"JUST THE MAN WE NEED"
As Bud Haines returned from young Langdon's room, where he had left
the latter in bed, with a towel filled with cracked ice around his
head, he saw two familiar figures standing in a secluded corner of the
lobby. They were talking earnestly in a low voice.
"Whew!" whistled the newspaper man. "It must be something important
that brings both the boss of the Senate and Stevens of Mississippi
here."
"Good-afternoon, Haines. How are you?" Senator Stevens said,
cordially, as, looking up, he saw the newspaper man approaching.
"Senator Peabody, you know Haines, don't you? The brightest young
correspondent in Washington."
Senator Peabody of Pennsylvania, the leading power in the upper house,
was a man of commanding character and of strong personality. The
fact he used these attributes to advance in the Senate the financial
interests of himself, of Standard Steel and other commercial
organizations met with very little protest in Washington. That he
deserved the title frequently used in referring to him, "boss of the
Senate," none would deny who had knowledge of the inner workings of
the Senate and the various committees.
Senator Peabody was very affable to the reporters, especially to those
of Haines' stamp, who had never accepted any favors from him and who
opposed his methods. He aimed to win the friendship of these opponents
by diplomacy--as he had found that reporters of the Haines sort could
not be influenced by money. He considered a reporter who would take
a bribe as a constructive, conservative member of society, and
frequently regretted that so many of the correspondents sent to
Washington could not be bought nor had bills they wanted passed or
defeated. He extended his hand to Haines as Stevens concluded and
said, warmly:
"Of course I know the representative of the _Morning Star_! How do you
do, Haines?"
"I wonder if we're not all here on the same errand," suggested the
newspaper man.
Senator Peabody appeared to be all candor.
"We came to call on Senator Langdon, Senator Stevens' new colleague,"
he said.
Bud Haines opened his eyes wide. "By Jove! Langdon stock is going up
when the chairman of the naval committee drops in to welcome him."
"You see, Langdon went in on a naval base platform," explained
Stevens. "Our section of the South is red hot in favor of the
Government spending its naval base appropriation right there."
"Certainly," interrupted Haines, "but--"
"And, there being a vacancy on the committee on naval affairs,"
continued Stevens, whose dignity was offended by the reporter's
interruption, "the friends of Senator Langdon are working to have him
appointed on that committee, because he comes from the State where the
naval base will be located and will, like myself, be more familiar
with the availability of the various sites suggested than a man from
another State."
Haines nodded.
"Yes, of course. What town's going to get it, Senator?"
Senator Stevens paused judiciously.
"Well," he said, "Altacoola and Gulf City are the chief candidates. I
suppose you had better talk to Langdon about it."
The reporter smiled.
"That's just what I came for, Senator, but I have to go up to the War
Department now. When Senator Langdon comes will you be kind enough to
tell him I want to interview him?"
Stevens bowed cordially.
"Indeed I shall. I'll tell him he's in luck to have the smartest young
man in Washington on the job."
"All right," laughed Bud, "only don't make it so strong that he won't
recognize me when he sees me. Good-day." And he hurried away to keep a
belated appointment.
"Clever boy," said Stevens as the newspaper man disappeared.
The boss of the Senate agreed.
"Yes, only I'm not sure it's a good thing for a newspaper man to be
too clever. Spoils his usefulness. Makes him ask too many confounded
questions."
Stevens acquiesced, for it would never do to disagree with the boss.
"It's very kind of you, Senator," he began, changing the subject, "to
come with me to welcome the new Senator from my State, my old friend
and colleague."
An inscrutable smile--a smile, yet a cold one--accompanied Peabody's
answer.
"I have always found, Stevens," he said, "that a little attention
like this to a new man is never wasted, and I make it a rule not to
overlook opportunities."
Again the senior Senator from Mississippi acquiesced, and he laughed
heartily at Peabody's keen insight into human nature.
"I think you'll like Langdon," Stevens remarked after a pause, "and
you'll find him easy to deal with. Just put up any measure for the
benefit of the South and Langdon will go the limit on it. Even a
Republican majority doesn't mind a little Democratic support, you
know. I think he's just the man you can use in this gulf naval base
bill."
"You can swing him?" asked Peabody, sharply.
Stevens drew closer to Peabody.
"I elected him, and he knows it," he chuckled.
The boss nodded.
"And it's likely that a man like Langdon, new to politics--a simple
gentleman of the old school, as you describe him--might have
considerable influence on opinion throughout the country."
Langdon's colleague grasped the arm of the senatorial dictator.
"He's just the man we want, Senator. He's one of those old fellows you
just have to believe when he talks. He'll do what I suggest, and he
can make the public believe what we think."
"Then you guarantee him?" snapped the boss.
"Unreservedly, Senator."
"All right," said Peabody. "He goes on the naval committee. That ought
to be enough honor for a man who a year ago was growing cotton on an
old plantation miles away from civilization."
"We have control now of all the land about Altacoola that can be
used," said Stevens. "I have had Norton, the Congressman from
Langdon's district, working on it. There isn't a foot of land there
which we do not now control under options, and," he added, with a
chuckle, "the options were dirt cheap."
Peabody grunted approvingly.
"There won't be any New York fortune in it, but it ought to be
a pretty tidy bit," he said. "Now, if we could only get Langdon
interested, directly or indirectly, in a financial way, that would
clinch everything."
The senior Senator from Mississippi shook his head.
"It's too risky. He's old-fashioned, you know--has about as much idea
about practical politics as--well, as we have of the Golden Rule. Fact
is, he rather lives by that antiquated standard. That's where we get
him. He owes everything to me, you see, so naturally he'll do anything
I want him to. By the way, there's Norton now. Perhaps he can tell us
something."
"Call him over," said Peabody.
Norton had been strolling about the lobby, hoping to be noticed. The
flame had lured the moth, and it liked the manner of the singeing. The
Congressman hurried precipitately across at Stevens' summons.
"I've been wanting to speak to you, gentlemen," said Norton, full of
the good trick he had turned, "but I didn't like to interrupt you. I
think I've done a big stroke for Altacoola to-day."
Even Peabody pricked up his ears.
"Yes?" said both Senators together.
With a keen sense of the dramatic, the Congressman let his next words
drawl out with full effect.
"I've got Senator Langdon interested--financially interested," he
said.
His two hearers exchanged a significant glance.
"How?" asked Peabody, sharply.
Norton smiled shrewdly.
"Well, I just let his son invest $50,000 of the Senator's money in
Altacoola land. That ought to help some."
Stevens stared in amazement at his Congressman, his eyes threatening
to bulge out of his head.
"What!" he gasped. "You got Langdon's money in Altacoola, through his
son?"
"I sure have, Senator," chuckled Norton. "He's in to the extent of
fifty thousand, and I've promised that the fifty shall make a hundred
by spring."
"It'll make three hundred thousand at least," snapped Peabody.
"Norton, you've done a good day's work. By the way, a New York client
of mine has a little business that I cannot attend to handily. Doesn't
involve much work, and a young, hustling lawyer like you ought to take
charge of it easily. The fee, I should say, would be about $10,000.
Have you the time to undertake it?"
The Congressman drew a long breath. His eyes beamed with gratitude.
"I should say I have, Senator. Of course, it won't interfere with any
of my duties as a Congressman."
Peabody smiled.
"Of course not, Norton. I see that your sense of humor is improving.
If convenient, run over to New York the last of the week. I'll give
you a card. My client's office is at 10 Broadway."
The ruler of the Senate nodded a curt dismissal.
"Thank you, Senator; thank you very much." And Norton bowed and left,
rejoicing.
Peabody turned to Stevens.
"You see, even a Congressman can be useful sometimes," remarked
Stevens, dryly.
"Keep your eye on that young man, Stevens. He's the most valuable
Congressman we've had from your State in a long while. Does just what
he is told and doesn't ask any fool questions. This was good work.
Langdon's on the naval committee now sure. Come, Stevens; let's go to
some quiet corner in the smoking-room. I want to talk to you about
something else the Standard has on hand for you to do."
Hardly had they departed from the lobby when resounding commotion at
the entrance, followed by the rushing of porters and bellboys and
an expectant pose on the part of the clerk, indicated that the new
Senator from Mississippi had arrived.