups discussing the whys and wherefores of +this and that stock scheme; all are of little consequence. Indeed, there +has been nothing done on the floor since the abrupt departure of James +Golding, the Head of the Banking Syndicate for Europe, three weeks +before this pleasant twelfth day of October. + +Golding's mission abroad is vaguely guessed to be the floating of a bond +issue for the government, as there has been an alarming shrinkage in the +money market, and the Secretary of the Treasury has called upon the +Banking interests to relieve the strain on the Treasury. + +The slightest indication of weakness in the money market has its instant +effect on stocks. New York quotations are looked upon as the criterion +of the country, and for that reason the brokers are disposed to be +cautious. Wall street traditions make it seem proper for the brokers to +wait the result of the European trip. + +Since the inauguration of the system of bank favoritism, which, was one +of the strong features of the previous Plutocratic Platform, and on +which the Party was able to raise an enormous Campaign fund, the secrets +of the Government and its favorite bankers are not shared with the +brokers in ordinary stocks and industrials. For this reason the timidity +of the brokers is more pronounced than ever before. + +To them it seems inexplicable that the Government should seek to float a +bond issue on the eve of an election. They do not grasp the full import +of this scheme to force the people to support the Plutocratic candidates +as the preservers of the country's credit. + +A broker, running the tape through his fingers listlessly, reads this +sentence: "London, Oct. 12,--James Golding announces his intention to +float $245,000,000 three per cent. U.S. gold bonds in London." + +In an instant he realizes that the confidence of the market will be +restored. Rushing to the pit he begins to buy everything that is +offered. Half a hundred tickers in the Exchange convey the same news to +as many brokerage firms. + +A wild scramble is started; everyone is anxious to go "long" on stocks +which they have been cautiously selling for days past. Point by point +the listed stocks advance. + +The clock strikes half-past two. Will half an hour suffice to readjust +the market? + +An exceptional, an unprecedented bull panic is in progress. Brokers, +messengers, clerks, every one connected with the Stock Exchange is in a +flurry. Tickers are for the time being utterly forgotten. + +In a corner of the Exchange sits the operator who has to send the doings +of the day to the Press Association. He is unmoved by any excitement +that may occur on the floor; it is an every-day experience with him. +Stolidly he reads the tape, and jots down the advance in the stocks as a +matter of course. + +He has sent word to his office that Golding is to float the bond issue; +but he knows that this news has reached the office through another +channel before his belated report. He sends the message because it is a +part of his routine. + +"Calais, Oct. 12th," are the words that now appear on the slip of paper +he is scanning. "James Golding, accompanied by M. Tabort, French banking +magnate, entered rear car Paris Express from London to cross the +Channel. Car uncoupled in tunnel; explosion; both men instantly killed; +submarine tunnel wrecked." + +Here _is_ news. The instinct of the broker is awakened in the operator. +He leaves his desk and walks rapidly to the pit. He places his hand on +the shoulder of a prominent broker. In a few words he tells this man the +news, and asks that the broker make him a "little something" for the +tip. + +With the news of Golding's death this broker enters the pit as a seller. +There are now but twenty minutes left before the closing of 'Change, yet +by cautious work he will be able to sell out his holdings at the +inflated prices that prevail. He alone of all the members of the +Exchange knows that the greatest American financier is dead. On the +morrow every stock on the list will depreciate. Now is the time for him +to unload. + +A hundred bidders are eager to buy the stock he offers. He reaps a +fortune in the quarter of an hour before the 'Change closes; the rest of +the brokers heap up trouble for the morrow. Five minutes before three +the news of Golding's death is brought to the brokers. It is too late. +In their frenzy the men fear either to buy or sell. The floor is a +veritable bear pit. Men swear and rage in impotent grief as they realize +that they have brought ruin upon themselves by their rash speculation. + +While this scene is in progress the world is being told of the death of +the great Financier. + +It will be recalled that to William Nevins was assigned the task of +ending the career of James Golding. He has worked secretly, as have all +the other members of the Committee of Forty. Now his role as shadow of +the financier leads him to New York, while some banking scheme is being +consummated; now he is rushing across the continent to be near the +Magnate in San Francisco; the last trip takes him to Europe. + +At the time he began to study the movements of Golding, the Magnate was +in London and thither Nevins went; he was detained there, on that +occasion, but three days. On the voyage back to the United States he was +afforded an excellent opportunity to observe Golding. Nevins became +acquainted with the man whose life he was to take, through a business +proposition in regard to an investment. He professed to represent a +syndicate of French investors which was negotiating to purchase and work +a gold mine in Lower California. According to his story, he had secured +the necessary privileges from the Mexican government. Golding was +invited to be a participant in the enterprise, which was destined to +prove a bonanza. + +Plausible, suave, intelligent, Nevins has impressed the Magnate most +favorably. So when Nevins proposes that he accompany Golding to Europe +to introduce him to the French capitalists, the financier readily +agrees. + +As traveling companions on the millionaire's yacht, the two men leave +New York on September twentieth. Golding is bent on the successful +launching of the big bond issue, with the gold mining scheme as a +secondary consideration; Nevins has only the awful work before him to +consider. London becomes the permanent abode of the two, their trips to +France being short and frequent. + +The newly constructed Channel tunnel connecting England with the +continent is a transportation improvement which makes it possible for +one to leave London, at ten o'clock in the morning and be in Paris at +one in the afternoon. The Air line to Paris enters the sub-marine tunnel +at a point twelve miles north of Dover and emerges on the plains eight +miles south of Calais. As an engineering feat the construction of the +tunnel has been heralded as unparalleled. + +It is by this speedy route that Golding and Nevins make three trips to +Paris. The Committeeman contrives to interest several French bankers in +his supposititious mine, and by artful manipulation he brings these +bankers and the American Money King together in preliminary +negotiations. + +On October twelfth the two are to effect a final understanding with the +members of the French syndicate. The newspapers have given an inkling of +the transactions, and have run stories to the effect that Golding is +negotiating with a French banker for rich gold lands in Mexico. + +Independently of Nevins, the bond issue plan has been developed by +Golding and the time for announcing the fact is this same twelfth day of +October. + +Knowing the result that will be produced on American securities, he +delays the announcement until the London Exchange closes for the day. He +knows that immediately after making the news public, he is to leave +London, for Paris to be gone until the twentieth. Thus he will avoid +being interviewed. + +Golding has calculated that the difference in time of five hours between +London, and New York will result in the announcement being cabled for +the opening of the New York Exchange. This would be the result did not a +number of large London speculators, who hold American securities, +determine to hold back the messages until they apprise their New York +representatives of the matter and advise them how to act. + +The monopoly of the cable is obtainable by an easy means. All four of +the lines which communicated with the United States are leased. Messages +rumoring important developments in the China alliance question are +transmitted and suffice to explain the cessation of other news--the +Government is supposed to be using the cables. + +Despite the efforts of the speculators, an enterprising correspondent of +a New York News Association succeeds in sending the news of the bond +issue announcement, so that it is received on 'Change at two o'clock. +From another source the message of death is cabled fifteen minutes +before the closing of the market. + +Golding and Nevins lunch together before starting for Paris. + +"I have closed a deal to-day that will net me twenty-five million +dollars within six weeks," Golding confides to Nevins with an air of +satisfaction. He might be a retail merchant discussing trade with a +neighbor and relating the result of a barter which will net him a profit +of a hundred dollars, for there is no stronger emotion in his speech or +manner than would be evoked by such a commonplace transaction. Yet this +man has just arranged a financial deal which is to maintain the +stability of the currency of a Nation of a hundred millions of people. + +"Then it is true that you are to shoulder the responsibility of +disposing of the United States bond issue?" Nevins inquires with a +semblance of interest. "What would that Republic do if it were not for +its public spirited men of wealth? Republics are all right when they are +curbed by the conservative elements, but when the riff-raff gets the +reins in hand, then there is always trouble." + +"The days of mob rule in America are over," Golding declares. "It was no +easy matter to wean the people of the fallacious idea that a proletariat +could manage the finances of the country." + +"When our mine is in operation you will not have to seek the aid of +England in taking bonds off the hands of the Treasurer of the United +States, will we?" Nevins asks. + +"That's just the point," exclaims Golding. They talk on in this strain +until the meal is finished. + +"We have ten minutes to get to the terminal," says Nevins, consulting +his watch. + +"O, that will be ample time. It only takes five minutes to ride there." + +When the train is reached, Golding looks at his watch. "There, I told +you we could make it in five minutes. I am always just on time. Never a +minute too soon or a minute too late. Time is money. Perhaps I am the +wealthiest man in America, if not in the world, because I know the value +of time." + +"That certainly is the secret of your success," Nevins declares blandly. + +The Special Paris Express is composed of six coaches and the motor; this +train runs at an average speed of sixty-two miles an hour. It is the +fastest train on the continent. So that they may not be disturbed, the +mine promoters have arranged to occupy a private car attached to the +rear of the train. This car they enter. Nevins carries a small +hand-satchel which he declines to give over to the willing porter. + +The superintendent of the road is on hand to see that the influential +patrons are properly cared for; he has received his instructions from +the president, who is an intimate friend of James Golding. + +The signal is given and the express starts. + +In an incredibly short time the tunnel is reached. As the train rushes +into the darkness, Golding notices that the electric lights have not +been turned on. + +"Ring for the porter, will you, Mr. Tabort," he asks of Nevins, whom he +knows only as M. Emile Tabort. + +"But where is the button? Ah, I have an idea," replies Nevins. "I shall +go into the forward car and find the porter; it will not take a minute." + +The car is engulfed in pitchy darkness, save for a glimmer of diffused +light that comes from the cars ahead. + +"Hurry, won't you; I hate to be in darkness," says Golding, uneasily. + +"I won't keep you waiting long," calls back Nevins, who is half way to +the door. + +He turns to look at the Magnate. A vague shadowy form is all that he can +discern in the gloom. + +"So here is where you are to end a life of mammon-worship," Nevins +mutters as he steps upon the platform of the forward car. + +He bends down, and with a strong, quick jerk uncouples the rear car. + +For a few seconds the detached car keeps up with the train, then as its +momentum is exhausted, a rapidly widening gap is made. + +"In five minutes you will have light," Nevins calls grimly, as he looks +at the fading car. + +The train rushes ahead with speed that is imperceptibly increased. +Nevins climbs to the top of the car and crawls toward the front of the +train. He works his way to the coach immediately behind the motor. +Standing on the platform he removes his coat and trousers and reappears +arrayed in the common suit of a train hand. A soft cap completes the +disguise. + +A faint rumble reaches his ears. + +"_The first Magnate has fallen_" he whispers, as if confiding a secret. + +"Yes; I have carried out my plan. James Golding is buried at the bottom +of the Channel. The time-fuse worked." + +When the train emerges from the tunnel it is stopped by the signals of +the Block station. The operator inquires if anything has gone wrong. He +has been unable to communicate with the English station for more than +fifteen minutes, and supposes that the wires have been deranged. Then it +is that the loss of the rear car is discovered. + +While the trainmen and passengers discuss the matter, a sound from the +tunnel reaches their ears; a roar resembling a series of dynamite +explosions. + +"The tunnel has caved in!" exclaimed the conductor. "Get aboard, for +your lives!" + +A rush is made for the train, and in half a minute it pulls away from +the mouth of the tunnel at top speed. + +From the rear car the tunnel is visible. The train is five hundred yards +away when the waters burst from the mouth of the tunnel. + +Loosed from the confining walls, the gigantic column subsides in height, +spreading on either side of the tracks. It inundates a vast area of the +low country surrounding the station. + +Through the employment of the block system, but one train in each +direction is permitted to enter the tunnel at the same time. + +A partition wall bisects the tunnel into 'parallel sections, each +containing a single track. The left-hand section, on which are +east-bound tracks, is the one in which the telegraph wires run. The +explosion wrecks the walls of the tunnel and breaks the wires. + +The only explanation that can be offered is that the compressed air +cylinder on the car exploded. On each of the tunnel cars a compressed +air apparatus is attached, to insure against the trains being stalled in +the tunnel in the event of the electric motor giving out. + +Nevins experiences no difficulty in losing himself in the crowd when the +train reaches Calais. He goes at once to a cheap furnished room which he +has previously engaged. He still wears the attire of a train hand. Once +in his room he sinks upon the bed, his mind and body thoroughly fatigued +by the strain that has been placed upon them. + +For more than an hour he is motionless; then his reserve gradually +returns. + +"I have fulfilled my pledge," he says to himself. "It had to be done +to-day, for otherwise I should have been compelled to die with Golding. +I have started the execution of the edict of proscription a day in +advance of the schedule. + +"This will be the signal for the thirty-nine to do their duty. They must +hear of Golding's death to-day. I shall cable the news to New York; once +there it will be heralded through the country. + +"And they will suppose that Golding and a French financier met death +accidentally. Yes, the people will accept this view; but the Committee! +ah! it will know the truth. To the Thirty-nine it will mean that one of +their brothers has gone to his fate with one of the Transgressors. It +will dispel any symptom of hesitancy on their part. + +"Two men are supposed to have died in the explosion. The tunnel is +destroyed. Who can say that one of the occupants of the car escaped?" + +He sits on the edge of the bed bending forward, and rests his head in +his hands. In this attitude he remains for several minutes. + +"Good God, forgive me!" he cries, fervently. "I cannot die in ignorance +of to-morrow! I must hear that my plan is faithfully carried out; that +the Transgressors are annihilated, and the committee have kept their +pledge. Is it false in me to wait? No; for I do not fear death; I would +have faced it forty times could I have done so. The Transgressors would +all have fallen by my hand had such a thing been possible. I shall keep +my pledge, to-morrow." + +A few minutes later Nevins leaves the house dressed in a plain suit. He +enters the cable office and writes the following message: + +"James Golding, accompanied by M. Tabort, French Banking Magnate, +entered rear car, Paris express for London, to cross the channel. Car +uncoupled in tunnel. Explosion. Both men instantly killed. Sub-marine +tunnel wrecked." + +"Send this message to the New York Javelin," are his instructions to the +operator. "Rush it, and I will give you a hundred francs." + +"Cable is engaged," is the reply. "Orders from London." + +"What news is London sending over this cable?" + +"None. It seems strange to keep the cable tied up, when there is such +important news to be sent. But the instructions are, 'Send no messages +to the United States.' I'm sending an unimportant House of Commons +speech." + +"Your wire is free, then? I'll give you a thousand francs if you will +send this one message through," Nevins urges persuasively. "I want to +get the news to my paper. They will pay royally for it." + +The operator hesitates. A thousand francs is a tempting offer. + +"When will you pay?" he asks. + +"I will pay you now, on the very spot." + +As he speaks Nevins counts out the bills. + +It is twenty minutes of eight by the local clock in the cable office. +The clock indicating New York time registers two-forty P.M. + +A glance at the Bank of France notes decides the question in the +operator's mind. He takes the money and transmits the message. + +Nevins returns to his room to await the developments of the thirteenth +of October. + + + + +BOOK IV. + +In Freedom's Name. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. + +THE SYNDICATE IN LIQUIDATION. + + +The crisis has arrived. On the bulletins in front of the leading +newspaper offices in New York crowds congregate. Men discuss the +startling tidings that come from all points of the compass and ask +themselves what the next report will be. Golding's death is the +forerunner of a long list of fatalities. + + JAVELIN BULLETIN. + + United States Senator Warwick, + of California, was assassinated at + his villa in San Diego. + + The murderer, after shooting + the Senator, turned the smoking + pistol upon himself and died with + his victim. + +This bulletin is posted on the board in front of the Javelin office. + +"What's happening?" asks one of the crowd of the man at his side. "Is +this a wholesale butchery planned by Anarchists, or is it a plot of the +Mafia?" + +"God only knows," is the reply. + +And to the thousands who stand waiting with breathless excitement for +the next announcement the inability to locate the source of the outburst +of violence is quite as complete as this man's. They realize that a +series of appalling crimes has been committed; yet none can ascribe the +least pretext for them. + +The name of one after another of the leading magnates of the land is +posted as the victim of a simultaneous homicide, and the notion that it +is the work of anarchists begins to prevail. + + JAVELIN BULLETIN. + + Robert Drew, the Sugar King, + while riding in Central Park, was + stabbed to death by an assassin. + + The man jumped into his carriage + as it was descending the hill + leading to the One Hundred and + Tenth Street entrance at Seventh + Avenue. + + No sooner had the dagger been + buried in the heart of Mr. Drew + than the fanatic withdrew it and + plunged it into his own heart. + + The murderer fell forward and + died even before his victim. + +When this notice is displayed it causes a shudder to run through the +crowd. This is the first of the deaths to be inflicted in New York. + +With the apprehension of men who feel that danger is imminent, the crowd +in front of the bulletin shifts uneasily. There is the thought in all +minds that some awful calamity may come upon them as they stand there. +Then, too, there is the thought that they may not be safe elsewhere. In +such a state of mind men become susceptible to emotion. A word can then +sway a multitude. + +From five o'clock, when the first bulletin appeared, until the +announcement of the killing of Mr. Drew, a period of two hours and a +half, the list has grown to frightful proportions. + +From Chicago comes the report that Tingwell Fang, the Beef King, has +been killed in his private office by the explosion of a dynamite bomb or +some other infernal machine brought there by a man who for weeks had +been transacting important business with Mr. Fang. The explosion +entirely demolished the office, and when the police succeeded in getting +at the bodies it was found that the bomb-thrower had paid for his deed +with his life. + +In a bundle of papers which the man left in the outer office a note is +found which gives his address as the Palmer House. At his room in the +hotel a card is found addressed to the public: It read as follows: + + I have fulfilled my oath; my self-destruction + is proof that I am sincere in the + belief that I have acted for the good of mankind. + + BENTON S. MARVIN. + +Almost as soon as the papers are on the street announcing the tragedy, +another message comes from Chicago telling of the strange death of +Senator Gold. His body and that of a man who had been with him at the +Auditorium are found in the Senator's room. Death has been caused by an +unknown agency. There are no signs of violence on either. The money and +jewelry of both are undisturbed. Neither man appears to have been the +victim of the other's hand, for the apparel of each is unruffled. One is +found lying on the floor near the window; the other is found stretched +across the table in the room. + +Following these early bulletins come others from Philadelphia, St. Louis +and Boston, successively announcing the mysterious deaths of President +Vosbeck of the National Transportation Trust, Captain Blood of the St. +Louis Steamship Association, and of ex-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elias +M. Turner of Massachusetts. + +"President Vosbeck met his death while on a tour of inspection in the +new power house of his company in the western part of the city. With him +were his private secretary and a stranger from New York whom he was +taking on a tour of inspection. The secretary was sent to find the +superintendent of the power house. He returned to find both President +Vosbeck and the stranger in the throes of death on the floor near the +great dynamo. In the stranger's hand a cane was clutched. This cane was +one of those that are commonly made at penitentiaries. It was of leather +rings strung on a steel rod." + +The above dispatch is spread on the bulletin board, followed by these +details: + +"As soon as the hospital surgeons and the electrical experts arrived +they decided that the cane must have come in contact with the deadly +current; and that at that instant Steel and the stranger were standing +upon the metal flooring which made a perfect conductor." The death of +Captain Blood was even more astounding than that of President Vosbeck. + +"In company with the newly appointed Superintendent of the grain +elevators, of which the Captain had a monopoly, he descended into the +hold of the steamboat that was taking on a cargo of wheat at the Big +Three Elevator. The two men were hardly below deck when, by some +inexplicable error the engineer received the signal to open the shoot. +An avalanche of golden grain rushed upon the two captives. There was a +cry of dismay from the hold, and then only the sound of the rushing +stream of grain. + +"The engine was reversed and the bucket chain began to take up the +grain; but it was too late. When the bodies of the men were reached they +were contorted in the agony of death. Suffocation had come as a tardy +relief to them." + +This bulletin adds to the excitement of the crowd. While the people are +reading the extras that tell of the series of strange deaths of men of +such national importance as Vosbeck and Captain Blood, the news comes +from Boston that a double murder has been committed in Brookline, a +suburb of that city. + +Ex-Chief Justice Turner of the United States Supreme Court and a friend +who was visiting him at his country house, were set upon by highwaymen +as they were strolling through a strip of woodland, and had been hanged +to trees. It was not known how much money the road agents got. The +Justice had never been in the habit of carrying any large sums. As to +what money Mr. Burton, his friend, might have had on his person, there +was no way of ascertaining. + +"The Supreme Court, the Senate, and three of the leading-men in the +country, this is pretty big game," remarks one of the crowd. + +"It will be well if it ends there," says another. + +"This will cause 'Industrials' to take a slump," observes a stout, +sleek, well dressed man. + +"Yes," replies a voice at his elbow, "and it may be that a slump of the +market is at the bottom of most of this. I wouldn't trust these brokers. +They'd kill a regiment to get a flurry on the market if they were +short." + +The stout man, who happens to be a stock broker, says no more. + +"Get yer extra, all about six millionaires killed; get yer extra!" cry +the newsboys. + +"Make it seven," shouts a coarse voice from the very heart of the mass +of humanity. + +And seven it is to be. + +The bulletin is being cleared for a fresh notice. + +"Bet you it's a Banker this time," a book-keeper, who had deserted his +desk to get the latest news, says jestingly. + +"Ah, it'll be a dead shoemaker next," laughingly exclaims a messenger +boy who has heard the book-keeper's remark. + +By a strange coincidence the name that appears the following instant is +that of Henry Hide, the head of the leather Trust. The ribald jest of +the boy proves to be all too true. + + + + +CHAPTER XXV. + +BIG NEWS IN THE JAVELIN OFFICE. + + +Inside the newspaper offices there is even greater excitement than on +the streets. The editors are non-plussed at the appalling news that +comes pouring in from every section of the laud. + +How is the news to be conveyed to the people? is the question that the +oldest journalist is unable to answer. + +In selecting the leading feature of the day's terrible news, what is to +be considered? The fact that an astounding number of murders or +accidents have simultaneously stricken with death a score of the leading +men of the country, is in itself a matter of unprecedented importance. +But the end is not in sight. Every half hour brings tidings of still +other deaths and murders. + +The peculiar feature of the news is, however, that in every instance +where a banker, mine owner or financier is murdered, the evil-doer has +committed suicide. What does this indicate? Is it a concerted move on +the part of some society; or is it the result of an inexplicable +fatalistic phenomenon? + +Just as a decision on these points is arrived at, and the editors have +given their orders for the make-up of the extras, some account, either +of the death of a railroad magnate or the head of some one of the great +trusts, is received. The necessity of a change in the form of the paper +is made imperative. For the thought that a rival sheet may feature the +news forces a change. + +Extras of the evening papers are being issued every half hour. The +excitement on the streets exceeds even that of the days when the reports +of our wars was the all absorbing topic. + +In the present calamity men know not what to think. To some it is +apparent that a modern juggernaut is abroad; others hold the belief that +a conspiracy is being carried to its bloody fulfillment. + +No more accurate idea of the confused condition of the public mind can +be gathered than from a study of the action in the editorial rooms of +the great New York newspaper, the Javelin. + +The editorial staff of this paper is composed of the brainiest men in +journalism; men who have won distinction in their profession by reason +of their ability to handle the news of the day in a manner that will +satisfy the demands of the public. + +On the large reportorial staff are men who have been brought from +various cities; each is competent to gather news and present it in the +most interesting fashion. + +In the composing room sixty of the most skilled linotypists sit at their +machines ready to set the words as they fall from the pencils of the +writers. + +Still other men are at the presses, awaiting to put the great mechanisms +in motion, to pour out a stream of a hundred thousand papers an hour. + +All is in readiness to turn out the news with unerring accuracy and +incredible speed. + +Year in and year out the routine of publication has been gone through +with. Now one man who is advanced or discharged vacates a position, +which is immediately filled by the man next in line for promotion. The +machinery of the office never clogs. But on this night, turmoil takes +the place of system. + +A crisis in the history of the paper is being reached. The heads of +departments are all present, having been summoned by telegram or +telephone. They are ready to act. Yet the signal for action is delayed. + +To run off the edition of a morning paper is a far different thing from +getting out an edition of an evening paper. + +The morning newspaper must contain the "_news_" in its first edition if +it is to reach distant points; if it is even to reach the suburban +towns. In these towns, by far the largest percentage of the readers are +located. They will be anxious for the latest and most complete news. The +evening papers give hurried accounts of the events that are stirring the +country. For the full details the readers depend upon the morning +papers. The newspaper which fails to satisfy their demands will lose its +popularity. + +So the editor-in-chief and the proprietor of the Javelin are in a +quandary. + +"It is now 1.30," says the editor-in-chief, as he consults the clock. +"If we are to get out a paper we must start the presses." "What is the +leader?" inquires the proprietor anxiously. + +"A general review of the casualties; the summary of the result of the +announcements of the sudden deaths of so many leading men. This is +followed by the story of the deaths of six Senators. The head runs +across the page. The head-line reads 'Death's Harvest, Thirty-Six!' The +banks tell of the sudden deaths that have come upon Senators, Judges, +Manufacturers, Railroad Magnates, and a score of multi-millionaires." + +"We can't tell everything in a line, or in one edition," observes the +proprietor, "so I think it is safe to 'go to press.' Is there nothing of +importance left out?" + +Before an answer can be given to this query the telegraph editor rushes +from his desk waving a slip of paper. + +"Hold the press!" he exclaims. "Here's the biggest news yet. Attorney +General Bradley of the United States has been assassinated as he was +leaving his office. + +"The man who killed him made no attempt to escape, but, waiting to see +that the three shots he had fired point-blank at the Attorney General +had done their work, he deliberately turned the pistol on himself. He +placed it at his right temple and fired, dropping dead in his tracks." + +"Wait a minute; wait!" cries the editor-in-chief. "Don't say another +word." + +Turning to the night editor he says, "It will be necessary to change the +first page. A new head will have to be run, and the leading story will +have to tell of the murder of the Attorney General. This news is +national. I think I had better go to the press room and do this work +myself. The press will start in twenty minutes, if you give me the word +'Go ahead!'" + +"Go ahead," is the laconic reply. + +Down the winding staircase that leads to the composing room, and then to +the basement where the presses are located, the chief runs. He sets +about his work with a calmness and speed that is remarkable. The first +page is put on the composing table and the form opened. The head lines +are removed and the copy that the editor is turning out a dozen words at +a time on a page, are instantly set up and put in place. + +In eight minutes the form is keyed up and the stereotypers have it in +their hands. Three minutes later the pressman has the stereotype plate. +A minute later the press is in motion. + +With the first half dozen copies of the edition wet from the press, the +editor rushes back to his office. + +In his absence there has been nothing startling reported. He breathes a +sigh of relief and sinks exhausted into his chair. + +At a score of desks men are writing special portions of the news. One is +telling of the startling murders, another of the unusual accidents that +have claimed a dozen prominent men as victims. + +The strange story of the hanging of an Ex-Justice of the Supreme Court +Judge is being written by one of the sporting reporters; the +assassination of six Senators is the theme of another special writer. +Every one is busy. + +The chance that always comes to the young reporter is at hand. He is +entrusted with the important work of writing the story of the deaths of +five railroad magnates. His face is a study. It is scarlet and beads of +perspiration run down his cheeks. + +Even the copy-boys are alive to the fact that a night of unusual import +is passing, and they carry copy without being called. A boy stands at +the side of every reporter and runs with the pages to the desks where +the copy readers scan it and write the head lines; it is not a night +when copy is carefully read and "cut." Everything is news, and the +responsibility for the accuracy of the writing is upon the heads of the +reporters. + +Surrounding the bulletin board in the City Hall square, a crowd of from +one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand has gathered. + +The lateness of the hour is forgotten. Men and women stand through the +chill hours of the late night and early morning waiting for news. There +is an ever varying stream passing in front of the _Javelin_ office. +Early in the afternoon the police have taken control of the streets and +compelled the people to keep moving. There is fear that the disorderly +element will start a riot. + +Fortunately the first of the calamitous telegrams of the day has been +received after the close of the Exchanges. This has prevented a panic. +Brokers and bankers receive the tidings with consternation; they dread +the opening on the morrow. Many of them are in the crowd anxiously +waiting for further details of the deaths of the controllers of railroad +and industrial stocks. + +At midnight a bulletin announces that Senator Barker, who had been the +staunch advocate of Bi-metallism until the recent session, and who had +then voted with the Gold element, has been found murdered in his +palatial home at Lakewood, N.J. His private secretary has also been +killed, evidently because he had attempted to rescue his employer. Both +have been stabbed. + +After this the only news that is posted is of a confirmatory nature. It +tells of the development of the national wave of death. Then, too, it +begins to give the first positive information that the majority of the +deaths have been the result of a plot. + +Either on the body of each of the assassins or in his effects have been +found papers that show conclusively that the men acted in concert. While +the phraseology of each of the letters differ, there is a similarity +which is very apparent when they are compared. + +"I have kept my word. The world will judge if I was justified," is found +on one of the suicides. + +"If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out," is all that the card on +another bears. + +"A part is not greater than the whole," is the inscription on the card +that is found in the breast-pocket of the man who has killed the Sugar +King. + +When the news of the assassination of the Attorney General is given to +the people, there is a reaction in the spirit of the multitude +immediately surrounding the _Javelin_ bulletin. They have previously +received the notices with expressions of wonderment. Now all realize +that the Nation itself is imperilled. + +"This is another Suratt conspiracy," says one man to another. + +"Will it reach the President?" is the question that men do not dare ask, +though they think it. + +"This is not the work of cranks, you may depend upon it," observes a +Central office detective, who has a reputation for sagacity. His +fellow-officer, who stands a pace in advance of him, turns and inquires +if the detective thinks he could run the gang down. + +"If I am set on the case I shall not waste much time in looking for +ordinary crooks," replies the detective. "It will be my aim to unearth a +society of malcontents." + +At another point a party of club men, who have come down town from their +Fifth avenue haunt, stand discussing the terrible events. + +"Do you remember the night that the news was received here that Lincoln +has been shot?" asks a patriarchal New Yorker of an equally ancient +citizen. + +"Indeed I do. You and I were at the Niblo's Garden, weren't we?" + +"That's right. It's strange that history should repeat itself; and that +we should be together to-night?" + +"There is quite a difference between the murder of Lincoln and this +series of crimes," observes one of the younger men. "This night's, or +rather day's, work is aimed at all classes of wealth. It is evident that +it is an attack on capital. And the inexplicable part of the news is, +that in every instance the murderers have cheated the gallows." + +"Come, move on there," gruffly shouts a policeman. + +"Hallo, Mason," cries one of the club men as he pushes his way to the +side of the policeman. + +"O! How do you do, Mr. Castor," says the blue-coat, in deferential tone. + +"Mason, these are my friends; we want to stand here for a few minutes. +It's all right, isn't it?" + +"Certainly, it's all right. I thought that you were a lot of the idle +crowd, sir, and we have had orders to keep everyone on the move. But +you're all right." + +Mason had been appointed to the force by the Clubman's influence. + +Turning from his patron the policeman roughs his way through the crowd +and makes the men and women "move on." + +"Nothing like having a friend at court, eh?" laughingly cries one of Mr. +Castor's friends. + +"It is this custom of privilege that has brought on this calamity," +soberly observes the philosopher of the group. + +A riot breaks out at this moment at the foot of the Franklin statue; and +the shouts and curses of the men who are being beaten by the police send +a thrill through the multitude. + +The people on the fringe of the swaying thousands begin a retreat. Their +action is quickly imitated. + +The Clubmen decide that they have seen all that they want of the crowd. +But the matter of getting out is not easy of accomplishment. + +"What are you plug hats looking for?" sneers a rough from the slums. And +his arm swings out and hits the foremost man in the face. This seems to +be the cue for a dozen ruffians to fall upon the party of well dressed +men. + +Two policemen who stand nearby come to the rescue of the party and +conduct them to a place of safety. From thence the sightseers are glad +to make their way up-town. + +The ambulances from the Hudson Street Hospital take four of the rioters +who have been beaten with the night sticks of the police, to the station +house. Under ordinary circumstances the prisoners would be taken to the +hospital; but the Inspector of Police, who is on the scene, deems it +advisible to take them to the Station house. + +A sullen crowd of young men from the neighboring streets follow the +ambulances, shouting execrations at the policemen who have made the +arrests. + +The hands on the clock in the cupola of the City Hall point to 2.15 A.M. + +The news wagons are wedging their way through the sea of humanity. +Morning papers are being sold by the ever vigilant newsboys. Still the +people linger. + +An event of graver nature than any that has preceded is what the crowd +craves. The appetite of a man, or of a collection of men, is the same; +if it is fed to repletion, it cannot resist the desire for an excess. + +"Let's wait for one more bulletin," an engineer suggests to his fireman. + +"All right; we can stay until 2.30. That will give us time to get to the +building." + +Before the fifteen minutes elapse all thoughts of tending in the engine +room are driven from their minds. + +The first bulletin announcing the tidings of the Wilkes-Barre uprising +is posted by the _Javelin_ at 2.35 o'clock. From this moment the crowds +in City Hall increase. No one who can get within range of the blackboard +thinks of leaving. There is a subtle fascination in waiting for the +details of the momentous events. + +At daybreak the evening edition of the day's papers containing news of +the transcendent occurrences of the hour are on the street. In these +papers the first intimation of the full scope of the blow that has been +dealt the Magnates is given to the public. Link by link the chain of +evidence that the accidents and murders are each part of a general and +concerted movement is built. + +"Martyrs or Murderers?" This is the interrogatory headline that appears +in every paper. + +The events of the past twenty-four hours have been so unparalleled that +men dare not jump at conclusions. To proclaim the forty agents of the +Syndicate of Annihilation martyrs, may lead to an instant uprising of +the anarchistic element. To denounce them as murderers may have the same +effect. Fear prompts the people to take a conservative stand, they wait +for full evidence before pronouncing a verdict. + +They do not know that Harvey Trueman is pleading the cause of justice +and right to a mob at Wilkes-Barre. + +The case is now in the hands of the great public as a jury. + +A verdict that will shake the world is about to be tendered. + +This verdict is to be entered at Wilkes-Barre. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. + +ON TO WILKES-BARRE. + + +When the first news of the Act of Annihilation reaches the Independence +Party's Headquarters, Trueman is out on an important mission, a +conference with the American Mothers' League for the Abolition of Child +Labor. This League, it is believed, can influence scores of thousands of +voters. + +A telephone call from Benson brings Trueman back to the headquarters. On +the way down town he hears loud cries in the street. + +"Get y'er Extra! All about the big murders!" the newsboys are calling in +front of the headquarters. Trueman buys a paper. He reads about the +murder in Central Park. "This is an unfortunate occurrence," he says, +half aloud. "The people will put more credence in the assertions of the +Magnates, that there are anarchists working to disrupt the Government." + +Once in the rooms of the Campaign Committee he receives the messages +direct from the _Javelin_ office over a special wire. + +He is as ignorant of the true condition of affairs as any of the public. +What to think of the wholesale destruction of the leading magnates, is a +riddle to him. + + "WILKES-BARRE, PA., Oct. 13th. + + Gorman Purdy was murdered in his house at 2 o'clock this + afternoon, by Carl Metz. After shooting Purdy, Metz committed + suicide. Come to Wilkes-Barre at once. Miners are + threatening to sack the palaces on the esplanade. Ethel is in + great danger. MARTHA." + +This telegram is handed to Trueman. He reads it; re-reads it. The full +import flashes upon him. He knows the character of the miners; knows +that there is an element which will take advantage of every opportunity +to commit acts of violence. He pictures Ethel at her home, besieged by +the mob of miners. + +"I must get to Wilkes-Barre immediately," he declares. + +"Mr. Benson, will you telephone to the Inter-State Railroad and ask when +the next train leaves for Wilkes-Barre? If there is not one within an +hour, ask if it is possible to engage a special. I must reach +Wilkes-Barre as quickly as possible. + +"Here, read this," and he hands his secretary the telegram. + +"Send this message to Martha Densmore. Address it, 'Sister Martha, Care +of the Mount Hope Seminary, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., I leave for Wilkes-Barre +at once.' If you can find out the time the train will leave, state it in +the message to Martha." + +In five minutes Benson returns to inform Trueman that the Keystone +Express will leave at 3.30 P.M. This gives Trueman thirty minutes to +catch the train. He hurries to the street and jumps into a cab. + +"Drive to the Twenty-third street ferry as fast as you can. I'll give +you an extra dollar if you make the four o'clock boat," he tells the cab +driver. + +"All right Mr. Trueman," replies the man, who recognizes the people's +candidate. "You'll get the boat. Don't worry about that." + +From Twenty-third street and Broadway the cab starts. It turns west on +Twenty-fourth street. Then the driver whips up his horse. At Eleventh +Avenue a freight train is passing. It will delay Trueman for five +minutes. He jumps from the cab. + +"Mr. Benson will pay you," he calls to the cab-man. The train moves down +the street at a slow rate of speed. + +Trueman jumps on a car, climbs across it and jumps to the street. At a +run he makes for the ferry house. + +As he passes the gateman he throws down a silver piece for ferry fare +and rushes toward the boat. Half a minute later the boat draws out of +the slip. When he enters the train, Trueman seats himself in the +smoking-car. The man next to him is reading a late extra which he has +bought at Cortlandt street. + +Glancing over the man's shoulder, Trueman reads of the deaths of +financiers, statesmen, manufacturers. All have met sudden and violent +deaths, and in each instance there is announced the suicide or +accidental death of an unknown companion. + +Under a seven-column head, printed in red, is a suggestive paragraph. It +asks if the wave of annihilation can have any connection with the +Committee of Forty. And as if to answer the interrogation affirmatively, +the paragraph concludes in these words: + +"On the cards of six of the men whose bodies have been found with the +murdered multi-millionaires, reference to the Committee of Forty is made +point-blank. One asserts: 'In the future, arrogant capitalists will not +sneer at the protestations of a committee of the people. As a +deliberative body the Committee of Forty was impotent; as the avenger of +the downtrodden, it will never be forgotten.' Another bears this strange +inscription: 'When anarchy seems imminent, take courage, for an honest +leader will deliver you from harm.' + +"There are two cards which quote direct from the Scriptures: 'The wicked +in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices +that they have imagined.' This gives the motive which supplied the +assassin of the Sugar King with courage to commit a double crime. He was +a religious fanatic. The name George M. Watson was scribbled on the back +of the card. This is the name of one of the Committee of Forty. + +"The other card reads: 'And the destruction of the transgressors and of +the sinners _shall_ be together, and they that forsake the Lord shall be +consumed.'" + +Here is a matter which sets Trueman thinking. He knows every member of +the Committee of Forty; they are men who would not take part in a +dastardly crime. + +But is this terrible annihilation to be looked at in the light of an +ordinary crime? + +"Metz is a member of the committee." Trueman resolves this thought for +several minutes. + +The train rolls on at a rapid rate; the towns of Jersey are entered and +passed so quickly that no idea of the excitement that is stirring them +can be formed. It is not until Trenton is reached that Trueman hears the +news of the deaths of still other prominent men. + +He buys a paper and returns to his seat. This extra contains the details +of the threatened uprising in Wilkes-Barre, and the statement that the +Committee of Forty has converted itself into a Syndicate of +Annihilation. + +When the train reaches Philadelphia a battalion of the State Militia +goes on board. The Major in command has instructions to report to the +Sheriff of Luzerne County. This means that the militia is to be handed +over to the Magnates. + +As the train is about to leave the depot a telegram is received at the +dispatcher's office, which causes a delay. A freight on the Wilkes-Barre +division has jumped the track. The wrecking train is called for. After +the departure of the wrecking train the express pulls out. The accident +has occurred thirty miles east of Wilkes-Barre. It causes the Keystone +to be two hours late. + +During his enforced wait, Trueman improves the time by telegraphing to +New York. He gets from Benson the latest details of the news; the full +import of the terrible atonement dawns upon him. The Committee of Forty +had come to the conclusion that it must meet force with force. This was +a step which Trueman would never have sanctioned. He realizes that the +opprobrium for the act of the committee will be placed on him. He has +been associated with the committee; has been the one candidate which it +indorsed. And for all that he has known absolutely nothing of its +intention to carry out a wholesale annihilation. + +"Who will believe that I am not an accomplice?" he asks himself. + +"I have but one way to clear my name of such an imputation. I must stand +out as the advocate for rational action. I must bring the people, those +who know me and who will obey my wishes, to unite to suppress anarchy." + +As this thought shapes itself, the words on the card of one of the +committee obtrude themselves on Trueman: "When anarchy seems imminent, +take courage, for an honest leader will deliver you from harm." Is there +something prophetic in these words? + +Reinforcements are arriving on trains that are obliged to stop in the +rear of the express. One of the new arrivals is a part of the infamous +Coal and Iron Police. As these men are familiar with the mining +district, the Sheriff of Luzerne requests that they be placed on the +Keystone and rushed through first. This request is complied with. When +the train starts, after the track is cleared, the three hundred and +fifty members of the Coal and Iron Police have exchanged places with the +militia. + +From the intemperate speech of the men, Trueman foresees that the +conflict between the miners and the police will be sanguinary. He +resolves to keep the two bodies of men apart, if anything in his power +can effect this result. + +As the twilight deepens the train reaches the ten-mile grade that leads +to Wilkes-Barre. The powerful engine responds to the utmost of its +capacity and begins the ascent at a speed of fifty miles an hour. + +"We shall be doing business in fifteen minutes," remarks one of the Coal +and Iron Police, as he pulls his rifle from under the seat. + +"Thank God, we don't have to stand up and receive a shower of sticks and +stones, as the militia did in the old days. We have the right on our +side now, and we can shoot without waiting to be shot," asserts a +dyspeptic clerk, who has quit his desk for "_a day's shooting_." + + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. + +SISTER MARTHA AVERTS A CALAMITY. + + +When the tidings of the murder of Gorman Purdy reach the mines, the +rejoicing of the miners and their families is undisguised. They feel +that an avenging hand has been raised against the man who has caused +them so many days of suffering. + +"The devil has a new recruit," says a brawny miner. + +"Hell is too good for a man like Purdy," another declares. + +In all of Wilkes-Barre not a man or a woman except those who live under +the Coal King's roof has a word of pity to express. + +Sister Martha is silent; she feels shocked at the news; yet even in her +heart there is no room for sympathy for the Magnate. The thought comes +to her that Ethel will need comforting. Ethel Purdy is the woman who +eclipsed Sister Martha in Harvey's mind. It is not to be supposed that +Martha has forgotten this; yet it does not deter her from hastening to +the place. She finds Ethel on the verge of hysteria. + +Under the soothing influence of the Sister of Charity, Ethel's composure +is restored. + +"What is to become of me?" she asks, despairingly. "How am I to face the +world? I have wealth; but will it restore my father?" + +"Have faith, my dear, and you will find your troubles lightened." + +Martha prays with the late Magnate's daughter. They are on their knees +in the sumptuous bed-room of Ethel's suite when a servant abruptly +enters. + +"O, Miss Purdy, run for your life," cries the maid. "The miners are +coming to burn the house." + +Ethel utters a cry of terror. + +"Leave the room!" sister Martha orders. And the frightened servant +retires. + +"Do not feel alarmed. I shall stay here and the miners will do you no +injury. They love me and will obey me." + +Ethel clasps the hand of her defender and crouches at her feet. A knock +at the door startles the two women. Sister Martha remains in possession +of her faculties; Ethel swoons. + +"Come in," calls Sister Martha. + +The butler enters. + +"I have come to inform you that the miners are on their way to the +house. They have sworn to sack it. What shall we do?" + +"Who told you that the miners intend to come here?" + +"I have just received the warning from the office; one of the clerks +telephoned. He says the Superintendent is on his way here, but will +probably be cut off." + +Fear has anticipated the actual trend which events are to take. The +miners are parading the streets but have not formulated any definite +plan to attack the Purdy palace. + +Superintendent Judson arrives and assumes charge of the house. He brings +definite news of the intention of the miners. They are bent on claiming +the body of Carl Metz to give it a public funeral. "We shall never be +able to prevent violence," he declares. + +"The police and the militia have been summoned; but it will be hours +before they arrive." + +"If there was some one here who could pacify the mob until the troops +come; there is no one they will heed." + +"Perhaps I can pacify them," suggests Sister Martha. + +"You can try," says the Superintendent, scrutinizing her closely. "You +are known as the friend of the miners; they may respect your wishes." + +Inwardly he doubts her ability to check the mob; he feels, even, that +she may meet with physical violence at their hands. Yet his nature is so +small that he is eager to sacrifice her if it will keep the miners at +bay for an hour. + +"I shall try to keep them in the town," Sister Martha assures him as she +departs. On reaching the centre of the town Sister Martha meets some of +the miner folk. A woman comes up to her and whispers: + +"They have sent for the police. The work will be done before they get +here." + +"What work?" + +"Why, we are going to give Metz a decent funeral. He died for us. He +said in a letter,--died to set us free from Purdy." + +"When are you going to demand the body?" + +"This evening when the mines and shops close. We will all get together +and then the sheriff can't stop us." + +An inspiration comes to Martha. She hurries to a telegraph station, and +sends the message to Trueman calling him to Wilkes-Barre. + +"If he only gets here before the police or the troops, he can prevent +trouble," is the thought that consoles her. The hour that passes before +she receives word that he will arrive on the Keystone Express, seems an +eternity. + +With the knowledge that Trueman will arrive at five o'clock she breathes +a sigh of relief. Again she mingles with the crowds which fill the +streets. Here and there she goes, begging of the men and women to +refrain from doing anything that they will regret later. + +The afternoon wears on, and as rumors float through the town that the +Governor has called out the State Guard, the excitement increases. + +At four o'clock Sister Martha hears that the miners have determined to +wreck the express, as it is bringing the Coal and Iron Police. + +This news appalls her. Can she tell them that Trueman is on this train, +and hope to have his arrival effective? No. He must come unexpectedly. + +The plot to wreck the train must be defeated. + +She hurries to the house of one of the miners who she knows will be in +sympathy with any movement that has for its object the destruction of +the Police. His two sons were shot at the Massacre of Hazleton. One of +the young men died from the effects of his wounds. The other is a +confirmed invalid. + +On reaching the miner's cottage, Sister Martha finds that her intuition +is correct. Henry Osling is telling his son the plan of vengeance. + +"We will wipe out the old score to-night," he is saying. "When the +express starts up the grade, we will send a ton of Paradise Powder down +to meet it." + +"How will it explode?" asks the son. + +"How? Why, by the collision with the engine." + +"But it may not go off," suggests the invalid. "You had better make sure +by using dynamite. No! that won't do either. + +"Use nitro. You can get it from the Horton shaft. They have to use it +there to blast the slate." + +"That's what we'll do, 'sonny.' Just lie still 'til you hear the bang, +then you can get up and dance, for the Police will be blown to pieces." + +Sister Martha waits for no further details. Her plan of action is +decided upon. She knows every foot of ground in the mountains. A short +cut will bring her to the home of Widow Braun. This woman will do +anything in the world for Harvey Trueman. She will help Sister Martha to +save the train; for by so doing she will save Trueman's life. + +The widow is at home. In a few words Martha tells her what she must do +if she would save the life of the men who rescued her boy and herself +from the sheriff. + +"Do you have to ask me twice to help you?" cries the woman. "I would lie +down on the track and let the cars run over me if it would protect Mr. +Trueman." + +Martha and her ally start for the long grade. On the way they discuss +the manner in which they may derail the car with the nitro-glycerine. + +"We will put rocks on the track," suggests Sister Martha. "But the +miners will see us;" objects the widow, "it won't be dark when the train +arrives." + +"I heard the miners say the train would be late. A freight was off the +track east of Mathews and the wrecking crew was at work," Martha goes on +to explain. + +When the rescuers arrive at the track they realize that in their haste +they have neglected to bring a lantern, the one thing that may be needed +to signal the train, for now a dilemma confronts them. If they place a +pile of rocks on the track, the train may reach that point before the +car of destruction, and in this event the obstruction will cause the +wrecking of the train. + +The roadway is along the side of the mountain. + +On one side of the tracks the rocks rise in a sheer wall; on the other +is a steep embankment that in places is almost as precipitous as the +crags above. + +"We will have to separate," Martha advises. "You go up the track. No, I +will go up and you down. If it is possible, you must stop the train. I +will wait till the last moment and then put rocks on the track. When you +see Mr. Trueman, tell him to hasten to the Purdy house, for Ethel is in +great danger. Tell him I will be there to aid him in pacifying the +miners." + +"But you can never pile rocks enough on the track to stop the car," +Widow Braun says compassionately, glancing at the frail form before her. + +"Have no fear. I can do my part of the work. God will give me strength. +And you, He will guide you, as well. Come, let us set about our work." + +With a parting blessing from Sister Martha, the widow hurries down the +track. She can discern the station five miles below at the beginning of +the ten-mile grade. This station is her objective. If she can reach it +before the arrival of the express, the life of Harvey Trueman and those +of all the passengers will be saved. + +The nature of her mission gives her strength to travel over the rough +roadbed with incredible speed. Her eyes are upon the station, which +momentarily becomes more and more indistinct; she knows that if the +train starts up the grade she can see the headlight. Her lips move in an +articulate prayer that she may not see the light. So absorbed is she in +the thought of how to stop the train in the event of its passing the +station that she fails to see a culvert bridge. At the bridge the +roadbed terminates and a trestle carries the tracks for a distance of +fifteen yards. The culvert is dry nine mouths in the year, and is a +raging mountain torrent only in the spring. + +Widow Braun rushes upon the trestle. Her steps are not regulated by the +ties, and almost instantly she falls between them. Her hands grasp the +rails on either side; but she has not sufficient strength to support +herself. With an agonizing cry she drops twenty feet upon the jagged +rocks below. Her head strikes a rock and she lies motionless. + +Several minutes pass; then she regains consciousness. On attempting to +rise she finds that her ankle is sprained. Despite the agony it causes +her, the brave woman struggles to climb back to the track. It is now +quite dark and she realizes that the train must be along in a few +minutes. She cannot reach the station. But she may yet stop the train at +the culvert bridge. + +A long shrill whistle sounds. It is the familiar signal of the Keystone +Express. + +Regardless of the acute pain which every step causes her, the widow +scrambles over the rocks. + +As she reaches the roadbed the express rumbles over the trestle. With a +cry of despair she sinks to the ground. + +Sister Martha is acting her role of heroine at a point a mile and a half +further up the grade. She has posted herself where she can observe the +station and the summit of the grade. + +At the side of the track she collects a dozen boulders, the heaviest she +can move. These she determines to put on the track to derail the car +which the miners are to send down the grade to wreck the train. + +"Will the widow Braun stop the express?" Martha asks herself again and +again, as the terrible minutes of suspense pass. "Perhaps I should have +gone down the track instead of sending her." + +Through the darkness a glimmer of light shines from the summit of the +mountain. + +"The miners are in readiness. What shall I do?" + +For an answer, the whistle of the train falls upon her ears. + +She hesitates, then with an energy born of desperation she begins to +pile the rocks on the track. The ragged edges cut her tender fingers. +She works on unmindful of cuts and bruises. + +Higher and higher the pyramid rises. + +Only once does she glance down the track to see the train. Its great +headlight looks like a beacon. It is approaching nearer and nearer. + +"Have they started the car?" Martha wonders. She can hear the rumble of +the train, but not a sound from the road above. + +"The train will reach this spot first," she cries aloud. "The miners are +waiting for it to get nearer to them." + +Acting upon a sudden impulse, she runs up the track a distance of a +hundred yards. There are rocks lying on the side of the track nearest +the mountain. + +One, two, three big rocks she places on the track. + +A faint cheer reaches her. + +"They have started the car," she laughs hysterically. + +"It will not harm the Keystone. No, it will stop here." + +Another and another rock is placed on the rails. + +She knows that these boulders are a poor impediment to a wildcat car; +but they are the only things available. + +A whirring sound rings in her ears. It is the car rolling down the grade +with the velocity of a thunder-bolt. + +In a minute or two at the most, the car will be upon her. + +Still she does not falter. The second pyramid must be completed. + +Again she turns to look down the track. The headlight of the engine +seems to be upon her. It is, in fact, just crossing the culvert. + +A glance at the pile of rocks makes them appear insignificant. + +"They will never be able to stop the car," she moans. + +Then with a final effort she tugs at a boulder larger than any of the +others. She has it on the rail when the whistling of the engine startles +her. + +The engineer has seen the lower pyramid of rocks on the track and has +whistled "down brakes." + +The train is stopping; it will be saved, for one of the two obstructions +will derail the motor-car. + +Sister Martha starts to run down the track. She has not taken a dozen +steps when the juggernaut dashes into the pyramid of rocks. + +Instantly there is a flash and an explosion, that shakes the mountain. +Great ledges of rock slide from the overhanging crags. + +In a shower of splintered stone, Martha is literally entombed. Her life +is sacrificed on the altar of devotion. She has lived a Christian and +dies a martyr. + +But the Keystone Express is saved. + +Its passengers and crew, when they recover from the fright occasioned by +the explosion, hasten from the cars. Trainmen are sent up the track to +investigate. Brakemen are also sent down the track to carry the news to +the station. + +One of these men stumbles across Widow Braun. He returns to the train +carrying her. + +From her, Trueman and the other passengers, including the Coal and Iron +Police, learn of the plot to wreck the train and of the heroic effort +made by Sister Martha and the widow herself, to avert the calamity. + +Trueman starts in quest of Sister Martha. Accompanied by one of the +trainmen with a lamp, he reaches the scene of the explosion. + +The trainman discovers the body of Martha. + +Bending over the prostrate body Harvey Trueman weeps. It is the manly +expression of deep emotion. + +"She died to save my life and the lives of the hundreds on the train. +Was there ever a more noble sacrifice? It cannot be that she has given +her life in vain. I must do the work she has begun. If I can prevent the +miners from committing acts of violence it will atone for the loss of +Sister Martha." + +From the top of the mountain, Trueman catches a glimpse of the torches +and miners' lamps. The miners are moving toward the town. Trueman is +familiar with every inch of ground about Wilkes-Barre. He has played on +the mountain as a boy. He now recollects a by-path which will bring him +to the town in advance of the miners who are on the wagon road. + +"Have the body of Sister Martha taken to the Mount Hope Seminary," he +says to the trainman, and away he speeds for Wilkes-Barre. + +The Coal and Iron Police are thrown into utter consternation. They dare +not advance upon the town in the darkness for fear that there is another +plot to destroy them. + +The captain orders them to march across the mountain so as to enter the +town from a direction opposite to that by which they are expected. To +affect this detour will delay their arrival several hours, but their own +safety is more to be considered than that of the townspeople. + +And the miners? They have heard the explosion and believe that the Coal +and Iron Police have been sent to their doom. + +With the police out of their way there is nothing to check the miners in +the accomplishment of their design to recover the body of Carl Metz. + +It is the radical element that has conceived the idea of wrecking the +train. They take full control of the miners and lead the way to join +their comrades on the Esplanade. As they pass through the streets +hundreds of men and women who have known nothing of the plot to wreck +the train, fall in line and march on in the procession. The number of +miners and townspeople soon reaches the thousands. By the time they +arrive at the Esplanade there are ten thousand in line. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. + +AT THE DEAD COAL KING'S MANSION. + + +Along the Esplanade the hurrying thousands begin to move in the +direction of the Terrace; miners who have been in the shafts for +eighteen hours; yard-hands from the railroads; iron founders, naked save +for their breeches, have quit their furnaces; townspeople whom fear +impels to see what the night will bring forth; this heterogeneous horde +presses on to the scene of the murder. + +It is a night that lends an appropriate setting to so strange and +uncanny an event. The sky is leaden except for a streak on the western +horizon where the fading, sinister light of the sun gives token of a +stormy morrow. Through the walled banks, the river rushes turbulently, +swollen by recent rains; its waters tinged by the dyes and other refuse +from the city above. + +On the further bank, the groups of breakers and foundries loom up as +vague shadow creations. From fifty chimney mouths thick black smoke +curls unceasingly; now soaring to a considerable height, now driven down +to earth by fitful gusts of wind. In their sinuous course these +smoke-clouds resemble the genii of fable, who spread over the earth +carrying death and devastation. + +In sharp contrast to this picture is the Avenue of Opulence on the side +of the river which boasts of the Esplanade. Here is a line of fifty +palatial residences; the homes of the owners of a hundred mines and +factories and the task-masters of fifty thousand men, their wives and +their progeny. + +Clustered about the breakers and furnaces are the squalid huts and +ramshackle cottages of the operatives; there too, a little removed from +the river are the caves in which the Huns and Scandinavians dwell, even +as their prehistoric ancestors dwelt before the light of civilization +dawned. + +Nero thrumming his violin from the vantage point of the crowning hill of +Rome, had no such portraiture of the degradation of humanity as that +which the Magnates nightly view from their balconies. A stranger would +be struck with surprise that the thousands should be huddled in dens +that wild animals would find uninhabitable, while the sons of greed and +avarice flaunt their trappings of mammon from the hilltops. + +This is the arena in which is to be enacted a scene of this great drama. +The actors, the audience are gathering. + +Mingled sounds of strange nature are on the air. The murmur always +present where multitudes are assembled runs as an undertone; the sharp +notes of frightened women and terrified children rise as the tones of an +oratorio; steady, full, vibrant are the sounds of the men's voices. + +On the countenances of the men can be read the exultation of their +hearts, that at least one of their tyrants has encountered his Nemesis. +Faces here and there are wreathed in smiles, as though their possessors +were hastening to a fete. Some are grave, for the thought of the +retribution that the Magnates will demand, and which they knew so well +how to secure, is enough to bring a pallor to the cheek. There are men +in the eddying thousands who have felt the hot lead of Latimer and +Hazleton burn into their backs and the recollection makes them shudder. +They are again upon a highway, but is this a protection against the +violence of their masters? They are now, as then, unarmed, but is this a +safeguard against the rifles of the hirelings? + +From the bridge that connects the shores of the river, to the mansion of +the Coal King, is a distance of two miles. The broad avenue affords an +excellent concourse and down it the throng fairly runs. They traverse +the distance in twenty minutes. + +An army advancing into an enemy's country could not preserve better +order. Far in advance of the main body of the toilers is the vanguard, a +group of twenty of the acknowledged leaders of the men. It is at their +suggestion that the cowed wretches have mustered up courage enough to +cross the bridge and enter upon the interdicted boulevard. So it is +incumbent upon them to show no trepidation. + +Immediately behind them are the more adventurous ones, followed by the +women and children, who, like angels, tread where men fear to go. The +great mass of the crowd is composed of the workmen of the town. The +faint-hearted and the cowardly bring up the rear. When the marble steps +that lead up to the mansion are reached, the vanguard halts. The impetus +of the entire line is arrested as if by magic. An unheard, invisible +signal is obeyed, the signal of fear. Then the men in advance beckon to +the people to come forward. + +A score of young men respond as if to a summons for volunteers, and in +their wake press the multitude. + +The tumult ceases. The moment for action is approaching and men +concentrate their attention on what is being done by the leaders. + +"I have come for the body of Carl Metz," shouts Foreman O'Neil, from the +foot of the terrace; his voice ringing with a tone of defiance. + +"I have come for the body, and if you do not bring it out we will go in +after it." + +This ultimatum is addressed to the private detective who stands on the +piazza of the Coal Magnate's palace, as a sentinel. + +He does not seem disconcerted at the sight of so great a number of +people. On the contrary his mouth curls in a derisive smile. + +"O, you had better all go back to the breakers," he retorts. "We will +see that Metz's body is buried." + +Then he pauses, waiting to see the effect his words will produce. On and +on comes the tidal wave of humanity. If it is not checked soon it will +deluge the palace. + +"I will shoot the first man who sets a foot on this piazza," defiantly +cries the detective, at the same time drawing his revolver. "Get back to +your breakers. If the superintendent sees you on this side of the river, +you'll all get _sacked_," he adds as a threat more terrible than the +shooting of one of them. + +"We don't want to make trouble," explains O'Neil. "All that we ask is +that we may take the body of Metz and give it decent burial. Has the +superintendent said we could not have it?" + +Mr. Judson, the superintendent of the Giant Breakers, appears at the +door. He steps out on the piazza. + +A sullen roar greets him. + +"Until the coroner has disposed of the case," he begins, "no one will be +permitted to touch the body. You have heard my decision. Now go back to +your work." + +The recollection of the treachery practiced on them in the riot of 1900, +when their dead fellow-workmen were put in crates and buried by the +police at night, without religious rites, comes to the minds of all. +They have sworn then that never again would they be cheated of the right +to bury their martyred brothers. + +"Give us the body," cry a hundred voices in chorus. + +"Go on, go on," shout the pressing thousands. "Go in and get it." + +The forces for a storm have been gathering since the first tidings of +the tragedy reached the people. + +When they heard that Carl Metz, the foreman of the Keystone furnace, had +killed Gorman Purdy and had then ended his own life, they were +dumbfounded. Then as a lightning flash the information had spread that +Metz had left a note explaining that he had killed the tyrannical Coal +Magnate for the good of mankind. This word of explanation had clarified +the confused thoughts in the minds of all. They read in that message +their emancipation. The hour to strike a blow for their long lost rights +had come. + +The opposition offered by the detective and Judson, proves to be the +shock needed to precipitate the storm. + +By a single impulse the crowd rushes up the terrace. Its advance is +irresistible. Both Judson and his hireling see the futility of +attempting to resist the mob. They, therefore, withdraw within the +house. As they enter they close the massive oak doors. Even as the doors +swing to, the weight of a dozen powerful shoulders is thrown against +them. + +For a moment the advance is checked. + +Turning to the windows, the infuriated men shatter them one by one, and +like the sea pouring into a breach in a ship, they enter the house. One +of the first to enter runs to the doors and flings them open. "Come in!" +he shouts. "This is ours for to-day." + +A marble staircase leads from the first floor to the one above. This +marvellous masterpiece had been made in Europe and imported. It cost two +hundred thousand dollars--more than the appraised value of the two +thousand hovels of the crowd that now trample upon its polished steps. + +Up this staircase the impetuous leaders run. At the head of the stairs +is the library, the room in which the tragedy has been enacted. + +On the floor in this room is the body of Metz. It has not been +disturbed. + +The body of the Magnate has been removed to his bed-room to be prepared +for burial. + +O'Neil and two members of the Committee of Labor take up the prostrate +form of their friend and make their way toward the door. It is not their +intention to commit any violence in the house. Yet, as is always the +case when men are under high mental tension, there is an element that +cannot resist the instinctive craving of the animal spirit for blood. + +"The sewer was good enough for Metz," exclaims an ironworker, +ferociously. It's good enough for Purdy." + +"Where is Purdy's body?" + +This question now presents itself to the invaders. It serves as the +keynote for future action. + +"Let's find it," suggests the ironworker. And the search of the mansion +is begun. + +Anticipating that the crowd might demand the body of the +multi-millionaire, his faithful attendants have hurriedly removed it to +the top of the building. It is concealed in the apartments of the chief +butler. A superficial hunt fails to reveal its place of concealment. +This intensifies the eagerness of the people to find it. They are +positive it was on the premises, for the crowd without completely +surrounds the palace. + +Again are the gorgeous furnishings of the forty rooms thrown +helter-skelter. Costly cabinets that refuse to yield to first pressure, +are wrenched open. The frightened butler and the corps of other servants +are impressed into the search. They are compelled to give up the keys to +all closets and rooms. As case after case of silver and gold service are +disclosed, the vulture element pounces upon them. For every piece there +are fifty contestants, and the result is a wild scrimmage which prevents +any one getting so much as a spoon without paying dearly for it. + +Half an hour of vain search heats the tempers of the men to the fever +point. Those with the butler finally threaten him with instant death if +he does not disclose the whereabouts of the body, and reluctantly he +obeys. Hounds falling upon their quarry could not exhibit more ferocity +than the mob as it pounces upon the corpse. + +Gorman Purdy had been seated in his library when his last summons came. +He was attired in full evening dress. On his shirt bosom, over the +heart, is a spot of blood. It shows where the bullet had found its mark. + +A hurried consultation is held. It is decided that the body be carried +to the Potter's field and thrown into the open grave that is kept for +paupers. + +Three men pick up the body and start to leave the house. + +All this while the impatience of the throng outside has found vent in +ribald jests. + +"One dead millionaire is better than an army of workmen," jeers one man. + +"He has come to life and has offered to arbitrate," sneers another. + +"Bring him out!" is the incessant cry of the thousands. + +And now the cortege appears. O'Neil and three committeemen carry the +body of Metz. They pass between an avenue of men, who give way +deferentially. + +On reaching the Esplanade the pall-bearers pause. They face toward the +bridge and wait for the procession to form. Then the trio who carry--or +to be precise, drag the body of Purdy--emerge. + +A great shout is given as the masses catch a glimpse of the body of the +man who in his lifetime was their unmerciful master. + +Darkness has supplanted the twilight. Now the contrast between light and +shade is sharp. At intervals of fifty feet along the Esplanade, wrought +iron gothic flambeaux support powerful electric lights. Objects beyond +the immediate radius of the lights are indistinguishable. The windows of +all the palaces are all closed and barricaded. From across the river the +accustomed flare of the furnaces is missing. The fires are extinguished. + +The uncouth countenances of the men and women can be studied in +intermittent flashes as they pass under the strong glare of the lights. +The utter absence of men and women of gentility makes the procession +seem like the invasion of the Huns into the Empire. Among the thousands +there are descendants of those very men who made the legions of Rome +flee in terror. The torch of progress is again in the hands of the +uncultured, and as history proves the race is to undergo another +evolution. + +That it is to be effected by internecine revolution none doubts. The +march of carnage is on. Whither will it tend? + +A leader of genius is wanted. The plastic emotions of the multitude will +yield to his command. + +Already the peaceable character of the visitation of the humble to the +habitation of the haughty, has changed to one of violence. + +O'Neil has been able to create the storm, but he lacks the capacity to +direct it. The man of might has stepped forward and has been hailed as +chief. + +Just as the body of Purdy is to be brought down the terrace the sound of +distant cheering is heard. It comes from the direction of the bridge. +The men who have hold of the millionaire's body, drop it. + +Do the shouts come from the militia? + +With ever-increasing magnitude the cheering continues. Whatever the +object may be, it is approaching the palace. + +A reflex movement in the crowds indicates that danger is upon them. + +"It's the Pinkertons!" is the terror-stricken cry that arises. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. + +PEACE HATH HER VICTORIES. + + +Now the shouting swells into a general outburst of enthusiasm. "Trueman! +Trueman!" are the words that reach the ears of the men at the foot of +the terrace. + +It is not the militia then, that is swooping down upon the people to +crush them for demanding the body of their dead; it is not the +Pinkertons. It is the champion of the people come to their aid! + +Breathless from the three miles he has traversed at a run, Trueman sinks +exhausted on the stone steps in front of Purdy's house. + +The excited leaders cluster about him and tell him of the events that +have transpired during the afternoon and early evening. "It was four +o'clock when we first heard that Metz had shot and killed Purdy. The +news spread to all the mills and furnaces," explains Chester, one of the +yard hands of the local depot. + +"Some one started the story that the police had been instructed to bury +Metz secretly for fear there would be trouble if he was given a public +funeral. You know there was a note found on him which said he had killed +Purdy for the good of the workingmen." + +"Yes," breaks in O'Neil, "the folks all over town said they were bound +to see Metz given decent burial. A committee came to me and asked if I +would head a procession to come here and demand the body. We came and +were refused it. Then we broke into the house and got Metz's body. + +"Some one started the cry, 'Find Purdy's body and bury it in Potter's +field!' This set the crowd crazy. I could not prevent their seizing it." + +Harvey Trueman listens to the stories of the men. He realizes that no +half-measure can be proposed. It will either be necessary for him to +acquiesce to their plan to throw the multi-millionaire's body into the +Potter's field or else oppose them to the last point. + +With the knowledge of the various events that have occurred he can +estimate the effect that such an act of violence will have upon the +country. Should the people of the other mining districts hear that the +miners of Wilkes-Barre have risen in revolt against their masters it may +precipitate a general uprising. + +The deaths of the leading financiers and manufacturers throughout the +country have made a panic inevitable. If to this is added rioting, the +country will be plunged into a state of veritable anarchy. Why should +not Wilkes-Barre be the centre of this national movement for a peaceable +solution of the question of the rights of labor? One clear note of +confidence sounded amid the general babel may serve as the signal for +rational action. + +Reasoning thus, he determines to make a grand effort to convert the +crowd to moderation. + +As he passed through the larger cities on his way to the town he heard +that the people of Wilkes-Barre were up in arms. The militia have been +ordered out and will arrive at any moment. The Coal and Iron Police are +crossing the mountain and will show no mercy to the miners. If they find +the people engaged in mischief, the story of past massacres will be +repeated. + +"Come with me," says Trueman to his lieutenants. They move quickly up +the steps to the piazza of the magnate's palace. + +Here Trueman turns to the crowd. + +The cheering and shouting has been kept up during the two or three +minutes that he has been resting. The people have again massed +themselves about the grounds surrounding the house. + +"Speech! speech!" they cry. + +Trueman raises his hands before his face and lowers them in a sign for +silence. The buzz of the thousands is instantly hushed. In a clear full +voice that increases in volume as he proceeds, he begins his +never-to-be-forgotten oration. + +"Women and men of Wilkes-Barre: + +"That you are; testified in claiming the body of the man who sacrificed +his life that you might live as freemen in this land of equal rights +none can deny; that you should be moved to seek revenge upon the body of +the man who has of all men been the most intolerant, tyrannical and +merciless to you and the hundreds whom death has claimed, during the +past twenty years, is nothing more than human. + +"I believe, as have the philosophers and statesmen of all ages, that the +people can do no wrong; for the voice of the people is, in fact, the +voice of God." + +As these words fall upon the ears of the multitude a great shout is +given. Men wave their hats; women flutter their vari-colored shawls, +which serve them as headgear; the sense of righteousness is awakened in +them. + +"With an abiding faith in the justice of the Almighty, you have bided +your time; tolerance has ever been your actuating principle; reason has +dictated every appeal that you have made to your masters. + +"To-day you feel that the hour for your deliverance has come; that the +fetters have fallen from your wrists. You stand here as emancipated men +of a great nation. That your hearts should be filled with rejoicing, +shows that you are alive to the importance of the occasion. + +"Metz, who this day sacrificed his life for you, is worthy of your +admiration. He is one of the world's heroes, one of its martyrs. It is +for you to say if he shall have a monument worthy of his memorable act. + +"The peoples of all ages have had their heroes and their martyrs. The +progress of the world is marked by the monuments that have commemorated +the deeds of these men. + +"It remains for you to erect a monument for the martyr of the Twentieth +Century. + +"Shall it be of brass or of enduring granite? + +"Either of these would be a prey to the long lapse of time. + +"You may choose as a monument, a mound that shall endure as long as the +world rolls through space; you may convert those piles of brick and iron +on the further side of the river into a mass of ruins; you may set the +indignant torch to this fine line of palaces. + +"Whatever you do you may be sure that your example will be the signal +for your fellow workmen throughout the land." + +"Burn down the breakers!" cries a thousand voices. + +"Those breakers as they stand to-day are fit only to be destroyed," +continues Trueman. + +"They have consumed a pound of human flesh for every ton of coal that +fed them. They have afforded money to a few Plutocrats, with which to +satisfy the rapacious desires of greed; they have been the source of +revenue that made these palaces possible. Those breakers have given you +in return for your long days of toil, only enough to keep life in your +bodies; they have bound you to this spot with fetters stronger than +those of steel. If you should flee from this bondage you would find +starvation awaiting you on the roads." + +These sentences have an electrical effect upon the audience. The passive +temperaments of the men and women are being quickened. + +"Should you destroy the breakers and furnaces, and these homes of your +oppressors, your own losses would outweigh those of the millionaires. + +"Yet your acts would be justifiable. + +"Do not move till I have delivered the message I bear. + +"I come to you with tidings that will make the blood in your veins flow +faster in a delirium of joy. + +"I come to tell you that your fellow workmen in every state in this +Republic are to-day emancipated, even as you yourselves have been. The +sword has been wrested from the hands of tyrants, and has been placed in +the hands of the people. + +"The centuries that have come and gone since Christianity was first +preached have seen the sword turned upon the humble, the meek, the +worthy. Now it is to be turned upon the craven few who have fattened at +the expense of the many. + +"At the very hour when Melz sent Gorman Purdy to his doom, avenging +angels, disguised as men, were abroad in our land weeding out the seed +of iniquity. + +"In San Diego, California, Senator Warwick was killed by the hand of a +man who, when he had rid the earth of the most avaricious man who ever +worked a mine, completed the chapter by taking his own life. + +"Henceforth men will not slave in the mines of California or elsewhere +for the sole benefit of misers. The miner will enjoy the fruits of his +labor. He will make significant the words 'The laborer is worthy of his +hire.' + +"In St. Louis at the same hour, the owner of the grain elevators, in +which is stored the crops of the great plains, there to be kept until +the needs of the people shall place an exorbitant price upon every +bushel, was smothered to death in the hold of one of his own ships. With +him died the martyr who had succeeded in bringing a just retribution +upon the head of an insatiate oppressor. + +"Henceforth bread shall not be made a product of speculation. The hungry +mouths of women and children shall not go unfed that the stock broker +and the grain speculator may amass fortunes. + +"The Cotton King of Massachusetts, who has kept men and women out of +employment, and in their stead has worked children in his mills, was +killed in his office as he refused the fifth appeal for an advance of +three cents a day in the pay of the six thousand half-grown children, +most of them girls, who tended his looms and spindles for pauper wages. + +"The man who thus abolished for all time the further slaughter of +innocents, went to eternity with the dragon he had slain. The mill owner +went to expiate his sins; the martyr to receive his reward. + +"And in New York, the city which I have just left, the ruler of the +Nation's money, the President of the Consolidated Banker's Exchange, +died in a pot of molten lead which he had been brought to hope would be +turned into gold under the touch of an alchemist. The lust of gold that +in life had been his only incentive, proved the means of his undoing. + +"Bond syndicates will no longer be formed to corner the people's money, +that millions may be squeezed from the public treasury. + +"My fellow-countrymen, this is indeed a great day. + +"The full story cannot be told you at a single meeting. + +"Know that you are once again free men, not in name only, but in +reality; that your children will never suffer the degradation through +which you have passed. + +"The story of your deliverance you will soon know in its entirety. +To-night I can only give you a summary." + +"Tell us all! Tell us everything!" thunder the astonished masses. They +forget Metz and Purdy in the presence of this greater news. + +"I have only just learned the true facts of this remarkable movement. +The representatives of the people who met in Chicago six months ago to +formulate plans for the protection of labor, found that little could be +accomplished against the combined wealth of the Trusts. + +"A permanent committee of forty was elected to carry out the purposes of +the convention. For several weeks the committee occupied itself in +routine work. Its sub-committees reported that they could make no +headway. + +"Then at one of the meetings a committeeman named Nevins proposed that +inasmuch as the committee had to deal with a wily and unscrupulous foe, +it constitute itself into a secret body. + +"At the first secret meeting he submitted the plan which was carried +into effect to-day. + +"It required that every one of the forty men should pledge himself to +rid the world of one of its chief tyrants. He proved to the satisfaction +of the men that by so doing they would be securing the blessings of +liberty and happiness to mankind. + +"He counselled them to strip their acts of any semblance of selfishness +by sacrificing themselves with their vanquished enemies. + +"At this moment the news is being flashed around the world that the +forty tyrants and the forty martyrs have been gathered to their Maker in +a single day. + +"Again is the message that was first uttered in the Garden of Eden sent +to the world: 'Labor is the God-given heritage of man.' Nor shall anyone +keep man from his inheritance. + +"To you, men and women of this Trust-ridden community, is given the +opportunity to reap the full benefit of to-day's atonement. + +"That you should waste your efforts on the mere gratification of +revenge, was but natural when you did but know of the result of one deed +in the plan of emancipation. Then it might have been enough that you +should destroy the breakers and tear down these palaces. + +"But now that you have heard of the National blow that has been struck +for you, all thoughts of violence must be swept from your minds. Now you +must realize that a greater triumph awaits you than to watch the flames +lick up the property of your tormentors. + +"That property is now yours! + +"These breakers, furnaces, factories; these houses, the mines beneath +the earth's surface, the lands above them, all, all, are yours. It needs +but for you to take possession of your own; for you to enjoy the full +measure of the profit of your labor. + +"Return to your homes, filled with rejoicing that you have not been +called upon to stain your hands with blood; that your rights have been +restored through the sacrifice of forty men to whom you and your +posterity shall give immortal fame. + +"You will have to work as hirelings only until you yourselves place your +government in the hands of trusted men of your own selection. + +"Fraud will no longer seek for public office; avarice will no longer +scheme to gain possession of the world's wealth for the satisfaction of +inordinate desires; inhumanity will no longer vaunt itself in our mills, +our mines, our fields, for to-day the edict has been sent to the world +that death awaits those who shall again seek to enslave labor. There +will be forty martyrs ready for another sacrifice. Who will dare to be +their foe? + +"Choose your leaders with care; see that they are sincere in their +determination to work your will. + +"When this is done the hovels you now live in will be supplanted by +decent homes; the poor food you now eat will be kept for your swine; +your children will grow up to manhood and womanhood without having had +their minds and bodies stunted by premature toil. + +"A Republic of universal happiness and comfort will be yours. + +"Such a Republic will be a monument to endure for all time to the memory +of Carl Metz and his thirty-nine co-workers, to the honor of yourselves +and to the security to future generations of the liberty that this +Republic will afford all men. + +"Pick up the body of Metz, and I shall help you bury it. I leave the +body of Purdy for whomsoever may be inclined to care for it. + +"Men of Wilkes-Barre, again I tell you, to-day you have been delivered +from serfdom. Act as men, not as brutes. + +"Choose some one to be your leader and let him direct you until to each +of you is given the opportunity to vote for the laws that you may +desire. + + "With blare of trumpet and with tap of drum + Barbaric nations pay to Mars his due, + When victory crowns their arms. To him they sue + For privilege to war, though Mercy's thumb + Bids them as victors, rather to be mum, + And show a noble spirit to the foe; + To vaunt not at their fellow-creature's woe: + O'er victory only doth the savage thrum! + They conquer twice who from excess abstain; + The gentle nation that is forced to war, + In triumph seeks to hide, and put afar + All vestiges of carnage, and restore + Peace in the land, that men may turn again + To worthy toil, as they were wont before. + +"Labour is your heritage; return to it." + +He ends in a tumult of enthusiasm. + +The multitude has been led from one emotion to another with such +rapidity that they are fairly bewildered. + +Two things only are clear in all minds. Trueman, the man who has become +their most faithful champion, assures them that now they are to be free; +that they are to be made the sharers in the wealth they create; he also +tells them to select a leader. + +By a spontaneous decision Trueman is the name that comes to every lip. + +"Trueman! Trueman! You are the man to lead us." + +The cry "Trueman!" sweeps through the crowd. It rises in an acclaim the +like of which has never been heard before. + +Men rush toward the orator and pick him off his feet. He is placed on +the shoulders of the stalwart miners whom his eloquence and logic has +won, and is borne in triumph at the head of the procession that goes to +bury Carl Metz. + +The millionaire's corpse lies on the steps of his late mansion. Clinging +to it in the desperation of outraged womanhood, is Ethel. She had crept +from the house while the eloquence of Trueman's words held the mob +enraptured. + +As Trueman is being borne in triumph down the steps his eyes rest on the +terrible picture presented by the dead magnate and his daughter. In an +instant the champion of justice forms a resolve. His heart and mind have +a common impulse--Purdy's body must be saved from desecration; it must +be buried with that of Metz. + +"Pick up that body," he orders of the men who surround him. "It must be +buried with Metz." + +In his voice there is a ring of command that none dares to question. As +the miners stoop to lift the corpse Ethel utters a cry of anguish that +pierces the hearts of even the most hardened men. It is the wail of +humanity protesting against anarchy. + +By a vigorous effort Trueman frees himself from the miners who are +carrying him on their shoulders. He is at the side of Ethel in a moment. + +"Do not be frightened. I am here and will protect you and your father's +remains." + +His words are spoken in a loud decisive tone and reach the ears of the +crowd that press around the corpse. + +Yielding to his indomitable will Ethel arises. She wavers an instant; +then stretches out her arms toward her protector. + +Trueman seizes the delicate hands and draws her to his side. + +"You are safe in my charge," he whispers to her soothingly. "Come with +me and you shall witness your father's burial. If it is done now the mob +will be pacified and will cease to clamor for vengeance." + +Ethel walks by his side in silence. + +The magnate's body is picked up and placed on the improvised litter of +boards which serves to support the body of Metz. In silence the +procession moves on toward the town. + +The battle for moderation is won. + + + + +CHAPTER XXX. + +A DOUBLE FUNERAL. + + +It is in an utterly hopeless frame of mind that Ethel walks beside +Harvey Trueman. She cannot conceive that one man will have sufficient +power over the passions of the multitude to prevent a violent +demonstration when the graveyard is reached. + +"They will tear my father's body to pieces," she sobs. + +"Take my word for it, there will be no disorder," Trueman assures her. +He walks with Ethel at the head of the motley crowd that only an hour +ago was clamoring for the body of Purdy; this same crowd is now +transformed into an orderly procession. The absence of music, or of any +sound other than the tramp of feet on the smooth hard roadway, makes the +procession unusual. There is deep silence, save for the occasional words +that are spoken by the principal actors. + +"This is a sad reunion, Ethel; one that could never have been predicted. +When we parted that afternoon, two years ago, you said you never wished +to see me again. I have remained away, until now. You are not sorry that +I have come to protect you. Tell me that you are not." Harvey's words +are spoken earnestly; he has kept the love of all the months of +separation pent up in his heart. Now he is in the presence of the one +woman in all the world, he adores. Her imperfections are not unknown to +him; he has felt the sting of her long silence, broken only by her +telegram sent at the hour of his triumph in Chicago; yet for all this be +feels his heart throb as quickly as in the old days. + +"O, Harvey, can you forgive me for my heartlessness?" she asks in a +faint whisper. + +"I could not decide against my father that horrid day, when you and he +parted enemies. And after you had departed I was urged by all my family +and friends to put you out of my thoughts; I was told that you had sworn +to be an enemy to all men and women of wealth; that if I were to +communicate with you it would necessitate my disowning all my home ties. +I am only a woman--a woman born to wealth. How could I foretell that you +are not an enemy to the rich, but a true friend of humanity?" + +"Then you know me by my true character and not as I am depicted by the +Plutocrats?" Trueman asks, joyfully. + +He has heard the word "Harvey," and feels the exultation of the lover +who hears his name pronounced in endearing tones by the woman he loves. + +"Yes, I know you as you really are and I have felt the power of your +words; it was not to the mob alone that you spoke. I stood in the shadow +of my father's palace and heard your words. Harvey, you made me feel a +deep pang of sympathy for my fellowmen and women." + +The events of the day have been of such a momentous nature that it is +not strange that Ethel should collapse. She has sustained the shock of +her father's murder; the visitation of the citizens, bent on vengeance; +then the unexpected appearance of Harvey Trueman. + +She clings to her companion's arm, struggling to control her emotions. +When she ceases to speak a great sob escapes her; then she begins to cry +hysterically. + +Trueman cannot bear to hear her heartbreaking sobs. With the impulse of +a father soothing a child he lifts her from the ground, and holding her +in his strong embrace, strides on at the head of the cortege. + +When the town is reached the perfect order of the procession is +preserved. It winds through unfrequented streets to the bridge; crossing +the river it continues until checked by the closed gates of the +cemetery. + +At the sight of so vast an assemblage and at such an unheard of hour, +the gate-keeper flees in terror. Two or three men enter the house to +emerge with the keys of the great gates and a lamp. + +By the fitful rays of this single lamp the movements of the burial party +are conducted. + +"Where shall we bury the bodies?" O'Connor asks Trueman. + +"As near the gates as possible. I should suggest that the grave be dug +in the circle of the main driveway. The grave of Metz and Purdy will +become one of the most famous in Pennsylvania; it should not be put in +an obscure place." + +So the circle is decided upon as the proper place for the common grave +of the millionaire transgressor and the martyr. + +As the throng passes through the gates many of the men seize spades and +picks, implements which they know only too well how to use. + +It does not take twenty minutes to dig the grave. + +When the work is completed, the fact dawns upon the minds of the leaders +that they have neglected to provide a coffin for the bodies. + +"What shall we do for coffins?" one of the grave-diggers asks, as he +smooths over the edges of the grave. + +"Give them soldiers' burial," suggests one of the bystanders. + +"Here, take my shawl," says a shivering woman, as she pulls a thin faded +gray shawl from her shoulders. + +Her suggestion is followed by a score of other trembling wretches. The +strangest shroud that ever wrapped mortal remains is used in the +interment. + +The bodies of Metz and Purdy are still being carried by the miners. Now +a priest who has accompanied the funeral from the time it crossed the +bridge, is escorted through the crowd to the edge of the grave. + +"Will you conduct the burial service over these two bodies?" Trueman +asks of the man of God. + +"Neither was prepared for death," protests the priest. + +"That is all the more reason for your offering up prayers for their +souls." + +"Were they of my faith?" inquires the priest. + +"They are dead now and faith has nothing to do with the matter. We want +you as a Christian to pronounce the words of the burial service over +these bodies." + +"One of these men was a murderer," further protests the priest. + +"Which one?" demands Trueman. + +"They say Mete killed German Purdy," is the response. + +"And a hundred men within call of us will tell you that Gorman Purdy +killed fifty men in his time," retorts a bystander. These words, so +bitter yet so just, would be cruel indeed for the ears of Ethel Purdy; +but she has lapsed into semi-consciousness. Harvey still holds her in +his arms; he seems oblivious of the burden he has borne for more than a +mile and a half. + +"I cannot go through the forms of the church over the grave of these +men," the priest declares emphatically. "It would be a sacrilege. But I +will say a prayer for their departed spirits." + +On the tombs that range in a wide semi-circle from the entrance, the +crowd has taken points of vantage. Those who cannot force their way to +the inner circle about the grave, stand aloof, yet where they can +observe the simple, impressive ceremonies. + +In a thin, querulous voice the prayer is asked. It is such an invocation +as might have been uttered over the remains of two gladiators. Blood is +upon the head of each; the prayer craves forgiveness. As the priest +concludes, the bodies are wrapped in the shawls and lowered into the +grave. + +While the earth is being replaced, Trueman speaks to Ethel. She +partially revives, and seems to understand that her father's body is +being interred. When this thought has been fully grasped she realizes +that she is being supported in Harvey's arms. She makes an instinctive +effort to escape from his clasp; an instant later she looks up into his +face and asks: "You will not leave me?" She pauses. "Give my millions to +the people. I hate the thought of money. Only tell me that you will not +desert me!" + +"No, my darling," comes the whisper, "I shall never be parted from you +again, so long as we live. The priest could not perform the burial +service; he can, however, make us man and wife." + +As he speaks, Harvey places Ethel gently on her feet. + +Standing side by side at the grave which holds victor and vanquished in +the great war for the recovery of the rights of man, Harvey Trueman and +Ethel Purdy present a strange contrast. He is the acknowledged leader of +the plain people; she is the richest woman in America. For him, every +one within reach of his voice has the deepest love and admiration; for +the hapless woman beside him, there is not a man or woman who would turn +a hand to keep her from starving. + +If the men and women of Wilkes-Barre can be made to sanction the union +of Trueman and Ethel Purdy, is there any reason to doubt that the +question of social inequalities can be settled without bloodshed? +Trueman determines to venture his election, his future, his life, to win +the greatest triumph of his career, a wife whom the world despises as +the favorite of fatuous fortune. + +With a voice vibrant with emotion he addresses the multitude. Now by +subtle argument, now by impassioned appeal he pictures the conditions +that made Ethel's life so utterly different from theirs; how it was +impossible for her to sympathize with them when she had known no sorrow, +when her every wish had always been gratified. He pictures her as she +appears before them; a daughter whose father has been stricken, as if by +a blow from Heaven; a woman left friendless; for the friends of +prosperity are never those of adversity. Thus he awakens a feeling of +pity in the hearts of the people for the woman they have so recently +reviled. Pity gives place to love as he tells them that Ethel Purdy +wishes to give to the citizens of Wilkes-Barre the millions that her +father has hoarded; when he concludes by telling them that she is to +become his wife, an acclaim of rejoicing is given. + +The priest, this time without reluctance, pronounces Harvey Trueman and +Ethel Purdy man and wife. + +"Go to your homes, my good brothers and sisters," Trueman counsels, "for +to-morrow you enter upon your inheritance through the speedy channel of +voluntary restoration; you are blessed of all men and women, perhaps, +because you have long been the most grievously sinned against. + +"Let no one commit an act of violence. It is from you that the country +is to take its signal; you have curbed the hand of anarchy. What you +have done will strengthen others to be patient. No one will have to wait +longer than the next election to have wrongs set right." + +The silence that awe induces takes possession of the people. They +disperse quietly to their homes. At two o'clock there is no one on the +streets. + +The Coal and Iron Police, who have been lost in the mountains, enter the +town at that hour to find it, to all appearances, deserted. + +Harvey and Ethel accompany the priest to the parish house, where they +remain for the night. + +All the events of the afternoon and night have been telegraphed abroad. +When morning dawns the people of the country and the world at large read +of the uprising of the miners of Wilkes-Barre, of the attempt to wreck +the train bearing the militia; of the rescue by Sister Martha at the +sacrifice of her life; the stirring scene at the palace and the final +obsequies and marriage ceremonial. All are known to the world. In the +chaotic state of the public mind, this example of reasonable action is +needed. Spread by the power of the pen, it wins man's greatest victory, +a victory of peace. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXI. + +THE NEW ERA. + + +From every section of the country the news of the pending election gives +promise of a victory for the Independence party. The people have +accepted the assurances of Harvey Trueman that he will not countenance +violence on the part of the radical element of either the people or the +Plutocrats. His conspicuous action at Wilkes-Barre is an incontestible +proof of his sincerity, and also demonstrates that the masses are not +desirous of reverting to an appeal to force in order to regain their +rights. If the man whom the public hails as a deliverer can be elected, +all the evils of the Trusts and monopolies, it is believed, can be +settled amicably. + +So strong has the sentiment in favor of the Independence party become, +that for days before the election great parades of the workingmen in the +principal cities celebrate the coming victory of the people. + +Yet the subsidized press maintains a defiant position, and gloomily +predicts that anarchy will prevail upon the announcement of the election +of the Independence party's candidates. + +This foreboding has little or no effect on the minds of the earnest +workers; they are ready to trust their interests to men who have proven +themselves honest champions of right, rather than suffer the bondage +imposed by the Magnates. + +Trueman, since the hour of his marriage, has spent much of his time in +Wilkes-Barre. He decides that it is better for him to guide the closing +days of the campaign from his home. + +After settling the estate of Gorman Purdy, and turning over to the +workingmen the mines, furnaces and breakers that were owned by the late +Coal King, Harvey and his wife go to live in a comfortable villa in the +suburbs. + +By her voluntary surrender of the $160,000,000 which the criminal +practices of Gorman Purdy had amassed, Ethel becomes the idol of the +people, not only of Wilkes-Barre, but of the entire country. She gives +substantial proof of the sincerity of her promise made at the grave of +her father. This act of altruism does much to avert any reaction of the +turbulent elements of the large cities. + +The prospect of regaining the public utilities by purchase and the +establishment of governmental departments to control them in the +interests of the people as a whole, is made bright by the magnificent +example that is furnished by the towns of Pennsylvania. + +Harvey Trueman establishes the leaders of the Unions as the managers of +the mines and breakers. Under his direction the profits of the business +are divided proportionately among all the inhabitants of the town in +which the works are located; those who work receive as their wage +one-half of the net proceeds from the sale of their products. The +remaining fifty per cent, is turned into the public treasury. + +Had the millions of the Purdy fortune been distributed to the people by +a per capita allotment, each man and woman of Wilkes-Barre might have +been made independently rich. But this would defeat the ends which Ethel +and Harvey wish to attain. They desire to see every citizen prosper +according to his or her personal effort. So when every one in +Wilkes-Barre is set to work at a profitable trade or occupation, the +residue of the fortune, some $125,000,000, is used to establish a +similar system of co-operation in neighboring mining districts. + +In the thirty days that intervenes between the acts of annihilation and +the election, two hundred and fifty thousand miners and other operatives +in Pennsylvania are benefiting by the disbursement of the Purdy +millions. This army of prosperous men makes the state certain of going +to the Independents. The electoral votes of the Keystone state, it is +certain, will decide the election. + +As an object lesson which speaks more eloquently than words, Harvey +adopts a suggestion which Sister Martha had made at the opening of the +campaign and which had not been used because of lack of funds. + +Biograph pictures of happy and contented miners in Pennsylvania, under +the co-operative system, showing them at their work and at their decent +homes, surrounded by their families, well fed, and clothed, are obtained +in manifold sets. To contrast with these, there are pictures taken from +the actual scenes in other parts of the country, showing women harnessed +to the plow with oxen; women at work in the shoe factories, the tobacco +factories, the sweat-shops. Pictures of the children who operate the +looms in the cotton mills and the carpet factories are obtained to be +contrasted with those which exhibit children at their proper places in +the school room and on the lawns of the city parks. + +The pomp of the Plutocrats and the destitution of the masses is +portrayed by these striking contrasts. + +With this terrible evidence the Independents carry their crusade into +every city. The principal public squares of the cities are used to +exhibit the biograph pictures. Night after night the crowds congregate +to view the pictorial history of the Plutocratic National Prosperity. +That which arguments cannot do in the way of weaning men from party +prejudice the picture crusade accomplishes. + +One of the side lights of the great drama that is being enacted is the +sentiment that develops for the Committee of Forty. Memorial societies +in the states from which the several committeemen hailed, are formed to +give the martyrs, as the forty are now called, a decent burial. +Thirty-nine of the martyrs are thus honored by public interment. + +The one missing committeeman is William Nevins. He is supposed to be +buried in the wrecked tunnel under the English channel. It is impossible +to repair the damage done by the explosion; futile efforts are made by +sub-marine divers to locate the exact point at which the break in the +tunnel was made. The action of the water has totally obliterated the +breach. So to the public this watery grave must remain the resting place +of the genius who conceived the plan for the restoration of the rights +of man. + +All of the details of the committee come to light through the papers +found on the body of Hendrick Stahl, secretary of the committee. The +fact that Nevins was alone responsible for the plan of annihilation and +that Trueman knew absolutely nothing of it, is incontestibly +established. + +This takes away the last argument of the Plutocrats who seek to connect +Trueman with the act of Proscription. + +And Nevins? What of him? + +He has not kept his pledge to the committee by dying with the +Transgressor who was assigned to him. His pledge to God, to follow the +committee the day after the atonement, has not been kept. + +When October fourteenth dawned, the news of the uprising of the people +of Wilkes-Barre and of the part played by Trueman and Ethel, were read +by Nevins from the cable dispatches at Calais. + +A fear arose in his heart that the plan for the election of Trueman +might fail. He delayed ending his life and hastened to New York. Upon +his arrival he went as a lodger to a room in a lofty Bowery hotel. From +this watch-tower he reviewed the political field. "I shall redeem my +pledge to-morrow," he said to himself each day. + +The night would find him irresolute, not for his fear of death, but for +the dread that some unexpected occurrence might arise to thwart the +people in their effort to carry the election by the peaceable use of the +ballot. + +On the flight before the election Nevins hastens to Chicago. In the +crowd at the Independence Headquarters he mingles unobserved. "What news +have you from California?" he asks of one of the press committee. This +is thought to be the pivotal State. At least this is the claim made by +the Plutocrats. + +"The indications are that the State will go against us." + +"And why so?" + +"Because we have not been able to send speakers there, and the +Plutocrats wrecked the train which was conveying the biograph pictures. +You know the Press of the slope, with but few exceptions, are owned by +the Magnates and suppress every bit of news that would be detrimental to +them. They have distorted the acts of the Committee of Forty. Out in +California the great mass of the people look upon the Independents as a +party of Anarchists." + +"Trueman can be elected without California, can he not?" + +"Elected! Why, he will carry forty States." + +"You really believe it?" asks Nevins, earnestly. + +"I would wager my life on it," is the instant reply. + +Nevins hurries from the headquarters and goes to his room. He writes a +letter to Trueman, setting forth his hopes that the interests of the +people will ever remain Trueman's actuating principle. With absolute +fidelity he tells of the struggle he has undergone since the day he sent +Golding to his death, and his reason for procrastinating in ending his +life. + +When the letter is finished Nevins reads it with evident satisfaction. + +"Now I will go to the committee," is his resolve. + +A pistol lies on the table. He picks up the weapon. There is no +hesitancy in his manner. Death has been a matter which he has +contemplated for months, and it holds no terror for him. + +"If I have sinned against Thee, O, God," he murmurs, "death would be too +mild a punishment for me. I would deserve to be everlastingly damned, to +live on this earth and bear the denunciation of my fellowmen. + +"My death, like those of the committee who have already fulfilled their +pledge, is not suicide, but part of the inevitable price of liberty." + +The pistol is raised to his temple. Then a thought flashes upon him. +"Your death will come as an ante-climax to the election. It may be the +means of defeating the Independents." + +This thought causes him to lower the pistol. + +"To-morrow," he mutters. + +At daybreak Nevins is at the headquarters and remains near the chief +operator, eager for every detail of the election. + +"What is the weather prediction?" he inquires. + +"Generally clear; light local rains on Pacific seaboard." + +"I am most intensely interested in the result of the election," Nevins +confided to the operator, to explain his presence at headquarters. "I +have come all the way from San Francisco to congratulate Trueman on his +election." + +"I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. Mr. Trueman is at his home in +Wilkes-Barre." + +"Well, I shall telegraph him my congratulations. I want to be the first +man in the United States to send him an authoritative message confirming +his election. If you can arrange to let me have the news first, when it +comes in, and will send my message, I shall be glad to pay you for the +service." + +"I have the wire that will send him the news," the operator states as he +pats a transmitter on the desk before him. "What do you call a fair +payment for the message?" + +"Twenty-five dollars." + +"I'll send your message." + +Nevins gives the required sum, and sits at the elbow of the man who is +to flash the news of victory to Trueman. + +In Wilkes-Barre the day has dawned auspiciously. Trueman is among the +first to perform his duty as a citizen. After voting he returns to his +home. + +With his wife at his side he reads the dispatches that come in by a +private wire from headquarters. + +"I am happier to-day than I ever was in my life before," Ethel tells +him. "And I know that you will be elected." + +"I hope your words come true. But whether I am President or not my +campaign has not been in vain. I have won the fairest bride in the +world, and she and I are doing a real good with a fortune that might +have been a curse." + +"Now I can understand the words that are a mystery to so many of the +rich: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive,'" Ethel says, as she +places her hand on her husband's shoulder. "Now I can appreciate the +emotion that impelled you to give the one thousand dollar check to the +miner's widow." As they sit together, through the long day, they discuss +what they will do for the improvement of the people, there is no +provision for the repayment of anti-election promises to the managers of +trusts; no talk of rewarding henchmen with high offices. + +By five in the afternoon the messages begin to announce the forecast in +the extreme Eastern states. + +"Rhode Island has polled the largest vote in its history. The +Independence Party claims the state by fifteen thousand." Harvey reads +this with an incredulous smile. + +"We can hardly hope to carry Rhode Island," he declares frankly. + +"You told me only yesterday that Fall River is going wild over the +biograph pictures," Ethel protests. + +"The rural vote in Maine is believed to have caused the state to go to +the Independents," is the next message that causes Harvey to doubt his +senses. + +"New Jersey washes its hands of trusts. Trueman carries Newark, Trenton, +and Jersey City by overwhelming majorities." + +Thus the story of state after state is wired to Wilkes-Barre. + +"Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio are claimed to have voted for the people's +candidate. The Plutocrats ridicule the assertion, yet have no figures to +quote." + +At nine o'clock the returns by election districts in the populous +cities, begin to arrive. + +"In 1238 districts, Greater New York, Trueman leads by a clear majority +of 75,000." Harvey reads without comment. + +Ten minutes later, this message is received: "Total of 2200 election +districts, Greater New York, Trueman's majority 180,000. This makes the +state Independent by a safe margin of 100,000." + +Harvey Trueman feels for the first time since his nomination that he +will be elected. Joy is written on his face. + +"Pennsylvania casts its vote for Trueman and co-operation." + +It is eleven-thirty. The proverbial "landslide" of politics has +occurred. Already the townspeople of Wilkes-Barre are surging about the +villa, cheering their champion. + +A dozen times Harvey goes to the window to bow his acknowledgments. + +Ethel is excited, almost hysterical. With a woman's quick perception she +realizes that her husband has triumphed. + +Again they stand at the elbow of the telegraph operator who is receiving +the messages. + +"Chicago--" then there was a break. + +"Trueman, have Trueman come to the instrument. Answer. Is Trueman at +your elbow?" This message is sent by the operator at headquarters. He +has indicated that it is a private message and only the word Chicago is +written. + +"What's the matter?" asks Trueman, who has noticed the pause. + +"It's all right, sir; the operator want's you to get this message +immediately." There is another pause. + + CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, + INDEPENDENCE PARTY HEADQUARTERS. + + To HARVEY TRUEMAN, Greeting: + + "You are elected President of the United States by popular + acclamation of forty States. I congratulate you. Keep your + faith with the people; place them always above the dollar; + remember that your office was bought by the blood of patriots, + as true as the founders of the Republic; that you owe it to the + majority to keep their rights inviolate. I go to inform the + Committee of Forty that the Revolution of Reason is victorious. + + WILLIAM NEVINS." + +As Trueman reads these words and grasps their meaning, Nevins, at the +other end of the wire, in distant Chicago, redeems his pledge and drops +dead. + +The curtain falls on the Tragedy of Life. The struggle for mere +existence that has retarded mankind from creation, is at an end. Man +enters into possession of his God-given inheritance, _equal +opportunity_, with a valiant leader, and the fairest land in the world +in which to begin the building up of a Republic that insures to all men +Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Transgressors, by Francis A. Adams + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14633 *** diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1811d39 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #14633 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14633) diff --git a/old/14633.txt b/old/14633.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..65cd7dc --- /dev/null +++ b/old/14633.txt @@ -0,0 +1,9522 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Transgressors, by Francis A. Adams + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Transgressors + Story of a Great Sin + +Author: Francis A. Adams + +Release Date: January 7, 2005 [EBook #14633] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TRANSGRESSORS *** + + + + +Produced by Robert Shimmin, Jennifer Collins and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team. + + + + + + + + + +THE TRANSGRESSORS. + +STORY OF A GREAT SIN. + +A Political Novel of the Twentieth +Century. + +By FRANCIS A. ADAMS, +Author of "WHO RULES AMERICA?" + +Philadelphia: +Independence Publishing Company. + + + + +CONTENTS + + +BOOK I. + +HAIL TO THE SHERIFF OF LUZERNE. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER I. Clouds Gather at Wilkes-Barre 1 + " II. Harvey Trueman, Attorney 16 + " III. Conflicting Opinions 23 + " IV. A Quiet Afternoon at Woodward 32 + " V. An Unquiet Day at Hazleton 48 + " VI. A Stand For Conscience Sake 63 + + +BOOK II. + +THE SYNDICATE INCORPORATES. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER VII. An Anti-Trust Conference 74 + " VIII. A Startling Proposal 81 + " IX. Arraignment of The Transgressors 89 + " X. The Secret Session 110 + " XI. Martha's Premonition 124 + " XII. Taking the Secret Oath 135 + " XIII. The List of Transgressors 150 + + +BOOK III. + +THE SYNDICATE DECLARES A DIVIDEND. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER XIV. Birth of a New Party 163 + " XV. Choosing a Leader 169 + " XVI. Two Points of View 183 + " XVII. Opening the Campaign 189 + " XVIII. On to New York 197 + " XIX. Departure of the Committee 206 + " XX. In the Enemy's Stronghold 212 + " XXI. The Committee Reports Progress 224 + " XXII. Millionaires Sowing the Wind 230 + " XXIII. A Day Ahead of Schedule 241 + + +BOOK IV. + +IN FREEDOM'S NAME. + PAGE. + +CHAPTER XXIV. The Syndicate in Liquidation 256 + " XXV. Big News in the Javelin Office 263 + " XXVI. On to Wilkes-Barre 276 + " XXVII. Sister Martha Averts a Calamity 284 + " XXVIII. At the Dead Coal King's Mansion 298 + " XXIX. Peace Hath Her Victories 309 + " XXX. A Double Funeral 324 + " XXXI. The New Era 333 + + + + +BOOK I. + +Hail to the Sheriff of Luzerne! + + + + +THE TRANSGRESSORS. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +CLOUDS GATHER AT WILKES-BARRE. + + +There are few valleys to compare with that of the Susquehanna. In point +of picturesque scenery and modern alteration attained by the unceasing +labor of man, the antithesis between the natural and the artificial is +pronounced in many respects; especially at that place in the river where +it runs through the steep banks on which is situated the thriving city +of Wilkes-Barre. Here may be seen the majestic hills standing as +sentinels over the marts of men that crowd the river edge. The verdure +of these hills during the greater part of the year is the one sight that +gladdens the eyes of the miners whose lives, for the most part, are +spent in the coal pits. + +The picture would be perfect were it not for the presence of the +Coal-Breakers. These sombre, grizzly structures stand in a long line on +the west bank of the river, and appear to the eye of one who knows their +purpose, as the gibbets that dotted the shores of England and France +must have loomed up before the mariners of the Channel during the +Seventeenth Century, and when the supply of pirates exceeded the number +of gibbets, large as this number was in both lands. + +The breaker is a truly modern invention, which, had it existed in the +days of the Spanish inquisition, would have placed in the hands of the +malevolent fanatics an instrument of exquisite torture. It is +constructed to effect a double purpose, the achievement of the maximum +of production and the expenditure of the minimum of human effort. It is +the acme of inventive genius. To work the breakers, a man need have no +more intelligence than the tow-mule that plods a beaten path; and such a +man is the ideal laborer from the standpoint of the owners of the +breakers. + +But such men are not indigenous to America; they must be imported, and +that, too, from the most benighted lands of Europe. + +What an incubator of warped humanity the breaker has become! It saps +even the attenuated manhood of the aliens it attracts, and when they are +rendered useless for its ends, emits them to be a scourge on the earth. + +But the breakers are the monument of the civilization of the Nineteenth +Century, which esteems commercial as superior to mental advancement. + +As the drama to be unfolded will be enacted largely in this spot, which +nature fashioned on its fairest pattern, and which man has seared with +his cruel tool, a description of the town of Wilkes-Barre and its +environs is essential. The town is the creation of the Mines. Coal +abounds in the valley of the Susquehanna, and from the first impetus +given the coal industry by the establishment of railroads, the mines at +this place have been worked without intermission. The population of the +town has been increasing steadily for the past thirty years, until +to-day it reaches the proportions of a populous city. There is little +variety in the citizens; but the contrast they present makes up for this +deficiency. Broadly speaking there are but two classes, the magnates and +their mercenaries. The former live in the mansions on the esplanade and +constitute the governing minority. The coal miners and the workers on +the breakers, who eke out their lives in slavery, and who sleep in +quarters that make the huts of the peasants of Europe seem actually +inviting, constitute the vast majority. + +The most prosperous business of the town outside of the Coal industry, +which is, of course, monopolized by the magnates, is the Undertaking +business. There are almost as many establishments for the burial of man +as there are saloons to cater to his cheer. In contradistinction to the +custom in this country, the business has been taken up by others than +the worthy order of sextons. That this condition should be, is accounted +for by the fact that there is a paucity of churches in the town, and +that the sextons were unable to accomplish the work that devolved upon +their craft. Death is not attributable, in the main, to natural causes +in Wilkes-Barre; it is brought about by the engines of destruction which +the magnates are pleased to term, Modern Machinery. + +Association makes the mind incapable of appreciating nice distinctions +in regard to familiar objects or persons. Thus to the residents of the +town there is nothing abnormal in their condition. It is only to the +observer from without that the horrors of the Pennsylvania town are +apparent. That such a spot should develop in a State high in rank, and +among the oldest of those comprising the greatest republic, seems +incomprehensible. In the very State where the Declaration of +Independence was sent to the world, proclaiming that men are created +free and equal, and that the right of the majority is the supreme law, +how comes it that a settlement can be maintained where the rights of the +majority can be ignored and suppressed at the point of the bayonet? For +an answer to this question, comes the monosyllable--Trusts! + +Wilkes-Barre is a typical specimen community which may be taken as the +sample unit for a microscopic investigation of the conditions that have +created the modern institution of _voluntary slavery_. The scrutiny of +the specimen is given through the eyes of a resident of the town, and +the observations are his. + +"In a month then, they will shut down three of the mines, and will close +the Jumbo Breaker. You know what that means. I have asked the men of +Shaft Fifteen if they intend to starve, and they answered to a man that +they would sooner be shot than starve like rats in their homes." + +"What is that to me? Am I to look after every man who has ever blasted a +ton of coal in my pits or crushed in the breakers? + +"You tell the men of Shaft Fifteen, and of every other shaft in the +valley, that if they make a single move that threatens the property of +the Paradise Coal Company I will see that they don't 'starve in their +homes.'" + +"Then you will not arbitrate?" + +"There is nothing to arbitrate. I have no more work for the men. That +settles it. The world is big, and if they can find no work in +Wilkes-Barre, let them hunt for it elsewhere." + +"Mr. Purdy, I give you ample warning. The miners will declare a general +strike if you persist in locking out half of them now that the winter +weather has set in. The pits and the breakers can stand idle while the +demand for coal at an advanced price is created by an artificial coal +famine; but the miners have to be fed. They work like machines; but as +yet they have not learned the lesson of living without food." + +"Metz, I have given you my final answer. The mines and breakers close on +the day I stated." + +Carl Metz is the foreman of the largest of the Paradise Company's Coal +shafts, the "Big Horn." He is in consultation with Mr. Gorman Purdy, the +president of the company. Their closing remarks as just quoted are +uttered as they stand on the steps leading to the street from the +offices on the main square of Wilkes-Barre. + +The men nod to each other, and separate. + +"What did he say?" a man demands of Metz, in a weak voice. The +questioner is a typical miner. Death has placed its irrevocable stamp +upon him; he has served his three years in the pits; has been +transferred to the breakers when the signs of failing strength are +perceived by the mine overseer. In another year he will be in the hands +of the mortuary vulture; his last week's earnings will go to pay for the +hard earned grave that is grudgingly given "A Miner." + +"He says the mines will close." + +"Yes, and we will starve. Well, you can tell him that we won't." + +"I told him that the men were desperate." + +"And he laughed at you. Why wouldn't he? We have threatened to strike +for three years. It's getting to be an old story. This time it's our +turn to laugh." + +"What do you mean, Eric?" is the anxious query of Metz. He detects a +hidden significance in the miner's words. + +"Mean! Why I mean that we are _going_ to strike this time, and that it +will be the biggest fight the coal region has ever seen. + +"We can't get the mine owners to arbitrate, but we can get the coal +miners to unite. If one man is shut out to starve we will all go out." + +"And our places will be filled by imported miners," interjects the +foreman. + +"Not this time. We will have our pickets out in all directions, and +every train will be boarded. The men the mine owners bring on will be +told to keep away." + +As the men speak they are unconscious of the approach of the Sheriff of +Luzerne County. He has apparently been watching the movements of Metz. +All the morning he has shadowed the mine foreman, now he steals up +behind the two and stands within earshot. He overhears their words. + +"Let me tell you one thing," he calls out in a shrill voice, as he steps +up to them, "you don't want to forget that there is a Sheriff in Luzerne +County when you count on winning out in this strike." + +"We will do nothing that will require your attention," sententiously +retorts the miner. "We have had one taste of Pennsylvania justice, at +Homestead, and don't want another." + +"I have my eye on you two, and if there is any trouble I'll know whom to +hold responsible," continues the Sheriff. Then he walks on towards the +office of the Paradise Coal Company. He enters the building and is soon +in the private office of the President. + +The miners walk on in silence towards their homes in the East End of the +town across the Bridge. It is not a time to talk. These sturdy men have +a reverence for words; they use them only when the occasion requires. At +the door of the ramshackle hut that serves as the abode of Eric Neilson, +the men halt. + +"Eric!" says Metz, "I hope you will let me know of any steps that are to +be taken by the miners in your section. I have been in this region for +twenty years, and know where the rights of the miners end and the rights +of the mine owners begin. To back our rights we have nothing but our +bare fists; the mine owners have the city, state and Federal +authorities." + +"If there is anything to be done that will be of importance to us all, +you will hear from me," are Eric's reassuring words. + +Carl Metz knows the value of a promise from his fellow-workman. He is +satisfied. + +In the homely parlance of the mines, these men agreed "to keep tabs for +each other on the square." They will let no event of importance go by +without reporting it to each other, and in this way give each full +particulars of the movements of the miners. + +Metz turns back towards the centre of the city. He is bent on seeing +Purdy again, and of appealing to him to reconsider his "shut down" +orders. + +Hardly has he reached Market Street when he runs across the Attorney of +the Paradise Coal Company, a young and brilliant man who is one of the +products of the town school and academy, Harvey Trueman. + +"Good day, Mr. Trueman," is his salutation. + +"How now, Metz?" responds the preoccupied lawyer. "Have you some trouble +on your hands?" + +"It's the same old story, sir, only this time the men are determined to +strike. I have spoken to Mr. Purdy to-day. He refuses to yield a single +inch. + +"I thought it might be a wise thing to see him again and make the truth +clear to him, that the men will unquestionably resort to violence if +they are locked out at the opening of winter." + +"You let this matter stand as it is. I shall see Mr. Purdy in an hour or +so, and shall make it my duty to explain the situation. I know what the +men are likely to do, and what concessions will satisfy them. Metz, I +assure you we do not want trouble. If I have any influence with the +Company, matters will be satisfactorily settled." + +"When can the men have an answer?" + +"Not for a day or two, I suppose." + +"But they must know immediately, Mr. Trueman. You are aware that they +are dependent upon the Company Stores for their food. Well, the notice +has been posted that no more credit shall be extended after next +Saturday. This means that, for the men who are laid off, there is +nothing left but starvation." + +Trueman is troubled at this statement. He has always been an opponent of +the "Company Store" system; now he sees that it is likely to be the +potent factor in exciting the miners to revolt. + +"All I can promise you, is that I shall work in your interests and get +as speedy a reply as possible," he repeats. "By the by," he adds, "will +you come with me to my office now, I want you to go over some of the +details of the 'Homestead Strike' with me. I want to see what lessons I +can gather from it which will help me to advise Purdy in the present +trouble. You were in the Homestead strike, were you not?" + +By a nod of his head, Metz answers in the affirmative. + +They are seated in the office of the young attorney for the next hour, +during which period they review the events of the great iron strike of +'92; the reasons that led to it, and the similarity of the conditions +that exist in Wilkes-Barre. + +Having given Trueman the details of the Homestead affair, Metz explains +the existing grievances of the miners of Wilkes-Barre as follows: + +"The question raised by the miners is not one for advanced wages; it is +not one of reduced hours; it is not a demand for proper protection for +themselves in the mines. These things they have asked for time and +again--little enough for men who wear out their lives in the darkness +and damp of the mines. But these things they have never been able to +obtain. + +"A bare living is all that the mine owners would concede to the miners. +This living, meagre as it was, sufficed to keep life in the miners and +their families. + +"Now the miners are to be deprived of the crust of bread. You cannot +snatch the bone from a hungry dog, without danger. Do you imagine that a +man has less spirit than a beast? + +"The whole trouble, Mr. Trueman, arises from the formation of the Coal +Trust. I have all the facts in regard to this matter. And so far as that +goes, there is not a man in the labor organizations of this country who +does not keep in touch with the events of the day. The education of the +masses is a dangerous thing in a land that is ruled by force, fraud and +finesse, as the United States is to-day. + +"It is the Coal Trust that has brought on this threatened strike. + +"When there were independent coal companies, the condition of the miners +was better by far than it is to-day. The unrestricted operation of mines +made it impossible for any two, or even a considerable number, of the +mine owners to unite for the purpose of reducing the wages of the mine +operatives, and of increasing the price of the coal to the consumer. + +"But with the Trust in operation all restraints are removed. + +"The illegal traffic rates that the Trust secures, make it impossible +for any mine to be successfully worked that is out of the combine. + +"The first step that the Coal Trust took was to limit the supply of coal +at the height of the summer season, when big shipments are ordinarily +made. This afforded a pretext for an advance in the retail price. + +"To limit the supply, the Trust shut down work in half of the mines. + +"For the past seven years this practice has been followed. Now the +simple miners know what to expect. They have been submissive, because +the suspension of work came in the summer time when they could live on +little, and did not have to withstand the rigor of a Pennsylvania +winter. + +"Now the Paradise Coal Company announces that it will close down the +work on three of the mines next Saturday. This throws the men out in the +cold of November. If this plan is carried out it will bring on a long +and bitter strike." + +"I quite agree with you," assents Trueman. He puffs meditatively at a +cigar. + +"You are too young a man to remember the days of the Molly Maguires, +those awful days when murderers lurked on every road in the anthracite +coal field of this state. It was back in 1876 that the last of the +Maguires was hunted down. Of course there is no excuse for murder; yet +the Maguires were the result of a pernicious condition of wage +depression and degradation of humanity. + +"When the just demands of the miners were recognized the reign of terror +ceased. + +"But the Trusts have produced another organization of societies in this +state, bent on murder and arson. The Irish, English and Welsh miners, +who predominated in the region twenty years ago, are now supplanted by +Poles, Hungarians, Italians and the worst types of Lithuanians and +Slavs. These newcomers have brought with them the racial prejudices and +institutions that caused them to be enemies in their native lands; they +constitute a dangerous element in the population of this country. So +long as they are able to get food they remain passive, except for the +feuds they carry on amongst themselves. These immigrants are not +inspired to come to this land by reason of an appreciation of the +liberty that our Constitution vouchsafes to all mankind. They have been +brought here by the agents of the Trusts, because they are willing to +work for pauper wage. + +"I can tell you, Mr. Trueman, that in the strike that I feel will follow +the lock-out, there will be bloodshed. It may not be at the initiative +of the miners. But the fear of the magnates is now aroused and they will +not hesitate to employ force. Once the appeal to force is made, where is +it to end?" + +"All that you have told me, I shall report to Mr. Purdy," Trueman says, +as he extends his hand to grasp that of the plain, earnest miner. + +Metz departs, well satisfied with the progress he has made in advancing +the cause of the miners. + +Harvey Trueman goes at once to the private office of the President of +the Paradise Coal Company. + +He brings the strike matter up for consideration at once; and also the +case of a widow who is bringing suit against the company for the +recovery of damages for the loss of her husband who had been killed in +the mines. + +"You are to press the defence of this case for damages to a successful +termination for the company," are Mr. Purdy's last words, supplemented +by the remark, "I shall attend to the strike in person." + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +HARVEY TRUEMAN, ATTORNEY. + + +Harvey Trueman steps from the County Clerk's office into the corridor, +on the second floor of the Court House at Wilkes-Barre, with the +absolute knowledge that the case in hand is won. + +As he pushes his way down the stairway to the first floor where the +courtroom is located, he elbows through a throng of rough dressed +miners--Polaks, Magyars, and here and there a man of half-Irish +parentage, whose Irish name is all that is left from the Molly Maguire +days to indicate the one-time ascendency of that race in the lands of +the coal region. + +Certain victory within his grasp--a minor victory in the long line of +legal fights he has conducted for the Paradise Coal Company--he does not +smile. It is a cruel thing he is about to do. Cruel? He asks himself if +the sanctity of the law does not make the contemplated move right. +Harvey Trueman has a code of morals, an austere code, that has made him +enemies even among the people whose champion he has grown to be in three +years' practice of the law in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. + +He is a tall, slender, square-jawed man of thirty-six. His forehead is +high and broad and his hair is worn longer than that of other young +men--parted on the side and brushed back. He has thin lips and a mouth +of unusual width. His mouth-line is as straight as a bowstring, and when +he speaks, which is often, or smiles, which is not so frequent, he shows +an even line of large white teeth. + +There is something very earnest in the expression of Harvey Trueman's +face--a soberness that is seldom found in men under fifty. A straight, +strong nose, large nostrils and clean shaven upper lip that is +abnormally long; cheek bones that stand out prominently; gray eyes set +rather deep in his head for so young a man; a square chin protruding +slightly; and wearing a frock coat that falls to his knees in limp +folds, Trueman is a commanding figure, full of character. + +He is an inch over six feet in height. Among the miners who look +straight into the eye to read character, Harvey Trueman has been +pronounced an unflinching tool of the coal barons--one whose unbending +will means the ultimate accomplishment of any undertaking. + +Not one of the miners employed by the Paradise Coal Company has ever +known the young lawyer to take an unfair advantage. But he has upheld +the law for the proprietors of the mines when the men have made a fight +against the "company stores," where they are forced to spend the wages +made by the sweat of their brows down in the mines or on the breakers. + +Trueman is looked upon by all the miners of the region as a part and +parcel of the law, and all law is regarded by them as a thing made to +oppress the poor and aggrandize the wealthy. + +A simple investigation on the eve of the present battle has placed in +the hands of the young lawyer ammunition which will rout the enemy on +the first volley. + +But such an enemy! Above all things, Harvey Trueman is a magnanimous +foe. Now that he has his case won, he feels half humiliated. In the +court room, occupying a front seat while she awaits the arrival of her +lawyer, sits the widow of Marcus Braun, the Magyar miner. + +The miner was killed in Shaft Fifteen of the Paradise Company, which is +three miles down the river from the wagon bridge at Wilkes-Barre. +Standing at the bottom of the shaft when an elevator cage fell, upon +which were two loaded coal cars, he was crushed to a pulp. His widow is +suing for damages for the death of her husband. In the front seat with +her, in the court room, is her five-year-old boy, whom she must support, +perhaps by taking boarders at the mines, if the mine superintendent will +permit her to go in debt for the rent of a house in case her litigation +against the company is not successful. + +True, the rope by which the cage had been lifted and lowered had worn +thin, and the foreman had warned the superintendent the morning of the +accident that a new one was needed. But the poor Magyar at the bottom of +the shaft did not know it. He had in no way contributed to the +negligence which brought about his death. He knew his work was perilous. +In the law, it is a question whether or not the case can be successfully +defended by the coal company. + +Trueman's trip to the Clerk's office has been for the purpose of +ascertaining the miner's standing with reference to his citizenship at +the time of his death. With his experience in the practice, the lawyer +surmised that the Magyar was never naturalized. If he was not +naturalized, his widow has no standing in the court where the suit has +been brought. In that case, it belongs to the Federal Court, and his +widow and orphan, as well as the impecunious lawyer who has taken the +widow's case on a contingent fee, will not have the means nor the +fortitude to begin action in the higher court. + +Trueman discovers after a few moments of investigation in the Clerk's +office that his suspicion is well founded. The miner had never taken out +naturalization papers. + +Cruel? In the concrete, perhaps. The law is made for the multitude. + +"It is a legitimate defense!" Trueman murmurs to himself, as he passes +down the stairs. "The Magyar bore none of the burdens of citizenship. +Neither should he or his, share in the protection which the State of +Pennsylvania affords her citizens." + +"Will the Magyar's widow get anything?" asks O'Connor, one of the +half-Irish, half-Italian miners, whose elbow Trueman brushes as he walks +towards the court room. + +Trueman befriended O'Connor once in the matter of rent. + +"No. He was not naturalized!" + +"His blood be on old Purdy's head, then!" says O'Connor. "The mine boss +has said he will put her out in the street. She's already months back in +her rent." + +Trueman passes on as if he has not heard O'Connor, who is at the Court +House as one of the witnesses. + +As the young lawyer pushes his way into the court room his quick glance +catches the bent form of the woman in the front seat, clad in the +cheapest of black, and the open-eyed boy at her side. + +The proceedings are short. Trueman sits down at one of the tables inside +the bar enclosure and hastily dashes off an affidavit containing the +facts he has discovered, and a formal motion to dismiss. The Judge hears +the motion, which is opposed to in a half-hearted way by the lawyer on +the other side. The suit is dismissed. + +When she is finally made to understand what has happened, the widow +burst into tears. The boy, at sight of his mother's distress, sets up a +wailing that echoes through the whole Court House. In the hallway, the +bunch of miners from Shaft Fifteen gather about the weeping woman as she +comes out. One more instance of the heartlessness of the law which is +made by the men elected by the Coal Barons, is brought home to them. + +To these ignorant men, to whom the first principle of self-preservation +is that limit of erudition set by the coal barons themselves, whose +first and last lessons in life are to read correctly the checks of the +time-keeper and the figures on the "company store" checks which they +receive in payment for their work, what difference does it make that the +dead miner was a Magyar--not a full fledged American? + +He lost his life down in a coal mine where he went to dig coal that some +American, way off beyond the hills, might toast his toes on a winter's +evening. His life's work was to help keep the American public warm. In +return, all he asked was very poor food, a straw bed in a hovel, and a +crust for his wife should he be killed in the undertaking. + +There is much grumbling already on account of the company stores. The +walking delegate of the miners' union has ordered a strike in Carbon +County, adjoining, unless the Paradise Company shall reduce the price of +blasting powder sold to the miners, fifteen cents a pound. + +The miners leave the Court House grumbling. Soothing the Magyar's widow +in their rough way, they form a grim procession and trudge back over the +dusty road to the breaker and the row of hovels on either side of it. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +CONFLICTING OPINIONS. + + +An hour afterward Trueman is seated in his office, in the Commerce +building, on the public square of Wilkes-Barre, in the middle of which +is situated the Court House. On the same floor with his office are the +general offices of the Paradise Coal Company. + +Besides giving him distinction as a "corporation lawyer," which has its +effect in drawing outside clients, this proximity to the general offices +of the Coal Barons' syndicate relieves the young lawyer from the payment +of rent. For the convenience of having a shrewd attorney always at his +beck and call, Gorman Purdy, president of the company, is willing that +Trueman shall occupy the office rent free in addition to the liberal +salary which is paid him. + +While Trueman is successfully managing the legal affairs of the Paradise +Coal Company and achieving a brilliant reputation at the bar of +Pennsylvania, Gorman Purdy is "trying him out" with an entirely +different object in view. He desires to test the young man's mettle as a +man even more than as a lawyer. To accomplish this end it is most +important that Trueman shall occupy the office next the suite of the +great coal corporation. + +Lying on the lawyer's desk is an open envelope, by the side of which is +a check for one thousand dollars, being the amount of his salary from +the coal company for two months. In his ears still ring the plaintive +sobs of the Magyar's widow and the denunciation of O'Connor. + +"The mine boss will put her in the street!" + +In his mind's eye he pictures the dusty road separating the two rows of +miners' huts, down around the bend in the Susquehanna. He sees the +mountain beyond and the column of steam rising from a more distant +breaker, half way up the slope--a beautiful vision from the distance, +but how squalid in its dull gray misery to those who spend their lives +in its midst. + +At this moment the miners who were in attendance at court are trudging +along this highway, chattering their grievances to one another. The +widow and her boy bring up the rear, while the men march solemnly on +ahead, talking of their right to live--just to live. + +Across these mountains, in the city of Philadelphia, six score years and +more ago a convention once uttered the identical sentiments being voiced +by these serfs of the coal seams. Harvey Trueman has been a deep student +of the teachings of that convention. On the shelves of his library are +the well-thumbed writings of Washington and the Adamses and Thomas +Jefferson. He is a firm believer of the doctrines enunciated at Faneuil +Hall, and by Henry in Virginia. + +To-morrow, perhaps to-night, the widow's paltry chattels will be set in +the middle of that road by the sheriff. She will be dispossessed by the +Paradise Coal Company. A frail woman, pale with poverty of the blood, +shrinking with every breath she draws, because she knows the very air +she breathes comes to her over the lands of the Coal Barons--a haggard +widow of the mines will be deprived of her miserable shelter, not fit +for a beast of burden, by the richest coal corporation on earth. Why? +Because her abject misery is a lesson too graphic in its horrible +details to be constantly before the miners. Allowed to remain there, the +widow will breed trouble among the men who are all risking their lives +every minute of every working day, even as her husband risked his. +Dispossess proceedings do not come under the supervision of Harvey +Trueman, but he has ever been observant. A blind man may not remain in +ignorance of the human suffering in the coal regions of Pennsylvania. +Men in the general offices of the Paradise Coal Company see only the +papers and receive the returns. They ask not "Who put the widow of our +latest victim in the street?" + +The sheriff sees to the rest. All hail to the Sheriff of Luzerne! But +Harvey Trueman knows of these things. He has a mind that pierces the +thin walls of the miners' cabins and sees beyond the papers placed in +the sheriff's hands. + +"I suppose she will be hungry for three or four days," he tells himself, +"except for the crusts the other women give her. But in a month she will +be married again. If she had recovered a thousand dollars damages for +the life of her husband, one of the other miners would have had it in a +week." + +He picks up the check and glances at it for the third time. Then he +folds it and places it in his pocketbook. + +"I am paid the thousand dollars," he continues, "for keeping her from +getting it--for two months of my life spent in throwing up legal +barricades to prevent the miners from approaching too near to the +coffers of the Paradise Coal Company. If the Magyar's widow had +collected damages for her husband's death, there would be twenty more +suits filed in a fortnight." + +And so he appeases his conscience. He tries to be flippant, as he has +seen the officers of the great corporation flippant about such matters, +but in spite of himself his heartstrings tighten. Harvey Trueman is +acting a lie, and his heart knows it, though his brain has not yet found +it out. + +The office door swings open. A man of fifty-five enters--a short man +with a stubby red beard, a round face, and hair well sprinkled with +gray. He is dressed in a gray cutaway business suit and wears a silk +hat. His neckscarf is of English make, his collar is of the thickest +linen and neatest pattern, and his general appearance that of the +aristocratic business man whose evenings in a provincial city are spent +at a club, and in the metropolis at the opera. + +It is Gorman Purdy. Trueman's fondest hope--next to the one that at some +distant day, say ten or fifteen years in the future, he may sit in the +United States Senate--is that this man's daughter, Ethel Purdy, renowned +in more than one city for her beauty, may become his wife. Indeed, the +hope of the Senate and of Ethel go hand in hand. With either, he would +not know what to do without the other, and without the one he would not +want the other. + +"Trueman, we are going to have trouble with the men." Purdy draws a +chair up to Trueman's desk. + +"I've just been talking over the telephone to the mine boss at Harleigh. +The men there and at Hazleton hold a meeting to-night to decide whether +or not they will strike in sympathy with the Carbon County miners, +because of the shut-down. + +"Now, we've got to strike the first blow! The men over at Pittsfield and +at the Woodward mines will join the strikers if the Harleigh and +Hazleton men go out. We must get an injunction to prevent the committee +from the affected mines from visiting the other men. If they come it is +for the sole purpose of inducing the men to strike. Isn't that +sufficient grounds for an injunction?" + +"You can get your injunction, Mr. Purdy," Trueman replies, "but what +effect will it have if you haven't a regiment to back it up?" + +"We have the regiment! The Coal and Iron Police have been drilling in +the Hazleton armory. We can put three hundred men in the field from the +offices of the several works, armed with riot guns." + +"You may rely on me to get the injunction, Mr. Purdy," the younger man +says, after a moment's pause, "but I would not advise calling out the +Coal and Iron Police until some act of violence is committed by the +miners themselves. It may lead to bloodshed, may it not?" + +"Lead to bloodshed? Why not? For what have we been training the Coal and +Iron Police? The miners of the Pennsylvania coal region need a wholesome +lesson. They have no respect for property rights. Let them be incited to +a strike by the walking delegates and their battle cry is 'Burn! +Destroy!' + +"We want no repetition of the Homestead and Latimer riots. They were too +costly to the employers! Coal breakers and company stores are no +playthings for the whimsical notions of so-called labor leaders who do +not know the conditions prevailing in this region. They are too +expensive to be made the food of the strikers' torch. + +"Stop the strikers before they have a chance to blacken Luzerne County +with the charred ruins of the breakers! They'll be sacking our homes +next. Already their attitude is almost insufferable. People beyond these +hills do not understand the reign of terror under which these +foreign-born men hold the Wyoming Valley! + +"It has come a time when _we_ must shoot first, if there is to be any +shooting! I've had a talk to-day with Sheriff Marlin. It is fortunate +that we have a sheriff who has the grit to stand his ground. He says a +telegram or telephone message will summon him to Harleigh or Hazleton at +a moment's notice, and he will swear our Coal and Iron Policemen in as +deputies. + +"Whatever they do then will be legal--_Understand?_" + +Trueman looks straight at Purdy several seconds before he replies. + +"No," he says, flushing, "not every thing they do. I do not set my +judgment against yours, but I do counsel great caution in placing +Sheriff Marlin in command of the Coal and Iron Police. While you may be +correct in saying we must administer a quick and salutary lesson to the +miners, as deputy sheriffs your men might be tempted to shoot too soon." + +"Shoot too soon? If these men gather on mischief bent, we can't shoot +too soon!" + +Purdy in turn flushes, as he carefully scrutinizes Trueman's serious +face, which has grown suddenly pale. It is the first time his talented +young protege has ever shown the white feather. + +"Oh, yes, yes, Mr. Purdy--they--they can shoot too soon. Even deputy +sheriffs cannot commit murder with impunity. Fight these men with the +law. It's all in your favor! Sheriff Marlin could not step out there in +the street and shoot my fox terrier unless he could show someone's life +was in danger." + +With a show of impatience Gorman Purdy arises from his chair. He is +displeased beyond measure with the attitude assumed by Trueman. + +"Well, sir!" he says, "you should know there is a difference between +Harvey Trueman's fox terrier, so long as you are general counsel for the +Paradise Coal Company, and a man who marches along the highway with a +revolver in one hand and a torch in the other, his cowardly heart filled +with murder and arson! I am greatly disappointed with your views. +Perhaps it were better that I place the injunction proceedings in other +hands!" + +A sharp retort is on Trueman's lips, words not sarcastic, but stinging +in their earnest truthfulness, and wise beyond the years of the man +about to utter them. Each man has discovered that which is repugnant to +him in the other--that which has remained hidden through years of +friendship. + +The door of the office is unceremoniously opened, and a girlish voice +says: + +"Ah, father--I thought you must be keeping Mr. Trueman. Don't you +remember you promised me at breakfast you would not? Our ride was fixed +for three o'clock. It is now nearly four. Why, you both look positively +serious!" + +Ethel Purdy, gowned in a black riding habit which displays a dainty, +enamelled bootleg, and wearing a gray felt hat of the rough rider type, +gracefully poised on one side of her head, smiles incredulously as she +stands, one hand on the knob, looking in through the door at the two +men. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +A QUIET AFTERNOON AT WOODWARD. + + +Ethel enters Harvey's office just in time to avert a quarrel between the +Coal King and his attorney. In her presence both men resume their normal +reserve of manner. + +"So you have come for your afternoon ride?" Purdy inquires, in a +pleasant tone. + +"Well, my dear, you shall not be disappointed. The matter Harvey and I +were discussing can be deferred. Go and enjoy an hour's exercise. I +shall be home when you arrive." + +"Won't you go with us, papa?" + +"Not to-day. I have a Board meeting to attend." + +"I do wish you would pay as much attention to your health as you do to +business. You are not looking well. Have you forgotten what the doctor +told you about over-working?" + +"No, my dear; I remember his advice; but he does not know what a +responsibility rests upon me as the President of the Paradise Coal +Company. If I did not attend to the details of this business, there +would be a dozen competitors in the coal industry within a year. Even if +I cannot go with you every day, you have Harvey as an escort. You two +will not miss me. When I courted your mother, I should not have insisted +upon a third party accompanying us on our rambles." + +"Then we will join you at dinner," says Harvey, as he walks towards the +door. + +At the curb in front of the entrance of the office building, a groom +stands holding the bridles of three magnificent hunters. + +Harvey assists Ethel to her saddle and springs on to his horse. "Take +Nero back to the stables," Harvey instructs the groom. "Mr. Purdy will +not use him this afternoon." + +The riders are soon out on the turnpike that leads to Woodward. For a +November afternoon, the weather is delightful. The prospects of a +bracing canter over the mountain roads could not be brighter. The high +color on the cheeks of Harvey and Ethel show that they are not strangers +to outdoor exercise. Indeed they are types of perfect physical +condition. + +Since the day Harvey Trueman became the attorney of the Paradise Coal +Company, and the protege of Gorman Purdy, the young couple have been +constant companions. They have been encouraged to seek each other's +company by Mr. Purdy, who appreciated the worth of Harvey and who +secretly hoped that the brilliant young lawyer would become one of his +household. + +"I have spoken to your father," Harvey says, as the horses climb slowly +up one of the rough hills on the pike. "He has given his consent to our +engagement." + +"He's such a dear, good fellow, I knew he would not stand in the light +of making me happy!" exclaims Ethel. + +"Tell me all he said?" she inquires eagerly. + +"He told me that he was glad you thought enough of me to wish to have me +as your partner in life; that he had never had but one fear that you +might fall in love with some worthless snob, who would make you unhappy +and seek only the fortune which you would bring him. + +"Your father was kind enough to say that he believed I would continue to +be attentive to my business, and to his interests. What do you think he +is going to give you as a marriage dot?" + +"Don't make me guess. You know I am never able to guess a riddle." + +"He is going to present you with his new villa at Newport." + +"How could he have known that I was wishing for just that one thing? O, +won't it be jolly to go there and spend our honeymoon," Ethel exclaims +gleefully. + +"We will make your father come there and spend the summer. He really +must take better care of his health." + +Discussing the details of their cloudless future, the lovers enter the +dingy mining town of Woodward. The weather-beaten cottages, which never +have known a coat of paint, do not attract their attention. The groups +of ragged children playing in the dusty road, scurry out of the path of +the horses. On the hillside to the left stands the Jumbo Breaker, the +largest coal crusher in the world. Its rambling walls rise to a height +of several hundred feet up a steep incline. The noise of the machinery +within can be heard distinctly from the roadway. The grind, grind, grind +of the mammoth crushers, which sound as a perpetual monotone to the +townspeople, is lost on the ears of Ethel and Harvey. + +Not until they reach the center of the town do they realize they are at +the end of their ride. + +"We never rode those five miles so quickly before," says Ethel. + +"O, yes we have. Why, it has taken us longer to-day than ever," Harvey +replies, as he looks at his watch. + +"But of course it has not seemed long. We have had so much to talk +about. We must make good time on the ride home or we will be late for +dinner." + +They turn their horses and are off at a brisk trot back toward +Wilkes-Barre. + +On passing through the upper end of Woodward they have not noticed a +clump of men and women standing at the doorway of a miserable hovel, +setting back from the road. + +Now the men and women are in the road and block the way. + +"I wonder what can have happened," exclaims Ethel. + +"Another accident, I presume," is Harvey's answer. "It does seem as +though the Jumbo Breaker injures more men than any other in the +district. It's all through using the new crusher. It's dangerous. I said +so from the moment I inspected the model. But it saves a hundred men's +labor; the company will not abolish its use." + +They are now so near the crowd that the horses have to be reigned in. + +"Who's hurt?" Harvey asks of a miner. + +"Nobody hurt, sir, only the Sheriff putting out Braun's widow." + +The scene in the court room looms up before Harvey. He sees the bent +form of the miners' widow as she had bent over her little boy, weeping +at the decision of the Judge who had said that she could not claim +damages for the killing of her husband. He thinks of the check that is +in his pocket--the reward he has gained for winning the case for the +Paradise Company. A blush comes to his cheeks; his inner conscience is +awakened. + +In the doorway of the hovel stands Sheriff Marlin. He is superintending +the eviction. + +There are several miners in the group who had been at the court house. +They look at Harvey with glances which speak the thoughts they dare not +utter. + +Then, as a hunted fawn which will seek shelter of the huntsmen who are +to slay her, the widow rushes from the house. She runs to the head of +Ethel's horse and falls prostrate at the animal's feet. + +"In mercy's name, don't let them put me out to freeze," she wails. "It +is not for myself. I don't mind the cold; but little Eric, he will +freeze to death. + +"You give your horses shelter; will you let a child die on the roadside? +It is not my fault that the rent is not paid. My husband never owed a +cent in his life. He was killed in the mines, and the company will give +me nothing--nothing. I won't ask for charity. All I ask for is a chance +to work. I can break coal. I can dig it. I am willing to work even in +the Jumbo, till it kills me. Anything to get food and a roof for my +child." + +This tragic scene is enacted, before Sheriff Marlin and his deputies +grasp the situation. They do not long stand idly by and see the daughter +of the great Purdy subjected to this annoyance. With a bound the +sheriff, himself, is upon the woman. + +"What do you mean by stopping this lady?" he shouts, at the same time +grabbing the poor creature by the throat. "Back to your house and take +out your goods, or I'll burn them on the road." + +"Take your hands off that woman," cries Harvey. He stands in his saddle +and waves his hand menacingly at the sheriff. + +"Stop choking her! Do you hear!" + +With savage energy Marlin hurls the widow to the ground. + +"Do not be frightened, Miss Purdy," he says, in obsequious tone. "This +woman will not annoy you again." "You must excuse me, Mr. Trueman," he +adds, turning to Harvey. "But these mining folk cannot be handled like +ordinary people." + +The blush of shame has passed from Harvey's face; he is ashen. + +"Are you evicting this woman for non-payment of rent?" he asks. + +"She has not paid a cent since her husband's death, ten months ago. I +received orders from the company to turn her out to-day. She has been +making trouble here for the past month, and now that she has lost her +suit it's time she got out." + +"Mamma, mamma," cries the five year old boy, as he runs to his mother, +laying prostrate in the weeds at the side of the road. + +"Are you hurt, mamma, tell me?" and then he bursts into a flood of +tears. + +"Take that brat away," Sheriff Marlin says under his breath to a man. As +the deputy starts to pick up the child, it utters a piercing shriek. + +"Don't let them hurt the child!" cries Ethel, in utter horror. She has +till now been a mute witness to the heartless acts of the agents of the +law. + +Harvey jumps from his saddle, and is at the deputy's side. + +"Put that child down. I shall see that it is taken care of," he +declares. + +"Excuse me, Mr. Trueman," interposes Sheriff Marlin, "you must not +interfere with us in the execution of our duty." + +"Execution of your duty! You mean the execution of a woman and her +child. I shall not stand by and see the law violated. You have authority +to evict the widow for her debts; but you have no authority to assault +her. + +"How much does she owe?" + +"Eighty dollars," is the surly reply. + +"Here is the money," says Harvey, as he takes a roll of bills from his +pocket. + +"I cannot accept the money now," protests the sheriff. + +Then stepping up to Harvey he says in an undertone: + +"Mr. Trueman, the fact is, I have been told to put this woman out of +town; she will cause trouble if she remains. The miners are all in +sympathy with her because she lost the suit." + +"Who gave you such orders?" + +"Mr. Purdy." + +"When?" + +"This afternoon. I saw him just after you left the office. He told me to +get the widow out of town this very day, so I took the switch engine and +came out here." + +"Well, you will let the matter stand as it is. I intend to pay the rent +for the woman and see that she is placed back in the house." + +"You will be opposing Mr. Purdy. He explained the case to me and asked +my advice. We decided that with the widow in the town, the miners would +be more likely to carry out their threat than with her out of sight. You +had better let me carry out my orders." + +"I have made up my mind to see the widow restored to her home," Harvey +repeats. "Here is the rent money. I know the spirit of the miners better +than either you or Mr. Purdy." + +The sheriff takes the money reluctantly. + +Widow Braun is now sitting up, vainly trying to comfort her child. + +"You may go back to your home," says Trueman, as he bends over and helps +her to arise. "I have paid your rent and here is some money for food, +and for your next month's rent. I shall see that you get work." + +"May God bless you," cries the widow, bursting into tears. + +"You are my prisoner," Sheriff Marlin declares, as he places his hand on +the trembling figure. + +"On what charge," Trueman demands. + +"For getting goods from the company's store on her husband's card when +he was dead, and she had no money to pay for them," the sheriff asserts, +triumphantly. + +"But she has money to pay for the food she bought. And her husband's +card is valid until cancelled. You had better take care that you do not +overstep your authority. It is not the Widow Braun you have to deal with +now. I am interested in this case. I am the widow's counsel. She has one +thousand dollars to her credit on the books of the company's store." + +Sheriff Marlin is in a fury. He realizes that he cannot serve two +masters and he decides to be faithful to Gorman Purdy. + +"It is not my will that you are opposing, Mr. Trueman," he says with +emphasis. "It is your employer's." + +The word "employer's" grates on Harvey's ears. + +"Mr. Purdy is my employer, but he is not my master. I shall serve my +conscience before I do any man. But I do not believe that Mr. Purdy +would countenance this outrage." + +"What do you mean by saying that the widow has a thousand dollars to her +credit?" the sheriff asks. + +"I mean that she has this thousand dollars," and Trueman drew the check +from his pocket. "It is to be placed to her credit. I have something to +say about the company stores." + +"I shall take this business direct to Mr. Purdy," the sheriff threatens +as he walks off. + +The miners and their wives who have witnessed the quarrel between +Trueman and Marlin give expression to their feelings in whispered words +of praise for the young lawyer who bid defiance to the Sheriff of +Luzerne County, the most dreaded man in that part of Pennsylvania. + +The widow grasps Harvey's hand and before he can withdraw it she covers +it with kisses. Her tears of gratitude fall on his hand. He appreciates +that it is but tardy justice that he is doing to the poor woman. + +"You need have no fear of being turned out of your home," he tells her. +Then he springs back into the saddle. + +"Come, Ethel, let us start for home." + +The ride is finished in silence. Neither Harvey nor Ethel feels in the +mood to talk. On reaching the Purdy mansion the riders dismount, and go +at once to the library, where Gorman Purely is waiting for them. + +"Harvey, I am surprised that you should interfere with my orders," is +Mr. Purdy's salutation. "Sheriff Marlin has just telephoned me. He tells +me that you opposed his evicting the widow, and that the miners are now +likely to make serious trouble. This is the second time to-day you have +attempted to defeat my plans. I cannot understand what object you have +in antagonizing me." + +"You certainly misunderstand my motives," replies Trueman. "It is +because I have your interests at heart that I cannot see you pursue a +course that will lead to disastrous consequences." + +"Do you put your judgment above mine?" asks the Coal King, +sarcastically. + +"In ordinary business matters, in affairs of finance and in the conduct +of the mines I should not presume to dispute your judgment. But on the +propriety of assembling the Coal and Iron Police and of evicting a woman +who has the sympathy of the entire mining district I believe that I am +better able to judge of the effect these acts will have than you are, +for I come into close contact with the people." + +"The sheriff tells me you have placed a thousand dollars to the credit +of the widow at the Company's store. Is this so?" + +"I intend to do so." + +"It shall not be done, sir, not if I have the power to prevent it," +declares the Coal King emphatically, rising and pacing the floor. "You +must be out of your mind to make such a move, now, of all times, to +offer encouragement to the lawless element." + +"He did nothing wrong," interposes Ethel. "He prevented the sheriff and +his men from injuring the woman and her child." + +"Not another word!" Gorman Purdy speaks in a tone he has never employed +when addressing his daughter. + +"This matter must be settled, once and for all," he continues, +addressing Harvey. "There can be but one head of the Paradise Coal +Company. I wish to know if you will cease interfering with my orders?" + +"I have never objected to carrying out any order of yours that was +legal. As long as I am in your employ I shall continue to do as I have +done. But to tell you that I will do your bidding, whether legal or not, +that is something I cannot bring myself to do," Trueman replies, looking +the Coal King squarely in the eye. + +"I shall have no one in my employ who cannot obey me," Purdy says. He +then rehearses what he has done for Trueman; how he has advanced him to +the position of counsel to the company. "And all the thanks I receive is +your opposition, now that I need your support," he states, and without +waiting for a reply hurries from the room. + +When Ethel and Harvey go to the dining room they find that the irate +Coal King has gone to his private apartment, where his dinner is being +served. + +Harvey spends the evening at the mansion. + +As he and Ethel sit in the drawing room they discussed the events of the +day, and speculate on the result that will follow the quarrel with her +father. + +"My father will regret his hasty words," Ethel says. "He admires you and +places absolute confidence in you. Only yesterday he told me that there +was not another man in the world to whom he would confide his business +secrets as he has done to you." + +The lovers go to the music room. Harvey's voice is a remarkably rich +baritone. At Ethel's request he sings a ballad which he has recently +composed. + +Standing at her side as she plays the accompaniment, he sings. + + + "THE SEA OF DREAMS. + + "Sing me of love and dear days gone; + Sing me of joys that are fled; + Strike no chord of the now forlorn; + None of the future dread, + + Ah, let thy music ring with tone + That speaks the budding year; + The Winter's blast too soon will moan + Through the forest bleak and drear. + + Then sing but a line from the dear old days + We sang 'neath the moon's soft beams, + When we were young, in those gladsome days, + While we sailed on the sea of dreams. + + There are no songs that reach the heart, + Like those sung long ago. + New singers and their songs depart; + The old ones ne'er shall go. + + Nor is it strange that they should be + As balm to the sad heart; + They tell of love when it was young, + And all its joys impart." + +At eleven o'clock Trueman leaves the Purdy mansion and goes to his +hotel. To him it is clear that an irreparable breach has been made in +the relations between himself and Gorman Purdy. He knows the unrelenting +character of the President of the Paradise Coal Company. + +"It was a question of right and wrong," he muses. "I could not see a +woman and her child thrown out in the highway, when I knew that it was +through my skill as a lawyer that just damages were kept from them. The +law was on the side of the company; but justice was certainly on the +side of the widow. + +"Every day I have some nasty work of this kind to perform. It is making +a heartless wretch of me. A man can make money sometimes that comes too +dear." + +The next day, at the office, Purdy and Trueman have a long talk. It +results in Trueman withdrawing his objections to the assembling of the +Coal and Iron Police. As to the widow, a compromise is effected. She is +to be set up in business in a neighboring town where her case is +unknown. + +The thought that to break with Purely would mean to lose Ethel, turns +Harvey's decision when the moment comes to choose between duty and +policy. + +The work of preparing to defeat the pending strike is at once taken up, +Purdy and Trueman working in perfect accord. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +AN UNQUIET DAY AT HAZLETON. + + +Nearly two months have passed, and a mantle of snow covers the ground. +The rigorous December weather has come and is causing widespread +distress among the mining population of Pennsylvania. Forty per cent of +the operatives of the Paradise Coal Company have been laid off, as Purdy +declared they would be. This means that starvation is the grim spectre +in six thousand homes. + +The anomaly of miners in one town working at full time, and those of an +adjacent town shut out, must be explained as one of the insidious +methods of the Trust to create an artificial coal famine. + +Gorman Purdy, whose word is law in the Paradise Company, had determined +to exact an advance of twenty-five cents a ton from the retail coal +dealers. To do this he had to make it appear that the supply of coal was +scarce. This led him to close the mines in Hazleton. The miners in the +town sought to force the opening of the mines by bringing about a +sympathetic strike in the neighboring towns. To prevent this, the Coal +and Iron Police have been brought to Hazleton to intimidate the miners +and to suppress them by force if they make any concerted move looking +toward bringing on a strike. + +Preliminary to enforcing the order that debars such an army of men of +the means of support, the Coal Magnates, at Purdy's suggestion, have +massed three hundred of the Coal and Iron Police in the town of +Hazleton. This mercenary force occupies the armory, built two years +before by the benevolent multi-millionaire Iron King of Pennsylvania, +whose immense mills and foundries are situated some two hundred miles +distant. + +Sheriff Marlin is in command of the Coal and Iron Police. He has sworn +them in as deputies, and each bears on his breast the badge of +authority. + +The propinquity of Woodward and the other small towns to Wilkes-Barre +saved them from suffering the effects of a close-down. The Magnates did +not desire to have the scenes of distress brought too near their own +homes. So Hazleton and the outlying districts were selected to be +sacrificed to the arbitrary coal famine. Day after day the idle miners +congregate in the Town Hall to discuss their situation and to devise +some means of relieving the starving families. These meetings are under +the strict surveillance of Sheriff Marlin. Every letter that is sent +from the hall is subjected to his scrutiny. + +There will be no incendiary appeals addressed to the miners of other +districts. + +The newspaper correspondents, though they send accurate stories of the +awful condition of the miners and their families, are disappointed to +receive copies of their respective papers with their articles revamped, +and the essential points expurgated, to meet the approval of the +"conservative reader." + +"The committee on rations reports that the allowance for each miner and +his family must henceforth be reduced to two loaves of black bread a +day. As some of the miners have eight and ten children, an idea of the +actual need of relief from some source may be formed." + +Paragraphs like the above never reach the printed page of a newspaper +that has sworn allegiance to or is bound to support the Magnates. + +It is now December twentieth. The miners resolve to make a final appeal +to the Paradise Coal Company to at least start the mines on half time. +If the company grants this appeal, there will be joy in the miners' +homes for Christmas. + +Christmas is no more to the Magnates than any other calender day. The +necessary time for the creation of the coal famine has not elapsed, and +until it has there will not be another ton of coal taken from the pits. + +Harvey Trueman is expected to confer with the leaders in the afternoon. +He will deliver the appeal to the company, and the following day, +Sunday, the miners will know if they are to go back to work. + +"In the event of Purdy, the final arbiter, refusing to start up on half +time," says Metz, who is now the leader of the Miner's Union, "we can go +to Latimer and Harleigh, to-morrow. The mines will be closed; they are +only working them six days a week now. We will appeal to the men to quit +work unless the Paradise Company gives us a chance to earn our bread." + +"If the Harleigh men won't go out, they will at least give us some food +for a Christmas dinner," says a miner whose hollow cheeks tell of long +fasting. + +"Peter Gick died last night," a miner states as he enters the hall. "He +went to the ash dumps to pick a basket of _cinders_; on his way back to +his house he fell. He was so weak that he could not get up. The snow is +two feet deep on the road, and it was drifting then; it soon covered him +up. This morning his son, Ernst, found him. Of course he was frozen +stiff." + +"Where is his body?" Metz asks. + +"Sheriff ordered it buried by the police." + +"A public funeral might prove dangerous to the Magnates," observes Metz. +"Our modern rulers have profited by the experience of the ancients." + +Promptly at two o'clock Trueman arrives at the hall. + +The committee on resolutions present him with their petition. + +"I shall do all that I can to make the Company appreciate the condition +in which you are placed. You may depend upon it, there will be work for +you before Christmas," Trueman assures them at parting. + +"We shall want an answer by to-morrow morning at ten o'clock," the +miners urge in chorus. + +Harvey Trueman leaves for Wilkes-Barre on the mission of appealing to +the humanity of the Coal Magnates. + +Miners' wives and children stream to the Town Hall, to receive their +bread and rations. + +It is at such times as these, where the miners are ruthlessly shut out +of the mines, that the highest value of the Miner's Union is +demonstrated. From the slender treasury, which is enriched only by the +pennies of the miners during their weeks of employment, the money is +drawn to purchase the rations that must be had to keep the miners and +their families from actually starving when they can no longer buy from +the company store. + +To supplement the rations distributed by the Union, the Hazleton miners +have a small supply of medicine. This is as important as food. The +medicine chest was given them by Sister Martha, the ministering angel of +the mines. + +Martha Densmore was the daughter of Hiram Densmore, who had owned great +tracts of the coal lands. He had been forced out of the industry by +refusing to enter the combine which resulted in the formation of the +Coal Trust. At the time of his death, of all his fortune there remained +but a small part. Mrs. Densmore had not survived her husband a year. +Martha was left an orphan. + +She has an income of $6000, and could live a life of idleness did she so +desire. But it was her purpose from girlhood to be always on missions of +charity. She had loved Harvey Trueman. They had been schoolmates, and +would undoubtedly have wed had not the wreck of Densmore's fortune been +accomplished just as Trueman was leaving college. Gorman Purdy had been +quick to perceive the calibre of the young man and had brought him into +the Paradise Company. With father and mother dead, and with her heart's +longing unappeased, Martha determined to join a sisterhood, and devote +her entire time to ministering to the poor and the sick. + +The suffering of the miners of Hazleton attracts her sympathy and she +has come to the town from Wilkes-Barre. + +It is her presence in the town hall that makes even Sheriff Marlin curb +his blasphemous tongue. + +Her calm face, which wears an expression of contentment, if not of +happiness, is a solace to the miserable men and women who come to ask +for medicine. She always has a word of cheer. + +The life she has led for eight years has not aged her, and to judge from +her manner she would not be taken for a woman more than thirty. She is, +however, six and thirty; her natal day being in the month of March, the +same as Trueman's. And they are both the same age. In the school days +they celebrated their birthdays together. + +There is not a miner or one of his family who would not give up their +life, if such a sacrifice were necessary, to keep Sister Martha from +being injured. They have seen her enter a mine where an explosion had +occurred, when even the bravest of the rescuing party hesitated. They +have seen her in their own hovels, bending over the forms of their sick +and dying children. The yellow flag of pestilence never makes her +hesitate. + +By her practical acts of charity and humanity, she has come to exert a +wonderful influence over the humble citizens of Luzerne County. In this +present crisis Sister Martha is the central figure. + +In the Armory the Coal and Iron Police are playing cards and enjoying +themselves as men always can in comfortable barracks. + +So the winter night closes. The hearths of the miners are cold, their +larders empty; but the armory is warm, the police are well fed. + +"The Company refused to open the mines. They will, however, send thirty +barrels of flour to be distributed for Christmas." This is the message +returned by Trueman, on Sunday morning. + +There are sixty miners in the Hall. They decide to go at once to +Harleigh, to exert "moral suasion" on their fellow miners there. + +They start from the Hall unarmed, walking two by two. At the head of the +line of sixty men, one carries the Stars and Stripes; another a white +flag. There is nothing revolutionary about the procession. It is a sharp +contrast to the armed force of the Culpepper Minute Men, who, under the +leadership of Patrick Henry, marched to Williamsburg, Virginia, to +demand instant restoration of powder to an old magazine, or payment for +it by the Colonial Governor, Dunmore. The Minute Men carried as their +standard a flag bearing the celebrated rattlesnake, and the inscription +"Liberty or Death: Don't tread on me." + +The route to Harleigh is in an opposite direction to the armory. The +little column passes out of the town of Hazleton and is a mile distant +when the Coal and Iron Police learn of their departure. + +Instantly there is a bustle in the armory. + +"Form your company, Captain Grout," the sheriff orders. + +"Give each man twenty rounds. Tell them not to fire until I give the +order. When they do open fire, have them shoot to kill." + +The company is formed on the floor of the armory. It receives the +orders; one-third of the force is left to guard the armory. + +In column of fours the main body marches out, Captain Grout and Sheriff +Marlin in the lead. + +To catch up with the miners the column marches in route step. + +"We will head them off at the cross roads this side of Harleigh," the +sheriff explains. "There is a cut in the road there, and we can put our +men on either side. When the miners come within range I shall challenge +them. If they do not turn back, it will be your duty to compel them to +do so." + +Unconscious of the approach of the sheriff and his posse, the miners +march on. The road is heavy and they are so much run down by long weeks +of short rations that they cannot make rapid headway. + +Sheriff Marlin and his men are now at the cut near the cross roads. + +Captain Grout stations his men to command either side of the road. The +banks of the cut are fringed with brush, which affords a complete cover +for the men. + +"You keep out of sight, too, Captain," Sheriff Marlin orders. "I will +stop the miners. If they see you and the Coal and Iron Police they may +scatter, and some of them reach Harleigh." + +The ambuscade is complete. Five minutes passes. There is no sign of the +miners. + +"Can they have been told of our plan to head them off?" asks the +sheriff. + +At this moment the head of the procession of miners turns the corner of +the road. The American Flag and the White Flag are still in the van. + +The sheriff takes up a position on the side of the road. As the miners +come up to him, he calls them to "halt." + +"Where are you going?" he demands. + +"To Harleigh," replies Metz. + +"Who gave you permission to parade?" + +"We are exercising our rights as freemen." + +"Well, you cannot march in a body on the highways of Pennsylvania." + +"Then we can break up our procession and walk individually." + +"_In the direction of Hazelton_," Sheriff Marlin says, significantly. "I +know what you are up to; do you think that I am going to let you cause a +sympathetic strike in Harleigh because you are locked out? Not if I know +myself." + +When the miners come to a halt, the men in advance cluster about Metz +and the sheriff. + +Now thirty men surround the sheriff. + +Some of them are, of course, in advance of him. + +"Get back to Hazleton," Sheriff Marlin cries, at the same time raising +his arms above his head and waving them. + +He pushes his way through the crowd of miners to the edge of the road. + +Off comes his hat + +It is the signal which Captain Grout has been expecting. + +"Company, attention!" + +Two hundred Coal and Iron Police jump to their feet. + +"Get back to Hazleton or I'll take you prisoners," shouts the sheriff. + +But his words are lost. The miners are terror-stricken. The sight of the +police, armed with deadly rifles, has made the miners insensible to +every thought and impulse but that of self-preservation. + +They scatter up and down the road. + +"Don't let them escape to Harleigh," shouts the sheriff. Taking this as +an order, the police open fire on the men who have passed the sheriff. + +Crack! crack! go the rifles. + +Each shot fells a miner. They are practically at the muzzles of the +weapons. + +A miner rushes up the bank on the left to get out of the range of the +police on that side. He is riddled by the bullets from the opposite +side. + +Another dives into a snow bank; it affords him no protection. "Pot that +woodchuck," shouts Captain Grout to one of his men. + +A bullet is sent into the hole. The miner springs to his feet; then +drops dead. + +The line of carnage is now stretched out for two hundred yards. + +There is no return fire. So the armed police come out from cover and +pursue their victims. + +The police have lost all self-control. Each man is acting on his own +responsibility. + +Of the ten miners who run toward Harleigh, not one is spared. Three lie +in the road; the snow about them tinged with their life's blood. Another +is clinging with a death grip to a stunted tree, which he caught as he +staggered forward, with three bullets in the back. + +"Mercy! mercy!" cry several of the miners. But their wail is lost on the +ears of the Coal and Iron Police. The police are there to kill, not to +grant mercy. + +Now a miner falls on his knees and prays to God for protection. + +This attitude of submission is not heeded; a bullet topples him over. + +With their hands above their head, some of the men walk deliberately +toward the deputies. Indians will recognize this as the sign of +surrender, and will give quarter. But the deputies, with unerring aim, +shoot down the voluntary captive. + +It would not be so terrible if the miners were returning the fire, if +they were offering any resistance. But they are absolutely unarmed. +Their mission has been to present a petition to the miners of Harleigh. +The slaves of the South had enjoyed the right of petition. How could +these twentieth century miners anticipate that the sheriff would +massacre them on the highway for seeking to present a petition? + +"Have you shot any one?" asks one of the deputies of his nearest +companion. + +"Shot any one! Well, I should think I had. I've seen four drop. Here +goes a fifth." + +To stand, to run, to fall to the ground, all are equally futile as means +of escape. Extermination is all that will stay the fire of the police. + +Sheriff Marlin and Captain Grout stand in the middle of the road. Metz, +O'Connor, and Nevins, a mine foreman, are standing beside them. + +O'Connor carries the white flag; Nevins the National emblem. + +"Disarm those men," Marlin directs the Captain. + +"Disarm them?" Captain Grout repeats, inquiringly. + +"Certainly. They have sticks in their hands." + +Two deputies, who have exhausted their supply of cartridges in their +magazine rifles, stop reloading and rush upon Nevins. They beat him over +the head with their rifle butts. The flag is snatched out of his hands. + +O'Connor is dealt a blow an instant later. + +The subjugation of the unarmed miners is accomplished. + +One by one the Coal and Iron Police return. + +Some of them bring in captives who have escaped death, but who still +have felt the sting of the bullets. + +Of the sixty miners, twenty-three are killed outright; ten are mortally +wounded; twenty-one have less serious wounds. + +Six have run the gauntlet and are fleeing back to Hazleton. + +The triumphant march of the police to Hazleton is begun. + +"We will carry the wounded," says the sheriff. "They might get through +to Harleigh and Latimer." + +"We will round up the six who escaped," Captain Grout assures the +sheriff. He then details ten men to run down the miners who have eluded +capture. + +This is an easy matter, as the footprints of the miners are perfectly +distinct in the soft snow. On the six trails the men set off, as a pack +of hounds on the scent of game. + +This man-hunt results in an addition of _six_ to the list of the slain. + +Gorman Purdy's orders have been carried out. + +His police have been sworn in as deputies; they have met the miners and +have "fired first." + +The sanctity of the law enveloped their act. They shot as _Deputies_. + +They dispersed a band of miners who were on the highway, armed, +according to the sheriff's version, "with sticks," and bent on creating +trouble in Harleigh. + +Did it matter that the "sticks" were flag staffs on which were displayed +the White Flag of truce, and the Emblem of Liberty? + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +A STAND FOR CONSCIENCE SAKE. + + +News of the massacre on the highway can not be suppressed. A wave of +indignation sweeps over the country. Newspapers, clergymen, statesmen, +ordinary citizens are of one opinion, that the sheriff and his deputies +should be made to suffer for their dastardly acts. The result of the +agitation is a call for trial for a case of murder. The Grand Jury of +Luzerne County find an indictment against Sheriff Marlin and Captain +Grout. These men are placed on trial. + +Gorman Purdy at first is highly elated over the result of the sheriff's +summary action against the miners. "It has taught the miners a good +lesson," he asserts openly. + +The morning after the Grand Jury returns its indictment, Purdy enters +Harvey Trueman's office. + +The relationship between Purdy and Trueman is no longer strained. In +three months time Harvey will marry Ethel. He is to live at the Purdy +mansion until his own house can be built. + +"You have read the papers this morning?" Purdy asks. + +"Yes. It begins to look serious for the sheriff and Grout. I understand +that they are to be imprisoned to-day." + +"Now I want to have a talk with you about defending them." + +"Defending them!" exclaims Trueman. "You want me to defend them?" + +"It was in our interests that they acted," says Purdy, "and the least we +can do is to defend them." + +"It was not in my interests, nor was it at my suggestion that the Coal +and Iron Police were sent to Hazleton. You must remember that I +deprecated that step." + +"Well, we won't go over that matter anew, Harvey; the defense of the +Sheriff and Captain Grout is essential to the interests of the Paradise +Coal Company. You are the chief counsel of the Company, and I look to +you to secure their acquittal." + +"But you cannot want me to defend two men who are guilty of cold blooded +murder," protests Trueman. "I am the last man in the world to ignore the +sanctity of the law. When I see the highest law of the land trodden +under foot by an ignorant and arrogant sheriff, I wish to see the law +enforced against him as it should be against the commonest offender." + +"It's all very well to have high ideals of law and justice," Purdy +observes, with a cynical smile, "but you cannot be guided by them when a +commercial interest is involved. The conviction of the sheriff would lay +us open to the violence of the mob." + +"You can find a more capable man than I to defend the prisoners." + +"There is no one who is as familiar with the mining life as you are; I +have thought the matter over carefully before broaching it to you. There +is no way out of it, Harvey, you must take the case in hand. It is not +the company's request. I make it personal. I want you to do your best to +get these men off." + +"Mr. Purdy, I cannot comply with your request." + +"You refuse to oblige me?" + +"I refuse to defend men who I believe have committed murder." + +"I am an older man than you, Harvey Trueman, and I caution you to think +twice before you refuse to obey the request of the man who has made you +what you are." Purdy is white with rage, for he feels that Trueman will +remain obdurate. + +"It may seem an act of ingratitude, but I cannot suffer my conscience to +be outraged by defending the perpetrators of an atrocious crime." + +"Your conscience will cost you dear. If you do not defend this case you +may consider your connection with the Paradise Coal Company at an end. +You sever all bonds that have united us, and your marriage to my +daughter will be impossible. Is the gratification of a supersensitive +conscience to be bought at such a price?" + +"There must be something back of your demand," Trueman declares. + +"There is only the just claim that I have on you to work for my +interests." + +"Mr. Purdy, I was a man before I met you. I am indebted to you for my +present position; yet I am not willing to pay for its retention by +forfeiting my honor. If you insist on me defending the case, I tell you +I would sooner pay the penalty you name." + +Trueman's voice is tremulous. He realizes that his decision has cost him +not alone a position of great value, but all chance of wedding Ethel +Purdy. + +"You will live to regret this day, Harvey Trueman," Purdy cries +menacingly. "Whatever is due you from the Paradise Coal Company will be +paid you to-day. Henceforth you will find office room elsewhere. +Remember, sir, I forbid you to have any communication with my daughter." + +With these words Purdy walks out of Trueman's office. + +"It may be better for me to get out of this damnable atmosphere while I +still have a spark of manhood left," Trueman muses, as he sits at his +desk. "If I remained here many years more I should be as heartless as +Purdy himself. + +"I wonder how Ethel will act in this crisis? She loves me, that I would +swear to with my life, but can she sacrifice her fortune to marry me? I +cannot expect her to do so. No, it would be too much. I have money +enough to live but I could not support her in the style to which she has +been accustomed from her birth." + +For an hour he sits intently thinking. He reviews the past. At the +recollection of his school days and the first love he had experienced +for Martha Densmore, a sigh escapes his lips. + +"I might have been happy, had I married her," he says to himself. + +"But then I should not have become a lawyer. What good have I done in +the law? I have been the buffer for a heartless corporation. The +president of the corporation demands of me to do an act that is against +my manhood. I refuse and I am turned out like a worthless old horse. + +"I shall henceforth use my talents to some good. The Paradise Coal +Company and every other concern that is waxing rich at the expense of +the people will find that I can be as formidable an antagonist as I have +been defender. How could I have been blind to my duty so long?" + +Trueman arises and walks from his office. A thought is forming in his +mind. + +"I'll do it," he says aloud, as he reaches the elevator. + +"The miners have no one who is capable of prosecuting the case of the +people. The District Attorney and his staff have been bought off. Any +one of the injured miners has standing in the court, and can be +represented by counsel. Yes, there is O'Connor, I shall be his counsel." + +Trueman hurries to the east side of the town and hunts up the quarters +of Patrick O'Connor. The miner is still in bed; the fractured skull he +had received by the blow from the rifle barrel nearly proved fatal. + +In a few words Trueman explains how he had been driven to leave the +Paradise Coal Company; and how he is now determined to be the champion +of the people. + +"I believe you, sir," says O'Connor, feebly, "for you have always been +kind to me. But the rest of the miners think you are to blame for all of +their troubles; especially when they face you in court." + +"You will tell them to put faith in me, won't you, O'Connor?" + +"Indeed I will, sir." + +The door opens to admit Sister Martha. + +Harvey Trueman has not been face to face with Martha for eight years. + +"You here, Martha!" he exclaims. + +"I am here every day. My duty brings me among the sick." + +The two playmates of the happy school days walk over to the window and +talk in low tones for half an hour. Trueman tells of his determination +to be an antagonist of the Magnates, one of whom has attempted to buy +his soul for the sordid interests of a corporation. + +"You may be sure I shall be pleased to help you all I can," Sister +Martha assures him. "And I have many friends among the miners. It will +be some time before they will accept your protestations in good faith. +You must know that your masterful knowledge of the law has kept many of +them from winning their suit for damages against the Paradise Company. +If you do something to prove your sincerity it will win you many +friends." + +"If I appear as the counsel of one of the miners and prosecute the +Sheriff of Luzerne County, will that be sufficient to demonstrate my +sincerity?" Trueman asks. + +"It will make you their champion." + +"Well, you may tell the miners of Wilkes-Barre that I am to appear as +counsel for Patrick O'Connor in the coming trial. We will meet often +now, I hope?" Harvey asks as he leaves the room. + +"Whenever you come to this quarter of the city you will be able to find +me," Sister Martha responds. + +Events move rapidly. The trial is set for February first. Between the +day Harvey Trueman left the employ of the Paradise Company and the +opening of the trial he wins the name of "Miner's Friend." Eight damage +suits against the Paradise Coal Company are won for miners by his +sagacity and eloquence. + +He has been able to learn of the effect of the break in the friendship +between the Purdy's and himself. Ethel had been prostrated by the event. +For many days she had been actually ill. As soon as her health permitted +she had been sent abroad. She is now in the south of France. + +At the trial of Sheriff Marlin and his lieutenants, Trueman +distinguishes himself by the searching line of questions he puts to the +sheriff's deputies and two lieutenants, who are placed on the witness +stand. In cross-examination he succeeds in eliciting the fact that the +only "weapons" carried by the miners were the two flag staffs. + +He brings to court as witnesses men who had been shot in the back as +they had run to escape the deadly fire of the deputies. + +One of these men, carried to the court room on a cot, testifies that he +ran up the embankment and had fallen at the feet of one of the deputies. + +"I begged of him to spare my life; that I had a wife and six children. +He stepped back a pace and pointing his rifle at my head, fired. The +bullet grazed my temple. I rolled over. He thought I was dead. I lay +there motionless for several minutes. Then I was struck in the shoulder +by another bullet." + +This testimony causes a tremendous sensation. + +The defendants counsel asks for the recall of the witness the following +day. He is brought to court and answers two questions. Then with a groan +he turns on his side and dies in the presence of the crowded court and +before the very eyes of his assassin. + +The trial is a travesty on justice. The jury is composed of men known to +be in sympathy with the prisoners. The deputies are in court each day +fully armed. They make no pretext to conceal their pistols. This is done +to influence the jury to believe that the deputies had shot in +self-defense. Both Sheriff Marlin and Captain Grout are acquitted; but +they are not vindicated in the eyes of the people of the United States +or of Wilkes-Barre. + +Trueman emerges from the trial as the recognized champion of the people. + +It has taken twelve weeks to try the case. The cost of this victory for +the Coal Barons is one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. + +Sister Martha and Harvey meet frequently. She is a great aid to him in +getting information from the miners. She is inspired by the grand +results that Trueman realizes for the poor miners whose cases he +handles. She hears him mentioned as the candidate for some office, and +asks him if he would accept it. + +"I do not wish to mix in local politics," Trueman tells her. "I might +accept the office of Congressman; but it is impossible to elect a +candidate of the miners in Pennsylvania." + +Early in May a call is sent out through the several States for delegates +to attend an Anti-Trust Conference in Chicago. This Conference is deemed +urgent as the outgrowth of an atrocious move on the part of the Magnates +who seek to vitiate the laws of the United States as applied to capital. + +Martha asks Trueman if he will accept the appointment as a delegate from +the State of Pennsylvania. He signifies his willingness to do so; but +doubts if the miners outside of Wilkes-Barre hold him in high enough +esteem to so honor him. + +"I have not done enough yet to redeem myself for the years that I stood +as the barrier to the poor getting their deserts," he declares. + +But the election shows that he is recognized as a faithful friend of the +people. At the Conference it is believed he will win recognition for the +claims of the miners, for justice, and for the Federal enforcement of +the laws of common safety in the mines. + +The ten months that have passed since the afternoon he won the case +against the Magyar's widow, have been the most momentous in his life. +They have taken him out of the service of a soulless Company and put him +in the position of leader of a million miners. + + + + +BOOK II. + +The Syndicate Incorporates. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +AN ANTI-TRUST CONFERENCE. + + +From the hour that Trueman was selected as a delegate to the great +Anti-Trust Conference to convene in the city of Chicago, he has devoted +his hours, day and night, to study. In making his advent in the +conference, he enters the arena of national politics; he means to go +prepared. Martha has prevailed upon him to accept the nomination as a +candidate for the State of Pennsylvania, and he has been elected by the +unanimous vote of the Unions. This exhibition of confidence on the part +of the toilers of the state has made a deep impression on him, and has +fixed his resolve to do something that will be worthy of his +constituents. + +The sudden transition he has undergone from being the staunch supporter +of the coal barons, to becoming their bitterest opponent, has left many +of the opinion that he is working some deep scheme for the undoing of +the unionists. Nor is this opinion confined to any small number. "He +changed his views too quickly," is the general sentiment in the ranks of +the small unions where Trueman is not personally known. This lurking +suspicion was what had operated strongly at first against securing +Trueman's consent to be a candidate. Martha has worked quietly, +assiduously, among the men she knew, and who placed absolute faith in +her advice. She has been the direct means of bringing about his +election. + +Now he is to leave her, and must face the supreme opportunity of his +life. + +It is not without a pang that he bids her farewell. She has come to be a +source of great comfort to him since his enlistment in the ranks of the +humble. The schoolday acquaintance has been renewed. He has learned to +appreciate the fact that he was the cause of her having donned the dress +of the sisterhood. His ambition to rise in the world made it impossible +for him to yield to the dictates of his heart and the mental vista that +opened before him at the close of his college course, did not have her +in it. The woman he saw there must be the favorite of fortune. He had +selfishly abandoned certain love for possible fortune and in the active +life to which he was at once introduced, all thoughts of Martha had been +driven from his mind. + +But Martha had had no counteractant to soften or obliterate the thoughts +of her blasted hopes. The refuge of the convent appealed to her as the +one remaining avenue by which she might escape from her youth and its +recollections. + +It is impossible for Trueman and Martha Densmore to ever again be +lovers; the inexorable ban of the church is between them. Yet they can +be friends. And Trueman feels that in Martha he has found his firmest +friend and advisor. + +"You will hear from me from time to time," she says as they part. "I am +confident that you will do your duty; that you will awaken the finer +instincts in the delegates. With the scenes that have surrounded you in +Wilkes-Barre, you cannot be an advocate of violence as a means of +settling the struggle for the restoration of the rights of the people." + +"It shall be my untiring labor to avert the adoption of any measure that +entails an appeal to force," Trueman assures her. + +On his arrival at Chicago he finds the convention already in session. An +hour in the hall convinces him that the result will be nugatory. The +radicals are in the majority and the proposals they make are temporary +expedients that look only to appeasing the demand of the masses for +action against the usurpers of the public rights. + +With a view to defeating the objects of the conference, the Magnates +have contrived to send a number of their hirelings as delegates. These +are among the loudest in demanding impossible remedies. It is not long +before Trueman discovers who these spies are, and he loses no time in +exposing them in open conference. + +This action brings him into prominence. + +"Who is this delegate from Pennsylvania?" asks Professor Talbot, a +venerable scholar sent by the Governor of Missouri to represent that +state, of Nevins, a neighboring delegate. + +"He is a convert to the cause of the people," comes the quick reply. + +"A tool of the Coal Barons, you mean," observes a New Yorker. "I knew +him three years ago when he was the attorney for the Paradise Coal +Company," he continues, "and a more relentless man to the miners never +was known in Pennsylvania." + +"Yes, I know. He was once a counsel for the Paradise Company," assents +the champion of Trueman. "I know his record from A to Z. You can't find +a straighter man in this conference. He has come out for the people and +I believe he is sincere." + +"Whoever he is, or whatever he has been," says the Professor, "it is +evident that he has the power of reading character. He was not here two +hours before he detected the presence of the goats in our fold." + +"Would you like to meet him?" asks Nevins. + +"Indeed, I should be pleased to do so." + +Professor Talbot and the friendly delegate approach Trueman. + +For an hour or more the three are engrossed in animated conversation. +Professor Talbot is delighted to find that Trueman is conversant with +the most complex questions of the hour. + +"I shall make it a point to have the chairman call upon you for an +address," he assures Trueman at parting. + +For three days the sessions of the conference are devoted to partisan +discourses. There seems to be no hope of reaching middle ground. The +newspapers ridicule the utterances of the speakers as the vaporings of +demagogues. And they are little else. + +On the fourth day, true to his promise, Professor Talbot gets the +chairman to call upon Trueman for a fifteen-minute speech. + +From his first words Trueman wins the attention of the audience. His +voice is full and far-reaching; his language simple, and it is possible +for every one to grasp his meaning instantly. He chooses to win the +delegates to his way of reasoning by force of the truth he utters rather +than by appealing to their senses by a display of forensic and +oratorical ability. + +In the few minutes allotted to him, he reviews the industrial conditions +of a decade and shows where the insidious principle of class legislation +has undermined the prosperity of the people to bestow it upon the few. +In an unanswerable argument he pleads for the restoration of the rights +of the majority; by a rapid review of the causes that have led to the +downfall of the nations of the past, he shows that the unjust +distribution of the fruits of labor must inevitably lead to the +disintegration of the state. + +His peroration is a fervent appeal to the delegates to reaffirm the +equality of man; it calls upon them to adopt resolutions advocating the +government control of all avenues of transportation and communication, +and for the strict regulation of all industries that affect the common +necessities of life. + +"There is no law above that of the Creator. He did not fashion some of +his children to be damned with the brand of perpetual servitude; He did +not anoint some with omnipotence to place them as rulers over the many. +When He made mankind in His image, it was to have them live in fraternal +relationship. There should be no competition for the mere right to live. +Until God's design is declared to be wrong, I shall never cease to +counsel my brothers to live true to the Divine principles of liberty, +equality and fraternity." + +With these words he closes his address. + +There is no means for measuring the exact effect of his words. The +plaudits of an audience are an uncertain criterion. + +In the final vote that is taken, after three other delegates have +spoken, a resolution is adopted calling for the appointment of a +standing committee of three to continue the investigation of the Trust +question until another year. + +This result is not satisfactory to the radicals, yet they make no open +objection. To Trueman it is a source of gratification to know that the +heretical proposals of some of the delegates have been voted down. + +The conference is on the point of closing when Delegate William Nevins +moves that the chairman of the special committee be empowered to +increase the number of the committee to forty at his own discretion. +This motion is adopted. + +The conference ends. It has exemplified the old adage of the convention +of the mice to discuss the advisability of putting a bell on the cat. +All agreed that it would be for the good of micedom; yet no mouse had a +feasible method to advance for affixing the bell. The papers in every +city tell of the failure of the Anti-Trust conference to agree upon a +plan of action. + +The millions of toilers bend lower under their burdens; the Magnates +tighten their grasp on the throat of labor. + +In all the United States there is but one man who holds a solution of +the problem of emancipating mankind from commercial servitude. This man +has been a delegate. He has spoken but a few words; he has been present +as an auditor. + +His hour for action is soon to come. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +A STARTLING PROPOSAL. + + +The special committee has been directed to hold meetings at intervals of +a month and to have a report ready by the first of the following +January. Thirty-seven of the most intelligent and earnest of the +Anti-Trust members have been placed on this committee by its chairman. +The meetings are now secret. + +The first meeting is held in the hall that had been used for the big +meetings of the conference. After this the meetings are clandestine. + +The comment that was provoked by the conference of the radical leaders +of the Trust opposition died out in the usual way, and then the interest +in the efforts of the special committee was confined to the few people +who realized the earnestness of the men who had decided to take the +Trust problem up and bring it to a speedy settlement. + +Day by day the members of the committee met to discuss the phases of the +all absorbing question. + +The managers of some of the largest corporations are warned of these +secret deliberations and institute a vigorous investigation. The aid of +the police is secured, and the officers of a dozen of the shrewdest +private detective bureaus are put in possession of the few facts that +have been ascertained. In a hundred directions public and private +sleuths are set in motion. But their untiring efforts are unavailing. +They have to combat a more adroit, more nervy and more intelligent force +than they have ever before been brought in contact with. + +The Committee of Forty has its ever watchful sentinels on guard, and +every move of the detectives is anticipated and provided against. + +Thus matters progress until on the night of June tenth a startling +climax is brought about by the report of the secretary of the committee. + +At this memorable meeting there is a full attendance. The chairman, in +his call for the meeting, has intimated that very important business +will be transacted. He has in mind the discussion of a plan for +awakening the interest of the wage-earners in the effete Eastern States, +and the reading of a report. + +What actually transpires is a surprise to him, as it is to all but three +of the committee. + +When the routine of business has been gone through with, the chairman +announces that the meeting will proceed to the consideration of new +business, if there is any. + +William Nevins, the man who had carried the Stars and Stripes at +Hazleton, now a committeeman who has always taken a subordinate part in +the work, asks to be heard. + +Supposing that he is to speak on the one subject uppermost in the minds +of the committee, the chair recognizes him. Rising from his seat in the +back of the room Nevins walks to the front of the hall, and standing +before the chairman, half turns so as to face the men in the assembly. + +From his first words it is apparent that he has a matter of grave +concern to impart. The attention of all is engaged. + +"Mr. Chairman," he begins, "I am unaccustomed to speech-making; yet on +this occasion I feel that I am capable of expressing myself in a manner +that will be clear and forceful. I am to tell you a few truths, and in +uttering the truth there is no need of depending on rhetoric or oratory. + +"As you all know, I am a poor man. How I came to be reduced to a +position little better than beggary is not known by any of you, for I +have studiously avoided airing my troubles to any one. To-day I intend +to tell the story. It will cast some light on the subject that we will +be called upon to discuss later. + +"We have no time to hear the life-story of any one," sententiously +observes a man in the front seat. + +"But you will have to take time to hear me," retorts Nevins, and he +continues. + +"I was a graduate of Yale, in the class of 1884. My name was not Nevins, +then. After a year spent in travel in Europe I returned to the United +States and began to practice my profession of a civil engineer, in the +city of New York. My father had died when I was a child and had left my +mother a fortune of about $40,000. From this sum she derived an income +of $2000 a year. She gave me an allowance of $800 up to the time that I +began to work as an engineer. + +"Two years after I had entered the office of a leading railroad I +planned an extensive change in the working of the road and submitted it +to the president. He approved of the suggested changes and put the +matter before the board of directors. Shortly afterward I was informed +that I could proceed with the work. The work was accomplished and the +officials were more than pleased. They made me chief engineer of the +road and a stockholder. I soon had a considerable block of stock. Then a +great Magnate looked at the road with covetous eyes, and ruin came upon +us. + +"The stock of the road was depreciated and borne down on the Exchange +until the road became insolvent. All my money was in the road, and when +the crisis came I found myself stranded. The King of the Rail Road +Trust, Jacob L. Vosbeck, bought up the stock and then raised it to even +a higher figure than it had ever before attained. + +"Ill-luck followed me and I have gone down, down, until I can scarce +make a living as a draughtsman in a shop. The curse of monopoly has +caused my ruin. I did not succumb to fair competition. I am now enlisted +in a fight against the usurpers of the free rights of the people, and I +declare to you all, that I am in this fight in dead earnest. By an +appeal to justice we can gain nothing. + +"I was one of the sixty miners who were attacked on the highway at +Hazleton by the High Sheriff of Luzerne County. I witnessed the mock +trial in Wilkes-Barre. I have thought of all the possible means the +Trusts have left to us, and find that there is but one available. + +"They have all the money and all the agencies of the law; they have +intimidated the humble and ignorant workingmen until these poor +creatures are no better than serfs, and to be assured of bread, they +work as voluntary slaves. + +"What is there for us to do but to fight the magnates with their own +weapons? Intimidation is their deadliest method. The horrible picture of +a starving family is held up before the wage-earner, and he is asked if +he will vote to put his wife and children on the street. He is told that +if he will accept starvation wages, the Trust will let him make such +wages. In desperation he accepts the terms. + +"What I propose is to intimidate the criminal aggressors so that they +will fear to make their fortunes at the expense of the honest, hard +working and credulous people. + +"How shall it be done? Ah! it is a simple matter." + +Here the voice of the speaker becomes husky, and he turns to face the +chairman of the committee. In almost a whisper he exclaims: "I propose +to give them an object lesson. They have given many to us." Again he +resumes his normal voice. + +"Have you not seen mills closed before election time so as to coerce men +to vote as the mill owners directed? Has not this suspension of work +brought distress, starvation, death, to thousands of homes? Is it not +murder for men of wealth to resort to such means to win an election in a +free country? + +"Well, I now propose to form a syndicate--a Syndicate of Annihilation!" + +"Mr. Chairman," cry half a dozen voices. "Mr. Chairman, Point of order! +Point of order!" + +Before the chair can recognize any of the speakers a general commotion +ensues. Men begin discussing with one another excitedly; there is a +perfect bedlam. + +All the while Nevins remains standing as if awaiting an opportunity to +resume his speech. + +At the expiration of some minutes order is restored so that his voice +can be heard. "Permit me to explain," he cries. + +The committeemen, as if acting by a common impulse, cease to squabble, +and are attentive again. + +"I propose to hear the circumstances under which each of you has been +brought to the condition that leads you to combine against the Trust; +and if there is sufficient ground for belief that you will be zealous +workers in my syndicate, I will admit you to membership. No man who has +not had a more serious grievance against the Robber Barons than I have +outlined, will be eligible. _I have told you but one incident of my +case._ + +"The work that I shall outline to you after hearing your stories, will +require stout hearts to carry it into execution. + +"It cannot be accomplished by fanatics. It requires the concerted +efforts of men of sound judgment; men of courage. The assassin is a +coward at heart--the political martyr must be valiant." + +The novelty of the suggestion that has just been made is the first thing +that appeals to the minds of the committee. They begin to realize the +horrid character of the proposition. Much discussion follows. Men want +to know what Nevins means by a Syndicate of Annihilation. Whom does he +intend to murder? Annihilation and murder are considered synonymous. + +To all questions Nevins replies that the details will be given as soon +as the men recite their grievances. + +Professor Talbot and Hendrick Stahl, the two men who are in the secret +with Nevins, advise the members of the committee to comply with the +demands. + +Then begins the strange, startling recital of the stories of human +distress. Of the forty men of varying professions and trades, there are +those who tell of their efforts to stand up under the weight of the yoke +of commercial despotism. Each man is of impressing character and strong +individuality. + +The chairman, Albert Chadwick, is the first to tell his story. It is the +prelude to the concerted cry of the oppressed--the cry which has sounded +through the ages as the one never varying note in the music of the +universe; the dread inharmonic monotone that marks the limitation of +humanity, exhibiting man's inability to convert the world into a +paradise. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +ARRAIGNMENT OF THE TRANSGRESSORS. + + +Standing upon the little platform which serves as a rostrum, Chadwick, a +man of fifty, seared and bent, lifts his hand to command the attention +of the committee. + +He is a figure that would do credit to the brush of a great artist. His +appearance is that of a man who has been deprived of the power of +looking at the world as a place of rest; he is a bundle of nerves, and +at the slightest provocation bursts into a storm of irascibility. A +tortured spirit lurks in his soul and is visible in his stern, tense +features. + +As he begins the recital of his grievances against the Trust, it is +apparent that he means to give the audience an embittered story. So the +attention of all is centered upon him. + +"Human liberty is the boon which man has sought since the dawn of +creation; it has furnished the incentive for his struggle to reclaim the +earth from the domination of brute force; it is the inherent idea that +the founders of this Republic sought to embody in the Constitution. But +Liberty must have as a complement unhampered opportunity," are his +opening words. + +"The man who is dependent upon another for his livelihood is not capable +of enjoying real liberty, or of attaining happiness. When the men of a +nation are debased to a position of minor importance, where they can +only act as servants, they lose the stamina necessary to make them good +citizens. This condition now prevails in the United States. + +"My own experience will exemplify this statement. + +"Forty years ago I attained my majority. I was a citizen of the state of +Pennsylvania, and considered that I was a freeman. By the death of my +father I had come into a fortune of fifty thousand dollars. I lived in +the oil region, and sought to engage in the oil industry. To this end I +purchased land contiguous to a railroad. On my holdings a well was +located which yielded three hundred barrels of oil a day. + +"No sooner had I begun to operate my well than the agents of the Oil +Trust, which had then but recently sprung into existence as a menace to +individual refining, came to me with a proposition to incorporate my +well in the Trust's system. The well was capable of earning a net profit +of seventy thousand dollars a year. The Trust offered me a paltry two +hundred and thirty thousand dollars for my plant. This I refused to +accept, for the actual value was one million dollars. + +"Then by crafty insinuation the agents of the Trust intimated that +unless I sold my property and accepted inflated stock in the Trust and +allowed my well to be absorbed in the system, I would find myself +opposed by the mighty consolidation. Still I refused to abrogate my +right to conduct an independent business. + +"Failing to allure me by their offers, which would have proved valueless +in the end; or of intimidating me by their threats, the agents reported +to the office of the Trust that I was obdurate and must be disciplined. + +"Accordingly pressure was brought to bear on the railroad over which I +sent my product to a market. The railroad discriminated against me; it +gave the Trust a rebate on all oil shipped over the road and made me pay +the full schedule rates. Even against this detrimental condition I was +able to sell my oil at a small profit. + +"I might have survived the unequal struggle had not the 'pipe line' +system been introduced. By this the Oil Trust transports its oil to the +sea-board at a cost that enables it to undersell all competitors. And +for a time the price of oil was reduced, and all the minor competitors +were driven into bankruptcy or forced to sell out to the Trust at a +ridiculously low figure. + +"Owing to my well being centrally located I was able to hold out longer +than many others. + +"John D. Savage, the Oil King, realized that some more potent means had +to be devised to crush me. This means was found in the expedient of +'Sacrifice' sales. At every depot where I sold, the agents of the Trust +offered to sell oil at figures lower than I could possibly sell it. I +lost my trade. In an effort to retrench, my fortune was consumed, and +from a position of affluence I descended to beggary, and had to join the +ranks as an employee. So bitter was the animosity of the Trust that it +sought to rob me even of the opportunity to earn a living. I have been +hounded from post to pillar; my life has been made miserable. I have +seen my family want for bread. + +"And all because I withstood the assault of the Oil King. + +"As an American I protest against the existence of a corporation that +can set at naught the mandates of the law; a corporation that can, with +utter impunity, resort to arson as a final means of gaining its illegal +end, as the oil Trust has done, again and again. + +"I thank God that I still possess my fore-fathers' spirit of resistance +against oppression. There are few men who are in want, or in actual +dread of being thrown out of employment, however unremunerative, who +will assert their right. A nation composed of such men is not free, no +matter what its form of government may be. + +"I am ready to do anything that will restore the right to the individual +citizen to engage in business; I am ready to make a stand against the +few plutocrats who now usurp the avenues of human activity; and I +believe that we will be able to enlist men in support of the idea that +the rights of the majority transcend the aggressions of the oligarchy of +American capitalists." + +As Chadwick concludes his statement, Hiram Goodel, a delegate from New +Hampshire, obtains the floor. + +"Coercion is the word that epitomizes my grievance against the Trusts," +he begins. "It was by the exercise of coercion that I was driven out of +business. I conducted a retail tobacco store in Concord, in my native +state. My business sufficed to insure me a decent living, and a +comfortable margin to be husbanded as a safeguard for my declining +years. I had a wife and three sons. My sons were all under age, and I +kept them at school to provide them with good educations. + +"There was competition in my business; such natural competition as is +met with in all pursuits. It did not, however, prevent my making a +success of my business. + +"Then came the Tobacco Trust. It set out to control the retail trade. +This was to be effected by the inauguration of a system of "consigning" +goods to the retail stores with strict provisos that the retailer would +not handle the product of any concern out of the Tobacco Combine. In +order to ingratiate themselves with the store-keepers, the Trust +managers at first offered terms that were so far below the current +prices that a majority of the stores bound themselves to handle the +Trust goods exclusively. + +"Three years passed, in which the independent tobacco manufacturers +strove to hold out against the ring. Then came a crash. + +"I had opposed the innovation of binding myself to buy from one concern; +for I felt intuitively that as soon as the Trust was all-powerful it +would begin to exercise dictatorial sway over the retailer. + +"My fears were soon justified. + +"The Trust advanced the price of its goods to the retailer, and +compelled the trade to sell at the same retail figures. + +"When this system of extortion was successfully launched the Trust +determined to reward its patrons, as a means of pacifying them for +reduced profits. + +"The reward came in the shape of discriminating against the +store-keepers who still handled the goods made by the fast vanishing +opposition concerns. + +"I was informed that unless I signed an agreement to use only the Trust +brands of cigarettes and tobacco no more goods would be sold to me. As +the Trust embraced all of the leading brands, that meant that I must go +out of business. + +"My puritan blood boiled at the thought that I must submit to the +tyranny of a band of robbers. I determined to fight to the last. Four +years of business at a net loss, drove me into insolvency; then a +mortgage was placed upon my freehold, to be followed by foreclosure. I +still struggled on, under the delusion that I was in a free land and +that the Trust iniquities would not be permitted to crush the individual +citizen forever. The decision of the courts of the several states where +the Tobacco Trust was arraigned, upholding the Trust, disillusioned me. +But it was too late, I was a ruined man. + +"My sons were forced to work in the cigar factory of the local branch of +the Trust; and I was obliged to apply for a patrimony from the +Government, as a veteran of the war for the emancipation of man from +slavery. On this slender pension I now live. + +"Can anyone blame me for being a volunteer in the crusade against the +most insidious and dangerous foe that has ever assailed a land; a foe +that seeks to entrench itself by emasculating the citizens and degrading +them to a position of servants of mighty and intolerant masters?" + +There is a pause. The aged speaker trembles with emotion. + +"I am an old man, over seventy years of age, yet whatever vigor remains +in me will be expended in my last battle with the destroyers of free +government. + +"What right has Amos Tweed, the Tobacco King, to tax me? + +"I was born a free man; I fought to free an inferior race. Alas, I have +lived to see the shackles placed upon the wrists of my own sons. So help +me God, I shall strike a blow to make them free once more." + +Overcome with the exertion of delivering his fervent speech, Hiram +Goodel totters. He would fall, did not the strong arms of Carl Metz +support him. + +"Where is the man who can view this picture of patriarchal devotion, and +hesitate to give significance to the prayer that freedom may again be +the inheritance of the youth of America," demands Nevins in thrilling +tones. + +It is apparent that the recital of the grievances of the members of the +committee is making a deep impression on every man. + +Horace Turner, a farmer from Wisconsin, who had migrated to that state +when it was in its infancy, preferring its fertile plains to the rocky +hillside homestead in Vermont, is the next to speak. He is sixty years +of age, well preserved, temperate and fairly well educated. + +"I can quote no higher authority than the Holy Bible," are his opening +words. "If in that book we can find authority for complaining against +tyrants; if we can find a prayer that has come down from age to age, +shall we not be justified in uttering it? + +"Are these words from the Psalms meaningless? 'Deliver me from the +oppression of Man; so will I keep thy precepts.' + +"There is vitality in this cry from the oppressed; because the oppressor +exists. You and I are both victims of oppression. + +"I am a producer of wheat, the great staple of this country. You are all +consumers of my product. When I cannot make a living by producing wheat, +and you cannot purchase it without paying tribute to a band of +speculators, there must be in operation a damnable system of oppression +to bring about this condition, for it is not natural. + +"The Wheat Trust determines what price I shall receive for my wheat; it +sets the price at which you shall buy it in the form of bread. + +"Whether there is a bounteous crop or a short one, the Trust still +controls the wheat and flour and arbitrarily fixes their price. + +"When the newspapers assert that the farmers enjoy the advance of the +price of a season's crop, they state an absolute falsehood. + +"By the system that prevails in this country to-day, as a result of the +Wheat Trust, crops are sold a year in advance. There are never two years +of exceptionally large crops; so the benefit of the advance of one year +does not go over to the next. + +"The farmers of this country are compelled, by the present system, to +pledge their next year's crop to the local wheat factors who control the +elevators. The purchase price is determined by the factor. The farmer +receives a certain number of bushels of 'seed' wheat from the factor, +agreeing to repay him with two or two and a half bushels of the coming +crop; a large percentage of the remainder of the crop is pledged to the +local store-keeper for the goods that the farmer must have to do his +work and to live upon. + +"Wheat is the medium of exchange. The Trust's price is the measure of +value. Why? Because the farmer cannot sell to any one except to an agent +of the Trusts, as the Trust has arranged traffic rates with every +railroad; and the wheat, if bought by any one outside of the Trust, +could not be transported to a market and sold at a profit. This +statement is indisputable. + +"The Wheat King, David Leach, depresses the market when the crop is to +be sold, and so gives a semblance of reason for the inadequate price he +allows the farmer. + +"It is the farmer who does the planting; he has to run the risk of the +loss of the crop by drought, or excessive rain; he has to do the +harvesting. Yet he does not share in the just profits of the sale of his +product. + +"And the consumer is made to pay exorbitantly for the bread that keeps +life in his body. + +"If there were no Wheat Trust, no speculation in wheat and no +discriminating traffic rates, bread could be sold at a fair profit for +three cents a loaf, and the farmer would still be able to get a higher +price than he averages now. + +"I have toiled as a farmer for two score years, and all I have in this +world is a farm of two hundred acres, valued at thirty-six hundred +dollars, on which there is a two thousand dollar mortgage at six per +cent. When the interest is paid and my yearly expenses are defrayed, I +am lucky to have one hundred dollars to my credit in the bank. For the +past six years I have been obliged to send whatever I had remaining to +my son, who has married and who is struggling to live in Milwaukee. He +is engaged as a brakeman on the railroad that exacts thirty per cent. of +the value of every bushel of wheat I raise. + +"I am not one of the discontented, homeless vagabonds who the Plutocrats +declare are alone demanding the destruction of Monopoly. I am a citizen +who can foresee the inevitable result that will come from a perpetuation +of Commercial Despotism. I am not afraid to assert my opinions, nor will +I fear to act on any suggestion, that will insure independence to the +farmer and to all the citizens of the Republic." + +Donald Harrington, a delegate accredited to Maryland, now begins his +arraignment: + +"It will not be necessary for me to take the story of my ruin back to +the beginning; you are interested only in that part which has to do with +the effect of the Trusts upon me. + +"I could say that they were the sole cause of my downfall, but in this +statement I should be doing the Trusts an injustice. I felt the first +downward impulse given me when I was a lad of sixteen. I had entered the +employ of a banking house and was a clerk in their counting room. It was +my especial duty to see that the books of the company were put in the +safes at night. This duty I faithfully performed for more than three +years. + +"One day I was tempted to steal. + +"It was an easy matter for me to take a sum of money from the drawer and +make away with it. I was not detected in the first peculation; this +encouraged me to take more. So matters went on until I was guilty of +having stolen a sum aggregating ten thousand dollars. I knew that I +could not keep the game up much longer, for the annual accounting would +disclose the deficit. + +"Of the sums I had taken, I had less than half saved. I did not know how +I was to get out of the position in which I was placed. Then the idea +struck me that I might make the entire sum good if I could make a +successful turn on the Exchange. + +"This I determined to try. + +"From the first I was successful. Soon I had three times the sum +required to make up my peculations. + +"I restored the money to the safe and breathed easily. + +"This was my first venture in dealing with other peoples' money. + +"The experience led to my entering upon a career as a banker and broker. + +"For eight years I was actively engaged in rolling up a fortune. I was +sought out by the Magnates of many of the largest Trusts, and they +extended me unlimited credit. + +"When the country was precipitated into a panic in 1893, I was not one +of the sufferers; I was one of the scoundrels active in bringing the +distress upon the people. I aided in the establishment of the +all-powerful Money Trust. + +"Later I was interested in a big mining scheme. It appeared to me to be +one of the best things in which to invest money. I put the bulk of my +fortune in the mining stocks, and lost. + +"In attempting to retrieve my losses I dissipated my fortune to the last +cent. + +"The whole of my career as a banker was of a criminal nature. Nearly +everything I had touched was a speculative venture. The cursed practice +of watering stocks to three and four times their actual value was the +common work of my days. + +"At the end I was caught in the net which I had so often thrown out to +ensnare others. My former partner, James Golding, the Napoleon of +Finance, wrought my undoing. + +"All of this leads to this conclusion: + +"I am an enemy of the Trusts now, because I know their methods; I know +the results that follow the practice of fictitious speculation. Before +you all I acknowledge that my past has been of the darkest and most +disreputable nature. + +"I also wish to state that I have experienced a change of heart. It has +not come upon me solely because I have lost my fortune; I have felt it +creeping upon me for the past three years. In my inmost heart I feel a +beating that will not be stilled unless I am engaged in the work of +destroying the power of the accursed Trusts. + +"That there is a chance on earth for a man to redeem himself, I am +confident. I have heard the call and have responded to it. I am resolved +to use the rest of my strength in battling with the enemies of the +people. And I am the more in earnest since I can never forget that I am +personally responsible for the distress of hundreds. Widows and orphans, +young and old, all have been my victims. + +"What object Nevins may have in getting us to recount our grievances, I +do not know; but if it will lead to any good result, he may depend upon +me to give my untiring aid. + +"I have but a word to add. Since my ruin, I have seen my wife and only +child, a daughter of twenty, languish and die before my very eyes. This +has embittered me against the men who have worked the ruin of the masses +more than anything else. I have pledged myself to avenge the sufferings +of humanity. I shall be doing something for the good of the race; +something to atone for the evil deeds I myself have done." + +There is nothing in the recital of Harrington's life's history that is +of an exceptional nature. True, no one present is aware that he had at +one time been the head of the great bond issue plot. + +But the delegates are looking for something of a far different tone than +a mere recital of crime and a fall from affluence to penury. Several of +the committeemen are on their feet demanding the floor. + +Cyrus Fielding, the delegate representing the federation of stone +masons, is recognized by the chair. + +Fielding is a man of short stature, his eyes betray a lacklustre that +might be the result of over-indulgence in liquor or want of rest; he is +thin and poorly clad, his face is cleanly shaven. At every pause in his +speech he runs his fingers through his thick dishevelled black hair, and +finishes this mannerism with wiping his forehead with the back of his +hand. His delivery is awkward and these repeated movements intensify +this awkwardness. + +"I have a grievance against the Trusts that dates back as far as my +birth. I never had a fair start. My father was a victim of the power of +gold and I inherited his misfortune. + +"My first work was as a helper in the great Pennsylvania Iron Trust's +works that are owned by that old man, the self-styled philanthropist, +Ephraim Barnaby, a hypocrite of the first water, who goes about the +world asking people how he can best dispose of his fabulous fortune. + +"From the rank of helper I soon rose to the position of foreman of the +moulding shop. This was a most important place and I felt proud that I +had attained it in so short a period as three years. + +"It was my ambition to learn all I could relating to the work in the +iron industry. Toward this end I spent four hours every night in reading +and experimenting. At the end of another three years I had a fund of +knowledge that put me in the front rank as a constructing engineer. + +"But I was not a graduate of a college of engineering, so I could not +get the degree. The opportunity of utilizing my practical knowledge by +forming a competing company was closed by the bar of traffic rates. + +"My employers advanced me to the rank of superintendent of the shops in +the largest iron manufacturing city in the state. I had to be satisfied +with a position under the iron masters. + +"Then came the memorable strike that led to the killing of the men by +the paid detectives of the Iron Masters. + +"The claims of the men were just, and as a man I could not side against +them. I put my fortune in with them. The details of the strike are known +to you all. The story of the shooting of unarmed mill hands at the +instance of the mill owners will never be forgotten; it has marked an +era in the history of this country. + +"Well, I was a conspicuous figure in those days. The strikers hailed me +as a champion; the mill owners first sought to win me over; then they +contrived to do away with me. Three times I was assaulted by murderous +men who had been hired to kill me. + +"When their schemes of violence failed they resorted to the most +effective method of destroying me. They discharged me and refused to let +me return after the strike was declared off. Not satisfied with having +turned me away from their mills they dogged my every step. Since that +day I have been unable to get employment in any mill in this country. + +"As I am acquainted with the methods of the iron trade I have been able +to give the trade Union many valuable points. It was upon my suggestion +that the amalgamation of the unions was effected. + +"From my intimate knowledge of the manufacture of iron I know that the +item of wage is less than fifteen per cent. of the cost of the completed +casting, yet the tariff on manufactured iron is on the average thirty +per cent. Where does the additional fifteen per cent. go? To fatten the +pockets of the favored manufacturer. But that is only half the story. +The fifteen per cent. that is supposed to protect the American laborer, +does it go for this end? Not at all. All of you are familiar with the +wage schedules in the iron industry. They have not been advanced five +per cent. since the imposition of the high tariff. So the manufacturer +gobbles more than ninety per cent. of the tariff bounty. + +"It is because I keep telling the iron workers this truth that I am +hounded by the minions of the Trusts. + +"We have allowed ourselves to be robbed long enough. I am an American to +the back-bone, and I propose to fight the men who have disputed this +country till I die. + +"Let me say that to whatever Nevins may propose I am willing to lend my +support, provided the ends he seeks to obtain are honorable and the +means reasonable. + +"As I am talking I cannot keep out of my mind the home which the Iron +Masters destroyed. I had a wife and two children who loved me and were +the idols of my heart. I saw this home destroyed. I saw my children +turned adrift and their mother forced to work to support them; for +during the first three years after the strike I could get nothing to do. + +"With these memories which had as a climax the deaths of two nearest and +dearest to me, I have nothing left to live for but the fulfillment of my +resolve to break the power of the Monopolists who have control of this +country." + +"This meeting will be protracted to the middle of next week if we all +take a half hour or more to tell our tale of woe," observes one of the +committee who cannot foresee the end of the discussion. + +The chairman asks if the members wish to limit the time of the speakers +to five minutes, and this proposition meets with the approval of all. + +So the remaining stories are told in short intensive sentences which +describe the heart-breaking history of men who have been trodden down +under the heel of monopoly. + +There are examples of every type that can be imagined. Men who have been +defrauded of their ideas and patents; others who have been the victims +of unjust legislation, the dupes of the speculator, the betrayed friends +of men who have ridden to fortune on the backs of those who gave them +their first start. + +Under the new ruling, the first man to be recognized is Herman +Nettinger, a man known to all the assemblage as an anarchist. He had +been admitted to the councils on the supposition that the best way to +pacify and placate the Anarchistic element was to offer them full +representation in the work of regenerating the government. + +Nettinger had been one of the few men who succeeded in eluding the +police during the days of the reign of anarchy in Chicago in 1885. + +He is a man of gigantic build, and of imperturbable placidity. When a +soldier in the German army had provoked him to the point where he had to +fight, this modern Titan had seized his tormenter and without apparent +effort had dashed the man's brains out by butting him against the wall +of the barracks. For this episode Nettinger had been compelled to serve +eleven years in the military prison. + +During these years he had familiarized himself with the teachings of the +socialists, for his companions were, many of them, students of +sociology. Upon his release he had come to this country. He invented a +compressed air motor, but the American Motor Trust robbed him of his +patents. + +In the space of five minutes Nettinger strives to defend the theory of +anarchy. He denounces all government as a make-shift, and asserts that +man should accordingly dispense with the forms of government and depend +upon animal instinct to regulate the social community. He names Samuel +L. Bell, chairman of the International Patent Commission, as the man who +contrived to rob him of his patent rights. + +The meeting adjourns at the conclusion of this harangue. + +In the hour that has passed the elements for a political revolution have +been brought together and combined by a master mind. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE SECRET SESSION. + + +It is apparent that the views of the men who have the most serious +grievances against the Trusts are yet to be heard. Most of the members +are glad that the meeting of the previous night had adjourned so as to +afford time for them to consider the salient points of the remarkable +proposal that had been sprung by Nevins. + +One of the members, who was conspicuous at all of the meetings, a man of +pinched features and diminutive form, a veritable Pope Leo, as it were, +makes a motion, as soon as the meeting opens, that three of the members +be heard, and if their stories in any way coincide with the general +views of the others, the pledge of the remaining men, that they hold +equally strong opinions, be sufficient to admit them to the standing +necessary for the exposition of the plan. + +As a means of expediting matters, the committee adopts this resolution +and the three men who are to tell their life's history are chosen. The +first of these is a man of the world, a fallen idol of society, who had +lately joined the ranks of the oppressed as a consequence of dire +financial difficulties. + +When he made his advent in the company of the desperate men of Chicago, +he had adopted the name of Stephen Marlow. + +This name is sufficient, for the men with whom he comes in contact are +not occupied in searching genealogies. They are working for results. +Marlow is in every sense of the word a leader. He has the grace of +manner and the personal charm that at once attracts men. His physical +development makes him the envy of the male sex and the idol of the +feminine. In stature he is slightly under six feet, with broad shoulders +and a fullness of figure that impresses one with the fact that he is a +good liver, yet withall muscular. + +A pale complexion, strongly marked features and high forehead, with dark +brown hair and clear brown eyes, make him a conspicuous figure in any +assemblage. + +As he rises to address his fellow-committeemen on this momentous +occasion, a flush of excitement adds to his attractiveness. He is a man +of thirty-five, with the experience of a man of fifty. + +"Were I to take the course pursued by those who have already spoken to +you," he begins, "I might take you back to the scenes of my childhood +and portray pictures of affluence and luxury that few of you could quite +appreciate. But the days of my childhood are gone; I am a man and have +to fight the battles of men, so I shall limit myself to the few facts +that are pertinent to the discussion before us. + +"In the past six months I have made the sudden transition from the +highest stratum of society to the one in which I am to-day. We cannot, +and do not desire to pose as contented men, or as men who are looking +for mild solutions of the problems that are now pressing for settlement. +I cannot, therefore, affront you when I say that by being among you I +prove that I am a radical reformer. + +"What you will be interested in learning will be the reasons that +impelled me to come here. + +"There is not a single thing to be hidden from you. I am here for the +purpose of satisfying a revenge. + +"My every fibre is quickened by the desire to see the men who caused my +downfall brought to my level. + +"I am selfish in my purpose; so deeply rooted are my resolves to be +avenged that I here and now state to you that any thing radical that may +be proposed by this committee shall receive my full support. + +"And do you blame me? Listen to my reasons: + +"Six years ago I entered the employ of Stephen Steel, the New York +banker. He is a man whom the people of the city and the country at large +look upon as a paragon. His words are constantly quoted in the papers; +his advice is sought by men of affairs. + +"My friends told me I was indeed fortunate to be associated with such a +prominent man. + +"Well, he was a schemer. At every turn he was on the lookout for a +chance to get at the wealth of others. I had not been in his employ more +than a month when I discovered that he was at the bottom of a plot to +loot the treasuries of three of the largest banks. His scheme was +diabolical. It would have entailed the loss of the savings of thousands +of small depositors. + +"With this knowledge in my possession, I did not know just what my duty +was. To shut my eyes to the affair and let it culminate in disaster to +innocent thousands, would have been a simple matter. For several days I +was in a quandary, but my conscience at length conquered. I mustered up +courage enough to speak to my employer. I chose for my time the hour +after his return from church on Sunday. He had passed the plate with the +unction of a saint. Men and women had looked at him and inwardly said: +'What a fine man Mr. Steel is; if there were only more like him.' + +"At the first intimation I gave him that I looked upon his plans as +illegal and immoral, if not absolutely criminal, he attempted to prove +to me in a plausible argument that bankers have a right to look out for +themselves, no matter who it hits. + +"'This plan of mine,' he said, 'is just a stroke of financiering; it is +what any man would do if put in my place.' + +"This did not satisfy me, and the expression of scorn that came over my +face did not escape him. + +"From attempting to prove the righteousness of the case, he then took to +berating me for interfering with his business. Had I not enough to do to +attend to my affairs in his office, without prying into his outside +dealing? Was it a matter that he must lay before his manager? These were +the questions he put to me in sharp tones. + +"I saw that it would be useless to argue with him so I arose and said: + +"'As you will not listen to reason, as you are a hypocrite and a +villain, I shall be compelled to quit your employ. But I wish to inform +you that I shall expose this diabolical plan. It shall not be carried +out if I can prevent it, and you know that I am in possession of the +facts.' + +"At this statement his anger knew no bounds. He railed at me as a +trickster. He charged me with wishing to blackmail him. Then seeing that +this was not the way to gain his point, he adroitly shifted his lines. + +"Would I not take a share in the profits that were to be made? Did I not +see that banking was a business in which every advantage was to be +seized and worked for all that was in it? At length he offered to let me +in his firm as a partner. This last offer was one that a man would have +been more than human to set aside without weighing. + +"He saw me hesitate. It was not the hesitation that comes as a +forerunner of surrender; it was the pause that a man will make when he +has to confront a momentous problem that is to have an effect on his +after-life. I did not intend to accept his alluring terms; it had been +my resolve at the outset to leave his employ should he refuse to abandon +his scheme of loot. + +"In the few seconds that I stood facing him, the light of lust came in +his eyes, he became the incarnation of greed. A snake that sees its +quarry edging inch by inch toward the fangs of death could not have had +a more exultant, triumphant look shoot from its treacherous eyes. + +"'You will be a man,' said he; 'you will listen to reason.' He uttered +these words not as a query, but as an assertion of fact. + +"'I shall do as I have said,' was my reply, and I walked toward the +door. + +"'But you do not mean to say that you refuse to become a partner?' he +ejaculated in amazement. + +"'That is just what I mean. I tell you once for all that I will not be a +party to such crimes as you propose to commit.' "'Then I warn you, young +man,' he thundered, losing his self control, 'that if you attempt to +thwart me in my business I shall make it uncomfortable for you in this +city. + +"'Yes, I tell you now once for all, that you will find me the most +unmerciful enemy that was ever known. I have too much at stake to let a +fool of a man upset me. + +"'Do you think that the world will credit the utterances of a nobody as +against mine? Why, you will be lodged in an insane asylum. I shall have +that matter fixed at once. + +"'By the way, where are the bonds that I entrusted to your care last +week?' + +"'What bonds?' I demanded hotly. For even then I saw the purport of the +question. + +"'What bonds? Ah, that will not satisfy a jury.' + +"And the banker chuckled at the thought that he had struck upon the +proper weapon with which to crush me. + +"In the confidence of his own power, and no doubt as a means of avoiding +publicity, he thought that the affair had gone to a point where he might +appear magnanimous. "'I do not hold any ill will toward you,' he +continued, 'it is as a friend that I speak. You are suffering from a +sensitive conscience, which is out of place in this age and generation. + +"'I can pity you, but of course it would be impossible for me to allow +sentiment to rule me in business. + +"'We will let this evening pass out of our minds. You will return to +your duties, and in the future let my outside matters be distinct from +your work and concern. But remember, not a word of this to any one.' + +"As the last few words were spoken we walked as if by common impulse +toward the door. + +"I bade him good-night, and the next minute I found myself on the +sidewalk. It was winter, and the cold bracing air soon made me alive to +the events that had occurred in such quick succession in the banker's +parlor. + +"My mind was in a flurry. What was I now to do? Did my silence at +parting indicate that I had accepted his offer to return to work as his +clerk? + +"With a muddled brain I walked on and on until I found I had reached the +entrance of the Park at Fifty-ninth street and Fifth avenue. I entered +the park and sank exhausted upon a bench. + +"Then I began to review the words of our interview. + +"It all became clear to me. I was in the power of an unscrupulous man. +He could throw me into prison at a word; if this was not to be desired +he could have me declared insane and put in an insane asylum. My word +was as naught against his. So I determined to work in his bank until I +could get the evidence that I needed to prove my case. + +"I had misjudged my man, for a week later he called me into his private +office and informed me that he had no further use for me. + +"_His bank wrecking scheme was successfully carried out._ + +"In vain I sought to awaken the interest of the press. The story I told +was not credited. I lacked documentary proof. When the crash came the +editors realized that I had told the truth. But it was too late. + +"When I began to look for employment, I found that my name had been +blacklisted. Wherever I go, from Maine to California, I am confronted by +an agent of my arch enemy. I cannot even hold a position as a day +laborer. + +"The damning brand of the magnate is on me, and employers are warned +against me. And all because I possess a conscience that would not stoop +to crime. I have stood out against retaliating as long as I can. Now my +vow is given to be avenged on Steel and his ilk." + +Of all the committeemen none has a more distinguished bearing than +Professor Herbert Talbot. He is a scion of an honorable New England +family; the advantages of refined home surroundings and a college +education have combined to give him a polish that should win him the +respect and admiration of all who know him. + +From the day of his graduation from one of the leading universities he +had begun to teach his favorite study, political economy. At fifty years +of age he found himself the recognized authority on economics, a +professor in his alma mater, and the recipient of honors at home and +abroad. + +That was in 1894. What a difference a few years has wrought. Now he is +an outcast, driven from his position in the faculty by the order of +Rufus Vanpeldt, the Woolen King, the patron of the university. Talbot is +reviled by his fellow-collegians, and ostracized from the society in +which he had always been a leader; and all because he has had the +manliness to express the truth on the political conditions of the +country. + +He has advocated the reduction of the tariff to a reasonable point; he +has been a staunch supporter of the income tax; his views on the money +question are deemed heretical and he is dismissed from the circles of +learning. + +From being the submissive hireling and servitor of the educational +institution, he entered the political field as their most powerful +adversary. He is one of the leaders of the Anti-Trust movement. When the +committee of Forty was organized, he had been one of the first selected. + +Many of the committee await his speech with lively interest. Whatever +view he takes of the proposition they determine to adopt. He is the next +member to be called upon. + +In an impressive, convincing argument he approves of the proposition. +Not that it is faultless, but because it offers the only remedy for the +vicious condition of the country's social condition. + +In presenting the arguments in favor of the adoption of the proposition, +Professor Talbot demonstrates that the centralization of capital in the +hands of a few men is the gravest mistake that a republic can permit to +occur. It creates an oligarchy that is more pernicious than one of class +distinction, since such a one can be coped with, while an oligarchy of +wealth possesses so many ramifications that it is practically +unassailable except by direct and physical means. + +"It is the common belief that labor-saving inventions are accountable +for much of the distress that exists in this country," he says, "but +this is not so in so far as the inventions themselves are concerned. + +"The evils that have followed the introduction of labor-saving machinery +are the results of capitalists seeking to squeeze the last cent of +profit out of their enterprises. + +"When an inventor produces any improvement in manufacture he does the +world a good; when the manufacturer who adopts this invention, at the +same time discharges his adult male operatives and substitutes child +labor, he vitiates the good that has been done and works a great harm to +society. + +"The crying evil of to-day is _child labor_, and the labor of women in +trades and at work that is manifestly fit only for men. + +"I shall make no lengthy appeal to you to adopt a direct means of +securing your rights. I shall set you an example by announcing that I +pledge my support to Mr. Nevins in anything that he may do that has for +its object the emancipation of the women, children and men of this +country from industrial slavery. + +"There is a living to be had for every inhabitant on the earth if he +will work. We in America should guarantee more than subsistence to our +citizens. A life of plenty is here for all if the social conditions can +be readjusted." + +Peter Bergen, a socialist who represents Kansas, is the last to speak. +His views are those of the radical. Nothing but instant centralization +of all the land and property of the country to be owned and operated by +the people as a whole, appear to him to offer an adequate solution of +the social problem. He is ready to aid in any movement that is +calculated to bring this condition about. He rails against the tyranny +of landlordism. + +"What justification is there to the laws that will permit an alien to +hold land idle in this country until American energy improves the +surrounding property? What justification is there in permitting an alien +to withdraw rents from this country without paying a tax toward the +support of the Federal government? + +"I have fought for this country; I have paid a land tax on my farm and a +tax on everything I consume. What does the alien land-holder pay? +Nothing. + +"I am ready to defend my home and country now. I will ever be loyal to +it, for it is the best in the world. + +"Its government is not perfect; it is our duty to make it so. + +"Let us confiscate the lands of expatriated Americans as an initial +step. + +"The man who will not contribute to the support of the government does +not deserve its protection." His words are uttered with vehemence. + +When he concludes this recital of personal grievances against the +Trusts, the chairman announces that at the next meeting the members will +be given full particulars of the purpose of the syndicate. + +The forty men separate, each carrying with him the conviction that at +length the time has come when something definite is to be decided upon +in the war against Trusts. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +MARTHA'S PREMONITION. + + +Trueman remains in Chicago after the close of the Anti-Trust conference +so as to be present at the National convention of the Independence +party. He is one of the delegates at large to this convention, and hopes +to be able to exert an influence over its deliberations, now that he has +won some renown as a speaker. + +In the rush of the sessions of the Anti-Trust conference he had had no +time to keep his promise to Martha. Once only had he sent her a note +telling her of his safe arrival in the city. It had not occurred to him +that she would be anxiously awaiting a letter from him containing his +views on the results of the conference. Why should a woman be interested +in such matters? + +It is with unbounded surprise therefore that he receives the following +letter from her: + + WILKES-BARRE, JUNE 13. + _My Dear Friend:_ + + It has been so long since I have heard from you that I take + the initiative and write to ask you to forward to me as soon as + possible, an article embodying your views on the recent Anti-Trust + conference. I have a special reason for wishing this + before the assembling of the Independence convention. To + be frank with you, I have a premonition that you will be + honored with the nomination for the Vice-presidency. Your + friends in Pennsylvania, and in the other Eastern states, are + working for you. I am handicapped by being a woman, yet + in some ways it has proven advantageous to me. + + By my peculiar intimacy with the families of this district, + I became acquainted with the fact that your name is being + mentioned as a possible candidate for the office. As soon as I + learned this, I set to work to 'boom,' as the politicians would + say, the incipient movement. Last night I was assured by + O'Connor, the local leader, that you were sure of the support + of the delegations of Pennsylvania and New York. For this + reason I can wait no longer for a letter from you. + + Let me know at once if you look favorably on the proposition + of being a candidate for the high office. + + Are you a member of the Committee of Forty? And what + is this body? + + As ever your friend, + + MARTHA. + +Here is a revelation. + +Unknown to him, his friends, and especially Martha, are at work planning +for his nomination as a candidate for the office of Vice-president. The +idea of his achieving such a success has never entered his mind. + +How can an unknown delegate hope to receive the support of the +convention. It seems unreasonable, and he is on the point of writing to +Martha that the effort could not help but end in a ridiculous farce, +when an interruption prevents him from doing so. A card is brought to +his room. It bears the simple inscription: + +A FRIEND. + +"Invite the person up," Trueman tells the servant. + +The apartments he occupies are in a quiet boarding house on Lincoln +Avenue. He has been in the house six weeks, during which time no one has +ever called to see him. + +A minute passes in which he ransacks his mind in an attempt to think who +can have any business with him. It is half-past eight at night. + +A loud rap at the door announces the visitor. + +"Come in," calls Trueman. + +"Good evening, Mr. Trueman." It is William Nevins who speaks. + +"O, it is you, Mr. Nevins," exclaims Trueman. + +"I owe you an apology," he continues, "for being surprised at seeing +you; but the fact is I am a stranger in Chicago and have had no +visitors. When your card came I could not imagine who could wish to see +me." + +"I am well aware that you are a stranger in this city," Nevins replies. +"And as I am little better off I thought that I would drop in to have a +chat with you." + +"We were delegates at the Anti-Trust Conference and will have much to +discuss," says Trueman, in his most affable manner. "I certainly am glad +you thought of me. Take a seat, and make yourself as comfortable as the +quarters will permit." + +They seat themselves near the table. A pipe and a jar of tobacco lie on +the table. + +"Will you smoke?" + +Nevins shakes his head negatively, saying as he does so: + +"I cannot talk and smoke at the same time. To-night I want to talk. + +"The fact is I have become interested in you since your speech at the +close of the conference. + +"You will remember it was I who suggested that the committee appointed +to investigate the Trust question be increased to forty. + +"When I made that motion I had an object in view. I was anxious to have +you become one of the committeemen." + +"Then the full committee has been appointed?" Trueman asks. + +"The forty committeemen have been named. You are not among them, and the +reason is that the chairman is jealous of you." + +"He can have no reason to be jealous of me." + +"The fact remains that he is. I strove to get him to appoint you. He +flatly refused to do so. I could get no reason from him. So I concluded +that he fears you would outshine him in the work that the committee +contemplates doing. Your speech was masterly. I am not given to +flattery. I say candidly that it was the best delivered at the +conference. + +"Since I failed to get you on the committee of forty, I come to see if +you will aid me in a project that will make the committee superfluous; I +have an idea that the trust question, monopoly and the other social +problems can be speedily solved." + +"You did not speak at the conference; that was the place to propound +such an idea," interposes Trueman. + +"Quite true. But I held my peace there, because it was not a place to +bring forth the plan that I have evolved. You will agree with me if you +will hear me through. + +"My plan requires in the first place the services of an honest man--one +who is proof against the blandishments of the Plutocrats--who will spurn +the offers of gold and office that will be tendered him by the men of +wealth when they perceive that he is on the eve of winning the popular +support. + +"Such a man is hard to find in this age of commercialism which has all +but quenched the spark of true patriotism in the hearts of the people. I +have sought for the ideal leader in all the States and was on the point +of giving up the quest in despair when I suddenly came upon him. Once I +determined that the man had been found, I set about learning his record. +It appears that he is the product of evolution. From the servant of the +Plutocrats he has come to be their most powerful adversary. In him the +people will recognize the long-looked-for deliverer." + +Here Nevins pauses for a moment to let his words sink into the mind of +his interested listener. + +"Mr. Trueman," he resumes, "I have decided that you are the man to lead +the people out of their bondage." + +"I certainly feel complimented at your estimate of my integrity," +Trueman replies, "but you greatly overestimate my ability and the hold +which I have upon the people. + +"It was by the merest chance that I was elected to the position of +delegate to the conference. I have really little influence with the men +of my own State. This you must know if you have made a careful +investigation." + +"I know why you are not the recipient of the full support of the men of +Pennsylvania. They cannot conceive of a man changing his views so +thoroughly as you have. But this lack of perception they will overcome. + +"I want you to assure me that you will become the leader of the +Independence Party. If you do this I, in turn, will assure you of the +nomination for the Presidency. + +"That I am not speaking of impossibilities you will be able to +understand when I show you the proof of the power I hold to elect the +man I decide upon. + +"If I am not mistaken, you are opposed to violence as a means of +rectifying the social conditions of the people of this country." + +"It has been my purpose to defeat every proposition that advised force," +comes the quick response. "I am too vividly acquainted with the horrid +results that follow an appeal to force. + +"My hope is that the people will regain their rights by the proper +exercise of the ballot. + +"If they discard their all-powerful weapon to take up the sword or the +torch, the end must be the destruction of popular government." + +"Were you in the position of the chief executive you would follow this +view? You would be as determined in suppressing violence as you were in +preventing crime of any other sort? Your gratitude to the people for +electing you would not blind you to your duty in preventing them from +instituting a reign of anarchy? I am correct in this supposition?" + +Nevins looks Trueman in the eyes with a glance that seems intent on +reading his inmost thoughts. + +"I should do my full duty under the constitution," Trueman declares +emphatically. + +"But, really," he adds, "I cannot appreciate this situation. It is +inexplicable why you should interest yourself in my behalf to the extent +of seeking to bring about my nomination for the Presidency." + +"My reason is not hard to divine. It is not you whom I am working for; +it is the people. + +"In you I find the proper agent to fulfil the mission of a leader in an +hour of grave importance. + +"Older men lack the power of attracting the masses. Of the young men +whom I have studied, none has the ability, the needed environment that +you have. + +"Men are creatures of circumstances only when they permit themselves to +drift. If one cannot propel himself to a given haven of success he +should at least anchor in a place of safety. + +"With you it is only necessary that you give me the sign, and you will +become the master of circumstances. You will be the man to lead the +people to the plane of high civilization that their government makes it +possible for them to attain." + +For three hours Nevins continues to unfold in detail the plan he has for +accomplishing the nomination of Trueman at the coming convention. He +shows his prospective candidate letters pledging the support of a +majority of the State delegations to the man whom he should designate. +In explanation of his power as a leader Nevins states that he has been +the secret agent of the Allied Unions for three years, that he has been +deputized to select a man to be presented to the convention as a +possible candidate. If the man proves acceptable the delegates +representing the unions will support him. + +"The Committee of Forty is working for you," he says in conclusion. +"Their work will bring them in all sections of the country and they will +be able to influence a great number of the people." + +He gives no hint of the true mission of the committee. He knows that +Trueman would repudiate the party that would resort to so drastic a +means of rescuing the people. + +"Have I your consent to bring about your nomination?" he asks. + +"I shall have to give this matter much thought. You shall have my +answer-- + +"To-morrow night," Nevins interjects. "Delays are dangerous. The +convention meets in two weeks time." + +"To-morrow night, then," assents Trueman. + +Nevins leaves abruptly. He does not wish to weaken the effect he has +produced on Trueman by further discussion. + +When he finds himself alone Trueman walks back and forth in the cramped +room. He is weighing a question that has never before been put to a man. + +There is no doubt in his mind as to the sincerity of Nevins. It is clear +that this strange man, who, in a matter-of-fact way, asserts that he +holds the power of a great convention in his grasp, could have used it +for base ends; he could have chosen a man of less inflexible character +than Trueman. + +"If I can bring myself to believe that it is because of my honesty that +Nevins has selected me, I shall give him my consent." + +Trueman makes this mental reservation, then turns to the table and +writes a long letter to Martha. He sets the matter before her, tells her +he will enter politics, and asks for her advice. Regarding the Committee +of Forty, he tells her all he knows, which is to the effect that it has +been appointed to investigate the work of the Trusts and to make a full +report at the next Anti-Trust Conference. + +He then goes to his bed. It is daylight before his mind has exhausted +itself. He sleeps until midday. On awakening he renews the consideration +of Nevins' proposal. At eight o'clock in the evening Nevins arrives. + +Where Nevins had been the one to speak the night before, Trueman now +enters upon an exhaustive interrogatory. He asks for the most minute +particulars of the events that have brought him to the notice of Nevins. +To all his questions there is an instant reply. At the conclusion of +three hours Trueman definitely makes up his mind to try for the +candidacy. + +"You may work for my nomination," he says, "and be assured if I am +nominated I shall strive to be elected. + +"If it is the will of the people to elect me I shall be faithful to the +high duties of the office." + +Nevins bids his protege good night, assuring him that they will keep in +constant communication. + +The Committee of Forty, which is in session in a hall on the outskirts +of the city in the vicinity of the stock yards, is surprised when, at +midnight, Nevins appears before them to announce that he has selected +Harvey Trueman to be the candidate for the Presidency on the +Independence ticket. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +TAKING THE SECRET OATH. + + +Eternal vigilance is the policy of the Magnates in keeping their sleuths +ever on the alert for the unearthing of the plans of the anti-trust +advocates. In every city detectives are untiring in their efforts to +discover the work of the Committee of Forty. It is suspected that the +committee is to obtain damaging evidence against some of the most +oppressive of the monopolies and bring the full story of the wholesale +robbery of the people out as a climax in the coming campaign. + +By diligent investigation the detectives learn the names of the +thirty-seven men who have been added to the committee by the appointive +power of the chairman. It is also ascertained that the forty men are +still in the city of Chicago. + +This fact is open to several interpretations. It may indicate that the +committee has determined to work from a central office; or that the +committee is a blind, intended to mislead the detectives into watching +it while another agency is at work. The importance of discovering the +true mission of the committee is therefore most urgent. + +To inspire the detectives to solve the question, the Plutocratic +National Committee secretly offers a reward of $5000 to the man who will +obtain the desired information. + +In holding their daily meetings the Forty observe the greatest caution. +Each member goes to the appointed place alone, avoiding as much as +possible attracting the attention of the detectives whom they know are +on the lookout. It is not their intention to have any mystery connected +with their existence, yet they wish to work unhampered by the servants +of the Magnates. + +For its semi-monthly conference the committee meets at Drover's hall. +The deliberations are not open to the public; still, no attempt is made +to conceal the fact that there is a meeting. + +Nevins and the other leading members decide that the secret meeting at +which he is to develop his plan shall be held in a place where there +will be no possible way for a spy to creep in. + +They select a deserted rolling mill on the edge of the river in North +Chicago. This mill was one of the most prosperous in the city prior to +the consolidation of the iron industries. Immediately following the +combine the mill had been closed and the work that should have gone to +it was transferred to the Trust's great plant in Pittsburg. + +For eight years the fires in the furnaces have been extinguished; the +incompleted iron work that lies about the ground has been given over to +the ravages of rust; desolation is the master of the mill. + +The spot is an ideal one for a secret meeting place. The police never +enter the grounds except at long intervals, when the inspector of the +precinct is on his rounds. This official makes a perfunctory survey of +the mausoleum of dead industry. In his report the entry, "Iron works +vacant," sufficiently describes the place. + +On the night of the secret meeting the members arrive at the mill by +various routes. There are three entrances on land and a wharf extends +along the eastern limit of the enclosure. Five of the delegates cross +the river in a skiff. + +At nine o'clock all the men are present. They gather on the second floor +of the storage shed, a brick structure one hundred by one hundred and +fifty feet in area, and three stories high. There are no windows in its +bleak walls. On each floor in the wall that faces the interior court of +the mill enclosure are two corrugated iron doors. These doors are +closed, and effectually exclude the light from without, as well as any +light that might be made within. On the floor where the committee meet +there is a rough plank table that was used by the machinists of the +mill. + +At this improvised tribunal the Forty meet to discuss the regeneration +of the nation. + +Two candles at either end of the ten foot table serve to reveal the +dense darkness rather than to dispel it. The flickering-lights fall on +the faces of the men as they sit on the floor in a semi-circle. Their +eyes are alone perceptible, and the several members are unable to +distinguish one another. + +The voice of one speaker after another issues from the darkness, +producing a supernatural effect upon the assemblage. The nerves of even +the most intrepid are at a high tension. + +A gust of wind rattling the iron doors causes the men to start; the +lowest whisper is intensified to what seems a sonorous shout. In this +strange theatre, the actors in what is to be the greatest world-drama, +wait to be assigned their parts and to play the first act. + +Nevins is the stage manager; he has chosen the settings; has assembled +the caste. Now it is his duty to give the signal for the curtain to +rise. As with the dramatists of old, he decides to introduce his +production with a prologue. + +Advancing to the centre of the semi-circle he begins the explanation of +his plan of salvation. + +Is it destined to end as many thousands have done, in miserable failure? + +"What I propose will strike you as the ravings of a man who has lost his +last grain of sense," he begins. "Yet I am prepared to demonstrate that +the plan is not only feasible, but that it is the only one which can be +put into execution and carried through to a successful issue. The greed +and the power of the Trust Magnates is insatiable. They will not make +the least concession to the people. The day for arbitration is at an +end; the time for the people to act is at hand. + +"Every means of defence against the Trusts has been absorbed by them. +What are we to do, surrender meekly, or fight? + +"History shows us how terrible a thing war is--especially revolutionary +war. Now, I have thought out a plan by which war and its attendant +calamity can be averted and the people be reinstated in their power. + +"There is not a man here who would not enlist to-day at the call for +troops. Many of you have already proven yourselves patriots by your +service in the field and on the ships of the United States. + +"Now, it is not always necessary to be on a battlefield in order to show +courage. Men can be heroes in the humble walks of life. + +"What I want of you is a pledge that you will stand by me to put out of +existence the deadly foes of this country. I want you to swear that you +will not flinch when the moment comes for you to fight, even to the +death. + +"Are any of you unwilling to swear that you would fight the foes of our +country to the bitter end?" + +No one speaks. The excited condition of the speaker impresses the men +strangely. They do not know just how to take him. + +"I shall at the next meeting name forty men, each of whom has been an +enemy of the United States; each of whom has seen the growth of his +private fortune built upon the ruin of homes; each of whom has opposed +every measure for the alleviation of the condition of the masses of the +people. + +"Many of them are known to you as offenders of national notoriety. You +have mentioned them in your recital of grievances. + +"You all know of the bloody history of the Czar of the Lakes, Anthony +Marcus. The graves of the murdered sailors and longshoremen are a +sufficient indictment against him. + +"Need I tell you of the horrors that have been daily perpetrated by the +ruthless oil magnate, Savage, in my own State of Pennsylvania? + +"Is the right to check competition by the use of the torch to be +conceded to him? Is murder for the sake of commercial advantage to be +sanctioned as our national policy? + +"The ancients were never so free or so powerful as when their citizens +exercised the right to proscribe unworthy citizens. + +"Let us constitute this meeting into a forum and issue our list of the +proscribed. When the list is read I shall be glad to substitute others +for the names I have selected. + +"The people are too subservient to aid us in carrying out the edict; so +I propose that we each select a man from this list of forty, and that we +then see that the edict is enforced. _We shall thus rid the earth of its +chief transgressors_. + +"When the French revolution was brought on, the world knew nothing of +the possibilities of combined wealth as an agency for the improvement of +the condition of the human race. Now we are familiar with all of the +wonders that can be accomplished by the combining of money into +corporate form. + +"We also know that at the present time all of the combined capital of +the world is held in the hands of a mighty ring of magnates. The +civilized world's billion of people slave for the benefit of a few +thousands, who have usurped the prerogatives and the rights of the +whole. Nowhere is this condition more aggravated than in this country. +We were all born freemen and we find ourselves to-day at the mercy of a +few thousand plutocrats. The advantage of improved production is being +kept from the people. We are denied our heritage. + +"We cannot fight the magnates in the open, for they have attained +control of the army and the judicial forces of the government. We face +the alternative of submission or revolution. + +"What does it avail if we send Representatives to Congress who are tools +of the magnates? What does it avail if Congress enacts laws which the +executive refuses to enforce? + +"The ballot has become a weapon to destroy those it should protect. +Elections ruled by coercion are a mockery. + +"I am in favor of inaugurating a scientific revolution. There is no need +to raise a guillotine in the city's square and drag to their death those +who are living upon the life's blood of the many. This is the crude way +to reach a desired end. + +"The world is never lastingly horrified and deterred from evil by the +mere letting of blood. Crime can be obliterated only by reformation of +the criminal element of society. Condemnation of individuals who are +caught is productive of little good. + +"The destruction even of an army momentarily shocks; but in the one +breath the people will cry, 'war is hell; let us have war, for peace +sake.' And when war comes it never affects the cowards, the usurers, the +rogues; they stay at a safe distance from the scenes of action, and, +with the instinct of the hyena, they profit on the nation's calamity. +Our trusts are the result of the jobbing that was started during the +Civil War, and which has never lagged since. + +"The fight that I would have you make is against forty cowards and +scoundrels who are sucking the very life out of the country--the forty +who represent the high council of the magnates. Let it be a personal +fight, a tourney; you the Knights Errant who ride against the dragons. + +"When the world awakens some morning and reads that at a given hour the +forty Robbers of America were sent to their eternal resting place with +their crimes on their heads, the shock will not pass away in a day. It +will be far different from reading of a battle fought six thousand miles +from Washington. Then will be the time for the men who have the good of +the people at heart to reestablish them in their rights. + +"Money is the god that the Nation is asked to worship. It makes fools of +the majority and knaves of the rest. + +"It will take some unprecedented occurrence to stir the masses. The +firing on Fort Sumter shook the Nation more than the carnage of +Gettysburg. The Nation has come to be apathetic on a vital question; +even more so than in the ante-bellum days. The dry-rot of Commercialism +is consuming us. We are governed by dividend worshipers. We must act, if +our manifest destiny to be a lasting republic is to be fulfilled. + +"If the taking off of the forty men would do the work that I wish to see +done I would be glad; but it will require a sacrifice on our part of +more than our prejudice against taking of life. We shall each have to +kill our man, and then commit suicide." + +"What!" ejaculate several. + +"We shall be obliged to commit suicide. There is no other course open +for us, for if, on the announcement that the forty men have been +murdered, there is not the still more surprising statement that the +murderer of each is found dead beside the slain, the effect will be +common-place, and everyone will say it is a cowardly plot to kill forty +of the 'best citizens.' There is no way out of it. You would all gladly +fight with an enemy of the country to the death. To rescue the flag from +the enemy you would face a hail of lead. + +"This flag of Freedom is defiled to-day by the Magnates. You are asked +to rescue it. It was snatched from my hands on the highway as I went to +present a petition to my fellow citizens. + +"When each of us has been allotted his man we will work to the +accomplishment of the plan at the given time. On each there will be +found a letter explaining what led to the killing of the public enemy. +These forty letters will appear in the papers throughout the land; they +will be compared and found to be counterparts; then the public mind will +grasp the significance of the seeming murders. It will then be regarded +as an act of deliverance. In place of being regarded as murderers we +shall be recognized as men whose love of country impelled us to +sacrifice our lives unhesitatingly. + +"By the blotting out of forty of the chief despots, and the publication +of the reasons; and by the announcement that the people are determined +to regain their rights, the road to National Ownership and Control of +Public Utilities, and the regulation of the finances and commerce by the +government, will be materially cleared. + +"In fact, I am confident that the next election after this object lesson +will find the robbers ready to sell at a just price and the people eager +to come into possession of their own?" + +"We will time the execution of our design so that it shall occur on the +13th of October, four weeks before the National election. The +Independence Party will have as its candidate a man who is known for his +honesty and ability; who is an avowed opponent to force either by the +magnates or the people. The people will be eager to entrust their safety +in his hands. + +"The dread of a repetition of the edict of Proscription will cause even +the supporters of the Robber Barons to prefer the election of the +people's candidates, than to face the results of the election of a +Plutocrat." + +The Chairman interrupts the speaker: "We will not take a vote on this +question to-night, so I should suggest that the meeting be brought to a +close. This will afford us all time to further consider the +proposition." + +The meeting closes in silence. There is a stern anxious look on the +faces of many of the men; others look as if they are on the point of +fainting. They reach the court-yard and seem relieved to get a breath of +fresh air. + +The two members who represent the Anarchistic element are the most +depressed. They speak to several of the men from the socialistic orders +and try to get at the reason why they shall have to commit suicide for +doing what they believe to be the best thing for the world. No one is +able to give any very good reason, so the two anarchists go to their +homes in any thing but a serene frame of mind. + +At the meeting held the following night, the members discuss the +momentous proposition in all its details, the result being that they all +agree to pledge themselves to the carrying out of the edict of +annihilation. + +Without unnecessary ceremony each member of the committee takes the +preliminary oath that Nevins demands. The reading of the list of the +proscribed is postponed for a week. + +From the time the committee decides to take the serious step, there is a +decided change in the attitude of many of them toward William Nevins. +Some of the men have a vague notion that he is not sincere; that he is +an agent of the Magnates. + +Not that he has said a word that would lend color to this belief, for, +on the contrary, it was he who expressed his views freely as originator +of the drastic plan. It comes rather as the result of his being superior +to his colleagues in many ways. His reserve of manner, his invariable +good judgment and the exhibition of his erudition, instead of endearing +him to the members, make them distrustful of him. + +A free expression of the feeling that exists is not made, however, until +the evening of the allotment. This is the occasion which the men who +hold Nevins in disfavor have determined shall be made the moment for his +dismissal from the council and for a change in his plan, if not a total +rejection of it. + +Before the appointed hour of the meeting, these skeptics meet in secret +conclave. + +"It will be our duty to-night to decide upon the means by which the plan +we have been considering may be carried into execution, or abandoned," +states the chairman of this impromptu meeting in a perfunctory tone. "If +there is any preliminary matter to be discussed, I am ready to entertain +it." + +This brings three of the men to their feet. + +Coleman, the delegate from California, is recognized. + +"Mr. Chairman, I am opposed to allowing any man to take part in this +work who is not in thorough sympathy with the rest of the committee. It +would be a manifest impossibility for this very dangerous and +unprecedented undertaking to be launched with the possible danger of +there being a spy in our company. + +"I am not prepared to say that there is such a spy here, yet until it is +satisfactorily demonstrated that we are all of us true friends of the +laboring men of the country, I shall be against proceeding to the +further outlining of the plan. + +"It is not enough that a man profess friendship. He must be able to show +by his acts that he has done something for his fellow-men besides +theorize." + +These views are quickly seconded. Then follows a talk among the men as +to what each of them has done to establish a record as a friend of the +masses. From the statements and the corroborating testimony of +dissenters, all of the members, with the exception of Nevins, pass +satisfactorily. He has no acts to his credit. No one admits knowing of +him outside of his work as a committeeman. Not one of those in +attendance at this special meeting will speak a word in his behalf. + +At this juncture, when it looks as though he is to be ruled out of the +committee and his plan repudiated, Hendrick Stahl asks to be heard. + +As Stahl is a member of high standing and the leader of a strong labor +party in Minnesota, he is permitted to speak. In a few forceful words he +denounces the men for their ungenerous suspicion; he tells them that he +has known Nevins as a friend and co-worker for years. + +Not without a visible degree of dissatisfaction the objecting members +accept the situation and agree to attend the meeting to hear the reading +of the list of proscribed. The men present do not know that Nevins had +planned the seeming rebellion to test the sincerity of the men whom he +is to take into his full confidence; that he has Professor Talbot and +Hendrick Stahl working as his lieutenants. + +Nothing now standing in the way of the plan, the men await the hour for +the night session. They are eager to hear the reading of the list. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE LIST OF TRANSGRESSORS. + + +At length the hour arrives in which the men are to be given the names of +the transgressors. It would be disastrous to have any knowledge of the +affair fall into the possession of the sleuths of the Trusts; so every +precaution for secrecy is observed. The loft of the deserted mill is +again chosen as the place of meeting. A thorough search of the +storehouse is made, and then the committee assembles in the narrow +semi-circle. + +After the meeting is called to order, there is an apparent apathy on the +part of a number of the Eastern members. When questioned they freely +admit that they do not believe their constituents would sanction the +drastic measure. + +Nevins is absent on his visit to Trueman. He has arranged with Professor +Talbot and Stahl to delay the meeting and put the members through +another test. + +The proposition is argued anew. + +It is explained that each man is called upon to make an equal sacrifice; +that there is no difference in declaring one's patriotism by enlisting +in the army or navy to fight a common foe, or in being one of a +numerically small and intrinsically strong army of forty. The Trusts and +Monopolies have proven a menace to the people, and can consequently be +looked upon as a foe to the government, to be dealt with accordingly. + +A unanimous decision to carry out the plan is reached. + +At this juncture Nevins appears. + +He asks permission to proceed with the reading of the list of the +proscribed. He is recognized and begins his startling speech. + +"In the lapse of years one is apt to forget the springs from which the +wells of human action are fed; it is commonly the lot of man to sink +into a state of mind that is at once unreceptive and unretentive. The +result is that at the age of thirty he finds himself incapable of +grasping new and difficult conceptions. This is the reason why so many +injustices are permitted to exist in the world. Men in their youth are +thoughtless; in their mature and old age they are neglectful or +willingly negligent. + +"A degree of success or a degree of failure has a like tendency to blunt +the finer qualities of the mind. A man with a competency will not take +the troubles of his fellow man to heart. The unfortunate man who has not +the wherewithal to support his family is in no position to take the +initiative in a labor movement or in a political revolution. + +"So the work devolves upon the few men who have the means and the +inclination to strive for the betterment of humanity. + +"Yet even these men are not always capable of judging events by their +true proportions and relations. + +"Advancement is the one thing that reformers fear. The ends they would +attain are almost always reconstructive; they are never creative." +Nevins utters these words with impressive emphasis. + +"These remarks I have made by way of prelude to the matter I shall now +proceed to discuss directly and earnestly. + +"We are each and all convinced that the pernicious system of fostering +monopolies that has been instituted in this country can have but one +result, the undermining of our popular institutions, and in their place +the substitution of moneyed Plutocracy. This result is abhorrent to +every true American. + +"Now, there is no way to put an end to monopolies except by the people +rising in their might and reassuming their own. + +"The hypocritical advice of the leaders of the great universities, that +the people ostracize the Magnates, has now ceased to satisfy the +exigencies of the case. What sort of ostracism would the President of a +University endowed by the millions of a Magnate, propose to have +enforced against his master? + +"Another of the proposals emanating from the hireling counsels of the +Trusts, is that the methods of the Trusts be placed under the +searchlight of publicity. A pretty programme, indeed, were it not for +the fact that the very men who propose this method of dealing with +monopolies would be engaged by the Magnates to defend them from +exposure. + +"To invoke the aid of the courts is to be brought face to face with the +servants of the Trusts. Where is the Attorney-General who can +successfully prosecute a Trust? The only one who was ever sincere in his +attempt met an insurmountable barrier in the courts before which he +arraigned the guilty. + +"And the votes of the people, do they avail? + +"The executives and legislators whom they elect are false to their +pledges. + +"The great sin of this country is the worship of gold. Human life is +held as secondary to the dollar. + +"Who then shall deliver the people from the bondage that has come upon +them? + +"Unguided, they are as a flock of sheep without a shepherd. False +prophets, mercenary leaders, are an abomination. They have been and are +to this day, the clogs in the wheels of progress. + +"The work of rejuvenation must be done by an intrepid few. It cannot be +entrusted to visionary men, to fanatics, to men who detest government of +any form or to men who are willing to suffer present ills rather than +face temporary discomfiture. + +"To carry on a crusade one must surrender self. + +"If our plan did not embrace more than the annihilation of forty of the +Transgressors it would not be raised to a higher plane than wholesale +homicide. + +"But we are to follow the course which the Plutocrats have traversed. +They have destroyed individual liberty; they have entrenched themselves +in our halls of legislature by bribery; our executives are their +puppets; our courts are their final buttress. To reclaim the rights of +the people we must reach the powers in control; the actual men who +engineer the scheme of public loot. These men have sacrificed human +lives to attain their ascendency. We must demand, we must enforce an +atonement. + +"Because we are to deal with the chief transgressors, who represent a +small number, our deed will be regarded in the light of murder. + +"Were the magnates in the field as an open foe our assault upon them +would be hailed as an act of heroism. Shall we be deterred by +consideration of a difference in mere words? + +"I propose to vindicate these so-called murders, which we are to commit. +The atonement will be frightful. Will it be more so than the conditions +which necessitate it? + +"Are the lives of forty soulless men to be compared with those of +thousands who are yearly sacrificed to sordid commercialism? + +"Are we to extend our commerce at the price of a life for every dollar +of foreign trade? + +"Men prospered in this country before the reign of the Trust Magnates; +men grew rich through ordinate profits, and the prosperity of the +country was the prosperity of all. To-day men seek to enrich themselves +by preying on the necessities of their fellowmen. + +"Can the cry of tyrants and sycophants drown the wail of the innocent +children and women who have been chained to the wildcat car of Modern +Commercialism? + +"In compiling the list of Transgressors, I have selected no man merely +because he is possessed of great wealth. There are many millionaires who +have earned their fortunes by honest endeavor and in strict conformity +with the laws of the land. I have discriminated against those who have +prostituted the laws of God and man; not a man whom I shall declare +proscribed but he is known to all men as stained with the blood of +innocents. + +"'The voice of the people is the voice of God.' This voice cries to us +from four million mothers' mouths for deliverance from tyrants who +compel them to work for a living even in the hours of their pregnancy. +The child laborers of this land of freedom raise a piteous plea. + +"Do you wait for an actual rain of hell-fire as a sign that God's will +is not being done? + +"It is our duty to strike a blow at Plutocracy that shall destroy it for +all time. We will act as sovereigns of the land. In us resides the +supreme rights of mankind. Our edict cannot be enforced by the courts, +so we will act for ourselves. + +"The names I read are not given in any fixed order; each man is equally +guilty." + +Here Nevins takes a slip of paper from his pocket and begins to read: + +"By reason of his treasonable act in furnishing the Nation's defenders +poisonous food while they were engaged in actual war, and for continued +vending of deleterious food to the citizens at large; for his +conspicuous participation in the formation of the monopoly of the meat +products of the country, for the purpose of extorting tribute from the +masses, I name Tingwell Fang as one of the transgressors. This man has a +fortune of $200,000,000; more than the life earnings of 2,000 men +engaged in ordinary pursuits for a period of thirty years each. + +"Judge if God ordained that one man should be possessed of such fabulous +wealth when His Son gave as our prayer, 'Give us this day our daily +bread.' + +"As the controller of the Wheat Trust, by which the grim hand of famine +is laid on the nation, and a tax levied on our subsistence, I name David +Leach as another of the transgressors. He has collected $100,000,000, in +sums of one and two cents from the millions of men, women and children +of this country. He stands between us and our daily bread. + +"I need not portray the sufferings that are inflicted on the nation by +the presence of the Coal Trust. From the miners to the consumers the +tale is one of ever-increasing awfulness. Man to-day, who must live in +the northern and temperate regions of our country, cannot endure the +cold of winter without artificial heat. He cannot go to the virgin +forests, for the land is owned by private individuals; he cannot go to +the mines, for they are the property of the coal barons. He must +purchase the coal that is needed to heat his home. + +"This makes coal not a luxury, but one of the necessities of life. + +"In the hands of the Trust the price is raised to the highest possible +point. The monopoly is complete; the demand perpetual. + +"Every home where coal is consumed is a witness to the rapacity of the +Coal Trust. I therefore name as one of the transgressors, Gorman Purdy, +President of the Coal Trust, the man who ordered the massacre of the +miners at Hazleton; who has driven widows and orphans from the mining +towns to let them starve on the highways. He is the possessor of +$160,000,000, the equivalent of the earnings of 10,000 miners for +forty-five years. + +"I name as a transgressor, Ebenezer J. Sloat, President of the Leather +Combine. His single fortune is $80,000,000. This man succeeded in +effecting a consolidation of all of the leather producers; now the +nation pays the Trust a royalty on every pair of shoes that is sold. + +"He has driven the cobbler out of existence and has set children and +women at the machines which turn out completed shoes, on which not a +single part has to be made by skilled labor. + +"It is not in the trades alone that the Transgressors are to be found. +They have developed in high places. + +"I name as one of the proscribed, ex-Supreme Court Justice Elias M. +Turner, who, at the demand of the Magnates, recanted his judgment on the +question of constitutional taxation, and left the humble citizens to +bear the burden of taxes while the Trusts and Monopolies go practically +exempt. This act of betrayal to the public weal is the more atrocious as +it was done by a man who had been invested with the highest honor that +the nation could bestow upon the ermine. + +"If the wearer of the robe of justice outrages his garment is it to +remain an invulnerable shield against our righteous condemnation? He who +doles justice, must himself be its chief exemplar. + +"Another of the high servants of the people who has betrayed his fellow +countrymen, is ex-Attorney General Lax. It was his masterful policy of +inaction that permitted the trusts and monopolies to intrench themselves +during the four years that he stood as their buffer, against all efforts +of the several states to curb them. + +"Entering the office as a man of moderate means he left it possessed of +a fabulous fortune--the bribe money of the Magnates. And not content to +retire from office, and cease his nefarious trade, he is to-day the +counsel for the Money Trust. It is his mind that conceives the +interminable means for forcing the Government to issue bonds for the +benefit of the Banking Syndicate?" + +"It was Herbert Lax who made me a bankrupt," exclaims one of the +committee. "He caused my brother to commit suicide. If ever there was a +cold-blooded villain, Lax is the man." + +"His acts were those of charity compared to some of the Transgressors," +observes Nevins, before he continues to announce the list. "Is the +bankrupting of men to be compared with the heinous crime of enslaving +children? + +"The Cotton King, Herod Butcher of Fall River, who thrives on the life's +blood of ten thousand minors--pitiable slaves of his looms, is one of +the transgressors who must atone for a life-long career as a merciless +infanticide. + +"No man is so base that he would stand by and see a child ruthlessly +slain. Yet the nation stands supinely in the presence of a system of +factory labor which tolerates the inhuman employment of children. The +hazy halo of legality is between the transgressor and the people; and +men remain unmoved. + +"It was for humanity's sake that our countrymen gave their life +ungrudgingly on the battle-fields of Cuba. But what of the inhumanity at +home? A word spoken against an American manufacturer is a crime in the +eyes of the Magnates, and the offender is chastised accordingly." + +"I have three sons who grew to manhood, stunted and untutored, who had +to work for their daily bread in the mills of Herod Butcher," declares +Martin Stark, the Rhode Island committeeman. + +"Judas D. Savage is another of the transgressors. A hundred flaming oil +wells lit by the torch of the incendiary, hired by his gold, wrote his +proscription on the scroll of high heaven. + +"And Roger Q. Alger, of the defaulting Savings Bank dynasty comes to you +recommended by the cries of anguish that have been uttered by thousands +of widows, orphans, struggling husbands and provident wives, who have +awakened to find their savings distributed as booty to the Barons. + +"But what need have I to recount the misdeeds of this list of men. If +the first man or woman whom you meet on the street cannot give you a +description of them that will stand as an indictment, then consider the +men I name innocent!" + +He then completes the reading of the list. There is a painful silence +when he ceases to speak. The Forty seem absorbed in deep thought. The +chairman finally speaks: + +"You have heard the reading of the list," he says. "If it is your desire +to substitute names for those mentioned, now is the time to propose the +change." + +"I move that the list be adopted as read," Carl Metz suggests. + +"I second the motion," says Professor Talbot. + +Every committeeman votes for the adoption of the list. + +The names are written on slips of paper and placed in a hat. As each +committeeman passes the table he draws a slip. + +"You have all signified your willingness to carry out the terms of the +edict of annihilation," the chairman explains. "It now remains for you +to redeem your pledges. If there is one of you who regrets the step he +has taken it is not too late to withdraw." + +There is profound silence, and the men stand immovable. + +"Two months from to-day then, October 13th, our Syndicate of +Annihilation will declare its dividend; this will require the summary +taking off of the Forty Transgressors and our self-immolation." Chadwick +pronounces these words slowly, impressively: + +"We will separate to-night never to meet again in this life. + +"If we are true to our purpose we will not have died in vain." Without +formal partings the men leave the store-house. + +Nevins is the last to depart; he draws the remaining slip. It bears the +name of "James Golding, Bond King; capital, $400,000,000; occupation, +United States Treasury Looter." + + + + +BOOK III. + +The Syndicate Declares a Dividend. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + +BIRTH OF A NEW PARTY. + + +"You will soon find that my assertion was based on absolute knowledge, +for your nomination will be unanimous," Nevins declares to Trueman as +they sit in private conference, on the eve of the Independence Party's +convention. + +"Then you do not credit the statement that the Eastern delegations have +become disaffected?" + +"That's only one of the rumors which the Plutocrats have set afloat +since they unearthed the fact that you are to be a candidate for the +vice-presidential nomination. Gorman Purdy is the instigator of all +these adverse stories. He has not forgotten that you were once his most +promising pupil." + +The President-maker and his intended candidate are in daily +communication; they have become firmly attached to each other in the +short period of their acquaintanceship. This is not to be wondered at, +for there is a striking similarity in their temperaments. Each is +endowed with keen perception and wonderful magnetism. Their combined +influence has brought to their support the most contumacious of the +delegates. On the issue of the following day the hopes of each are +centered. Nevins has asked his young champion to visit him at his rooms +in an unpretentious hotel on Clark street; there are details for the +work of the morrow that have to be carefully planned. + +"In your speech you must dwell upon the causes which led to the +formation of the new party," Nevins explains. "This must be done +briefly; but it will pave the way for your demonstration that a new, a +young man must be called upon to make the fight against the intrenched +robbers. + +"As you know, I have striven for ten years to bring about the present +propitious circumstances; it has been an almost impossible task to get a +convention of men who are susceptible of being made to nominate a young +and untried man for so exalted an office. + +"But all of the political conditions of the hour indicate that the bold +proposal will be accepted." + +"I have caused a most thorough canvas of the delegates to be made," says +Trueman, "and they are almost unanimous in declaring that they will +support me for the second place on the ticket. When sounded on the +proposition of voting for a young man for the head of the ticket, they +demur." + +"That is just as I have planned matters should stand before the +convening of the delegates," replies Nevins, with a self-complacent +smile. + +"All of the older men will have spoken before you are called upon. The +sharp contrast that will be presented in the staid and uninspiring +speeches of your predecessors, and your fervid, fluent and convincing +call to action, will lift you to the position of the logical candidate. + +"No successful statesman has ever been unmindful of the practical side +of politics. A speech may create a whirlwind of enthusiasm for an +orator; yet if there is no one to guide the tempest it is soon spent. I +shall be on the watch for the moment that must see your name put in +nomination. + +"When it comes, I shall put you in nomination." + +"Day by day I am learning that politics is not a game of chance," +observes Trueman, meditatively. "It is a science, with as much to master +as the science of war, which it resembles most strikingly. + +"A year ago I should have scoffed at the idea that I would be engaged in +planning and in carrying out a campaign to capture a convention. Yet it +is absolutely necessary to make these preparations." + +"How many hours did I spend in convincing you that politics is an exact +science?" Nevins inquires, with a faint smile, as he recalls the +struggle he has gone through with before he could get Trueman to consent +to the methods that had to be adopted to effect his nomination. + +"I know that you had an obstinate pupil. I hope that I have not been +instructed in vain." + +"I have no fear on that score. You will fulfil the mission that is +manifestly set for you. Keep the thought of the people uppermost in your +mind when you are speaking, and it will give you the needed inspiration. + +"Come, we will review the bill of complaint which the people find +against the Trusts." + +They rapidly name, in chronological order, the events that have been +instrumental in bringing about the degradation of labor. There is the +primal generator of universal distress--the private corporation--which +operates with all the functions of an individual, yet is free from even +the most ordinary obligations that are enforced upon the individual; +from the private corporation has sprung the Trust, a consolidation of +corporate bodies which intensifies the evils that exist under the former +institution, and as an inevitable consequence of Trusts comes private +Monopolies. These last have been the direct cause of awakening the +people to a realization of their condition. For each aggression of +corporate wealth the people have been forced from their position as free +men to that of servants. The climax is reached when the Monopolies adopt +the paternal principle of pensioning their employees, thus making of +them retainers in name, as they have long been in fact. + +"I shall leave you to your thoughts," says Nevins, in parting. He walks +to the entrance of the hotel with Trueman. When his friend departs he +returns to his room. + +Three of the Committee of Forty are awaiting him. They have come for a +short consultation. At the convention they are to be the trusted +lieutenants of Nevins. + +There is no money to be distributed; no patronage to be pledged for the +support of delegates. The preliminary arrangements of battle are +strangely dissimilar to those of any preceding convention that has been +held in this country for half a century. + +The magnitude of the cause that brought forth the Democracy in the days +of Jefferson, and the Republican party in the days of Lincoln, is again +attracting true patriots; the cry of a people which has long been +outraged is demanding to be heard; it has reached the ears of a faithful +few who put country above price. It is of such material that the new +party is composed. + +A young and untried soldier was called by the sage of the Revolution of +1776 to take command of the Continental army. What is to prevent a +repetition of our history, now that another crisis has to be faced? Of +the committee there are few who do not feel assured that Trueman will be +capable of fulfilling the duties of the office to which they seek to +elevate him; they are not certain, however, that they can secure the +nomination for him. + +Trueman is hopeful; yet he cannot drive from his mind the rumors of +disloyalty that are constantly brought to him. + +In the minds of the Plutocrats it seems utterly impossible for Trueman +to even obtain the vice-presidential nomination. It never occurs to them +to regard him as a probable candidate for the higher office. Nevins, +alone of all men, is confident of the result of the morrow. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + +CHOOSING A LEADER. + + +Chicago, the city of immeasurable possibilities, the twice risen +Phoenix, scene of the fairyland of 1893, when the wonders of the world +were assembled for the fleeting admiration of man, is the arena in which +a battle is to be waged that shall be remembered when the other events +that add to the fame of the municipality shall have passed into +oblivion. + +To the citizens of Chicago a convention has come to be regarded as an +every-day occurrence. If it is not a convention of one of the great +parties, then some lesser body is in session; always some band of +delegates is reported as either arriving in or departing from the city. +There had been little stir when the Plutocratic convention was in +progress three weeks before. The result of the proceedings was +foreordained. + +But with the convening of the delegates of the Independence Party the +apathy of the people gives way to intense interest. They realize that at +least there will be a lively contest over the choice of a leading +candidate. + +Political forecasters have been chary of expressing opinions, for the +much depended on precedent is lacking. Here is a new party, which is to +make its second appeal to the people. Where its strength will lay, whom +it will select to be the standard-bearer of its radical platform, these +are questions that baffle the most astute observers. + +The morning of the opening session of the convention finds the vast +auditorium of the Music Hall where the meetings are to be held, crowded +with spectators. It is impossible for one-tenth of those present to hear +the speakers; they come not to hear so much as to breathe the surcharged +air of the political storm which it is known will be fostered. The thin +blood of the modern civilian is acted upon by less boisterous and gory +scenes than those which sufficed to stir the audiences of the Roman +circus; yet the human susceptibilities are the same in all ages, and +differ only in expression. In the battle of voices, the audience will +shout its approval or hiss its disapproval; at the pleasure of the +throng a speaker can be silenced, his victory snatched from his very +grasp. + +Six thousand people are in their places by ten o'clock. The police have +been compelled to shut the doors to exclude the crowds who would be +satisfied merely to get inside of the building. A murmur fills the +place, although no one is speaking above the normal tone; the combined +sound resembles the distant boom of a cataract. Here and there in the +galleries a splash of color indicates the presence of a woman. The value +of feminine headgear is for once clearly demonstrated; it serves to +differentiate the sexes. + +On the floor of the auditorium the long avenues of chairs are vacant; a +dozen men are busy arranging the location of the state delegations. +Guidons bearing the names of the states are put in position. At the +press tables, at the foot of the speakers' platform, hundreds of +reporters are industriously grinding out "copy" for their papers. A +formidable army of messenger boys is lined up along the base of the +platform. They are a reserve, to be used in case the telegraph service +should break down. + +Immediately in the rear of the speaker's table is the indispensable +adjunct of American politics, the brass band. At 10.15 o'clock the +leader of the band gives a signal, and the "Star Spangled Banner" is +played, six thousand voices joining in the best known phases and the +chorus. + +Now the delegates arrive. The New York contingent walks to its place in +the middle of the hall. Ex-Senator Sharp is at their head, followed by +the prominent county leaders. Their appearance is the signal for an +outburst from the galleries. Cheers and hisses are about evenly divided. +The conservatism of the New Yorkers makes them the bone of contention. + +"They will try to rule this convention in the interests of Wall Street, +as they did in the Democratic convention of '96," observes a man in the +West gallery, to the man next to him. "The theory of majority rule that +was good enough for the founders of the country, does not seem to hold +much force now-a-days." + +"No," replies the first speaker. "The rule of the majority has been +repudiated. It would have been inimical to monopolies, so the Magnates +have nullified it. They did the same thing with silver in '73. There +could be no money trust with bi-metalism." + +"Do you think the Eastern delegations are strong enough to dominate this +convention?" + +A tumultuous shout drowns the reply. + +"Texas! Texas!" cry a thousand voices. + +"California, she's all right!" cry as many more. + +Delegates from the above-named states appear at two entrances. + +By eleven o'clock the convention is assembled. The chairman rises and +pounds on the table with his gavel to quiet the audience. + +"We will open this convention with prayer. It is the desire of our party +to lift itself out of the mire of partisan politics, and nothing is more +fitting than that an invocation to the Almighty should constitute our +initial performance." + +An unknown clergyman from Iowa is called to offer prayer. He is listened +to in absolute silence; the great horde of men and women hold their +breath; religion at least is not extinct in the people. Following the +prayer comes the routine work of passing on credentials and appointing +committees. This is done with celerity. The men are anxious to begin the +real business. + +As the last committee is named, a delegate from every one of the States +is on his feet clamoring for recognition. + +"Illinois has the floor," the chairman announces. This is done as a +matter of courtesy to the state in which the convention is being held. + +Congressman Blanchard, representing a Chicago district, is the man who +receives recognition. + +As he steps upon the rostrum the cheering is deafening. He is the +favorite son of the state and this is the supreme moment in which he may +launch his boom for the presidential nomination. + +The power of his oratory is of a high order. He makes the fatal error of +being non-committal; his friends see that the chance has passed him. + +Favorite sons from a dozen states strive for the prize; yet for one +reason or another are unsuccessful in carrying the convention, or of +awakening the enthusiasm of the audience. + +"No one has spoken from Pennsylvania," remarks the man in the gallery. + +"There are few orators of note in that state now," he adds. + +"There are very few; but their small number is counterbalanced by the +quality of the men. Have you ever heard Trueman?" + +"I never heard him speak, but I have read his speeches. He seems to be a +true friend of the people." + +"Let us call for a speech from Pennsylvania," suggests the observant +auditor. + +"Pennsylvania! Pennsylvania!" shouts the impulsive man beside him. + +"Pennsylvania!" comes the instant response in every quarter of the +auditorium. The audience realizes that the great Keystone State has not +been heard from. + +The uproar increases. Men stand on their chairs and wave their hats, +shouting themselves hoarse. + +"Pennsylvania, what's the matter with Pennsylvania? She's all right!" + +The man in the gallery draws a flag from beneath his coat and waves it +frantically. + +"Trueman, Trueman! Speech!" + +The cry changes instantly. + +From his eyrie, Nevins, the omnipresent, flutters his commands. Under +his spell the tumult rises. Delegates from Nebraska and Louisiana rush +to the Pennsylvania section and seize Trueman. He is borne to the +rostrum across a veritable sea of men. + +Now Nevins hides the flag, and as though a switch key had cut off the +current from a dynamo, the confusion subsides. + +Now only fitful shouts can be heard; they come like the final rifle +cracks in a battle. + +Trueman has gained his feet and stands erect, facing an audience that is +already fired to the white heat of spontaneous combustion. + +He is saved the necessity of working for a climax; it is prepared. + +"Pennsylvania has come to this convention to be heard," he cries. + +This happy introduction catches the crowd. They give a long, hearty +cheer and then are silent. + +"The delegates from the Keystone State are here to aid in producing a +platform that shall contain the declaration of the right of mankind to +labor. + +"The work of this convention is not to be the single effort of one State +delegation; it is not to be that of any prescribed body; but must +reflect the united opinions of the American people. + +"I shall speak, therefore, as a representative of all liberty-loving +men, and shall express their hopes and aspirations as I have found them +to exist. + +"It is the ever constant belief of the people that popular government is +the only form that is compatible with Divine ordination; that all men +shall be protected in the right to live, to labor and to prosper +according to their deeds and deserts. + +"These principles are the basis upon which our republic was built; they +have served as the inspiration of our lives; for their perpetuation men +have given up their lives on the field of battle, on the altar of +martyrdom, and for these principles the vast majority of the citizens of +this country are to-day ready to make any sacrifice." + +A storm of applause momentarily checks the speaker. + +"When a man devotes his energy to honest toil it is for the purpose of +securing to himself and to his family the blessings of thrift; the +safeguard for honorable old age. In his effort he should be protected by +every means that a strong government can devise. The 'millstone' should +not be pledged or pillaged; the struggle of life should not be made +hopeless by compelling a man to slave for mere subsistence." + +"Hear, hear!" come shouts from the galleries. + +"Our people have seen the Republic dragged from the line of righteous +progress and diverted into the unnatural path of Plutocracy. Insidious +methods have been resorted to by those who have wrought this +transformation. Sophists have told the plain, credulous workers that +industrial combination in the form of Corporations and Trusts is the +result of a natural law of evolution. But what is the truth? The great +consolidations that have been effected during the past few years have +resulted from the enactment of statutory laws. These laws have emanated +from the brains of men, paid by the Trust magnates to undermine the +republic. No more treasonable acts were ever committed than by the men +who have sold the rights of a free people to a band of unscrupulous +money worshipers. + +"The continuance of this country as a Republic depends upon the +restoration of the independent citizen. To-day there are fewer men +engaged in independent work, as manufacturers and merchants, than there +were ten years ago; to-day the great bulk of the wealth of the country +is concentrated in the hands of a few thousand men. These men have +become the masters of the Nation; on their payrolls are to be found +three-fourths of all the working inhabitants of the land, men, women, +and children. + +"Men, women and children, I repeat, for where is the man who can earn a +sufficient wage to provide proper food and raiment for his family by his +single effort? + +"As the hope of the people rests on the recovery of the independence of +the individual, the platform of this party must declare unequivocally +for the abolition of all forms of private monopoly. This must be the +main plank in our platform." + +These words, uttered in a voice that reaches the remotest corners of the +auditorium, call forth a tumultuous shout. + +"With private Monopolies destroyed and the channels they control opened +to the people, the billions of revenue that now go to increase the +fortunes of the Masters of Commerce, will be enjoyed by the toilers who +create our National prosperity. + +"The statistics of the future shall record the existence in this land of +thousands, hundreds of thousands of independent business men. The +columns devoted to enumerating the Child Labor of the land will be +dispensed with; there will be an increase in the number of mothers and a +decrease in the number of women who are forced to earn a living by +manual toil. + +"The platform we adopt must contain a plank providing for the imposition +of a tax on a man according to his ability to pay. There is no sanction +for a law to govern a community, however large, however populous, if +this law is in contradiction of the principles that govern a household; +for we cannot conceive of a government that is not built on the +household as the unit. + +"Where is the father so inhuman that he will demand of the stripling, +the infirm, the feminine members of his family to procure the means of +support, before he has exhausted every other effort that can be made by +himself and his stalwart sons? Even the insatiate Trust Magnates, were +they suddenly to be reduced to penury, would shield their wives, their +daughters and their indigent. + +"Then who shall say that this Republic, a household on a mammoth scale, +is not justified in collecting the taxes necessary for its maintenance +from the incomes of the rich, and not from the paltry possessions of the +wage-earner? The hundredth part of the income of the rich will more than +pay for the legitimate expenses of the Government. + +"I am a firm believer in 'vested rights' and carry my adherence +back to the dawn of creation. Then it was that God vested mankind +with the right to live upon this earth. He endowed man with the +ability to earn a living, and gave to each and every man an equal +inheritance--opportunity. + +"Any laws that man has made which abridge this right of equal +opportunity are unconstitutional in the broad sense of being at variance +with God's will. Applied to our Constitution, the vested right of the +people to the equal opportunity to labor is higher than the right of the +few to retain the fruits of the labor of the many. + +"I advocate the taxing of the incomes of our citizens before we tax +their wages, which is their capital." Cheers interrupt the speaker for a +full minute. + +"It is my hope, the people's hope, that the bulwark of this country be +once more as it was for a century, not a standing army of idle soldiers, +but an active army of free men, busied by day in the fields and in the +workshops; resting by night under cover of their homes, surrounded by +their happy families; an army that is ready at an instant's call to +fight for the protection of their Flag and their Homes." + +"The united armies of the world would hesitate to face the legions of +contented freemen. Our power in the world will be increased more by a +fleet of merchant ships than by squadrons of steel battleships. + +"We want a National Militia, to be composed of every able bodied man, +who in the hours of peace prepares against the possibility of war. We +want a Navy strong enough to represent our interest on every sea; a +Naval Reserve strong enough to convert our Merchant Marine into the +greatest fleet in the world, should need arise. + +"We want, and we will succeed in getting the Army of the Unemployed +mustered out. + +"With us rests the duty of selecting a mustering officer; a man to carry +out the wishes of the people; a man who is temperate in his judgment, +unswerving in his purpose and unimpeachable in his integrity; a man in +whom the people may place full confidence. With such a man as a +candidate on the platform we shall adopt, the will of the people cannot +be thwarted. + +"We can frame the platform. Where is the man?" + +"Trueman! Trueman!" comes the cry. + +From mouth to mouth the name passes; now it is shrieked by an entire +state delegation; now by the entire assemblage. Louder and louder +becomes the cry. It is chanted, sung, shouted, shrieked. Men who have +shouted themselves hoarse utter it inarticulately. + +In the centre of the floor there is a movement; the guidon of New York +is moving. It is being borne toward the Pennsylvania delegation. + +Another and another state guidon follows in its wake. The convention is +in an uproar. + +Ten, twenty of the delegations are now swarming about the standard of +Pennsylvania. The galleries keep up the incessant shout of "Trueman! +Trueman!" + +A hundred men are clustered about the speaker as he stands, awed by the +outburst of enthusiasm. He is picked up and placed on the shoulders of +his friends. + +The delegations who have rallied to his support now number forty; they +are moving toward the platform. The men carrying Trueman go to meet +them. + +The climax is reached. Trueman is carried round and round the hall, the +enthusiasm of the delegates reaching the point of frenzy. Every +delegation is now in line. Without waiting for the formality of a motion +to adjourn, the convention marches from the building; its candidate at +its head. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + +TWO POINTS OF VIEW. + + +On the way to the hotel after the exciting incidents of the day, which +have culminated in his nomination, Trueman has time to reflect. The +poise of a man of his sterling character is not easily disturbed; yet he +feels misgivings as to the ultimate result of the pending campaign. The +odds are so uneven. On the one side the millions of concentrated +capital, commanding the servile votes of the dependent operatives; on +the other, eternal principles, supported by a few resolute men who will +have to inspire the Nation to action. + +"If I only had the encouragement of Ethel," Harvey soliloquizes, "it +would be nothing to face the foes of my country. But I must make the +fight alone. She is separated from me now by a wider barrier than ever. +As the champion of the people of Wilkes-Barre I became the antagonist of +her father, and she had no choice but to remain with him. + +"And yet, at our parting, there was a tremor in her voice which told me +that her love for me was not utterly dispelled. + +"Sister Martha tells me that Ethel is not happy, that she has ceased to +be the social butterfly, the cynosure of the fashionable set in +Philadelphia and New York. + +"As the inconspicuous leader of the working men of a Pennsylvania mining +town I might have won her, even against the opposition of Gorman Purdy. +As a candidate for the Presidency, on the Independence party's ticket, +my hopes are idle." + +He enters his room and finds a telegram on the table. + + "VENETIA, L.I. + + "As a friend I congratulate you on the honor you have + achieved; I wish that circumstances would permit me to aid + you in attaining victory. E.P." + +In all the world there is no treasure more precious than the yellow slip +of paper which Harvey holds in his hand. It is a proof that Ethel has +not forgotten him; it even foretells that if victory were to rest on his +standards, he might claim a double prize--the Presidency and a bride. + +"What right had I to expect that Ethel could descend from her sphere to +share the uncertain fortunes of a social reformer?" he muses. + +"The conditions of life that have been fostered in the United States +since the era of the multi-millionaire make the problem of marriage more +complicated than ever before. How can a woman, born to luxury, hope to +find marital felicity with a man dependent on his daily wages for the +means of supporting himself and family? + +"To say that she may bestow her wealth upon her husband, does not solve +the problem; it modifies it by adding a potent deterrent; for a man who +will be dependent upon his wife for support, lacks the essential +qualifications of a good husband. + +"The sharp lines of class distinction now drawn in the country are the +cause of most of the unhappiness that attend matrimony. It is the +opinion of others, not the needs of self, that engender discontent. + +"I must win a position in the world which will demand the respect of all +men; then I shall offer Ethel, in place of the ill-gotten millions of +her father's fortune, the name and love of an honest and respected man. +And I will be honest and respected, even as President. + +"What a commentary on human frailty the records of our latter day Chief +Magistrates present. Each has been of humble origin. He has risen by +virtue of fearless championship of the cause of the masses. Once in the +office of the Presidency, all uprightness and independence has left him +and he has worshiped at the feet of the Idol of Gold. + +"To win the Presidency will be to inaugurate an era of real National +prosperity, in which the labor of the people will be insured just +remuneration. To win Ethel will be to abolish the distinction of class." + +At the very hour Harvey Trueman is pondering over the grave conditions +that keep him from making Ethel his wife, she is thinking of the mockery +of her riches, which furnish her with every attribute to happiness but +one--that eclipses all others--the heart's desire. + +From the days that she had first known Harvey as the brilliant +counsellor, she has felt that inextinguishable love which thrives on +hope, and which will not diminish, even when hope is banished. Harvey +and she had been friends. His brains had won him admittance to the +social class in which she moved. When their attachment had grown to +love, and he had asked her father's consent to their marriage, Gorman +Purdy, the man of millions, had not hesitated to sanction the union. + +What a joy had filled her heart when Harvey told her of his love! What +happiness could have equalled hers when she received the news from +Harvey that her father was willing that they should marry? + +What has caused their separation? + +This is the question that remains as yet unanswered in her mind. + +"Is it possible that there can be such a divergence in the views of two +men on a question of right and wrong," she asks herself, "that they will +sacrifice the happiness of the one woman they profess to love, rather +than agree upon a compromise, or one or the other change his views?" + +"My father loves me; he lavishes his wealth upon me; I am his only +child, his only comfort. He remains a widower so as to give me an +undivided love. Yet he will not consent to my speaking of wedding Harvey +Trueman. He tells me that Harvey is an enemy of mankind; a man who is +seeking to disrupt civilization; that every word he utters is intended +to inflame the minds of the people; to incite them to anarchy. + +"And Harvey, can his words be false when his actions are so generous? +What prompted him to give the miner's widow a thousand dollars? Was it a +desire to do an act of charity, or was it as my father tells me, the act +of a demagogue? + +"How am I, a woman who knows nothing of politics or the principles of +government, to decide a question that divides nations? + +"What does all the advanced civilization of to-day amount to when it +stands as a barrier to happy marriages? + +"I cannot exchange places with a woman of the mining districts. My life +has been so different that I should be miserable." + +As she philosophises Ethel glances about her boudoir. It is midnight. +From her open window a refreshing breeze comes from the sea. Venetia, on +the Long Island shore, where Gorman Purdy has built his palatial +residence, is always fanned by ocean breezes. On this particular night +in August the moon shines full and bright. It gives a soft tone to the +luxurious apartment in which America's richest heiress lies tossing +restlessly on her bed. + +"How impossible it would be for a miner's wife to exchange places with +me," Ethel sighs. + +"I am envied by every woman in the land. And still I am unhappy; O, so +unhappy. + +"The fetters of wealth are as binding as those of poverty; they are not +appreciated by the world, and those who wear them are never pitied. If +only Harvey is elected President, and my father's fears are not +verified, perhaps--" + +Ethel does not dare to express the hope that wells in her heart. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + +OPENING THE CAMPAIGN. + + +A National Headquarters at the height of a Presidential election is of +all places in the world the busiest. Men there seem to concentrate the +pent-up energy of four years in the four months that are devoted to the +campaigning; they work day and night, regardless of sleep or food. A few +hours rest, taken when a momentary lull will permit, must suffice; a +hurried meal must appease their appetite. Meetings have to be arranged; +funds distributed to the various committees; literature has to be +prepared and distributed; doubtful districts need the attention of the +ablest spell-binders; the movements of the opposing parties have to be +met and counteracted. + +Especially is the present campaign an exciting one. The strain on old +party lines has at length snapped. The two leading parties in the West +and South are disrupted. While not utterly disorganized, the same +parties have suffered serious disintegration in the manufacturing +districts of the East. + +On the virtual ruins of the effete political organizations, the spirit +of the people finds utterance through the agency of the new party which +chooses as its name the "Independence Party." Vitalized by the infusion +in its body of the energetic and patriotic young men of the country, the +new party sprang into the lists, as it were, full grown. Its period of +adolescence has been as rapid as the transit of a comet. Yesterday it +had not existed, even in the minds of dreamers; to-day, in the +convention of one of the great political organizations an attempt was +made to throttle the voice of the majority. The voice of a single man +rose high and clear above the tumult; it was the voice of a Moses come +to lead his people from bondage. And that people were quick to +appreciate the importance of the presence of a great leader. The +convention cast aside all conservatism and cant; it produced a platform +that offered to mankind the direct and constitutional means for the +restoration of general prosperity and the re-establishment of the +principles of equality. + +In the first struggle against the entrenched power of corruption, the +new party had been defeated, not by reason of a disinclination on the +part of the people to support it, but because of the coercive methods +employed by the Trust Magnates. In the momentous campaign of 1900, the +vote of the people being divided, the candidate of the Democracy was +elected. He was a man of worth and was eager to do the people's bidding. +This, however, was not productive of any good to the people, as the +President had a House and Senate hostile to him. Thrice his first +Congress had attempted to impeach him, and they were deterred from +carrying out their partisan measure only by the ominous demonstration of +the laboring men in all sections of the land. + +Now, the greatest election ever held in this country is on; the forces +have met on three occasions and know each other's methods; they know +also that the result of the vote at this election will decide the future +of the country--it will continue to be a Republic in fact as in name; +or, if the Plutocratic party dominates, the dynasty of the first emperor +will be established. + +The Chicago Auditorium is selected as the quarters of the Plutocratic +contingent. The corridors of this magnificent hotel are crowded night +and day by throngs of visitors. Men from every state are there to +consult with the campaign committee. The grim visaged chairman of the +finance committee, Anthony Marcus, is always at his desk in an inner +room. Millionaires troop into his presence in a ceaseless stream; they +come with their bankbooks in hand and after a short interview with the +Powerful One, they depart, reassured that their millions are safe. They +pay their tithe to the Protector of American Plunderers. + +Anthony Marcus is in many ways a remarkable man; he is exempt from the +imputation of being a little man in any sense. His ideas are daring; +they can contemplate the debauchery of the Senate; the purchase of the +President, and the disruption of the Supreme Court; they cannot stoop to +the committal of petty larceny. So every dollar of the funds raised for +the expenses of the campaign is spent in purchasing votes or in buying +off dangerous leaders of the opposition. + +As fast as the funds are received they are distributed, and the method +of their final disposal is outlined by the great moving spirit. He seems +to possess infinite power of grasping the minutia of politics. None of +his lieutenants dares to misappropriate the funds turned over to him. +All know that their master has a disagreeable faculty of unexpectedly +asking for an accounting. + +"We will win by a margin of thirty-one votes in the Electoral College," +Chairman Marcus tells every one who inquires as to the probable result. +"This figure is based upon the canvass I have had made in the doubtful +states; it will not vary from the count by one vote." + +It is impossible to get the chairman to give an amplified statement as +to which he considers the doubtful states and as to how the canvass has +been conducted. + +One of the morning papers in Chicago, which takes an impartial stand, +and accordingly seeks to publish all of the news, creates a sensation by +the publication of a tabulated statement of the contributions paid into +the treasury of the Plutocratic party. This table shows a total of +forty-seven millions of dollars. + +With such a sum to expend, and with the knowledge that the chairman of +the finance committee will see that every dollar is properly +distributed, it is not unreasonable to suppose that a house to house +canvass of the doubtful states has actually been made. The corruption +fund provides more than three dollars for each voter in the land. + +Did Marcus think that one hundred million dollars will be necessary, he +would demand that sum, and it would not be withheld by the prosperous +band that derives its wealth from the law-makers whom Marcus elects. + +What a contrast is presented by the headquarters of the Independence +party. It is in a dilapidated hall in the western part of the city. The +only feature of the furnishings in keeping with the times, is the Bureau +of Publicity. This provides the campaign committee with telegraphic and +telephonic communication with the country at large. + +The instruments are arranged on two plain deal tables. In its appearance +the room is more like the editorial room of a hustling Western newspaper +than the headquarters of a political organization that is aspiring to +elect a President of the United States. The floor is bare; obsolete gas +fixtures afford the artificial light that is made necessary day and +night. The chairs and benches that are scattered about the room, are of +the type commonly seen in cheap music halls. There are no ante-rooms, no +council chambers and no secret cabinets. + +A campaign fund of but two hundred and sixty thousand dollars has been +raised through the agency of the labor organizations. This comparatively +paltry sum is being doled out in niggardly fashion by a finance +committee who feel reluctant to part with a single dollar unless assured +that it will have a hundred fold its natural effect on the result. + +There are some causes that do not need money to make them successful, +and the people's fight against Plutocracy is one of this kind. It needs +only the awakening of the people's interest to make victory certain. + +The surest way of gaining the public ear is by sending out speakers. +There is no dearth in the supply of brilliant orators who offer their +services. They foresee that the crucial test is to be given the +Institution of Popular Government and they wisely align themselves on +the side of the people. + +No stream of Millionaires comes to the Independence Party's +Headquarters; no line of retainers Stand with open hands to receive the +funds of fraud; there is as sharp a contrast between the two +headquarters as there is between the platforms and candidates of the +parties. + +Harvey Trueman is the guiding spirit at Drover's Hall. It is Tuesday, a +month before election. He visits the Hall for the last time before the +verdict of the people shall be recorded. + +"I am going to New York to-night," he tells his friend Maxwell, the +Chairman of the Speakers' Committee. "You had better notify the leaders +all along the line that I am prepared to make short speeches at every +available place." + +"Have you made arrangements with the railroads?" asks Maxwell. + +"It will not be necessary for me to consult with them; I have outlined +my route so that I can make connections on one road or another and go +through to New York in sixty hours. This will give me time to make +twenty short speeches." + +"When do you reach New York city?" + +"Friday night. It will be about seven o'clock. I want you to arrange for +a meeting in Madison Square Garden. It may cost us two thousand dollars, +but it will be money well spent." + +"We cannot get the Garden; not if we offered five thousand dollars. It +has been leased for three months straight by the Plutocrats," Maxwell +replies. + +"Then get the New York Committee to obtain a permit for an out-door +meeting. I will speak to twenty thousand people in New York on Friday if +I have to address them from a house-top." + +"One of the best places for an out-door meeting in New York is on West +street, between Cortlandt and Spring streets," suggests an operator who +has overheard the conversation. "That's the broadest thoroughfare in the +city." + +"Yes, that is a splendid place," acquiesces Trueman. + +"Have the meeting located there, Maxwell." + +Maxwell departs to carry out the order. + +A dozen men are soon receiving final instructions from their leader. +They hear the plan for the invasion of the East, and all agree that it +will be a wise move, and one which the enemy cannot counteract in so +short a time as will be left. + +The Judas that is present in almost all human conclaves, is among the +loudest in his remarks of approval. + +"You could do nothing that would give the Plutocrats a harder rub than +to speak on the eve, as it were, of election, in the hotbed of +Plutocracy," he assures Trueman. + +After a few minutes of further conversation on this line, the betrayer +departs. He is closeted with Marcus an hour later. The scheme for a +counter demonstration in New York is quickly formulated. + +Unconscious of the treachery that has been practiced, Trueman prepares +for the trip East. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + +ON TO NEW YORK. + + +In all the evening papers the announcement appears that Harvey Trueman +is to start on a tour of the East. The fact that he will leave the city +by train from the Union Depot is carefully suppressed, except in the two +comparatively unimportant journals which advocate the election of the +people's candidate. + +But the managers of Trueman's campaign have come to know what has to be +combatted. Handbills are hurriedly printed and distributed in the late +afternoon along State, Clark and Dearborn streets, and on the +intersecting streets in the centre of the business locality. These +hand-bills announce that Trueman will deliver his farewell speech to +Chicagoans that night at seven o'clock at the Adams street Bridge. + +At six o'clock the crowds begin congregating; they come from all +sections of the city; they are of every type, from the cowboy of the +Stock Yards to the Street Railway Magnate. All are intent on hearing the +captivating orator. + +Ten thousand people huddle in an area of five blocks. They know that +they all cannot hear Trueman; yet they hope to catch a glimpse of him, +and perhaps hear him make a short speech in their immediate +neighborhood. + +It is 6.50 when a hansom conveying Trueman hurries down Adams street +from State. The crowds cheer and yell. From a trot the horse attached to +the vehicle is forced to proceed at a walk. + +"Speech! speech!" cry the excited men as they surge through the narrow +thoroughfare. + +Trueman stands up in the hansom and leaning forward explains that he +cannot stop to make a speech at every corner. + +The few words he addresses to the crowd seem to satisfy their demands, +and they at once subside. + +Slowly the speaker approaches the throng at the Depot steps. In crossing +the bridge he twice has to comply with the persistent demand for a +speech. + +Now he is on the platform. + +His voice works a magic spell on the audience. They have been +boisterous, fretful, even at times disorderly. Not a dozen words are +uttered by Trueman and the silence, save for his ringing voice, is +intense. + +"I am leaving you that we may be assured of the support of the East," he +begins. + +"That you are with me and are determined to vote for your rights I do +not doubt for a moment. You are men who have learned the lesson of life +in the school of experience. A truth once grasped by you is not soon +forgotten. You all know who are your enemies." + +"Down with the Plutocrats!" howl the people. + +"As you stand before me, men of might, one a mechanic, one a laborer, +another a tradesman, another a railway employee, is there any one of you +who wishes to vote to deprive his fellow-workmen of the right to earn a +living? Is there a single man among you who is striving night and day to +corner the food of the land that he may starve his brother-workmen into +paying him tribute? Is there a man among you who is living on the +distress of his fellows, brought about by his wrecking the bank in which +they have hoarded their savings? + +"No, there is none such here. + +"Then there should not be a voter here who will cast a ballot to put in +power men who seek in public office only their personal ends. The +Plutocratic ticket has not a man on it who is not an agent of the +Trusts. Do not take this assertion on my authority. Investigate the +ticket for yourselves." + +Here the assembly cheer wildly. + +"I want you to roll up a majority in the city of Chicago which shall +demonstrate to the world that the citizens of the Star of the West are +among the staunchest patriots in the Union." + +With the whistling and shrieking of the crowd in his ears, Trueman steps +from the platform and makes his way to the train. The trip East is +unique. It differs from the ordinary Presidential campaign tour in so +much as there is no attempt to have reception committees meet the trains +on which the candidate travels; there is no speaking from the rear +platform of the trains. The depots are owned by the Plutocrats and no +crowds are permitted to congregate to hail Trueman. + +At Toledo, Columbus, Philadelphia and Newark, Trueman changes trains and +goes to a public square where he addresses the populace. As he nears New +York the enthusiasm of the crowds abates. In Newark the Plutocratic +missionaries have spread the seeds of falsehood and have made such +telling use of coercive threats that the people are actually hostile to +Trueman and his party, deeming them Anarchists. The protection of the +police is needed to prevent the most violent of the men from attacking +the speakers. In the attempt to suppress supposed law-breakers, these +misguided citizens become lawless themselves. + +At Jersey City there is a great crowd blocking the passageways of the +terminal. Trueman is forced to mount one of the mail cars and make a +speech. No sooner has he finished, then he is surrounded by the +reporters of the New York papers. + +"Mr. Trueman, are you aware that the Plutocrats have arranged for a +torchlight parade for to-night, as a counter demonstration to your +meeting?" one of the reporters asks. + +"Yes, I received a telegram at Philadelphia informing me to that +effect." + +"The line of march is from the Battery north on Broadway to Cortlandt +street; west on Cortlandt to Harrison street, and north on that street +to Spring," explains another reporter. + +"This means that they will run the parade parallel with the river front +and one block from West street. It will be timed so as to pass just as +you are making your address," he adds. + +"You may inform the managers of the parade that I will be delighted to +have them send their army of intimidated workmen down to West street, +and I may be able to entertain them. + +"Those who come within reach of my voice will, I think, hear news that +will hold them, as against a brass band and fireworks. If not, then they +would be better off in the wake of the procession," exclaims Trueman +icily. + +"Where do you propose to make your first speech?" asks a youthful +reporter. + +It is a superfluous question in the minds of all the older newspaper +men. They smile inwardly; but the answer this query evokes sends them +all flying to telephones. + +"I shall make my first speech at the Battery, where the paraders may +have the benefit of a little plain truth." + +The group of Independents are now on the ferryboat. + +Across the river the myriad lights of the metropolis give the scene air +appearance as of fairyland. The night is overcast and the clouds act as +a reflector to the million lights in the city below; the sky line of +Brooklyn is a dull salmon color. A chill October wind sweeps from east +to west. It is a bad night to speak out of doors. Upon reaching +Cortlandt slip Trueman descends to the lower deck and is among the first +to leave the boat. He crosses West street unobserved, and on reaching +the Elevated Station at Cortlandt street, boards a down-town train. With +him are three of the committee of arrangements. The remainder of the +party go to the platform at the foot of Barclay street to address the +crowd and announce the cause of Trueman's delay. + +When the South Ferry is reached Trueman sees that Battery Park is packed +with people. He descends to the street and wedges his way to the music +stand in the centre of the park. Without much difficulty he manages to +climb upon the stand. + +As a piece of good fortune an electric light shines full on his face as +he turns to the crowd. + +Up to this moment people think that the tall man with the slouch hat is +seeking a point of vantage from which to view the formation of the +parade. + +It does not require two glances, however, to assure the people that the +man before them is Harvey Trueman. + +"That's Trueman, or I'm a liar!" shouts an Irishman. + +"That's who it is," blurts a man beside him. + +"What is he doing down here? I thought he was to speak on West Street?" + +Some of the men in the crowd now begin cheering. They cry: + +"Trueman! Trueman! Rah! rah! rah! Speech! speech!" + +The proper moment has arrived. Trueman takes off his hat and waves it as +a sign for silence. The cheering and the rumor that Trueman has suddenly +appeared, turns a sea of people in the direction of the music stand. +Fully eight thousand men are within the radius of his voice. He speaks +at first in a high metallic key; but after the first minute or so he +reaches his normal voice, which with its fullness and exquisite +modulation makes his oratory remarkable. + +Here is an occasion where rhetoric will prove available; the crowd +before him is composed for the most part of the better element, so +called for reason of its disinclination to change existing conditions. +If a sense of justice in this great mass of humanity can be aroused it +will impel each and all to yield to the will of the orator. With sharp +sarcasm he refers to the precautionary action of the Plutocrats to +prevent his addressing a New York audience. Do they fear he may convert +it? + +Rapidly he pictures the scenes of intimidation he has witnessed in the +west and northwest. Is New York chained to the wheels of the Plutocratic +chariot? + +As the first sign of sympathy answers his appeal, he urges upon his +audience the necessity of declaring anew the independence of the people. +The fervor of his speech affects the crowd; the indescribable impulse to +yield to the will of a fellow-man who commands the power of oratory, +asserts itself. At the declaration of a principle of government which is +trite in itself, there is a scattered cheer; an apt epigram evokes a +storm of applause. Trueman wins the full sympathy of his audience; they +are his to command. + +"I am expected to address an audience at the foot of Barclay street. It +will afford me unbounded pleasure if I may tell them that the meeting +will not be disturbed; that you have decided to apply to politics the +same spirit of fair play that you would demand in a street brawl." + +"We're with you," cries a man. "You're all right." Trueman steps from +the music stand. The crowd gather about him, shouting and cheering for +him. + +"This is an Independence parade," some one shouts. + +"Forward, march, for Barclay street!" becomes the general shout. Trueman +is pushed on toward the edge of the Battery Park till the line of +carriages in which some of the members of the parade were to ride is +reached. He is lifted into one of the carriages and the march for the +West street stand is begun. The line of march leads along State street +to Battery Place; here it turns west to the river, and thence up West +street. The traffic which chokes that thoroughfare in the day is absent +and the broad expanse of street affords an excellent concourse. + +With the clashing strains of three bands, the shouts of thousands of +men, the flickering lights of torches and Roman candles, Trueman +approaches the audience which has been impatiently awaiting him. Flushed +with the pride of his victory he mounts the stand to address ten +thousand men in the citadel of Plutocracy. His advent in New York is a +signal triumph. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + +DEPARTURE OF THE COMMITTEE. + + +By the last election for President a man has been put in office who is +the acknowledged tool of the Trusts and Monopolies. He has avowedly +sealed his independence by accepting a nomination brought about by the +ring leader of a syndicate of Railroad Magnates and Steel and Oil Kings. + +The people are in such a depressed condition that it is believed no +determined opposition to the dominant party can be conducted. So this +man is a candidate for re-election. The few intrepid men who succeed in +keeping the people's party in the field are derided and denounced as +anarchists. Their very lives are threatened, and in one instance a +Governor of the people being elected, he is immediately assassinated. +But for the certainty of the Plutocrats that their money will win them a +victory, all the leaders of the Independence party would be forcibly +done away with. + +The prospects of the coming election look dubious for the people. On +August thirteenth the Committee of Forty determined to take the step for +re-emancipation. The time to strike the telling blow at monopoly is +approaching. The men all know what the work outlined will entail, and +they have brought themselves to look at the matter in much the same +light as the originator of the unparalleled expedient. + +"We have been forced into adopting the plan of annihilation," Professor +Talbort declares to Henry Neilson, a fellow committeeman with whom he is +traveling to the Pacific coast. + +"I agree with you," replies Neilson, "it is the only course open to us; +we have given every other proposal careful consideration. They would +only temporarily avert a conflict." + +"I have pondered on the question of how our acts will be accepted by the +people," the Professor resumes. "I believe they will hail our acts as +those of deliverance." + +"They will appreciate that we gave our lives for them," Neilson declares +unhesitatingly. + +All of the Forty act with similar coolness. + +Men of action are not as a usual thing great talkers; so it is with the +members of this committee. They waive much that would be deemed +essential by less resolute and active men. How the several annihilations +are to be effected is a matter left for each man to decide for himself. +He will have to carry out any plan he devises, and it is considered as +the best policy to let his method be known to no one else. This is the +surest way of avoiding a possible miscarriage of the plan. + +The failure of one of the forty men will not then involve the remaining +thirty-nine. Every contingency is weighed. The chance of one or more of +the men going insane because of the frightful secret, is taken into +account and the idea that each man shall decide the details of the +course he is to pursue is adopted. + +"I am glad that we parted without formality," Nettinger declares to the +group of committeemen who are his companions on a train that leaves +Chicago for the South. + +"It would have unnerved us to speak of our meeting as '_the last_'" says +another of the group. "I have faced danger in my life, but I regard this +as the most astounding departure that has ever been made in the +interests of humanity." + +"The future of the Republic is at stake," observes a third. "How will it +all end?" + +This is the question that is uppermost in the minds of all. + +"There is no time left to weigh the effects of defeat," Nettinger +asserts. "Each of us has but one thing to do, and to do this +successfully he has pledged his life. No man can do more." + +The eleven disciples, as they separated after the crucifixion, each to +pursue a separate course, inaugurated the preaching of a great and +potential religion, and their work is the most momentous in history. So +it may prove that this Nineteenth Century aggregation of men united for +the purpose of benefiting their fellowmen, is of tantamount influence on +the human race. + +From acting as component parts in a body that exists as a moral protest +against the wrongs of the world and the unrelenting hands of the +usurpers of the right of the people, these forty men go forth as an army +of crusaders. + +On the committee of forty there is not a man who has not argued his +conscience into a state of appreciation of the worthiness of the action +he is to perform. + +It is past midnight. Two months from this date, on October thirteenth, +the fulfillment of the vows the men have taken, must be made. In the +sixty days that are to intervene will any of these intrepid wills bend +under the pressure of mental anxiety? Will any of them prove a modern +Judas? + +Nevins is the last to quit the store-room. He is nervous, almost +hysterical; his thin classical features are distorted and tense, as +though he were undergoing actual physical pain. And indeed to his +sensitive nature, the events of the night are sufficient to unnerve his +mind and body. + +He is to meet Carl Metz and Hendrick Stahl in the morning, to start for +the East. + +"The syndicate of annihilation is now incorporated," he observes, half +aloud. "I am no longer the promoter; now I assume a place as one of the +avengers of the people. God alone knows how repugnant this plan for +physical vengeance is to me, yet it is better than to permit a storm of +anarchy to come upon us. And the conditions that exist cannot long +continue." + +Although every man has been called upon to make a personal sacrifice +there is none who makes a greater one than he. It is not alone the +relinquishment of his position in the world as a patient and industrious +worker; his sacrifice of love; the obliteration of his hope for +preferment, but the extinction of life itself at an age when all men +cherish it most highly. + +Nevins is in the heyday of manhood; his forty years and six having been +spent in the perfection of his mental and physical forces. He is +equipped with a quick, perceptive brain that grasps the intricacies of a +problem almost intuitively; his logic is profound. Years of study have +made his mind a storehouse of knowledge. + +To Nevins, in the allotment of the proscribed, has fallen the head of +the money trust, a multi-millionaire banker, a financial Magnate known +throughout the civilized world as the most rapacious miser on record. +This man has repeatedly shown that he has no regard for honesty of +purpose, and his moral appreciation is imperceptible. To recount the +deeds of cunning, of fraud, of gigantic robbery that he has committed in +his relentless quest for wealth, would be to retell the story of wrecked +railroads, enormously profitable bond issues and Wall street panics of +the past decade. The obituaries of the hundreds he has ruined afford the +best method of arriving at a partial conception of his power for evil. + +"What a privilege to rid the world of this genius of evil!" is Nevins's +inward comment as he reads the fatal slip and sees that upon him has +fallen the lot to execute the sentence of annihilation upon James +Golding, the King of Wall street. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + +IN THE ENEMY'S STRONGHOLD. + + +After an absence of weeks, during which time Harvey Trueman carries the +war into the very heart of the Magnates' strongholds, he returns to +Chicago. His first mission is to visit Sister Martha. She had been kept +in touch with his movements by short notes and aggravatingly brief +telegrams, which he sent her as occasion permitted. In the papers she +finds but meagre notice of the progress which the Independence party is +making, for the censor of the press has effectually silenced all the +important mediums. The News Associations, even, are brought under the +ban and are given to understand that a violation of the orders of the +Plutocratic Party will mean a forfeiture of all privileges of +transportation to papers using the offensive news. + +The meeting of these two ardent patriots is fraught with emotion. +Trueman is the more moved by reason of the knowledge that he is regarded +by Martha as the embodiment of all virtue, wisdom and power. He feels +his incapacity to fill this exalted role, especially as the unrequited +love he bears for Ethel Purdy is still burning in his heart. + +"You do not seem yourself to-night," Martha tells him frankly. + +"No, that is true; I have so much to think about; so many details to +keep in mind that I suffer from abstraction when I am not under the +stress of actual labor." + +Trueman is seated beside a table in the centre of the Sisters' Home, +which has come to be the only haven of rest he knows in the whole world. +He is in a communicative mood, and appreciating that the woman before +him is an interested listener he is ready to review the events of the +campaign. + +"I have so many evidences of treachery in my own camp that at times I +despair of the result of the struggle," he says, half despondently. + +"It is the accursed power of gold that is fighting you," Martha breaks +in vehemently. "O, if we could only have a few thousand dollars to fight +them with their own weapon." + +At the mention of so paltry a sum to be pitted against the unlimited +millions of the Magnates, Trueman cannot repress a smile. + +"I know it may seem ludicrous for a woman to talk politics," continues +his gentle adviser, apologetically. "Yet it would not take as much as +you imagine to nullify the effect of the millions of bribe money and +tribute money that the Plutocrats are spending. + +"What would you have me do with the money?" + +"Use it in enlightening the people as to their true condition. It is +impossible to conceive of men who would knowingly sell their birthright. +The perfidy of the press is the sin of sins in this age of unbridled +iniquity," she declares, her face flushing with indignation. "Free +speech has not yet been totally interdicted. Speak to the people; tell +them to emancipate themselves." + +"You make me wish, almost, that your sex was not debarred from the +exercise of suffrage," Trueman declares. "If I receive as staunch +support from the men of the land as I have already been accorded by the +women I shall triumph at the polls. + +"Let me recount the events of the past few days that I have only hinted +at in my letters. It will make you glad that you were born a woman. + +"When I reached Milwaukee, ten days ago," continues Trueman, "I found +that the committee of coercion had anticipated my arrival and had issued +its edict against the citizens turning out to see me. The police had +received their instructions to keep the streets clear, and they were +untiring in their efforts to earn the approbation of their masters. The +train arrived at one-thirty in the afternoon. Ordinarily there would +have been a large crowd at the depot; to our surprise we found the depot +and the adjoining streets practically deserted. + +"As our party moved in the direction of the hotel, I noticed that a +woman was keeping pace with us on the opposite side of the street. She +was dressed in a modest gown and would not have attracted attention had +she not continually turned her head to look behind her. + +"Yielding to an impulse of curiosity I turned my head and saw that at +the distance of a block a squad of police was following us. Then it +dawned upon me that the woman was endeavoring to give our party the cue. +When the steps of the hotel were reached I felt impelled to see where +the woman would go. She stood on the corner of the street for half a +minute and then disappeared around the corner. + +"Half an hour later I was handed the card of a 'Mrs. Walton.' Upon going +to the reception room I found that the strange woman had come to see me. + +"Her first words, 'Are we alone?' made me feel that I should have a new +element to meet. I suspected a trap of the enemy. When I assured her +that she was at liberty to speak, Mrs. Walton went directly to the +point. + +"'I have come to offer you the support of the women of Milwaukee,' she +began, 'and that means a great deal at a time when the men are afraid to +say their souls are their own. + +"'The women of this city are not under the yoke and they trust to you to +put off the day of their subjugation, if you cannot put them in safety +for all time. + +"'We have realized that the hour for woman to assert her power has come; +she cannot vote, nor does she aspire to that questionable right, but she +can influence the votes of the men with whom she comes in contact. + +"'You have come to a city that is as effectually closed to you as if it +were walled and the gates were shut in your face. The press, the police, +the labor organizations, every power has been subsidized to work against +you. I know every move that has been made. For there's not a word +uttered that is not brought to the council of women's clubs. + +"'The moment it was known that you were to visit this city the order +went forth that you were not to be permitted to hold a public meeting. +You were not to be refused the right to speak; that would have been too +bold and brazen an act for even the Plutocrats to carry out. It was +decided that the same ends could be accomplished by preventing the army +of mercenaries and wage-slaves to parade the streets. The corps of +"spotters" were sent out. + +"'You are a witness to what end. The streets were deserted. They will +remain so during your stay.' + +"I was on the point of interrupting the woman, but she exclaimed, 'Don't +interrupt me.' + +"'I was appointed a committee of one to wait upon you and extend you the +offices of the Women's League,' she continued. 'While waiting in the +depot I overheard the orders of the Captain of Police to the Sergeant. +He told his subordinate not to allow you to collect a crowd on the +street, and detailed a squad to follow you to your hotel. + +"'If you have any message to deliver to the men of Milwaukee you may +depend upon the seven thousand women who are enrolled in the League to +scatter it for you. I can tell you that there is no other way open to +you.' + +"I was too surprised to reply for a moment. When I finally formulated a +response, I told her that the facts she had just furnished me were of +such an extraordinary nature that I should be obliged to give them my +most careful consideration, and that if she would call again in an hour +I should be able to tell her what use I could make of her offer. + +"When I was alone I hastened to rejoin the members of the Committee who +had accompanied me on my trip. + +"I asked them if they were aware of the conditions that existed in the +city. They told me that the Chief of Police had just informed them that +we could not hold a meeting outside of a hall. 'Public safety' was given +as the cause of this order. + +"Then I hastily recounted the incident of the visit of Mrs. Walton. Some +of the committeemen were skeptical and advised me not to have any +dealings with the woman. I, however, was favorably impressed with her. + +"At the expiration of two hours she returned. I had a long talk with +her, in which I told her how her League could be of benefit to me if it +would impress upon the men the necessity of voting for their rights. She +assured me that my messages would be carried into every mill and factory +in the city. + +"I held a meeting in the hall that the local Independence party had +secured. The attendance was made up exclusively of staunch party men. +Outside of the hall stood a dozen policemen and a half dozen spotters. + +"None of the workmen of the city dared to attend the meeting." + +"And this is Free America!" exclaims Martha, under her breath. + +"Yes, this is America; but, is it free?" asks Trueman. + +"From Milwaukee I went to St. Paul and Minneapolis. The same condition +existed in these places. I turned to Detroit; the result was the same. + +"I resolved to advance into the one State that the Magnates believe they +control absolutely. From Detroit I went to Philadelphia. The reception +that awaited me there is one that I shall never forget. My native State +is so utterly dominated by the Trust Magnates that the free-born +citizens do not dare to attend public meetings." + +"What is the use of the secret ballot if men cannot go to the polls and +register there the opinion they hold?" Martha asks, with irony in her +voice. + +"Ah, the secret ballot is but another of the illusive baits which the +rich wisely throw out to the poor to keep them in submission. It is +secret only in name. The results of an election are what count. The +Magnates have so intimidated the masses that they are no longer +possessed of the spirit to vote according to their thoughts," Trueman +replies sadly. + +"The Pharisees have preached the doctrine of the sacredness of 'vested +rights' until the people, in many sections of the country, have come to +regard the right of property as paramount to the right of mankind to +life and liberty. + +"Every act that would alleviate the sufferings of the people is at once +stigmatized as anarchistic; while the aggressions of the men of money in +the legislatures, and through executives, are upheld as justifiable +means for the proper protection of property. + +"My trip to the West and East has made me doubtful as to the result of +the election. In New York City alone is there a tendency to support me." + +"Oh, do not say that you have lost hope," expostulates Sister Martha. + +"It is not my intention to intimate that I have done so, to any one, +other than to you." + +"Ah, I cannot believe that a just God will see you defeated!" + +"As matters stand now it will take almost a miracle to elect me. I have +studied all the elements that enter into this campaign. It will be the +last one that can be conducted with the semblance of order. Four years +from now, if not before then, the conditions will be ripe for a +revolution; the oligarchy of American manufacturers and bankers will +have reached its height and will be on the point of dissolution. The +perfected mechanism of government that it will have established, will be +in readiness to be turned over to the people. + +"Socialism of a rational sort will result from the sudden and sharp +revolution. History will not be enriched by a new chapter, but be marked +by the repetition of its most frequent story--the fall of empire and the +establishment of a new government. In the end of all governments at the +same point, is the strongest argument in support of the theory of +reincarnation; a state, as a being, has its birth, mature age, and +decay. None seemingly is endowed with the attribute of immutability. It +was the fond hope of our forefathers that the United States should prove +the exception. Imperialism was the reef on which the classic empires +were wrecked; commercialism is the danger that threatens our ship of +state." + +"You must take a brighter view of the situation," insists the sensitive +woman, to whom these lugubrious words are as dagger thrusts. "You must +fight as if there was not the shadow of a doubt but that you will be +successful. I have a premonition (woman's intuition, if you prefer), +that you will be the victor in this struggle." + +With these words of encouragement ringing in his ears, Trueman departs. +He has yielded to the human weakness which prompts a man to confide his +inmost thoughts to woman. Kingdoms have been destroyed, empires have +crumbled in a day; the world's greatest generals have seen their +carefully designed campaigns fall flat, all through the treachery of +women in failing to keep secret the confessions of their confidants. + +The admission that Trueman has made of his misgivings as to the result +of the election, if it were made public, would shatter his every chance. +The world will not lend its support to a man or a cause that admits its +hopelessness. A forlorn hope, however forlorn, has never wanted +volunteers. + +Fortunately Trueman has made a confidant of a woman unselfishly and +devotedly his friend, and who has the good sense to realize that his +untrammeled utterances to her are for her alone. + +It is eleven o'clock when Trueman reaches his party's headquarters. He +finds his supporters working with the feverish energy that attaches to a +desperate situation. The soldiers of a beleaguered fortress man the guns +with a disregard to fatigue and danger that is inspiring; the men at the +pumps, when the word goes forth that the ship is sinking, work with a +frenzy that defies nature; so it is with the leaders of the Independence +party. They are fighting against appalling odds, yet they do not stop to +question the result. "Work, work, work!" is the command they obey. + +"The indications from the Southern States are brighter than ever," one +of the committeemen tells Trueman. + +"Judge for yourself," adds another, and he hands the candidate a +telegram. It is from New Orleans. Trueman reads it aloud: + + "CHAIRMAN BAILEY, National Headquarters, Independence + Party, Chicago, Ill.: + + From a canvass of the cotton belt the indications are that + our party will carry all the Southern States with the possible + exception of Louisiana. This doubtful state can be carried if + speakers are sent there. + + (Signed) EDWARD B. MASON." + +"Is there any way of complying with this request?" Trueman asks. + +"We may be able to send three speakers down there the latter part of the +week," says the Chairman of the Speakers Committee, after consulting his +schedule. + +"Have you heard from New York to-day?" Trueman is asked by the +Treasurer. "You know we have been expecting to hear the result of the +forecast there." + +"No, I have had no word. It is barely possible that the message has been +intercepted." + +As Trueman speaks the telegraph operator approaches and hands him a +message. + +"Here is the message!" cries Trueman. "It is from Faulkner. He says that +the city of New York will be about evenly divided; and that in the state +we can rely upon the counties along the canal. He ends up by stating +that the result in Greater New York may be assured if I can go there and +fight in person." + +"Then you will go?" inquires Mr. Bailey. + +"Yes, I shall go there at once and try to be there for the close of the +campaign." + +The routine of the night's work is resumed. Trueman leaves to take a +much needed rest. + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + +THE COMMITTEE REPORTS PROGRESS. + + +As the time approaches for the carrying out of the plan of annihilation, +the spirits of the forty vacillate from joyousness to despair at the +thought, now of the glorious page they are to give to the history of the +world and now, of the terrible means that an inexorable fate compels +them to use. Each passes through varying moods. The ever present thought +that the day will soon arrive on which each will have to commit two +deeds of violence, the one, to take a public enemy out of the world's +arena once and forever; the other, the extinction of self, is enough to +keep the mental tension at the snapping point. + +Yet, not a man weakens. The stolid march of trained men toward +inevitable death is the only counterpart to their action. And their +unfaltering fulfillment of the work allotted them is the more remarkable +as each works independently. It is one thing to be impelled forward by +the frenzy and madness of battle; to be nerved to deeds of valor and +self-sacrifice in the face of impending disaster, such as shipwreck and +fire; but it is quite another thing to deliberately carry out a plan +that taxes the will, the heart and the conscience, and that too, totally +unaided by the presence or sympathy of others. This is what these forty +men have determined it is their duty to perform. + +Nevins is in New York to receive reports from the members of the +Committee. A month has passed since their departure from Chicago. From +most of the men he receives letters in which they tell of their success. +No mention is made of the men to whom they are assigned, yet the reports +seem to assure Nevins that the plan will not miscarry. + +"I have twice been sorely tempted to abandon my mission," writes Horace +Turner, the plain, honest Wisconsin farmer. "My heart and not my +conscience has been weak. But strength of purpose has come to me. I +realize that our undertaking is one that the populace will not sanction +at the start; it is not one that we can hope to make acceptable to the +public mind until it comes to a successful issue. + +"The world does not look with favor upon reforms or revolutions until +they are accomplished facts. And this is the reason history records the +events of every advance of man in letters of blood. This advance is not +to be an exception in this point so far as the spilling of blood is +concerned; it is to be exceptional in regard to the quantity that is to +be sacrificed. + +"The revolutions in politics that have preceded it, the reformations in +religion, have necessitated the butchery of thousands of men and women; +the overturning of existing conditions and the impediment of the human +race for generations. + +"This reformation will measure its sacrificial blood in drops. It will +have as many martyrs as it had tyrants." + +It is the preponderance of reasons in favor of their adhering to their +oaths that prevents the members of the Committee of Annihilation from +faltering. + +At forty points through the world these unheralded crusaders are +silently arranging their campaigns against the enemies of the common +weal. For the most part the men who have been named on the proscribed +list are residents of the chief city of their respective states; they +are men who have walked the path of life rough-shod and have stepped to +their exalted positions over the prostrate forms of their fellowmen. +They are what the world is pleased to call the "Princes of Commerce." + +To become acquainted with the habits of his quarry; to fix upon a plan +for inflicting death upon him, which will be certain, and to be prepared +to carry this programme out at the appointed time, these are matters +that each of the forty has to arrange. + +They call into requisition all of their talents, all of the skill that +has made them men of mark in their respective professions and vocations. + +When Hendrick Stahl became sponsor for Nevins he felt that he had not +misplaced his confidence, yet it was impossible for him to be +unacquainted with the movements of the originator of the Committee of +Forty. He so arranges his affairs as to be in New York at the end of the +month to meet him. On his visits he seeks Nevins and spends the night +with him. + +"I have perfected my plans," Stahl tells his friend. "At first it looked +as though I could not get acquainted with my man, but I finally struck +upon a course that led me directly to him. I perfected the details of a +mechanism to do away with manual labor on a machine which he employs in +his factory. When I suggested the adoption of it and proved that I could +make the improvement, he became interested. I meet him every day. On the +thirteenth of October we will examine the model." + +Nevins opens a letter bearing a postmark, "Edinburgh, Scotland." The +letter simply states: + +"I am enjoying the hospitality of one of the Transgressors. He and I are +great friends. We are arranging to substitute a counterfeit substance +for the new armor plate ordered by the government. + +"By our plan the government will be defrauded of thirty million dollars. +The armor plate will not stand the test of heavy projectiles. But we can +'fix' the inspectors. My _friend_ is delighted at the prospect of giving +the United States Government another batch of worthless armor plate." + +This particular Transgressor is Ephraim Barnaby, the Pennsylvania iron +king. He is the master of the greatest iron and steel concern in the +world. His wealth is counted by scores of millions; he has palaces in +this country and abroad. His domination over the lives of the thousands +who slave in his foundries is kept unshaken by reason of the fact that +he coats the bitter acts of oppression of which he is constantly guilty, +with ostentatious gifts in the name of benevolence. He presents the +cities of the country with public libraries. + +This philanthrophic iron master has erected an armory for his private +detectives for every library he has established for the people. To make +a life of unparalleled achievement as an amasser of money terminate in +glory is well within his power, but avarice is the chief occupant of his +heart. With sixty and more years on his head and so much wealth that he +cannot by any possibility spend one twentieth part of his yearly income, +the iron master still has an insatiable thirst for gold. To the Forty +who know every detail of his career, this man above all others is the +one whom they despise. His hypocrisy makes him the most despicable of +the proscribed. Chadwick is proud that to him has fallen the lot of +exterminating this Transgressor. + +From other letters received by Nevins it develops that not one of the +men has failed in locating his man and in laying the net which is to +enmesh him. + +The proposal of a supposed inventor to create a machine that will reduce +cost of manufacture, leads the merchant prince into a trap. He rejoices +at the thought of reducing the expense of wage and of maintaining the +price of goods to the consumer. + +An improved explosive interests the mine owner It will cost him less and +can be sold to the operatives at the same price. It is more dangerous to +use, but that does not deter him from seeking to utilize it; for it is +the operatives who will have to run the risk in the mines. + +A substitute for oil is the lure that compels the Oil King to pay +respectful attention to another of the committee. The same prospect of a +substitute for sugar demands the attention of the Sugar King. To each of +the Transgressors there is held out as a bait the needed promise of gain +at the public expense. + +Thus the details of the pending tragedy are perfected. + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + +MILLIONAIRES SOWING THE WIND. + + +While the work of the Independence party is being conducted with all the +vigor that its scanty financial resources will permit, the opponents of +popular government are pushing their campaign in all directions, aided +by inexhaustible money, and all the influence that attaches to the party +in power. The Plutocratic convention which had been held in Chicago +promulgated a platform that pledges the party to institute every form of +legislation calculated to appease the demands of the people. + +That the pretences of the platform are insincere is a fact that every +one is well acquainted with; yet so potential is the power of the party +that it is able to persuade men against their best judgment, and those +whom it cannot bring to its support by argument are forced to align +themselves on the side of phitocratic government by the force of +coercion. + +Where in 1900 the Trusts employed four million men, they now have on +their pay rolls more than ten millions. This represents seventy-five per +cent. of all the able-bodied men in the country. The tradesmen in every +city are as effectually dominated by the Trust magnates as if they were +on their payrolls. Through the general establishment of the system of +"consignment," by which goods are placed on sale in small shops, under +covenants with the Trusts, the retailers are made to sell at the prices +dictated by the manufacturers. It is useless for a retailer to rebel; he +has either to handle the goods of the Trusts or go out of business +altogether. + +To realize how far-reaching this system is, it will suffice to cite the +case of the retail grocers. Their staple articles, such as sugar, flour, +salt, coffee, tea, spices and canned meats are all controlled by Trusts. +If the retailer attempts to sell any article not manufactured by the +Trusts, his contumacy is taken as a cause for all the staples he has "on +sale" to be reclaimed by the Trusts. This leaves him with practically +nothing to sell. + +Where a man, more pugnacious than the majority, attempts to fight the +Trusts, his stand is made futile by the Trust immediately establishing a +rival store in his neighborhood, where goods are sold at an actual loss +until ruin comes upon the recalcitrant tradesman. + +This is the story of all trades. It is the condition that exists in all +lines of manufacture as well, and the system reaches even to the +farmers. They have either to sell their products at the prices offered +by the Trusts or run themselves into inevitable bankruptcy. They may +dispose of one year's crop, but the next year they are doomed to find +themselves without a purchaser. Failing to intimidate the farmer, the +Trust will bring its influence to bear upon the purchaser--he will +either be absorbed or annihilated. + +From being a nation of independent producers, the people of the United +States have been slowly and insidiously pushed back to a position where +more than nine-tenths of the people are the servants of the remaining +few. With the changed condition has come a deterioration in the spirit +of the masses. They are apathetic, and take the scant wage that the +Trusts condescend to pay them. The efforts to regain a place of +honorable independence are becoming weaker and weaker. + +The enervating effects of urban life have told on the millions who live +in the great cities. The number of men who can stand the rigor of +out-door life, and the exigencies of labor afield, grows smaller year by +year. + +Adulterated food, sedentary work at machines which require practically +no skill to operate, and dispiriting home surroundings have brought +millions of men to a mental and physical condition which makes them +little better than slaves. + +These truths Trueman and his co-workers endeavor to impress upon the +people. In some districts the audiences evince interest in the +arguments. In others the speakers are met with open derision. + +"We are content to work in our present places," some of the laborers +assert. "Are we not sure of getting our bread as it is? If we were to +bring on a revolution where would our next day's wage come from?" + +To this argument, which exhibits to what a debased position the +wage-earner has sunk, the Independence party leaders who have formed the +party of the fragment of free-minded men that still remains, marshal all +the arguments of logic and political economy. They appeal to the pride, +the decency of the men, to drag themselves from the slough into which +they have fallen. The appeals are fervent, yet their effect seems +uncertain. + +The terror of "lock-outs," of massacres done under the seal of the law, +is vividly recalled. + +In 1900 the people had made a desperate effort to throw off the yoke of +the Trusts. They had failed and been made to feel the lash of their +victors. Eight years have passed, during which the Trusts have become +impregnable, the people impotent. + +Trueman is in St. Louis on a flying trip. This city of two millions is +the great centre of the labor organizations. + +It is Friday night, and the local headquarters is the scene of wild +excitement. It resembles nothing more closely than a camp on the eve of +battle. Leaders from all districts of the city are on hand to receive +final instructions, as in a camp they would be given ammunition, rations +and assignment of positions. The determined expression that marks the +face of a man who is set at a task which involves his entire future, is +upon every man who enters the headquarters. The fountain of their +inspiration is Trueman, who has a word for everyone. He seems to be +everywhere and to be able to do all things. + +From the hour of his triumph at Chicago he has won the support of the +rural districts. Mass meetings have been held in villages, hamlets and +cross-roads in all the States. In the smaller towns the people have +likewise hailed Trueman as their deliverer. It is the good fortune of +those dwelling outside of the cities to be still in possession of the +dormant spirit of independence. They have been crushed, yet not cowed by +the Trusts. + +The fact that they are self-supporting in so far as procuring the actual +necessities of food and shelter, make them capable of retaining a hope +for emancipation from Trust domination. + +The wage-slaves of the cities are in a condition actually appalling. It +is part of Trueman's campaign to go amongst the shops and factories in +the environs of the cities to talk with the men, and to picture to them +the results that will follow their voting in their own interests. He has +seen poverty in its most direful forms. + +The evening has worn on until it is within an hour of midnight. +Reporters come and go; the last of the committeemen has said good night. +Trueman is alone with his secretary, Herbert Benson. + +Benson, a young newspaperman, volunteered his services at the opening of +the campaign. He is a brilliant writer, and what is of more consequence, +he is beyond doubt an ardent supporter of popular government. There are +few men in the journalistic field who are free thinkers. The +universities, colleges and academies in which the higher branches of +study can be pursued, have all been brought under the power of the +Magnates. Endowments are only to be obtained by observing the commands +of the donors. The chief offence which an institution of learning can +commit is to tell the truth regarding social conditions. For this reason +the men who enter journalism from college, are unfitted to grasp the +social problem; or if, in the case of a few, the true conditions are +realized, they find it expedient to remain silent. Excommunication from +the craft is sure to follow any radical expression in favor of +socialism. The press is free only in name. + +A strong friendship exists between Trueman and Benson. + +"Tell me candidly, Benson," Trueman inquires, "do you think there is a +chance of my carrying New York City and St. Louis?" + +"I am satisfied that you will have a clean majority in both. My belief +is based on personal observations. I have been in all quarters of the +cities, and have questioned workmen in every industry. They seem of one +mind. Your Convention speech converted them." + +"What do they say about it?" + +"Why, it makes it clear to them that with a fearless and noble leader, +the masses can express their will. You showed to the world that reason +_can_ rule passion. It needed but a word from you to have precipitated a +revolt in the party which would have spread through every state. To most +men in your position it would have appeared that out of the tumult and +confusion, they would have come out with a decided advantage. But you +gave no thought to a personal advantage; it was the good of the people +that actuated you. And now you are to reap your reward. What was plain +to the inhabitants of the rural districts from the start, is now +manifest to the toilers in the cities, especially in this city and +Chicago." + +"This condition must be known at the Plutocratic Headquarters. What is +being done by the managers there, to overcome the sudden change in the +public mind? I hear so many stories that I am at a loss to tell which is +true and which false." + +"The local committee of the Plutocrats has abandoned all hope of +coercing the people. This evening it sent out a letter of instruction to +the manufacturers calling upon them to exercise drastic measures to +prevent their operatives from voting; but this is only a blind," replies +Benson. + +"The Chairman of the National executive committee at the same time held +a conference with the chief labor leaders. These leaders were offered a +flat bribe if they prevent the men whom they represented from voting. +Eight out of the ten who were present accepted the bribe, which was +$50,000, in cash. Two declined. One of these afterwards went to the +local treasurer and agreed to deliver his people into bondage for +$100,000. His terms were acceded to. + +"The one who spurned the bribe has been given to understand that if he +divulges the nature of the meeting, his life will be the penalty. +Notwithstanding this, he has just informed me of the matter. I had to +pledge not to make public the information he gave me. But we can +counteract the influence of the labor leaders." + +"In what way?" Trueman asks, with deep interest. + +"You have made a great mistake," he continues, before Benson has time to +reply. "You never should promise to keep a secret. Publicity would have +been our sure means of thwarting their design." + +"If I had not promised to keep the secret I should not have learned of +the plot," protests Benson. "I have an idea that we can bring the labor +leaders to terms. We are driven to the wall by the Trust Magnates, who +will stop at nothing. We must do what instinct would suggest. The labor +leaders shall receive notice that if they attempt to prevent the people +from voting, their blow at public suffrage will bring on a revolution. +It will be on treacherous leaders of the people that the vengeance will +fall." + +"No, no, that will never do. I cannot consent to the use of a threat of +violence," declares Trueman, with emphasis. + +"But this is not a question of what you may or may not consent to," +replies Benson. "It is what I will do. I know what I say is certain to +be true. To avert an uprising I shall warn the labor leaders myself. You +will have no part in this matter. I am determined that the vote of the +people shall be recorded at this election." Benson hurries from the +room. + +He is soon in secret conference with the leaders at Liberty Hall. They +are inclined to scoff at his assertion that the people will resort to +violence if they discover that they have again been betrayed; but when +Benson repeats the circumstances of the compact between the Magnates and +the Labor leaders, with every detail and word, they realize that their +positions as leaders are endangered. + +With threat and bribe they seek to win Benson to silence. He withstands +their blandishments; at the suggestion of a bribe he flies into a +passion. + +These men are cowards at heart; they have taken the gifts of the +Magnates for years, and have contrived to pacify their followers. Now +that they are brought face to face with the possibility of exposure, +they tremble at the thought of the popular denouncement that will come +upon them. They even weigh the chances of physical harm that may befall +them. Secretly planning to get the bribe money, they agree to make no +attempt to coerce the vote of the people. + +"The first word of intimidation or coercion which is spoken will be my +signal to expose you," Benson tells them at parting. + +The Trust Magnates remain ignorant that they are sowing the wind. They +receive daily reports from the leaders telling of their success in +intimidating the masses. To every demand for money the Magnates +willingly respond. It is an election where money is not to be spared. +Benson and his faithful corps of workers keep a vigilant watch over the +Labor leaders. + +When the Magnates arrange for a great parade, Benson warns the Labor +leaders not to attempt to force any workingman to march. This causes the +parade to turn out a dismal failure. + +"We must have more money," the leaders assert. + +Two millions of dollars is set aside for use in St. Louis alone. Against +such odds can the Independence party win? + + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. + +A DAY AHEAD OF SCHEDULE. + + +It is two o'clock P.M., on October twelfth. In sixty minutes the New +York Stock 'Change will close. The day has been exceedingly quiet; +brokers are standing in groups discussing the whys and wherefores of +this and that stock scheme; all are of little consequence. Indeed, there +has been nothing done on the floor since the abrupt departure of James +Golding, the Head of the Banking Syndicate for Europe, three weeks +before this pleasant twelfth day of October. + +Golding's mission abroad is vaguely guessed to be the floating of a bond +issue for the government, as there has been an alarming shrinkage in the +money market, and the Secretary of the Treasury has called upon the +Banking interests to relieve the strain on the Treasury. + +The slightest indication of weakness in the money market has its instant +effect on stocks. New York quotations are looked upon as the criterion +of the country, and for that reason the brokers are disposed to be +cautious. Wall street traditions make it seem proper for the brokers to +wait the result of the European trip. + +Since the inauguration of the system of bank favoritism, which, was one +of the strong features of the previous Plutocratic Platform, and on +which the Party was able to raise an enormous Campaign fund, the secrets +of the Government and its favorite bankers are not shared with the +brokers in ordinary stocks and industrials. For this reason the timidity +of the brokers is more pronounced than ever before. + +To them it seems inexplicable that the Government should seek to float a +bond issue on the eve of an election. They do not grasp the full import +of this scheme to force the people to support the Plutocratic candidates +as the preservers of the country's credit. + +A broker, running the tape through his fingers listlessly, reads this +sentence: "London, Oct. 12,--James Golding announces his intention to +float $245,000,000 three per cent. U.S. gold bonds in London." + +In an instant he realizes that the confidence of the market will be +restored. Rushing to the pit he begins to buy everything that is +offered. Half a hundred tickers in the Exchange convey the same news to +as many brokerage firms. + +A wild scramble is started; everyone is anxious to go "long" on stocks +which they have been cautiously selling for days past. Point by point +the listed stocks advance. + +The clock strikes half-past two. Will half an hour suffice to readjust +the market? + +An exceptional, an unprecedented bull panic is in progress. Brokers, +messengers, clerks, every one connected with the Stock Exchange is in a +flurry. Tickers are for the time being utterly forgotten. + +In a corner of the Exchange sits the operator who has to send the doings +of the day to the Press Association. He is unmoved by any excitement +that may occur on the floor; it is an every-day experience with him. +Stolidly he reads the tape, and jots down the advance in the stocks as a +matter of course. + +He has sent word to his office that Golding is to float the bond issue; +but he knows that this news has reached the office through another +channel before his belated report. He sends the message because it is a +part of his routine. + +"Calais, Oct. 12th," are the words that now appear on the slip of paper +he is scanning. "James Golding, accompanied by M. Tabort, French banking +magnate, entered rear car Paris Express from London to cross the +Channel. Car uncoupled in tunnel; explosion; both men instantly killed; +submarine tunnel wrecked." + +Here _is_ news. The instinct of the broker is awakened in the operator. +He leaves his desk and walks rapidly to the pit. He places his hand on +the shoulder of a prominent broker. In a few words he tells this man the +news, and asks that the broker make him a "little something" for the +tip. + +With the news of Golding's death this broker enters the pit as a seller. +There are now but twenty minutes left before the closing of 'Change, yet +by cautious work he will be able to sell out his holdings at the +inflated prices that prevail. He alone of all the members of the +Exchange knows that the greatest American financier is dead. On the +morrow every stock on the list will depreciate. Now is the time for him +to unload. + +A hundred bidders are eager to buy the stock he offers. He reaps a +fortune in the quarter of an hour before the 'Change closes; the rest of +the brokers heap up trouble for the morrow. Five minutes before three +the news of Golding's death is brought to the brokers. It is too late. +In their frenzy the men fear either to buy or sell. The floor is a +veritable bear pit. Men swear and rage in impotent grief as they realize +that they have brought ruin upon themselves by their rash speculation. + +While this scene is in progress the world is being told of the death of +the great Financier. + +It will be recalled that to William Nevins was assigned the task of +ending the career of James Golding. He has worked secretly, as have all +the other members of the Committee of Forty. Now his role as shadow of +the financier leads him to New York, while some banking scheme is being +consummated; now he is rushing across the continent to be near the +Magnate in San Francisco; the last trip takes him to Europe. + +At the time he began to study the movements of Golding, the Magnate was +in London and thither Nevins went; he was detained there, on that +occasion, but three days. On the voyage back to the United States he was +afforded an excellent opportunity to observe Golding. Nevins became +acquainted with the man whose life he was to take, through a business +proposition in regard to an investment. He professed to represent a +syndicate of French investors which was negotiating to purchase and work +a gold mine in Lower California. According to his story, he had secured +the necessary privileges from the Mexican government. Golding was +invited to be a participant in the enterprise, which was destined to +prove a bonanza. + +Plausible, suave, intelligent, Nevins has impressed the Magnate most +favorably. So when Nevins proposes that he accompany Golding to Europe +to introduce him to the French capitalists, the financier readily +agrees. + +As traveling companions on the millionaire's yacht, the two men leave +New York on September twentieth. Golding is bent on the successful +launching of the big bond issue, with the gold mining scheme as a +secondary consideration; Nevins has only the awful work before him to +consider. London becomes the permanent abode of the two, their trips to +France being short and frequent. + +The newly constructed Channel tunnel connecting England with the +continent is a transportation improvement which makes it possible for +one to leave London, at ten o'clock in the morning and be in Paris at +one in the afternoon. The Air line to Paris enters the sub-marine tunnel +at a point twelve miles north of Dover and emerges on the plains eight +miles south of Calais. As an engineering feat the construction of the +tunnel has been heralded as unparalleled. + +It is by this speedy route that Golding and Nevins make three trips to +Paris. The Committeeman contrives to interest several French bankers in +his supposititious mine, and by artful manipulation he brings these +bankers and the American Money King together in preliminary +negotiations. + +On October twelfth the two are to effect a final understanding with the +members of the French syndicate. The newspapers have given an inkling of +the transactions, and have run stories to the effect that Golding is +negotiating with a French banker for rich gold lands in Mexico. + +Independently of Nevins, the bond issue plan has been developed by +Golding and the time for announcing the fact is this same twelfth day of +October. + +Knowing the result that will be produced on American securities, he +delays the announcement until the London Exchange closes for the day. He +knows that immediately after making the news public, he is to leave +London, for Paris to be gone until the twentieth. Thus he will avoid +being interviewed. + +Golding has calculated that the difference in time of five hours between +London, and New York will result in the announcement being cabled for +the opening of the New York Exchange. This would be the result did not a +number of large London speculators, who hold American securities, +determine to hold back the messages until they apprise their New York +representatives of the matter and advise them how to act. + +The monopoly of the cable is obtainable by an easy means. All four of +the lines which communicated with the United States are leased. Messages +rumoring important developments in the China alliance question are +transmitted and suffice to explain the cessation of other news--the +Government is supposed to be using the cables. + +Despite the efforts of the speculators, an enterprising correspondent of +a New York News Association succeeds in sending the news of the bond +issue announcement, so that it is received on 'Change at two o'clock. +From another source the message of death is cabled fifteen minutes +before the closing of the market. + +Golding and Nevins lunch together before starting for Paris. + +"I have closed a deal to-day that will net me twenty-five million +dollars within six weeks," Golding confides to Nevins with an air of +satisfaction. He might be a retail merchant discussing trade with a +neighbor and relating the result of a barter which will net him a profit +of a hundred dollars, for there is no stronger emotion in his speech or +manner than would be evoked by such a commonplace transaction. Yet this +man has just arranged a financial deal which is to maintain the +stability of the currency of a Nation of a hundred millions of people. + +"Then it is true that you are to shoulder the responsibility of +disposing of the United States bond issue?" Nevins inquires with a +semblance of interest. "What would that Republic do if it were not for +its public spirited men of wealth? Republics are all right when they are +curbed by the conservative elements, but when the riff-raff gets the +reins in hand, then there is always trouble." + +"The days of mob rule in America are over," Golding declares. "It was no +easy matter to wean the people of the fallacious idea that a proletariat +could manage the finances of the country." + +"When our mine is in operation you will not have to seek the aid of +England in taking bonds off the hands of the Treasurer of the United +States, will we?" Nevins asks. + +"That's just the point," exclaims Golding. They talk on in this strain +until the meal is finished. + +"We have ten minutes to get to the terminal," says Nevins, consulting +his watch. + +"O, that will be ample time. It only takes five minutes to ride there." + +When the train is reached, Golding looks at his watch. "There, I told +you we could make it in five minutes. I am always just on time. Never a +minute too soon or a minute too late. Time is money. Perhaps I am the +wealthiest man in America, if not in the world, because I know the value +of time." + +"That certainly is the secret of your success," Nevins declares blandly. + +The Special Paris Express is composed of six coaches and the motor; this +train runs at an average speed of sixty-two miles an hour. It is the +fastest train on the continent. So that they may not be disturbed, the +mine promoters have arranged to occupy a private car attached to the +rear of the train. This car they enter. Nevins carries a small +hand-satchel which he declines to give over to the willing porter. + +The superintendent of the road is on hand to see that the influential +patrons are properly cared for; he has received his instructions from +the president, who is an intimate friend of James Golding. + +The signal is given and the express starts. + +In an incredibly short time the tunnel is reached. As the train rushes +into the darkness, Golding notices that the electric lights have not +been turned on. + +"Ring for the porter, will you, Mr. Tabort," he asks of Nevins, whom he +knows only as M. Emile Tabort. + +"But where is the button? Ah, I have an idea," replies Nevins. "I shall +go into the forward car and find the porter; it will not take a minute." + +The car is engulfed in pitchy darkness, save for a glimmer of diffused +light that comes from the cars ahead. + +"Hurry, won't you; I hate to be in darkness," says Golding, uneasily. + +"I won't keep you waiting long," calls back Nevins, who is half way to +the door. + +He turns to look at the Magnate. A vague shadowy form is all that he can +discern in the gloom. + +"So here is where you are to end a life of mammon-worship," Nevins +mutters as he steps upon the platform of the forward car. + +He bends down, and with a strong, quick jerk uncouples the rear car. + +For a few seconds the detached car keeps up with the train, then as its +momentum is exhausted, a rapidly widening gap is made. + +"In five minutes you will have light," Nevins calls grimly, as he looks +at the fading car. + +The train rushes ahead with speed that is imperceptibly increased. +Nevins climbs to the top of the car and crawls toward the front of the +train. He works his way to the coach immediately behind the motor. +Standing on the platform he removes his coat and trousers and reappears +arrayed in the common suit of a train hand. A soft cap completes the +disguise. + +A faint rumble reaches his ears. + +"_The first Magnate has fallen_" he whispers, as if confiding a secret. + +"Yes; I have carried out my plan. James Golding is buried at the bottom +of the Channel. The time-fuse worked." + +When the train emerges from the tunnel it is stopped by the signals of +the Block station. The operator inquires if anything has gone wrong. He +has been unable to communicate with the English station for more than +fifteen minutes, and supposes that the wires have been deranged. Then it +is that the loss of the rear car is discovered. + +While the trainmen and passengers discuss the matter, a sound from the +tunnel reaches their ears; a roar resembling a series of dynamite +explosions. + +"The tunnel has caved in!" exclaimed the conductor. "Get aboard, for +your lives!" + +A rush is made for the train, and in half a minute it pulls away from +the mouth of the tunnel at top speed. + +From the rear car the tunnel is visible. The train is five hundred yards +away when the waters burst from the mouth of the tunnel. + +Loosed from the confining walls, the gigantic column subsides in height, +spreading on either side of the tracks. It inundates a vast area of the +low country surrounding the station. + +Through the employment of the block system, but one train in each +direction is permitted to enter the tunnel at the same time. + +A partition wall bisects the tunnel into 'parallel sections, each +containing a single track. The left-hand section, on which are +east-bound tracks, is the one in which the telegraph wires run. The +explosion wrecks the walls of the tunnel and breaks the wires. + +The only explanation that can be offered is that the compressed air +cylinder on the car exploded. On each of the tunnel cars a compressed +air apparatus is attached, to insure against the trains being stalled in +the tunnel in the event of the electric motor giving out. + +Nevins experiences no difficulty in losing himself in the crowd when the +train reaches Calais. He goes at once to a cheap furnished room which he +has previously engaged. He still wears the attire of a train hand. Once +in his room he sinks upon the bed, his mind and body thoroughly fatigued +by the strain that has been placed upon them. + +For more than an hour he is motionless; then his reserve gradually +returns. + +"I have fulfilled my pledge," he says to himself. "It had to be done +to-day, for otherwise I should have been compelled to die with Golding. +I have started the execution of the edict of proscription a day in +advance of the schedule. + +"This will be the signal for the thirty-nine to do their duty. They must +hear of Golding's death to-day. I shall cable the news to New York; once +there it will be heralded through the country. + +"And they will suppose that Golding and a French financier met death +accidentally. Yes, the people will accept this view; but the Committee! +ah! it will know the truth. To the Thirty-nine it will mean that one of +their brothers has gone to his fate with one of the Transgressors. It +will dispel any symptom of hesitancy on their part. + +"Two men are supposed to have died in the explosion. The tunnel is +destroyed. Who can say that one of the occupants of the car escaped?" + +He sits on the edge of the bed bending forward, and rests his head in +his hands. In this attitude he remains for several minutes. + +"Good God, forgive me!" he cries, fervently. "I cannot die in ignorance +of to-morrow! I must hear that my plan is faithfully carried out; that +the Transgressors are annihilated, and the committee have kept their +pledge. Is it false in me to wait? No; for I do not fear death; I would +have faced it forty times could I have done so. The Transgressors would +all have fallen by my hand had such a thing been possible. I shall keep +my pledge, to-morrow." + +A few minutes later Nevins leaves the house dressed in a plain suit. He +enters the cable office and writes the following message: + +"James Golding, accompanied by M. Tabort, French Banking Magnate, +entered rear car, Paris express for London, to cross the channel. Car +uncoupled in tunnel. Explosion. Both men instantly killed. Sub-marine +tunnel wrecked." + +"Send this message to the New York Javelin," are his instructions to the +operator. "Rush it, and I will give you a hundred francs." + +"Cable is engaged," is the reply. "Orders from London." + +"What news is London sending over this cable?" + +"None. It seems strange to keep the cable tied up, when there is such +important news to be sent. But the instructions are, 'Send no messages +to the United States.' I'm sending an unimportant House of Commons +speech." + +"Your wire is free, then? I'll give you a thousand francs if you will +send this one message through," Nevins urges persuasively. "I want to +get the news to my paper. They will pay royally for it." + +The operator hesitates. A thousand francs is a tempting offer. + +"When will you pay?" he asks. + +"I will pay you now, on the very spot." + +As he speaks Nevins counts out the bills. + +It is twenty minutes of eight by the local clock in the cable office. +The clock indicating New York time registers two-forty P.M. + +A glance at the Bank of France notes decides the question in the +operator's mind. He takes the money and transmits the message. + +Nevins returns to his room to await the developments of the thirteenth +of October. + + + + +BOOK IV. + +In Freedom's Name. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. + +THE SYNDICATE IN LIQUIDATION. + + +The crisis has arrived. On the bulletins in front of the leading +newspaper offices in New York crowds congregate. Men discuss the +startling tidings that come from all points of the compass and ask +themselves what the next report will be. Golding's death is the +forerunner of a long list of fatalities. + + JAVELIN BULLETIN. + + United States Senator Warwick, + of California, was assassinated at + his villa in San Diego. + + The murderer, after shooting + the Senator, turned the smoking + pistol upon himself and died with + his victim. + +This bulletin is posted on the board in front of the Javelin office. + +"What's happening?" asks one of the crowd of the man at his side. "Is +this a wholesale butchery planned by Anarchists, or is it a plot of the +Mafia?" + +"God only knows," is the reply. + +And to the thousands who stand waiting with breathless excitement for +the next announcement the inability to locate the source of the outburst +of violence is quite as complete as this man's. They realize that a +series of appalling crimes has been committed; yet none can ascribe the +least pretext for them. + +The name of one after another of the leading magnates of the land is +posted as the victim of a simultaneous homicide, and the notion that it +is the work of anarchists begins to prevail. + + JAVELIN BULLETIN. + + Robert Drew, the Sugar King, + while riding in Central Park, was + stabbed to death by an assassin. + + The man jumped into his carriage + as it was descending the hill + leading to the One Hundred and + Tenth Street entrance at Seventh + Avenue. + + No sooner had the dagger been + buried in the heart of Mr. Drew + than the fanatic withdrew it and + plunged it into his own heart. + + The murderer fell forward and + died even before his victim. + +When this notice is displayed it causes a shudder to run through the +crowd. This is the first of the deaths to be inflicted in New York. + +With the apprehension of men who feel that danger is imminent, the crowd +in front of the bulletin shifts uneasily. There is the thought in all +minds that some awful calamity may come upon them as they stand there. +Then, too, there is the thought that they may not be safe elsewhere. In +such a state of mind men become susceptible to emotion. A word can then +sway a multitude. + +From five o'clock, when the first bulletin appeared, until the +announcement of the killing of Mr. Drew, a period of two hours and a +half, the list has grown to frightful proportions. + +From Chicago comes the report that Tingwell Fang, the Beef King, has +been killed in his private office by the explosion of a dynamite bomb or +some other infernal machine brought there by a man who for weeks had +been transacting important business with Mr. Fang. The explosion +entirely demolished the office, and when the police succeeded in getting +at the bodies it was found that the bomb-thrower had paid for his deed +with his life. + +In a bundle of papers which the man left in the outer office a note is +found which gives his address as the Palmer House. At his room in the +hotel a card is found addressed to the public: It read as follows: + + I have fulfilled my oath; my self-destruction + is proof that I am sincere in the + belief that I have acted for the good of mankind. + + BENTON S. MARVIN. + +Almost as soon as the papers are on the street announcing the tragedy, +another message comes from Chicago telling of the strange death of +Senator Gold. His body and that of a man who had been with him at the +Auditorium are found in the Senator's room. Death has been caused by an +unknown agency. There are no signs of violence on either. The money and +jewelry of both are undisturbed. Neither man appears to have been the +victim of the other's hand, for the apparel of each is unruffled. One is +found lying on the floor near the window; the other is found stretched +across the table in the room. + +Following these early bulletins come others from Philadelphia, St. Louis +and Boston, successively announcing the mysterious deaths of President +Vosbeck of the National Transportation Trust, Captain Blood of the St. +Louis Steamship Association, and of ex-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elias +M. Turner of Massachusetts. + +"President Vosbeck met his death while on a tour of inspection in the +new power house of his company in the western part of the city. With him +were his private secretary and a stranger from New York whom he was +taking on a tour of inspection. The secretary was sent to find the +superintendent of the power house. He returned to find both President +Vosbeck and the stranger in the throes of death on the floor near the +great dynamo. In the stranger's hand a cane was clutched. This cane was +one of those that are commonly made at penitentiaries. It was of leather +rings strung on a steel rod." + +The above dispatch is spread on the bulletin board, followed by these +details: + +"As soon as the hospital surgeons and the electrical experts arrived +they decided that the cane must have come in contact with the deadly +current; and that at that instant Steel and the stranger were standing +upon the metal flooring which made a perfect conductor." The death of +Captain Blood was even more astounding than that of President Vosbeck. + +"In company with the newly appointed Superintendent of the grain +elevators, of which the Captain had a monopoly, he descended into the +hold of the steamboat that was taking on a cargo of wheat at the Big +Three Elevator. The two men were hardly below deck when, by some +inexplicable error the engineer received the signal to open the shoot. +An avalanche of golden grain rushed upon the two captives. There was a +cry of dismay from the hold, and then only the sound of the rushing +stream of grain. + +"The engine was reversed and the bucket chain began to take up the +grain; but it was too late. When the bodies of the men were reached they +were contorted in the agony of death. Suffocation had come as a tardy +relief to them." + +This bulletin adds to the excitement of the crowd. While the people are +reading the extras that tell of the series of strange deaths of men of +such national importance as Vosbeck and Captain Blood, the news comes +from Boston that a double murder has been committed in Brookline, a +suburb of that city. + +Ex-Chief Justice Turner of the United States Supreme Court and a friend +who was visiting him at his country house, were set upon by highwaymen +as they were strolling through a strip of woodland, and had been hanged +to trees. It was not known how much money the road agents got. The +Justice had never been in the habit of carrying any large sums. As to +what money Mr. Burton, his friend, might have had on his person, there +was no way of ascertaining. + +"The Supreme Court, the Senate, and three of the leading-men in the +country, this is pretty big game," remarks one of the crowd. + +"It will be well if it ends there," says another. + +"This will cause 'Industrials' to take a slump," observes a stout, +sleek, well dressed man. + +"Yes," replies a voice at his elbow, "and it may be that a slump of the +market is at the bottom of most of this. I wouldn't trust these brokers. +They'd kill a regiment to get a flurry on the market if they were +short." + +The stout man, who happens to be a stock broker, says no more. + +"Get yer extra, all about six millionaires killed; get yer extra!" cry +the newsboys. + +"Make it seven," shouts a coarse voice from the very heart of the mass +of humanity. + +And seven it is to be. + +The bulletin is being cleared for a fresh notice. + +"Bet you it's a Banker this time," a book-keeper, who had deserted his +desk to get the latest news, says jestingly. + +"Ah, it'll be a dead shoemaker next," laughingly exclaims a messenger +boy who has heard the book-keeper's remark. + +By a strange coincidence the name that appears the following instant is +that of Henry Hide, the head of the leather Trust. The ribald jest of +the boy proves to be all too true. + + + + +CHAPTER XXV. + +BIG NEWS IN THE JAVELIN OFFICE. + + +Inside the newspaper offices there is even greater excitement than on +the streets. The editors are non-plussed at the appalling news that +comes pouring in from every section of the laud. + +How is the news to be conveyed to the people? is the question that the +oldest journalist is unable to answer. + +In selecting the leading feature of the day's terrible news, what is to +be considered? The fact that an astounding number of murders or +accidents have simultaneously stricken with death a score of the leading +men of the country, is in itself a matter of unprecedented importance. +But the end is not in sight. Every half hour brings tidings of still +other deaths and murders. + +The peculiar feature of the news is, however, that in every instance +where a banker, mine owner or financier is murdered, the evil-doer has +committed suicide. What does this indicate? Is it a concerted move on +the part of some society; or is it the result of an inexplicable +fatalistic phenomenon? + +Just as a decision on these points is arrived at, and the editors have +given their orders for the make-up of the extras, some account, either +of the death of a railroad magnate or the head of some one of the great +trusts, is received. The necessity of a change in the form of the paper +is made imperative. For the thought that a rival sheet may feature the +news forces a change. + +Extras of the evening papers are being issued every half hour. The +excitement on the streets exceeds even that of the days when the reports +of our wars was the all absorbing topic. + +In the present calamity men know not what to think. To some it is +apparent that a modern juggernaut is abroad; others hold the belief that +a conspiracy is being carried to its bloody fulfillment. + +No more accurate idea of the confused condition of the public mind can +be gathered than from a study of the action in the editorial rooms of +the great New York newspaper, the Javelin. + +The editorial staff of this paper is composed of the brainiest men in +journalism; men who have won distinction in their profession by reason +of their ability to handle the news of the day in a manner that will +satisfy the demands of the public. + +On the large reportorial staff are men who have been brought from +various cities; each is competent to gather news and present it in the +most interesting fashion. + +In the composing room sixty of the most skilled linotypists sit at their +machines ready to set the words as they fall from the pencils of the +writers. + +Still other men are at the presses, awaiting to put the great mechanisms +in motion, to pour out a stream of a hundred thousand papers an hour. + +All is in readiness to turn out the news with unerring accuracy and +incredible speed. + +Year in and year out the routine of publication has been gone through +with. Now one man who is advanced or discharged vacates a position, +which is immediately filled by the man next in line for promotion. The +machinery of the office never clogs. But on this night, turmoil takes +the place of system. + +A crisis in the history of the paper is being reached. The heads of +departments are all present, having been summoned by telegram or +telephone. They are ready to act. Yet the signal for action is delayed. + +To run off the edition of a morning paper is a far different thing from +getting out an edition of an evening paper. + +The morning newspaper must contain the "_news_" in its first edition if +it is to reach distant points; if it is even to reach the suburban +towns. In these towns, by far the largest percentage of the readers are +located. They will be anxious for the latest and most complete news. The +evening papers give hurried accounts of the events that are stirring the +country. For the full details the readers depend upon the morning +papers. The newspaper which fails to satisfy their demands will lose its +popularity. + +So the editor-in-chief and the proprietor of the Javelin are in a +quandary. + +"It is now 1.30," says the editor-in-chief, as he consults the clock. +"If we are to get out a paper we must start the presses." "What is the +leader?" inquires the proprietor anxiously. + +"A general review of the casualties; the summary of the result of the +announcements of the sudden deaths of so many leading men. This is +followed by the story of the deaths of six Senators. The head runs +across the page. The head-line reads 'Death's Harvest, Thirty-Six!' The +banks tell of the sudden deaths that have come upon Senators, Judges, +Manufacturers, Railroad Magnates, and a score of multi-millionaires." + +"We can't tell everything in a line, or in one edition," observes the +proprietor, "so I think it is safe to 'go to press.' Is there nothing of +importance left out?" + +Before an answer can be given to this query the telegraph editor rushes +from his desk waving a slip of paper. + +"Hold the press!" he exclaims. "Here's the biggest news yet. Attorney +General Bradley of the United States has been assassinated as he was +leaving his office. + +"The man who killed him made no attempt to escape, but, waiting to see +that the three shots he had fired point-blank at the Attorney General +had done their work, he deliberately turned the pistol on himself. He +placed it at his right temple and fired, dropping dead in his tracks." + +"Wait a minute; wait!" cries the editor-in-chief. "Don't say another +word." + +Turning to the night editor he says, "It will be necessary to change the +first page. A new head will have to be run, and the leading story will +have to tell of the murder of the Attorney General. This news is +national. I think I had better go to the press room and do this work +myself. The press will start in twenty minutes, if you give me the word +'Go ahead!'" + +"Go ahead," is the laconic reply. + +Down the winding staircase that leads to the composing room, and then to +the basement where the presses are located, the chief runs. He sets +about his work with a calmness and speed that is remarkable. The first +page is put on the composing table and the form opened. The head lines +are removed and the copy that the editor is turning out a dozen words at +a time on a page, are instantly set up and put in place. + +In eight minutes the form is keyed up and the stereotypers have it in +their hands. Three minutes later the pressman has the stereotype plate. +A minute later the press is in motion. + +With the first half dozen copies of the edition wet from the press, the +editor rushes back to his office. + +In his absence there has been nothing startling reported. He breathes a +sigh of relief and sinks exhausted into his chair. + +At a score of desks men are writing special portions of the news. One is +telling of the startling murders, another of the unusual accidents that +have claimed a dozen prominent men as victims. + +The strange story of the hanging of an Ex-Justice of the Supreme Court +Judge is being written by one of the sporting reporters; the +assassination of six Senators is the theme of another special writer. +Every one is busy. + +The chance that always comes to the young reporter is at hand. He is +entrusted with the important work of writing the story of the deaths of +five railroad magnates. His face is a study. It is scarlet and beads of +perspiration run down his cheeks. + +Even the copy-boys are alive to the fact that a night of unusual import +is passing, and they carry copy without being called. A boy stands at +the side of every reporter and runs with the pages to the desks where +the copy readers scan it and write the head lines; it is not a night +when copy is carefully read and "cut." Everything is news, and the +responsibility for the accuracy of the writing is upon the heads of the +reporters. + +Surrounding the bulletin board in the City Hall square, a crowd of from +one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand has gathered. + +The lateness of the hour is forgotten. Men and women stand through the +chill hours of the late night and early morning waiting for news. There +is an ever varying stream passing in front of the _Javelin_ office. +Early in the afternoon the police have taken control of the streets and +compelled the people to keep moving. There is fear that the disorderly +element will start a riot. + +Fortunately the first of the calamitous telegrams of the day has been +received after the close of the Exchanges. This has prevented a panic. +Brokers and bankers receive the tidings with consternation; they dread +the opening on the morrow. Many of them are in the crowd anxiously +waiting for further details of the deaths of the controllers of railroad +and industrial stocks. + +At midnight a bulletin announces that Senator Barker, who had been the +staunch advocate of Bi-metallism until the recent session, and who had +then voted with the Gold element, has been found murdered in his +palatial home at Lakewood, N.J. His private secretary has also been +killed, evidently because he had attempted to rescue his employer. Both +have been stabbed. + +After this the only news that is posted is of a confirmatory nature. It +tells of the development of the national wave of death. Then, too, it +begins to give the first positive information that the majority of the +deaths have been the result of a plot. + +Either on the body of each of the assassins or in his effects have been +found papers that show conclusively that the men acted in concert. While +the phraseology of each of the letters differ, there is a similarity +which is very apparent when they are compared. + +"I have kept my word. The world will judge if I was justified," is found +on one of the suicides. + +"If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out," is all that the card on +another bears. + +"A part is not greater than the whole," is the inscription on the card +that is found in the breast-pocket of the man who has killed the Sugar +King. + +When the news of the assassination of the Attorney General is given to +the people, there is a reaction in the spirit of the multitude +immediately surrounding the _Javelin_ bulletin. They have previously +received the notices with expressions of wonderment. Now all realize +that the Nation itself is imperilled. + +"This is another Suratt conspiracy," says one man to another. + +"Will it reach the President?" is the question that men do not dare ask, +though they think it. + +"This is not the work of cranks, you may depend upon it," observes a +Central office detective, who has a reputation for sagacity. His +fellow-officer, who stands a pace in advance of him, turns and inquires +if the detective thinks he could run the gang down. + +"If I am set on the case I shall not waste much time in looking for +ordinary crooks," replies the detective. "It will be my aim to unearth a +society of malcontents." + +At another point a party of club men, who have come down town from their +Fifth avenue haunt, stand discussing the terrible events. + +"Do you remember the night that the news was received here that Lincoln +has been shot?" asks a patriarchal New Yorker of an equally ancient +citizen. + +"Indeed I do. You and I were at the Niblo's Garden, weren't we?" + +"That's right. It's strange that history should repeat itself; and that +we should be together to-night?" + +"There is quite a difference between the murder of Lincoln and this +series of crimes," observes one of the younger men. "This night's, or +rather day's, work is aimed at all classes of wealth. It is evident that +it is an attack on capital. And the inexplicable part of the news is, +that in every instance the murderers have cheated the gallows." + +"Come, move on there," gruffly shouts a policeman. + +"Hallo, Mason," cries one of the club men as he pushes his way to the +side of the policeman. + +"O! How do you do, Mr. Castor," says the blue-coat, in deferential tone. + +"Mason, these are my friends; we want to stand here for a few minutes. +It's all right, isn't it?" + +"Certainly, it's all right. I thought that you were a lot of the idle +crowd, sir, and we have had orders to keep everyone on the move. But +you're all right." + +Mason had been appointed to the force by the Clubman's influence. + +Turning from his patron the policeman roughs his way through the crowd +and makes the men and women "move on." + +"Nothing like having a friend at court, eh?" laughingly cries one of Mr. +Castor's friends. + +"It is this custom of privilege that has brought on this calamity," +soberly observes the philosopher of the group. + +A riot breaks out at this moment at the foot of the Franklin statue; and +the shouts and curses of the men who are being beaten by the police send +a thrill through the multitude. + +The people on the fringe of the swaying thousands begin a retreat. Their +action is quickly imitated. + +The Clubmen decide that they have seen all that they want of the crowd. +But the matter of getting out is not easy of accomplishment. + +"What are you plug hats looking for?" sneers a rough from the slums. And +his arm swings out and hits the foremost man in the face. This seems to +be the cue for a dozen ruffians to fall upon the party of well dressed +men. + +Two policemen who stand nearby come to the rescue of the party and +conduct them to a place of safety. From thence the sightseers are glad +to make their way up-town. + +The ambulances from the Hudson Street Hospital take four of the rioters +who have been beaten with the night sticks of the police, to the station +house. Under ordinary circumstances the prisoners would be taken to the +hospital; but the Inspector of Police, who is on the scene, deems it +advisible to take them to the Station house. + +A sullen crowd of young men from the neighboring streets follow the +ambulances, shouting execrations at the policemen who have made the +arrests. + +The hands on the clock in the cupola of the City Hall point to 2.15 A.M. + +The news wagons are wedging their way through the sea of humanity. +Morning papers are being sold by the ever vigilant newsboys. Still the +people linger. + +An event of graver nature than any that has preceded is what the crowd +craves. The appetite of a man, or of a collection of men, is the same; +if it is fed to repletion, it cannot resist the desire for an excess. + +"Let's wait for one more bulletin," an engineer suggests to his fireman. + +"All right; we can stay until 2.30. That will give us time to get to the +building." + +Before the fifteen minutes elapse all thoughts of tending in the engine +room are driven from their minds. + +The first bulletin announcing the tidings of the Wilkes-Barre uprising +is posted by the _Javelin_ at 2.35 o'clock. From this moment the crowds +in City Hall increase. No one who can get within range of the blackboard +thinks of leaving. There is a subtle fascination in waiting for the +details of the momentous events. + +At daybreak the evening edition of the day's papers containing news of +the transcendent occurrences of the hour are on the street. In these +papers the first intimation of the full scope of the blow that has been +dealt the Magnates is given to the public. Link by link the chain of +evidence that the accidents and murders are each part of a general and +concerted movement is built. + +"Martyrs or Murderers?" This is the interrogatory headline that appears +in every paper. + +The events of the past twenty-four hours have been so unparalleled that +men dare not jump at conclusions. To proclaim the forty agents of the +Syndicate of Annihilation martyrs, may lead to an instant uprising of +the anarchistic element. To denounce them as murderers may have the same +effect. Fear prompts the people to take a conservative stand, they wait +for full evidence before pronouncing a verdict. + +They do not know that Harvey Trueman is pleading the cause of justice +and right to a mob at Wilkes-Barre. + +The case is now in the hands of the great public as a jury. + +A verdict that will shake the world is about to be tendered. + +This verdict is to be entered at Wilkes-Barre. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. + +ON TO WILKES-BARRE. + + +When the first news of the Act of Annihilation reaches the Independence +Party's Headquarters, Trueman is out on an important mission, a +conference with the American Mothers' League for the Abolition of Child +Labor. This League, it is believed, can influence scores of thousands of +voters. + +A telephone call from Benson brings Trueman back to the headquarters. On +the way down town he hears loud cries in the street. + +"Get y'er Extra! All about the big murders!" the newsboys are calling in +front of the headquarters. Trueman buys a paper. He reads about the +murder in Central Park. "This is an unfortunate occurrence," he says, +half aloud. "The people will put more credence in the assertions of the +Magnates, that there are anarchists working to disrupt the Government." + +Once in the rooms of the Campaign Committee he receives the messages +direct from the _Javelin_ office over a special wire. + +He is as ignorant of the true condition of affairs as any of the public. +What to think of the wholesale destruction of the leading magnates, is a +riddle to him. + + "WILKES-BARRE, PA., Oct. 13th. + + Gorman Purdy was murdered in his house at 2 o'clock this + afternoon, by Carl Metz. After shooting Purdy, Metz committed + suicide. Come to Wilkes-Barre at once. Miners are + threatening to sack the palaces on the esplanade. Ethel is in + great danger. MARTHA." + +This telegram is handed to Trueman. He reads it; re-reads it. The full +import flashes upon him. He knows the character of the miners; knows +that there is an element which will take advantage of every opportunity +to commit acts of violence. He pictures Ethel at her home, besieged by +the mob of miners. + +"I must get to Wilkes-Barre immediately," he declares. + +"Mr. Benson, will you telephone to the Inter-State Railroad and ask when +the next train leaves for Wilkes-Barre? If there is not one within an +hour, ask if it is possible to engage a special. I must reach +Wilkes-Barre as quickly as possible. + +"Here, read this," and he hands his secretary the telegram. + +"Send this message to Martha Densmore. Address it, 'Sister Martha, Care +of the Mount Hope Seminary, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., I leave for Wilkes-Barre +at once.' If you can find out the time the train will leave, state it in +the message to Martha." + +In five minutes Benson returns to inform Trueman that the Keystone +Express will leave at 3.30 P.M. This gives Trueman thirty minutes to +catch the train. He hurries to the street and jumps into a cab. + +"Drive to the Twenty-third street ferry as fast as you can. I'll give +you an extra dollar if you make the four o'clock boat," he tells the cab +driver. + +"All right Mr. Trueman," replies the man, who recognizes the people's +candidate. "You'll get the boat. Don't worry about that." + +From Twenty-third street and Broadway the cab starts. It turns west on +Twenty-fourth street. Then the driver whips up his horse. At Eleventh +Avenue a freight train is passing. It will delay Trueman for five +minutes. He jumps from the cab. + +"Mr. Benson will pay you," he calls to the cab-man. The train moves down +the street at a slow rate of speed. + +Trueman jumps on a car, climbs across it and jumps to the street. At a +run he makes for the ferry house. + +As he passes the gateman he throws down a silver piece for ferry fare +and rushes toward the boat. Half a minute later the boat draws out of +the slip. When he enters the train, Trueman seats himself in the +smoking-car. The man next to him is reading a late extra which he has +bought at Cortlandt street. + +Glancing over the man's shoulder, Trueman reads of the deaths of +financiers, statesmen, manufacturers. All have met sudden and violent +deaths, and in each instance there is announced the suicide or +accidental death of an unknown companion. + +Under a seven-column head, printed in red, is a suggestive paragraph. It +asks if the wave of annihilation can have any connection with the +Committee of Forty. And as if to answer the interrogation affirmatively, +the paragraph concludes in these words: + +"On the cards of six of the men whose bodies have been found with the +murdered multi-millionaires, reference to the Committee of Forty is made +point-blank. One asserts: 'In the future, arrogant capitalists will not +sneer at the protestations of a committee of the people. As a +deliberative body the Committee of Forty was impotent; as the avenger of +the downtrodden, it will never be forgotten.' Another bears this strange +inscription: 'When anarchy seems imminent, take courage, for an honest +leader will deliver you from harm.' + +"There are two cards which quote direct from the Scriptures: 'The wicked +in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices +that they have imagined.' This gives the motive which supplied the +assassin of the Sugar King with courage to commit a double crime. He was +a religious fanatic. The name George M. Watson was scribbled on the back +of the card. This is the name of one of the Committee of Forty. + +"The other card reads: 'And the destruction of the transgressors and of +the sinners _shall_ be together, and they that forsake the Lord shall be +consumed.'" + +Here is a matter which sets Trueman thinking. He knows every member of +the Committee of Forty; they are men who would not take part in a +dastardly crime. + +But is this terrible annihilation to be looked at in the light of an +ordinary crime? + +"Metz is a member of the committee." Trueman resolves this thought for +several minutes. + +The train rolls on at a rapid rate; the towns of Jersey are entered and +passed so quickly that no idea of the excitement that is stirring them +can be formed. It is not until Trenton is reached that Trueman hears the +news of the deaths of still other prominent men. + +He buys a paper and returns to his seat. This extra contains the details +of the threatened uprising in Wilkes-Barre, and the statement that the +Committee of Forty has converted itself into a Syndicate of +Annihilation. + +When the train reaches Philadelphia a battalion of the State Militia +goes on board. The Major in command has instructions to report to the +Sheriff of Luzerne County. This means that the militia is to be handed +over to the Magnates. + +As the train is about to leave the depot a telegram is received at the +dispatcher's office, which causes a delay. A freight on the Wilkes-Barre +division has jumped the track. The wrecking train is called for. After +the departure of the wrecking train the express pulls out. The accident +has occurred thirty miles east of Wilkes-Barre. It causes the Keystone +to be two hours late. + +During his enforced wait, Trueman improves the time by telegraphing to +New York. He gets from Benson the latest details of the news; the full +import of the terrible atonement dawns upon him. The Committee of Forty +had come to the conclusion that it must meet force with force. This was +a step which Trueman would never have sanctioned. He realizes that the +opprobrium for the act of the committee will be placed on him. He has +been associated with the committee; has been the one candidate which it +indorsed. And for all that he has known absolutely nothing of its +intention to carry out a wholesale annihilation. + +"Who will believe that I am not an accomplice?" he asks himself. + +"I have but one way to clear my name of such an imputation. I must stand +out as the advocate for rational action. I must bring the people, those +who know me and who will obey my wishes, to unite to suppress anarchy." + +As this thought shapes itself, the words on the card of one of the +committee obtrude themselves on Trueman: "When anarchy seems imminent, +take courage, for an honest leader will deliver you from harm." Is there +something prophetic in these words? + +Reinforcements are arriving on trains that are obliged to stop in the +rear of the express. One of the new arrivals is a part of the infamous +Coal and Iron Police. As these men are familiar with the mining +district, the Sheriff of Luzerne requests that they be placed on the +Keystone and rushed through first. This request is complied with. When +the train starts, after the track is cleared, the three hundred and +fifty members of the Coal and Iron Police have exchanged places with the +militia. + +From the intemperate speech of the men, Trueman foresees that the +conflict between the miners and the police will be sanguinary. He +resolves to keep the two bodies of men apart, if anything in his power +can effect this result. + +As the twilight deepens the train reaches the ten-mile grade that leads +to Wilkes-Barre. The powerful engine responds to the utmost of its +capacity and begins the ascent at a speed of fifty miles an hour. + +"We shall be doing business in fifteen minutes," remarks one of the Coal +and Iron Police, as he pulls his rifle from under the seat. + +"Thank God, we don't have to stand up and receive a shower of sticks and +stones, as the militia did in the old days. We have the right on our +side now, and we can shoot without waiting to be shot," asserts a +dyspeptic clerk, who has quit his desk for "_a day's shooting_." + + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. + +SISTER MARTHA AVERTS A CALAMITY. + + +When the tidings of the murder of Gorman Purdy reach the mines, the +rejoicing of the miners and their families is undisguised. They feel +that an avenging hand has been raised against the man who has caused +them so many days of suffering. + +"The devil has a new recruit," says a brawny miner. + +"Hell is too good for a man like Purdy," another declares. + +In all of Wilkes-Barre not a man or a woman except those who live under +the Coal King's roof has a word of pity to express. + +Sister Martha is silent; she feels shocked at the news; yet even in her +heart there is no room for sympathy for the Magnate. The thought comes +to her that Ethel will need comforting. Ethel Purdy is the woman who +eclipsed Sister Martha in Harvey's mind. It is not to be supposed that +Martha has forgotten this; yet it does not deter her from hastening to +the place. She finds Ethel on the verge of hysteria. + +Under the soothing influence of the Sister of Charity, Ethel's composure +is restored. + +"What is to become of me?" she asks, despairingly. "How am I to face the +world? I have wealth; but will it restore my father?" + +"Have faith, my dear, and you will find your troubles lightened." + +Martha prays with the late Magnate's daughter. They are on their knees +in the sumptuous bed-room of Ethel's suite when a servant abruptly +enters. + +"O, Miss Purdy, run for your life," cries the maid. "The miners are +coming to burn the house." + +Ethel utters a cry of terror. + +"Leave the room!" sister Martha orders. And the frightened servant +retires. + +"Do not feel alarmed. I shall stay here and the miners will do you no +injury. They love me and will obey me." + +Ethel clasps the hand of her defender and crouches at her feet. A knock +at the door startles the two women. Sister Martha remains in possession +of her faculties; Ethel swoons. + +"Come in," calls Sister Martha. + +The butler enters. + +"I have come to inform you that the miners are on their way to the +house. They have sworn to sack it. What shall we do?" + +"Who told you that the miners intend to come here?" + +"I have just received the warning from the office; one of the clerks +telephoned. He says the Superintendent is on his way here, but will +probably be cut off." + +Fear has anticipated the actual trend which events are to take. The +miners are parading the streets but have not formulated any definite +plan to attack the Purdy palace. + +Superintendent Judson arrives and assumes charge of the house. He brings +definite news of the intention of the miners. They are bent on claiming +the body of Carl Metz to give it a public funeral. "We shall never be +able to prevent violence," he declares. + +"The police and the militia have been summoned; but it will be hours +before they arrive." + +"If there was some one here who could pacify the mob until the troops +come; there is no one they will heed." + +"Perhaps I can pacify them," suggests Sister Martha. + +"You can try," says the Superintendent, scrutinizing her closely. "You +are known as the friend of the miners; they may respect your wishes." + +Inwardly he doubts her ability to check the mob; he feels, even, that +she may meet with physical violence at their hands. Yet his nature is so +small that he is eager to sacrifice her if it will keep the miners at +bay for an hour. + +"I shall try to keep them in the town," Sister Martha assures him as she +departs. On reaching the centre of the town Sister Martha meets some of +the miner folk. A woman comes up to her and whispers: + +"They have sent for the police. The work will be done before they get +here." + +"What work?" + +"Why, we are going to give Metz a decent funeral. He died for us. He +said in a letter,--died to set us free from Purdy." + +"When are you going to demand the body?" + +"This evening when the mines and shops close. We will all get together +and then the sheriff can't stop us." + +An inspiration comes to Martha. She hurries to a telegraph station, and +sends the message to Trueman calling him to Wilkes-Barre. + +"If he only gets here before the police or the troops, he can prevent +trouble," is the thought that consoles her. The hour that passes before +she receives word that he will arrive on the Keystone Express, seems an +eternity. + +With the knowledge that Trueman will arrive at five o'clock she breathes +a sigh of relief. Again she mingles with the crowds which fill the +streets. Here and there she goes, begging of the men and women to +refrain from doing anything that they will regret later. + +The afternoon wears on, and as rumors float through the town that the +Governor has called out the State Guard, the excitement increases. + +At four o'clock Sister Martha hears that the miners have determined to +wreck the express, as it is bringing the Coal and Iron Police. + +This news appalls her. Can she tell them that Trueman is on this train, +and hope to have his arrival effective? No. He must come unexpectedly. + +The plot to wreck the train must be defeated. + +She hurries to the house of one of the miners who she knows will be in +sympathy with any movement that has for its object the destruction of +the Police. His two sons were shot at the Massacre of Hazleton. One of +the young men died from the effects of his wounds. The other is a +confirmed invalid. + +On reaching the miner's cottage, Sister Martha finds that her intuition +is correct. Henry Osling is telling his son the plan of vengeance. + +"We will wipe out the old score to-night," he is saying. "When the +express starts up the grade, we will send a ton of Paradise Powder down +to meet it." + +"How will it explode?" asks the son. + +"How? Why, by the collision with the engine." + +"But it may not go off," suggests the invalid. "You had better make sure +by using dynamite. No! that won't do either. + +"Use nitro. You can get it from the Horton shaft. They have to use it +there to blast the slate." + +"That's what we'll do, 'sonny.' Just lie still 'til you hear the bang, +then you can get up and dance, for the Police will be blown to pieces." + +Sister Martha waits for no further details. Her plan of action is +decided upon. She knows every foot of ground in the mountains. A short +cut will bring her to the home of Widow Braun. This woman will do +anything in the world for Harvey Trueman. She will help Sister Martha to +save the train; for by so doing she will save Trueman's life. + +The widow is at home. In a few words Martha tells her what she must do +if she would save the life of the men who rescued her boy and herself +from the sheriff. + +"Do you have to ask me twice to help you?" cries the woman. "I would lie +down on the track and let the cars run over me if it would protect Mr. +Trueman." + +Martha and her ally start for the long grade. On the way they discuss +the manner in which they may derail the car with the nitro-glycerine. + +"We will put rocks on the track," suggests Sister Martha. "But the +miners will see us;" objects the widow, "it won't be dark when the train +arrives." + +"I heard the miners say the train would be late. A freight was off the +track east of Mathews and the wrecking crew was at work," Martha goes on +to explain. + +When the rescuers arrive at the track they realize that in their haste +they have neglected to bring a lantern, the one thing that may be needed +to signal the train, for now a dilemma confronts them. If they place a +pile of rocks on the track, the train may reach that point before the +car of destruction, and in this event the obstruction will cause the +wrecking of the train. + +The roadway is along the side of the mountain. + +On one side of the tracks the rocks rise in a sheer wall; on the other +is a steep embankment that in places is almost as precipitous as the +crags above. + +"We will have to separate," Martha advises. "You go up the track. No, I +will go up and you down. If it is possible, you must stop the train. I +will wait till the last moment and then put rocks on the track. When you +see Mr. Trueman, tell him to hasten to the Purdy house, for Ethel is in +great danger. Tell him I will be there to aid him in pacifying the +miners." + +"But you can never pile rocks enough on the track to stop the car," +Widow Braun says compassionately, glancing at the frail form before her. + +"Have no fear. I can do my part of the work. God will give me strength. +And you, He will guide you, as well. Come, let us set about our work." + +With a parting blessing from Sister Martha, the widow hurries down the +track. She can discern the station five miles below at the beginning of +the ten-mile grade. This station is her objective. If she can reach it +before the arrival of the express, the life of Harvey Trueman and those +of all the passengers will be saved. + +The nature of her mission gives her strength to travel over the rough +roadbed with incredible speed. Her eyes are upon the station, which +momentarily becomes more and more indistinct; she knows that if the +train starts up the grade she can see the headlight. Her lips move in an +articulate prayer that she may not see the light. So absorbed is she in +the thought of how to stop the train in the event of its passing the +station that she fails to see a culvert bridge. At the bridge the +roadbed terminates and a trestle carries the tracks for a distance of +fifteen yards. The culvert is dry nine mouths in the year, and is a +raging mountain torrent only in the spring. + +Widow Braun rushes upon the trestle. Her steps are not regulated by the +ties, and almost instantly she falls between them. Her hands grasp the +rails on either side; but she has not sufficient strength to support +herself. With an agonizing cry she drops twenty feet upon the jagged +rocks below. Her head strikes a rock and she lies motionless. + +Several minutes pass; then she regains consciousness. On attempting to +rise she finds that her ankle is sprained. Despite the agony it causes +her, the brave woman struggles to climb back to the track. It is now +quite dark and she realizes that the train must be along in a few +minutes. She cannot reach the station. But she may yet stop the train at +the culvert bridge. + +A long shrill whistle sounds. It is the familiar signal of the Keystone +Express. + +Regardless of the acute pain which every step causes her, the widow +scrambles over the rocks. + +As she reaches the roadbed the express rumbles over the trestle. With a +cry of despair she sinks to the ground. + +Sister Martha is acting her role of heroine at a point a mile and a half +further up the grade. She has posted herself where she can observe the +station and the summit of the grade. + +At the side of the track she collects a dozen boulders, the heaviest she +can move. These she determines to put on the track to derail the car +which the miners are to send down the grade to wreck the train. + +"Will the widow Braun stop the express?" Martha asks herself again and +again, as the terrible minutes of suspense pass. "Perhaps I should have +gone down the track instead of sending her." + +Through the darkness a glimmer of light shines from the summit of the +mountain. + +"The miners are in readiness. What shall I do?" + +For an answer, the whistle of the train falls upon her ears. + +She hesitates, then with an energy born of desperation she begins to +pile the rocks on the track. The ragged edges cut her tender fingers. +She works on unmindful of cuts and bruises. + +Higher and higher the pyramid rises. + +Only once does she glance down the track to see the train. Its great +headlight looks like a beacon. It is approaching nearer and nearer. + +"Have they started the car?" Martha wonders. She can hear the rumble of +the train, but not a sound from the road above. + +"The train will reach this spot first," she cries aloud. "The miners are +waiting for it to get nearer to them." + +Acting upon a sudden impulse, she runs up the track a distance of a +hundred yards. There are rocks lying on the side of the track nearest +the mountain. + +One, two, three big rocks she places on the track. + +A faint cheer reaches her. + +"They have started the car," she laughs hysterically. + +"It will not harm the Keystone. No, it will stop here." + +Another and another rock is placed on the rails. + +She knows that these boulders are a poor impediment to a wildcat car; +but they are the only things available. + +A whirring sound rings in her ears. It is the car rolling down the grade +with the velocity of a thunder-bolt. + +In a minute or two at the most, the car will be upon her. + +Still she does not falter. The second pyramid must be completed. + +Again she turns to look down the track. The headlight of the engine +seems to be upon her. It is, in fact, just crossing the culvert. + +A glance at the pile of rocks makes them appear insignificant. + +"They will never be able to stop the car," she moans. + +Then with a final effort she tugs at a boulder larger than any of the +others. She has it on the rail when the whistling of the engine startles +her. + +The engineer has seen the lower pyramid of rocks on the track and has +whistled "down brakes." + +The train is stopping; it will be saved, for one of the two obstructions +will derail the motor-car. + +Sister Martha starts to run down the track. She has not taken a dozen +steps when the juggernaut dashes into the pyramid of rocks. + +Instantly there is a flash and an explosion, that shakes the mountain. +Great ledges of rock slide from the overhanging crags. + +In a shower of splintered stone, Martha is literally entombed. Her life +is sacrificed on the altar of devotion. She has lived a Christian and +dies a martyr. + +But the Keystone Express is saved. + +Its passengers and crew, when they recover from the fright occasioned by +the explosion, hasten from the cars. Trainmen are sent up the track to +investigate. Brakemen are also sent down the track to carry the news to +the station. + +One of these men stumbles across Widow Braun. He returns to the train +carrying her. + +From her, Trueman and the other passengers, including the Coal and Iron +Police, learn of the plot to wreck the train and of the heroic effort +made by Sister Martha and the widow herself, to avert the calamity. + +Trueman starts in quest of Sister Martha. Accompanied by one of the +trainmen with a lamp, he reaches the scene of the explosion. + +The trainman discovers the body of Martha. + +Bending over the prostrate body Harvey Trueman weeps. It is the manly +expression of deep emotion. + +"She died to save my life and the lives of the hundreds on the train. +Was there ever a more noble sacrifice? It cannot be that she has given +her life in vain. I must do the work she has begun. If I can prevent the +miners from committing acts of violence it will atone for the loss of +Sister Martha." + +From the top of the mountain, Trueman catches a glimpse of the torches +and miners' lamps. The miners are moving toward the town. Trueman is +familiar with every inch of ground about Wilkes-Barre. He has played on +the mountain as a boy. He now recollects a by-path which will bring him +to the town in advance of the miners who are on the wagon road. + +"Have the body of Sister Martha taken to the Mount Hope Seminary," he +says to the trainman, and away he speeds for Wilkes-Barre. + +The Coal and Iron Police are thrown into utter consternation. They dare +not advance upon the town in the darkness for fear that there is another +plot to destroy them. + +The captain orders them to march across the mountain so as to enter the +town from a direction opposite to that by which they are expected. To +affect this detour will delay their arrival several hours, but their own +safety is more to be considered than that of the townspeople. + +And the miners? They have heard the explosion and believe that the Coal +and Iron Police have been sent to their doom. + +With the police out of their way there is nothing to check the miners in +the accomplishment of their design to recover the body of Carl Metz. + +It is the radical element that has conceived the idea of wrecking the +train. They take full control of the miners and lead the way to join +their comrades on the Esplanade. As they pass through the streets +hundreds of men and women who have known nothing of the plot to wreck +the train, fall in line and march on in the procession. The number of +miners and townspeople soon reaches the thousands. By the time they +arrive at the Esplanade there are ten thousand in line. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. + +AT THE DEAD COAL KING'S MANSION. + + +Along the Esplanade the hurrying thousands begin to move in the +direction of the Terrace; miners who have been in the shafts for +eighteen hours; yard-hands from the railroads; iron founders, naked save +for their breeches, have quit their furnaces; townspeople whom fear +impels to see what the night will bring forth; this heterogeneous horde +presses on to the scene of the murder. + +It is a night that lends an appropriate setting to so strange and +uncanny an event. The sky is leaden except for a streak on the western +horizon where the fading, sinister light of the sun gives token of a +stormy morrow. Through the walled banks, the river rushes turbulently, +swollen by recent rains; its waters tinged by the dyes and other refuse +from the city above. + +On the further bank, the groups of breakers and foundries loom up as +vague shadow creations. From fifty chimney mouths thick black smoke +curls unceasingly; now soaring to a considerable height, now driven down +to earth by fitful gusts of wind. In their sinuous course these +smoke-clouds resemble the genii of fable, who spread over the earth +carrying death and devastation. + +In sharp contrast to this picture is the Avenue of Opulence on the side +of the river which boasts of the Esplanade. Here is a line of fifty +palatial residences; the homes of the owners of a hundred mines and +factories and the task-masters of fifty thousand men, their wives and +their progeny. + +Clustered about the breakers and furnaces are the squalid huts and +ramshackle cottages of the operatives; there too, a little removed from +the river are the caves in which the Huns and Scandinavians dwell, even +as their prehistoric ancestors dwelt before the light of civilization +dawned. + +Nero thrumming his violin from the vantage point of the crowning hill of +Rome, had no such portraiture of the degradation of humanity as that +which the Magnates nightly view from their balconies. A stranger would +be struck with surprise that the thousands should be huddled in dens +that wild animals would find uninhabitable, while the sons of greed and +avarice flaunt their trappings of mammon from the hilltops. + +This is the arena in which is to be enacted a scene of this great drama. +The actors, the audience are gathering. + +Mingled sounds of strange nature are on the air. The murmur always +present where multitudes are assembled runs as an undertone; the sharp +notes of frightened women and terrified children rise as the tones of an +oratorio; steady, full, vibrant are the sounds of the men's voices. + +On the countenances of the men can be read the exultation of their +hearts, that at least one of their tyrants has encountered his Nemesis. +Faces here and there are wreathed in smiles, as though their possessors +were hastening to a fete. Some are grave, for the thought of the +retribution that the Magnates will demand, and which they knew so well +how to secure, is enough to bring a pallor to the cheek. There are men +in the eddying thousands who have felt the hot lead of Latimer and +Hazleton burn into their backs and the recollection makes them shudder. +They are again upon a highway, but is this a protection against the +violence of their masters? They are now, as then, unarmed, but is this a +safeguard against the rifles of the hirelings? + +From the bridge that connects the shores of the river, to the mansion of +the Coal King, is a distance of two miles. The broad avenue affords an +excellent concourse and down it the throng fairly runs. They traverse +the distance in twenty minutes. + +An army advancing into an enemy's country could not preserve better +order. Far in advance of the main body of the toilers is the vanguard, a +group of twenty of the acknowledged leaders of the men. It is at their +suggestion that the cowed wretches have mustered up courage enough to +cross the bridge and enter upon the interdicted boulevard. So it is +incumbent upon them to show no trepidation. + +Immediately behind them are the more adventurous ones, followed by the +women and children, who, like angels, tread where men fear to go. The +great mass of the crowd is composed of the workmen of the town. The +faint-hearted and the cowardly bring up the rear. When the marble steps +that lead up to the mansion are reached, the vanguard halts. The impetus +of the entire line is arrested as if by magic. An unheard, invisible +signal is obeyed, the signal of fear. Then the men in advance beckon to +the people to come forward. + +A score of young men respond as if to a summons for volunteers, and in +their wake press the multitude. + +The tumult ceases. The moment for action is approaching and men +concentrate their attention on what is being done by the leaders. + +"I have come for the body of Carl Metz," shouts Foreman O'Neil, from the +foot of the terrace; his voice ringing with a tone of defiance. + +"I have come for the body, and if you do not bring it out we will go in +after it." + +This ultimatum is addressed to the private detective who stands on the +piazza of the Coal Magnate's palace, as a sentinel. + +He does not seem disconcerted at the sight of so great a number of +people. On the contrary his mouth curls in a derisive smile. + +"O, you had better all go back to the breakers," he retorts. "We will +see that Metz's body is buried." + +Then he pauses, waiting to see the effect his words will produce. On and +on comes the tidal wave of humanity. If it is not checked soon it will +deluge the palace. + +"I will shoot the first man who sets a foot on this piazza," defiantly +cries the detective, at the same time drawing his revolver. "Get back to +your breakers. If the superintendent sees you on this side of the river, +you'll all get _sacked_," he adds as a threat more terrible than the +shooting of one of them. + +"We don't want to make trouble," explains O'Neil. "All that we ask is +that we may take the body of Metz and give it decent burial. Has the +superintendent said we could not have it?" + +Mr. Judson, the superintendent of the Giant Breakers, appears at the +door. He steps out on the piazza. + +A sullen roar greets him. + +"Until the coroner has disposed of the case," he begins, "no one will be +permitted to touch the body. You have heard my decision. Now go back to +your work." + +The recollection of the treachery practiced on them in the riot of 1900, +when their dead fellow-workmen were put in crates and buried by the +police at night, without religious rites, comes to the minds of all. +They have sworn then that never again would they be cheated of the right +to bury their martyred brothers. + +"Give us the body," cry a hundred voices in chorus. + +"Go on, go on," shout the pressing thousands. "Go in and get it." + +The forces for a storm have been gathering since the first tidings of +the tragedy reached the people. + +When they heard that Carl Metz, the foreman of the Keystone furnace, had +killed Gorman Purdy and had then ended his own life, they were +dumbfounded. Then as a lightning flash the information had spread that +Metz had left a note explaining that he had killed the tyrannical Coal +Magnate for the good of mankind. This word of explanation had clarified +the confused thoughts in the minds of all. They read in that message +their emancipation. The hour to strike a blow for their long lost rights +had come. + +The opposition offered by the detective and Judson, proves to be the +shock needed to precipitate the storm. + +By a single impulse the crowd rushes up the terrace. Its advance is +irresistible. Both Judson and his hireling see the futility of +attempting to resist the mob. They, therefore, withdraw within the +house. As they enter they close the massive oak doors. Even as the doors +swing to, the weight of a dozen powerful shoulders is thrown against +them. + +For a moment the advance is checked. + +Turning to the windows, the infuriated men shatter them one by one, and +like the sea pouring into a breach in a ship, they enter the house. One +of the first to enter runs to the doors and flings them open. "Come in!" +he shouts. "This is ours for to-day." + +A marble staircase leads from the first floor to the one above. This +marvellous masterpiece had been made in Europe and imported. It cost two +hundred thousand dollars--more than the appraised value of the two +thousand hovels of the crowd that now trample upon its polished steps. + +Up this staircase the impetuous leaders run. At the head of the stairs +is the library, the room in which the tragedy has been enacted. + +On the floor in this room is the body of Metz. It has not been +disturbed. + +The body of the Magnate has been removed to his bed-room to be prepared +for burial. + +O'Neil and two members of the Committee of Labor take up the prostrate +form of their friend and make their way toward the door. It is not their +intention to commit any violence in the house. Yet, as is always the +case when men are under high mental tension, there is an element that +cannot resist the instinctive craving of the animal spirit for blood. + +"The sewer was good enough for Metz," exclaims an ironworker, +ferociously. It's good enough for Purdy." + +"Where is Purdy's body?" + +This question now presents itself to the invaders. It serves as the +keynote for future action. + +"Let's find it," suggests the ironworker. And the search of the mansion +is begun. + +Anticipating that the crowd might demand the body of the +multi-millionaire, his faithful attendants have hurriedly removed it to +the top of the building. It is concealed in the apartments of the chief +butler. A superficial hunt fails to reveal its place of concealment. +This intensifies the eagerness of the people to find it. They are +positive it was on the premises, for the crowd without completely +surrounds the palace. + +Again are the gorgeous furnishings of the forty rooms thrown +helter-skelter. Costly cabinets that refuse to yield to first pressure, +are wrenched open. The frightened butler and the corps of other servants +are impressed into the search. They are compelled to give up the keys to +all closets and rooms. As case after case of silver and gold service are +disclosed, the vulture element pounces upon them. For every piece there +are fifty contestants, and the result is a wild scrimmage which prevents +any one getting so much as a spoon without paying dearly for it. + +Half an hour of vain search heats the tempers of the men to the fever +point. Those with the butler finally threaten him with instant death if +he does not disclose the whereabouts of the body, and reluctantly he +obeys. Hounds falling upon their quarry could not exhibit more ferocity +than the mob as it pounces upon the corpse. + +Gorman Purdy had been seated in his library when his last summons came. +He was attired in full evening dress. On his shirt bosom, over the +heart, is a spot of blood. It shows where the bullet had found its mark. + +A hurried consultation is held. It is decided that the body be carried +to the Potter's field and thrown into the open grave that is kept for +paupers. + +Three men pick up the body and start to leave the house. + +All this while the impatience of the throng outside has found vent in +ribald jests. + +"One dead millionaire is better than an army of workmen," jeers one man. + +"He has come to life and has offered to arbitrate," sneers another. + +"Bring him out!" is the incessant cry of the thousands. + +And now the cortege appears. O'Neil and three committeemen carry the +body of Metz. They pass between an avenue of men, who give way +deferentially. + +On reaching the Esplanade the pall-bearers pause. They face toward the +bridge and wait for the procession to form. Then the trio who carry--or +to be precise, drag the body of Purdy--emerge. + +A great shout is given as the masses catch a glimpse of the body of the +man who in his lifetime was their unmerciful master. + +Darkness has supplanted the twilight. Now the contrast between light and +shade is sharp. At intervals of fifty feet along the Esplanade, wrought +iron gothic flambeaux support powerful electric lights. Objects beyond +the immediate radius of the lights are indistinguishable. The windows of +all the palaces are all closed and barricaded. From across the river the +accustomed flare of the furnaces is missing. The fires are extinguished. + +The uncouth countenances of the men and women can be studied in +intermittent flashes as they pass under the strong glare of the lights. +The utter absence of men and women of gentility makes the procession +seem like the invasion of the Huns into the Empire. Among the thousands +there are descendants of those very men who made the legions of Rome +flee in terror. The torch of progress is again in the hands of the +uncultured, and as history proves the race is to undergo another +evolution. + +That it is to be effected by internecine revolution none doubts. The +march of carnage is on. Whither will it tend? + +A leader of genius is wanted. The plastic emotions of the multitude will +yield to his command. + +Already the peaceable character of the visitation of the humble to the +habitation of the haughty, has changed to one of violence. + +O'Neil has been able to create the storm, but he lacks the capacity to +direct it. The man of might has stepped forward and has been hailed as +chief. + +Just as the body of Purdy is to be brought down the terrace the sound of +distant cheering is heard. It comes from the direction of the bridge. +The men who have hold of the millionaire's body, drop it. + +Do the shouts come from the militia? + +With ever-increasing magnitude the cheering continues. Whatever the +object may be, it is approaching the palace. + +A reflex movement in the crowds indicates that danger is upon them. + +"It's the Pinkertons!" is the terror-stricken cry that arises. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. + +PEACE HATH HER VICTORIES. + + +Now the shouting swells into a general outburst of enthusiasm. "Trueman! +Trueman!" are the words that reach the ears of the men at the foot of +the terrace. + +It is not the militia then, that is swooping down upon the people to +crush them for demanding the body of their dead; it is not the +Pinkertons. It is the champion of the people come to their aid! + +Breathless from the three miles he has traversed at a run, Trueman sinks +exhausted on the stone steps in front of Purdy's house. + +The excited leaders cluster about him and tell him of the events that +have transpired during the afternoon and early evening. "It was four +o'clock when we first heard that Metz had shot and killed Purdy. The +news spread to all the mills and furnaces," explains Chester, one of the +yard hands of the local depot. + +"Some one started the story that the police had been instructed to bury +Metz secretly for fear there would be trouble if he was given a public +funeral. You know there was a note found on him which said he had killed +Purdy for the good of the workingmen." + +"Yes," breaks in O'Neil, "the folks all over town said they were bound +to see Metz given decent burial. A committee came to me and asked if I +would head a procession to come here and demand the body. We came and +were refused it. Then we broke into the house and got Metz's body. + +"Some one started the cry, 'Find Purdy's body and bury it in Potter's +field!' This set the crowd crazy. I could not prevent their seizing it." + +Harvey Trueman listens to the stories of the men. He realizes that no +half-measure can be proposed. It will either be necessary for him to +acquiesce to their plan to throw the multi-millionaire's body into the +Potter's field or else oppose them to the last point. + +With the knowledge of the various events that have occurred he can +estimate the effect that such an act of violence will have upon the +country. Should the people of the other mining districts hear that the +miners of Wilkes-Barre have risen in revolt against their masters it may +precipitate a general uprising. + +The deaths of the leading financiers and manufacturers throughout the +country have made a panic inevitable. If to this is added rioting, the +country will be plunged into a state of veritable anarchy. Why should +not Wilkes-Barre be the centre of this national movement for a peaceable +solution of the question of the rights of labor? One clear note of +confidence sounded amid the general babel may serve as the signal for +rational action. + +Reasoning thus, he determines to make a grand effort to convert the +crowd to moderation. + +As he passed through the larger cities on his way to the town he heard +that the people of Wilkes-Barre were up in arms. The militia have been +ordered out and will arrive at any moment. The Coal and Iron Police are +crossing the mountain and will show no mercy to the miners. If they find +the people engaged in mischief, the story of past massacres will be +repeated. + +"Come with me," says Trueman to his lieutenants. They move quickly up +the steps to the piazza of the magnate's palace. + +Here Trueman turns to the crowd. + +The cheering and shouting has been kept up during the two or three +minutes that he has been resting. The people have again massed +themselves about the grounds surrounding the house. + +"Speech! speech!" they cry. + +Trueman raises his hands before his face and lowers them in a sign for +silence. The buzz of the thousands is instantly hushed. In a clear full +voice that increases in volume as he proceeds, he begins his +never-to-be-forgotten oration. + +"Women and men of Wilkes-Barre: + +"That you are; testified in claiming the body of the man who sacrificed +his life that you might live as freemen in this land of equal rights +none can deny; that you should be moved to seek revenge upon the body of +the man who has of all men been the most intolerant, tyrannical and +merciless to you and the hundreds whom death has claimed, during the +past twenty years, is nothing more than human. + +"I believe, as have the philosophers and statesmen of all ages, that the +people can do no wrong; for the voice of the people is, in fact, the +voice of God." + +As these words fall upon the ears of the multitude a great shout is +given. Men wave their hats; women flutter their vari-colored shawls, +which serve them as headgear; the sense of righteousness is awakened in +them. + +"With an abiding faith in the justice of the Almighty, you have bided +your time; tolerance has ever been your actuating principle; reason has +dictated every appeal that you have made to your masters. + +"To-day you feel that the hour for your deliverance has come; that the +fetters have fallen from your wrists. You stand here as emancipated men +of a great nation. That your hearts should be filled with rejoicing, +shows that you are alive to the importance of the occasion. + +"Metz, who this day sacrificed his life for you, is worthy of your +admiration. He is one of the world's heroes, one of its martyrs. It is +for you to say if he shall have a monument worthy of his memorable act. + +"The peoples of all ages have had their heroes and their martyrs. The +progress of the world is marked by the monuments that have commemorated +the deeds of these men. + +"It remains for you to erect a monument for the martyr of the Twentieth +Century. + +"Shall it be of brass or of enduring granite? + +"Either of these would be a prey to the long lapse of time. + +"You may choose as a monument, a mound that shall endure as long as the +world rolls through space; you may convert those piles of brick and iron +on the further side of the river into a mass of ruins; you may set the +indignant torch to this fine line of palaces. + +"Whatever you do you may be sure that your example will be the signal +for your fellow workmen throughout the land." + +"Burn down the breakers!" cries a thousand voices. + +"Those breakers as they stand to-day are fit only to be destroyed," +continues Trueman. + +"They have consumed a pound of human flesh for every ton of coal that +fed them. They have afforded money to a few Plutocrats, with which to +satisfy the rapacious desires of greed; they have been the source of +revenue that made these palaces possible. Those breakers have given you +in return for your long days of toil, only enough to keep life in your +bodies; they have bound you to this spot with fetters stronger than +those of steel. If you should flee from this bondage you would find +starvation awaiting you on the roads." + +These sentences have an electrical effect upon the audience. The passive +temperaments of the men and women are being quickened. + +"Should you destroy the breakers and furnaces, and these homes of your +oppressors, your own losses would outweigh those of the millionaires. + +"Yet your acts would be justifiable. + +"Do not move till I have delivered the message I bear. + +"I come to you with tidings that will make the blood in your veins flow +faster in a delirium of joy. + +"I come to tell you that your fellow workmen in every state in this +Republic are to-day emancipated, even as you yourselves have been. The +sword has been wrested from the hands of tyrants, and has been placed in +the hands of the people. + +"The centuries that have come and gone since Christianity was first +preached have seen the sword turned upon the humble, the meek, the +worthy. Now it is to be turned upon the craven few who have fattened at +the expense of the many. + +"At the very hour when Melz sent Gorman Purdy to his doom, avenging +angels, disguised as men, were abroad in our land weeding out the seed +of iniquity. + +"In San Diego, California, Senator Warwick was killed by the hand of a +man who, when he had rid the earth of the most avaricious man who ever +worked a mine, completed the chapter by taking his own life. + +"Henceforth men will not slave in the mines of California or elsewhere +for the sole benefit of misers. The miner will enjoy the fruits of his +labor. He will make significant the words 'The laborer is worthy of his +hire.' + +"In St. Louis at the same hour, the owner of the grain elevators, in +which is stored the crops of the great plains, there to be kept until +the needs of the people shall place an exorbitant price upon every +bushel, was smothered to death in the hold of one of his own ships. With +him died the martyr who had succeeded in bringing a just retribution +upon the head of an insatiate oppressor. + +"Henceforth bread shall not be made a product of speculation. The hungry +mouths of women and children shall not go unfed that the stock broker +and the grain speculator may amass fortunes. + +"The Cotton King of Massachusetts, who has kept men and women out of +employment, and in their stead has worked children in his mills, was +killed in his office as he refused the fifth appeal for an advance of +three cents a day in the pay of the six thousand half-grown children, +most of them girls, who tended his looms and spindles for pauper wages. + +"The man who thus abolished for all time the further slaughter of +innocents, went to eternity with the dragon he had slain. The mill owner +went to expiate his sins; the martyr to receive his reward. + +"And in New York, the city which I have just left, the ruler of the +Nation's money, the President of the Consolidated Banker's Exchange, +died in a pot of molten lead which he had been brought to hope would be +turned into gold under the touch of an alchemist. The lust of gold that +in life had been his only incentive, proved the means of his undoing. + +"Bond syndicates will no longer be formed to corner the people's money, +that millions may be squeezed from the public treasury. + +"My fellow-countrymen, this is indeed a great day. + +"The full story cannot be told you at a single meeting. + +"Know that you are once again free men, not in name only, but in +reality; that your children will never suffer the degradation through +which you have passed. + +"The story of your deliverance you will soon know in its entirety. +To-night I can only give you a summary." + +"Tell us all! Tell us everything!" thunder the astonished masses. They +forget Metz and Purdy in the presence of this greater news. + +"I have only just learned the true facts of this remarkable movement. +The representatives of the people who met in Chicago six months ago to +formulate plans for the protection of labor, found that little could be +accomplished against the combined wealth of the Trusts. + +"A permanent committee of forty was elected to carry out the purposes of +the convention. For several weeks the committee occupied itself in +routine work. Its sub-committees reported that they could make no +headway. + +"Then at one of the meetings a committeeman named Nevins proposed that +inasmuch as the committee had to deal with a wily and unscrupulous foe, +it constitute itself into a secret body. + +"At the first secret meeting he submitted the plan which was carried +into effect to-day. + +"It required that every one of the forty men should pledge himself to +rid the world of one of its chief tyrants. He proved to the satisfaction +of the men that by so doing they would be securing the blessings of +liberty and happiness to mankind. + +"He counselled them to strip their acts of any semblance of selfishness +by sacrificing themselves with their vanquished enemies. + +"At this moment the news is being flashed around the world that the +forty tyrants and the forty martyrs have been gathered to their Maker in +a single day. + +"Again is the message that was first uttered in the Garden of Eden sent +to the world: 'Labor is the God-given heritage of man.' Nor shall anyone +keep man from his inheritance. + +"To you, men and women of this Trust-ridden community, is given the +opportunity to reap the full benefit of to-day's atonement. + +"That you should waste your efforts on the mere gratification of +revenge, was but natural when you did but know of the result of one deed +in the plan of emancipation. Then it might have been enough that you +should destroy the breakers and tear down these palaces. + +"But now that you have heard of the National blow that has been struck +for you, all thoughts of violence must be swept from your minds. Now you +must realize that a greater triumph awaits you than to watch the flames +lick up the property of your tormentors. + +"That property is now yours! + +"These breakers, furnaces, factories; these houses, the mines beneath +the earth's surface, the lands above them, all, all, are yours. It needs +but for you to take possession of your own; for you to enjoy the full +measure of the profit of your labor. + +"Return to your homes, filled with rejoicing that you have not been +called upon to stain your hands with blood; that your rights have been +restored through the sacrifice of forty men to whom you and your +posterity shall give immortal fame. + +"You will have to work as hirelings only until you yourselves place your +government in the hands of trusted men of your own selection. + +"Fraud will no longer seek for public office; avarice will no longer +scheme to gain possession of the world's wealth for the satisfaction of +inordinate desires; inhumanity will no longer vaunt itself in our mills, +our mines, our fields, for to-day the edict has been sent to the world +that death awaits those who shall again seek to enslave labor. There +will be forty martyrs ready for another sacrifice. Who will dare to be +their foe? + +"Choose your leaders with care; see that they are sincere in their +determination to work your will. + +"When this is done the hovels you now live in will be supplanted by +decent homes; the poor food you now eat will be kept for your swine; +your children will grow up to manhood and womanhood without having had +their minds and bodies stunted by premature toil. + +"A Republic of universal happiness and comfort will be yours. + +"Such a Republic will be a monument to endure for all time to the memory +of Carl Metz and his thirty-nine co-workers, to the honor of yourselves +and to the security to future generations of the liberty that this +Republic will afford all men. + +"Pick up the body of Metz, and I shall help you bury it. I leave the +body of Purdy for whomsoever may be inclined to care for it. + +"Men of Wilkes-Barre, again I tell you, to-day you have been delivered +from serfdom. Act as men, not as brutes. + +"Choose some one to be your leader and let him direct you until to each +of you is given the opportunity to vote for the laws that you may +desire. + + "With blare of trumpet and with tap of drum + Barbaric nations pay to Mars his due, + When victory crowns their arms. To him they sue + For privilege to war, though Mercy's thumb + Bids them as victors, rather to be mum, + And show a noble spirit to the foe; + To vaunt not at their fellow-creature's woe: + O'er victory only doth the savage thrum! + They conquer twice who from excess abstain; + The gentle nation that is forced to war, + In triumph seeks to hide, and put afar + All vestiges of carnage, and restore + Peace in the land, that men may turn again + To worthy toil, as they were wont before. + +"Labour is your heritage; return to it." + +He ends in a tumult of enthusiasm. + +The multitude has been led from one emotion to another with such +rapidity that they are fairly bewildered. + +Two things only are clear in all minds. Trueman, the man who has become +their most faithful champion, assures them that now they are to be free; +that they are to be made the sharers in the wealth they create; he also +tells them to select a leader. + +By a spontaneous decision Trueman is the name that comes to every lip. + +"Trueman! Trueman! You are the man to lead us." + +The cry "Trueman!" sweeps through the crowd. It rises in an acclaim the +like of which has never been heard before. + +Men rush toward the orator and pick him off his feet. He is placed on +the shoulders of the stalwart miners whom his eloquence and logic has +won, and is borne in triumph at the head of the procession that goes to +bury Carl Metz. + +The millionaire's corpse lies on the steps of his late mansion. Clinging +to it in the desperation of outraged womanhood, is Ethel. She had crept +from the house while the eloquence of Trueman's words held the mob +enraptured. + +As Trueman is being borne in triumph down the steps his eyes rest on the +terrible picture presented by the dead magnate and his daughter. In an +instant the champion of justice forms a resolve. His heart and mind have +a common impulse--Purdy's body must be saved from desecration; it must +be buried with that of Metz. + +"Pick up that body," he orders of the men who surround him. "It must be +buried with Metz." + +In his voice there is a ring of command that none dares to question. As +the miners stoop to lift the corpse Ethel utters a cry of anguish that +pierces the hearts of even the most hardened men. It is the wail of +humanity protesting against anarchy. + +By a vigorous effort Trueman frees himself from the miners who are +carrying him on their shoulders. He is at the side of Ethel in a moment. + +"Do not be frightened. I am here and will protect you and your father's +remains." + +His words are spoken in a loud decisive tone and reach the ears of the +crowd that press around the corpse. + +Yielding to his indomitable will Ethel arises. She wavers an instant; +then stretches out her arms toward her protector. + +Trueman seizes the delicate hands and draws her to his side. + +"You are safe in my charge," he whispers to her soothingly. "Come with +me and you shall witness your father's burial. If it is done now the mob +will be pacified and will cease to clamor for vengeance." + +Ethel walks by his side in silence. + +The magnate's body is picked up and placed on the improvised litter of +boards which serves to support the body of Metz. In silence the +procession moves on toward the town. + +The battle for moderation is won. + + + + +CHAPTER XXX. + +A DOUBLE FUNERAL. + + +It is in an utterly hopeless frame of mind that Ethel walks beside +Harvey Trueman. She cannot conceive that one man will have sufficient +power over the passions of the multitude to prevent a violent +demonstration when the graveyard is reached. + +"They will tear my father's body to pieces," she sobs. + +"Take my word for it, there will be no disorder," Trueman assures her. +He walks with Ethel at the head of the motley crowd that only an hour +ago was clamoring for the body of Purdy; this same crowd is now +transformed into an orderly procession. The absence of music, or of any +sound other than the tramp of feet on the smooth hard roadway, makes the +procession unusual. There is deep silence, save for the occasional words +that are spoken by the principal actors. + +"This is a sad reunion, Ethel; one that could never have been predicted. +When we parted that afternoon, two years ago, you said you never wished +to see me again. I have remained away, until now. You are not sorry that +I have come to protect you. Tell me that you are not." Harvey's words +are spoken earnestly; he has kept the love of all the months of +separation pent up in his heart. Now he is in the presence of the one +woman in all the world, he adores. Her imperfections are not unknown to +him; he has felt the sting of her long silence, broken only by her +telegram sent at the hour of his triumph in Chicago; yet for all this be +feels his heart throb as quickly as in the old days. + +"O, Harvey, can you forgive me for my heartlessness?" she asks in a +faint whisper. + +"I could not decide against my father that horrid day, when you and he +parted enemies. And after you had departed I was urged by all my family +and friends to put you out of my thoughts; I was told that you had sworn +to be an enemy to all men and women of wealth; that if I were to +communicate with you it would necessitate my disowning all my home ties. +I am only a woman--a woman born to wealth. How could I foretell that you +are not an enemy to the rich, but a true friend of humanity?" + +"Then you know me by my true character and not as I am depicted by the +Plutocrats?" Trueman asks, joyfully. + +He has heard the word "Harvey," and feels the exultation of the lover +who hears his name pronounced in endearing tones by the woman he loves. + +"Yes, I know you as you really are and I have felt the power of your +words; it was not to the mob alone that you spoke. I stood in the shadow +of my father's palace and heard your words. Harvey, you made me feel a +deep pang of sympathy for my fellowmen and women." + +The events of the day have been of such a momentous nature that it is +not strange that Ethel should collapse. She has sustained the shock of +her father's murder; the visitation of the citizens, bent on vengeance; +then the unexpected appearance of Harvey Trueman. + +She clings to her companion's arm, struggling to control her emotions. +When she ceases to speak a great sob escapes her; then she begins to cry +hysterically. + +Trueman cannot bear to hear her heartbreaking sobs. With the impulse of +a father soothing a child he lifts her from the ground, and holding her +in his strong embrace, strides on at the head of the cortege. + +When the town is reached the perfect order of the procession is +preserved. It winds through unfrequented streets to the bridge; crossing +the river it continues until checked by the closed gates of the +cemetery. + +At the sight of so vast an assemblage and at such an unheard of hour, +the gate-keeper flees in terror. Two or three men enter the house to +emerge with the keys of the great gates and a lamp. + +By the fitful rays of this single lamp the movements of the burial party +are conducted. + +"Where shall we bury the bodies?" O'Connor asks Trueman. + +"As near the gates as possible. I should suggest that the grave be dug +in the circle of the main driveway. The grave of Metz and Purdy will +become one of the most famous in Pennsylvania; it should not be put in +an obscure place." + +So the circle is decided upon as the proper place for the common grave +of the millionaire transgressor and the martyr. + +As the throng passes through the gates many of the men seize spades and +picks, implements which they know only too well how to use. + +It does not take twenty minutes to dig the grave. + +When the work is completed, the fact dawns upon the minds of the leaders +that they have neglected to provide a coffin for the bodies. + +"What shall we do for coffins?" one of the grave-diggers asks, as he +smooths over the edges of the grave. + +"Give them soldiers' burial," suggests one of the bystanders. + +"Here, take my shawl," says a shivering woman, as she pulls a thin faded +gray shawl from her shoulders. + +Her suggestion is followed by a score of other trembling wretches. The +strangest shroud that ever wrapped mortal remains is used in the +interment. + +The bodies of Metz and Purdy are still being carried by the miners. Now +a priest who has accompanied the funeral from the time it crossed the +bridge, is escorted through the crowd to the edge of the grave. + +"Will you conduct the burial service over these two bodies?" Trueman +asks of the man of God. + +"Neither was prepared for death," protests the priest. + +"That is all the more reason for your offering up prayers for their +souls." + +"Were they of my faith?" inquires the priest. + +"They are dead now and faith has nothing to do with the matter. We want +you as a Christian to pronounce the words of the burial service over +these bodies." + +"One of these men was a murderer," further protests the priest. + +"Which one?" demands Trueman. + +"They say Mete killed German Purdy," is the response. + +"And a hundred men within call of us will tell you that Gorman Purdy +killed fifty men in his time," retorts a bystander. These words, so +bitter yet so just, would be cruel indeed for the ears of Ethel Purdy; +but she has lapsed into semi-consciousness. Harvey still holds her in +his arms; he seems oblivious of the burden he has borne for more than a +mile and a half. + +"I cannot go through the forms of the church over the grave of these +men," the priest declares emphatically. "It would be a sacrilege. But I +will say a prayer for their departed spirits." + +On the tombs that range in a wide semi-circle from the entrance, the +crowd has taken points of vantage. Those who cannot force their way to +the inner circle about the grave, stand aloof, yet where they can +observe the simple, impressive ceremonies. + +In a thin, querulous voice the prayer is asked. It is such an invocation +as might have been uttered over the remains of two gladiators. Blood is +upon the head of each; the prayer craves forgiveness. As the priest +concludes, the bodies are wrapped in the shawls and lowered into the +grave. + +While the earth is being replaced, Trueman speaks to Ethel. She +partially revives, and seems to understand that her father's body is +being interred. When this thought has been fully grasped she realizes +that she is being supported in Harvey's arms. She makes an instinctive +effort to escape from his clasp; an instant later she looks up into his +face and asks: "You will not leave me?" She pauses. "Give my millions to +the people. I hate the thought of money. Only tell me that you will not +desert me!" + +"No, my darling," comes the whisper, "I shall never be parted from you +again, so long as we live. The priest could not perform the burial +service; he can, however, make us man and wife." + +As he speaks, Harvey places Ethel gently on her feet. + +Standing side by side at the grave which holds victor and vanquished in +the great war for the recovery of the rights of man, Harvey Trueman and +Ethel Purdy present a strange contrast. He is the acknowledged leader of +the plain people; she is the richest woman in America. For him, every +one within reach of his voice has the deepest love and admiration; for +the hapless woman beside him, there is not a man or woman who would turn +a hand to keep her from starving. + +If the men and women of Wilkes-Barre can be made to sanction the union +of Trueman and Ethel Purdy, is there any reason to doubt that the +question of social inequalities can be settled without bloodshed? +Trueman determines to venture his election, his future, his life, to win +the greatest triumph of his career, a wife whom the world despises as +the favorite of fatuous fortune. + +With a voice vibrant with emotion he addresses the multitude. Now by +subtle argument, now by impassioned appeal he pictures the conditions +that made Ethel's life so utterly different from theirs; how it was +impossible for her to sympathize with them when she had known no sorrow, +when her every wish had always been gratified. He pictures her as she +appears before them; a daughter whose father has been stricken, as if by +a blow from Heaven; a woman left friendless; for the friends of +prosperity are never those of adversity. Thus he awakens a feeling of +pity in the hearts of the people for the woman they have so recently +reviled. Pity gives place to love as he tells them that Ethel Purdy +wishes to give to the citizens of Wilkes-Barre the millions that her +father has hoarded; when he concludes by telling them that she is to +become his wife, an acclaim of rejoicing is given. + +The priest, this time without reluctance, pronounces Harvey Trueman and +Ethel Purdy man and wife. + +"Go to your homes, my good brothers and sisters," Trueman counsels, "for +to-morrow you enter upon your inheritance through the speedy channel of +voluntary restoration; you are blessed of all men and women, perhaps, +because you have long been the most grievously sinned against. + +"Let no one commit an act of violence. It is from you that the country +is to take its signal; you have curbed the hand of anarchy. What you +have done will strengthen others to be patient. No one will have to wait +longer than the next election to have wrongs set right." + +The silence that awe induces takes possession of the people. They +disperse quietly to their homes. At two o'clock there is no one on the +streets. + +The Coal and Iron Police, who have been lost in the mountains, enter the +town at that hour to find it, to all appearances, deserted. + +Harvey and Ethel accompany the priest to the parish house, where they +remain for the night. + +All the events of the afternoon and night have been telegraphed abroad. +When morning dawns the people of the country and the world at large read +of the uprising of the miners of Wilkes-Barre, of the attempt to wreck +the train bearing the militia; of the rescue by Sister Martha at the +sacrifice of her life; the stirring scene at the palace and the final +obsequies and marriage ceremonial. All are known to the world. In the +chaotic state of the public mind, this example of reasonable action is +needed. Spread by the power of the pen, it wins man's greatest victory, +a victory of peace. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXI. + +THE NEW ERA. + + +From every section of the country the news of the pending election gives +promise of a victory for the Independence party. The people have +accepted the assurances of Harvey Trueman that he will not countenance +violence on the part of the radical element of either the people or the +Plutocrats. His conspicuous action at Wilkes-Barre is an incontestible +proof of his sincerity, and also demonstrates that the masses are not +desirous of reverting to an appeal to force in order to regain their +rights. If the man whom the public hails as a deliverer can be elected, +all the evils of the Trusts and monopolies, it is believed, can be +settled amicably. + +So strong has the sentiment in favor of the Independence party become, +that for days before the election great parades of the workingmen in the +principal cities celebrate the coming victory of the people. + +Yet the subsidized press maintains a defiant position, and gloomily +predicts that anarchy will prevail upon the announcement of the election +of the Independence party's candidates. + +This foreboding has little or no effect on the minds of the earnest +workers; they are ready to trust their interests to men who have proven +themselves honest champions of right, rather than suffer the bondage +imposed by the Magnates. + +Trueman, since the hour of his marriage, has spent much of his time in +Wilkes-Barre. He decides that it is better for him to guide the closing +days of the campaign from his home. + +After settling the estate of Gorman Purdy, and turning over to the +workingmen the mines, furnaces and breakers that were owned by the late +Coal King, Harvey and his wife go to live in a comfortable villa in the +suburbs. + +By her voluntary surrender of the $160,000,000 which the criminal +practices of Gorman Purdy had amassed, Ethel becomes the idol of the +people, not only of Wilkes-Barre, but of the entire country. She gives +substantial proof of the sincerity of her promise made at the grave of +her father. This act of altruism does much to avert any reaction of the +turbulent elements of the large cities. + +The prospect of regaining the public utilities by purchase and the +establishment of governmental departments to control them in the +interests of the people as a whole, is made bright by the magnificent +example that is furnished by the towns of Pennsylvania. + +Harvey Trueman establishes the leaders of the Unions as the managers of +the mines and breakers. Under his direction the profits of the business +are divided proportionately among all the inhabitants of the town in +which the works are located; those who work receive as their wage +one-half of the net proceeds from the sale of their products. The +remaining fifty per cent, is turned into the public treasury. + +Had the millions of the Purdy fortune been distributed to the people by +a per capita allotment, each man and woman of Wilkes-Barre might have +been made independently rich. But this would defeat the ends which Ethel +and Harvey wish to attain. They desire to see every citizen prosper +according to his or her personal effort. So when every one in +Wilkes-Barre is set to work at a profitable trade or occupation, the +residue of the fortune, some $125,000,000, is used to establish a +similar system of co-operation in neighboring mining districts. + +In the thirty days that intervenes between the acts of annihilation and +the election, two hundred and fifty thousand miners and other operatives +in Pennsylvania are benefiting by the disbursement of the Purdy +millions. This army of prosperous men makes the state certain of going +to the Independents. The electoral votes of the Keystone state, it is +certain, will decide the election. + +As an object lesson which speaks more eloquently than words, Harvey +adopts a suggestion which Sister Martha had made at the opening of the +campaign and which had not been used because of lack of funds. + +Biograph pictures of happy and contented miners in Pennsylvania, under +the co-operative system, showing them at their work and at their decent +homes, surrounded by their families, well fed, and clothed, are obtained +in manifold sets. To contrast with these, there are pictures taken from +the actual scenes in other parts of the country, showing women harnessed +to the plow with oxen; women at work in the shoe factories, the tobacco +factories, the sweat-shops. Pictures of the children who operate the +looms in the cotton mills and the carpet factories are obtained to be +contrasted with those which exhibit children at their proper places in +the school room and on the lawns of the city parks. + +The pomp of the Plutocrats and the destitution of the masses is +portrayed by these striking contrasts. + +With this terrible evidence the Independents carry their crusade into +every city. The principal public squares of the cities are used to +exhibit the biograph pictures. Night after night the crowds congregate +to view the pictorial history of the Plutocratic National Prosperity. +That which arguments cannot do in the way of weaning men from party +prejudice the picture crusade accomplishes. + +One of the side lights of the great drama that is being enacted is the +sentiment that develops for the Committee of Forty. Memorial societies +in the states from which the several committeemen hailed, are formed to +give the martyrs, as the forty are now called, a decent burial. +Thirty-nine of the martyrs are thus honored by public interment. + +The one missing committeeman is William Nevins. He is supposed to be +buried in the wrecked tunnel under the English channel. It is impossible +to repair the damage done by the explosion; futile efforts are made by +sub-marine divers to locate the exact point at which the break in the +tunnel was made. The action of the water has totally obliterated the +breach. So to the public this watery grave must remain the resting place +of the genius who conceived the plan for the restoration of the rights +of man. + +All of the details of the committee come to light through the papers +found on the body of Hendrick Stahl, secretary of the committee. The +fact that Nevins was alone responsible for the plan of annihilation and +that Trueman knew absolutely nothing of it, is incontestibly +established. + +This takes away the last argument of the Plutocrats who seek to connect +Trueman with the act of Proscription. + +And Nevins? What of him? + +He has not kept his pledge to the committee by dying with the +Transgressor who was assigned to him. His pledge to God, to follow the +committee the day after the atonement, has not been kept. + +When October fourteenth dawned, the news of the uprising of the people +of Wilkes-Barre and of the part played by Trueman and Ethel, were read +by Nevins from the cable dispatches at Calais. + +A fear arose in his heart that the plan for the election of Trueman +might fail. He delayed ending his life and hastened to New York. Upon +his arrival he went as a lodger to a room in a lofty Bowery hotel. From +this watch-tower he reviewed the political field. "I shall redeem my +pledge to-morrow," he said to himself each day. + +The night would find him irresolute, not for his fear of death, but for +the dread that some unexpected occurrence might arise to thwart the +people in their effort to carry the election by the peaceable use of the +ballot. + +On the flight before the election Nevins hastens to Chicago. In the +crowd at the Independence Headquarters he mingles unobserved. "What news +have you from California?" he asks of one of the press committee. This +is thought to be the pivotal State. At least this is the claim made by +the Plutocrats. + +"The indications are that the State will go against us." + +"And why so?" + +"Because we have not been able to send speakers there, and the +Plutocrats wrecked the train which was conveying the biograph pictures. +You know the Press of the slope, with but few exceptions, are owned by +the Magnates and suppress every bit of news that would be detrimental to +them. They have distorted the acts of the Committee of Forty. Out in +California the great mass of the people look upon the Independents as a +party of Anarchists." + +"Trueman can be elected without California, can he not?" + +"Elected! Why, he will carry forty States." + +"You really believe it?" asks Nevins, earnestly. + +"I would wager my life on it," is the instant reply. + +Nevins hurries from the headquarters and goes to his room. He writes a +letter to Trueman, setting forth his hopes that the interests of the +people will ever remain Trueman's actuating principle. With absolute +fidelity he tells of the struggle he has undergone since the day he sent +Golding to his death, and his reason for procrastinating in ending his +life. + +When the letter is finished Nevins reads it with evident satisfaction. + +"Now I will go to the committee," is his resolve. + +A pistol lies on the table. He picks up the weapon. There is no +hesitancy in his manner. Death has been a matter which he has +contemplated for months, and it holds no terror for him. + +"If I have sinned against Thee, O, God," he murmurs, "death would be too +mild a punishment for me. I would deserve to be everlastingly damned, to +live on this earth and bear the denunciation of my fellowmen. + +"My death, like those of the committee who have already fulfilled their +pledge, is not suicide, but part of the inevitable price of liberty." + +The pistol is raised to his temple. Then a thought flashes upon him. +"Your death will come as an ante-climax to the election. It may be the +means of defeating the Independents." + +This thought causes him to lower the pistol. + +"To-morrow," he mutters. + +At daybreak Nevins is at the headquarters and remains near the chief +operator, eager for every detail of the election. + +"What is the weather prediction?" he inquires. + +"Generally clear; light local rains on Pacific seaboard." + +"I am most intensely interested in the result of the election," Nevins +confided to the operator, to explain his presence at headquarters. "I +have come all the way from San Francisco to congratulate Trueman on his +election." + +"I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. Mr. Trueman is at his home in +Wilkes-Barre." + +"Well, I shall telegraph him my congratulations. I want to be the first +man in the United States to send him an authoritative message confirming +his election. If you can arrange to let me have the news first, when it +comes in, and will send my message, I shall be glad to pay you for the +service." + +"I have the wire that will send him the news," the operator states as he +pats a transmitter on the desk before him. "What do you call a fair +payment for the message?" + +"Twenty-five dollars." + +"I'll send your message." + +Nevins gives the required sum, and sits at the elbow of the man who is +to flash the news of victory to Trueman. + +In Wilkes-Barre the day has dawned auspiciously. Trueman is among the +first to perform his duty as a citizen. After voting he returns to his +home. + +With his wife at his side he reads the dispatches that come in by a +private wire from headquarters. + +"I am happier to-day than I ever was in my life before," Ethel tells +him. "And I know that you will be elected." + +"I hope your words come true. But whether I am President or not my +campaign has not been in vain. I have won the fairest bride in the +world, and she and I are doing a real good with a fortune that might +have been a curse." + +"Now I can understand the words that are a mystery to so many of the +rich: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive,'" Ethel says, as she +places her hand on her husband's shoulder. "Now I can appreciate the +emotion that impelled you to give the one thousand dollar check to the +miner's widow." As they sit together, through the long day, they discuss +what they will do for the improvement of the people, there is no +provision for the repayment of anti-election promises to the managers of +trusts; no talk of rewarding henchmen with high offices. + +By five in the afternoon the messages begin to announce the forecast in +the extreme Eastern states. + +"Rhode Island has polled the largest vote in its history. The +Independence Party claims the state by fifteen thousand." Harvey reads +this with an incredulous smile. + +"We can hardly hope to carry Rhode Island," he declares frankly. + +"You told me only yesterday that Fall River is going wild over the +biograph pictures," Ethel protests. + +"The rural vote in Maine is believed to have caused the state to go to +the Independents," is the next message that causes Harvey to doubt his +senses. + +"New Jersey washes its hands of trusts. Trueman carries Newark, Trenton, +and Jersey City by overwhelming majorities." + +Thus the story of state after state is wired to Wilkes-Barre. + +"Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio are claimed to have voted for the people's +candidate. The Plutocrats ridicule the assertion, yet have no figures to +quote." + +At nine o'clock the returns by election districts in the populous +cities, begin to arrive. + +"In 1238 districts, Greater New York, Trueman leads by a clear majority +of 75,000." Harvey reads without comment. + +Ten minutes later, this message is received: "Total of 2200 election +districts, Greater New York, Trueman's majority 180,000. This makes the +state Independent by a safe margin of 100,000." + +Harvey Trueman feels for the first time since his nomination that he +will be elected. Joy is written on his face. + +"Pennsylvania casts its vote for Trueman and co-operation." + +It is eleven-thirty. The proverbial "landslide" of politics has +occurred. Already the townspeople of Wilkes-Barre are surging about the +villa, cheering their champion. + +A dozen times Harvey goes to the window to bow his acknowledgments. + +Ethel is excited, almost hysterical. With a woman's quick perception she +realizes that her husband has triumphed. + +Again they stand at the elbow of the telegraph operator who is receiving +the messages. + +"Chicago--" then there was a break. + +"Trueman, have Trueman come to the instrument. Answer. Is Trueman at +your elbow?" This message is sent by the operator at headquarters. He +has indicated that it is a private message and only the word Chicago is +written. + +"What's the matter?" asks Trueman, who has noticed the pause. + +"It's all right, sir; the operator want's you to get this message +immediately." There is another pause. + + CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, + INDEPENDENCE PARTY HEADQUARTERS. + + To HARVEY TRUEMAN, Greeting: + + "You are elected President of the United States by popular + acclamation of forty States. I congratulate you. Keep your + faith with the people; place them always above the dollar; + remember that your office was bought by the blood of patriots, + as true as the founders of the Republic; that you owe it to the + majority to keep their rights inviolate. I go to inform the + Committee of Forty that the Revolution of Reason is victorious. + + WILLIAM NEVINS." + +As Trueman reads these words and grasps their meaning, Nevins, at the +other end of the wire, in distant Chicago, redeems his pledge and drops +dead. + +The curtain falls on the Tragedy of Life. The struggle for mere +existence that has retarded mankind from creation, is at an end. Man +enters into possession of his God-given inheritance, _equal +opportunity_, with a valiant leader, and the fairest land in the world +in which to begin the building up of a Republic that insures to all men +Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Transgressors, by Francis A. Adams + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TRANSGRESSORS *** + +***** This file should be named 14633.txt or 14633.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/1/4/6/3/14633/ + +Produced by Robert Shimmin, Jennifer Collins and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team. + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +https://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at https://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit https://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including including checks, online payments and credit card +donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/old/14633.zip b/old/14633.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..675206d --- /dev/null +++ b/old/14633.zip |