Gregory smiled;undertook,as delicately as possible,to convey to Mr.
Greenhalge the ways of the world,and of the political world in particular,wherein,it seemed,everyone was a good fellow.Mr.
Greenhalge was evidently a good fellow,and didn't want to make trouble over little things.No,Mr.Greenhalge didn't want to make trouble;he appreciated a comfortable life as much as Mr.Gregory;he told the district attorney a funny story which might or might not have had an application to the affair,and took his leave with the remark that he had been happy to make Mr.Gregory's acquaintance.On his departure the district attorney's countenance changed.He severely rebuked a subordinate for some trivial mistake,and walked as rapidly as he could carry his considerable weight to Monahan's saloon....One of the things Mr.Gregory had pointed out incidentally was that Mr.Greenhalge's evidence was vague,and that a grand jury wanted facts,which might be difficult to obtain.Mr.Greenhalge,thinking over the suggestion,sent for Krebs.In the course of a month or two the investigation was accomplished,Greenhalge went back to Gregory;who repeated his homilies,whereupon he was handed a hundred or so typewritten pages of evidence.
It was a dramatic moment.
Mr.Gregory resorted to pleading.He was sure that Mr.Greenhalge didn't want to be disagreeable,it was true and unfortunate that such things were so,but they would be amended:he promised all his influence to amend them.The public conscience,said Mr.Gregory,was being aroused.
Now how much better for the party,for the reputation,the fair name of the city if these things could be corrected quietly,and nobody indicted or tried!Between sensible and humane men,wasn't that the obvious way?
After the election,suit could be brought to recover the money.But Mr.
Greenhalge appeared to be one of those hopeless individuals without a spark of party loyalty;he merely continued to smile,and to suggest that the district attorney prosecute.Mr.Gregory temporized,and presently left the city on a vacation.A day or two after his second visit to the district attorney's office Mr.Greenhalge had a call from the city auditor and the purchasing agent,who talked about their families,--which was very painful.It was also intimated to Mr.Greenhalge by others who accosted him that he was just the man for mayor.He smiled,and modestly belittled his qualifications....
Suddenly,one fine morning,a part of the evidence Krebs had gathered appeared in the columns of the Mail and State,a new and enterprising newspaper for which the growth and prosperity of our city were responsible;the sort of "revelations"that stirred to amazement and wrath innocent citizens of nearly every city in our country:politics and "graft"infesting our entire educational system,teachers and janitors levied upon,prices that took the breath away paid to favoured firms for supplies,specifications so worded that reasonable bids were barred.The respectable firm of Ellery and Knowles was involved.In spite of our horror,we were Americans and saw the humour of the situation,and laughed at the caricature in the Mail and State representing a scholar holding up a pencil and a legend under it,"No,it's not gold,but it ought to be."Here I must enter into a little secret history.Any affair that threatened the integrity of Mr.Jason's organization was of serious moment to the gentlemen of the financial world who found that organization invaluable and who were also concerned about the fair name of their community;a conference in the Boyne Club decided that the city officials were being persecuted,and entitled therefore to "the very best of counsel,"--in this instance,Mr.Hugh Paret.It was also thought wise by Mr.Dickinson,Mr.Gorse,and Mr.Grierson,and by Mr.Paret himself that he should not appear in the matter;an aspiring young attorney,Mr.
Arbuthnot,was retained to conduct the case in public.Thus capital came to the assistance of Mr.Jason,a fund was raised,and I was given carte blanche to defend the miserable city auditor and purchasing agent,both of whom elicited my sympathy;for they were stout men,and rapidly losing weight.Our first care was to create a delay in the trial of the case in order to give the public excitement a chance to die down.For the public is proverbially unable to fix its attention for long on one object,continually demanding the distraction that our newspapers make it their business to supply.Fortunately,a murder was committed in one of our suburbs,creating a mystery that filled the "extras"for some weeks,and this was opportunely followed by the embezzlement of a considerable sum by the cashier of one of our state banks.Public interest was divided between baseball and the tracking of this criminal to New Zealand.
