Hungrily, ravenously they were feeding or the meagre
bulletins of news.
Yet back of all the noise and human energy I could only think of the
silent, systematic gathering and editing of the news. High up in
the League headquarters, when we returned, a corps of clerks was
tabulating returns, comparing official and semi-official reports.
As first the state swung one way, then another, our hopes rose and
fell. Miss Ashton seemed cold and ill at ease, while Travis looked
more worried and paid less attention to the returns than would have
seemed natural. She avoided him and he seemed to hesitate to seek
her out.
Would the up-state returns, I had wondered at first, be large enough
to overcome the hostile city vote? I was amazed now to see how
strongly the city was turning to Travis.
"McLoughlin has kept his word," ejaculated Kennedy as district after
district showed that the Boss's pluralities were being seriously cut
into. "His word? What do you mean?" we asked almost together.
"I mean that he has kept his word given to me at a conference which
Mr. Jameson saw but did not hear. I told him I would publish the
whole thing, not caring whom or where or when it hit if he did
not let up on Travis. I advised him to read his Revised Statutes
again about money in elections, and I ended up with the threat,
'There will be no dough day, McLoughlin, or this will be prosecuted
to the limit.
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