XVII
Two days later, while Douglas Briggs was smoking his after-dinner cigar in the library and chatting with Fanny Wallace, whose presence in the house greatly relieved the embarrassment of his strained relations with his wife, Michael entered and announcedMr.Farley. “There are two gentlemen with him, sir,” said Michael, “Mr.De Witt andMr.Saunders.”
Briggs flushed. “Ah!” he said, as if the callers had suddenly assumed importance in his eyes.
“Where are they?” he asked, rising hastily.
“In the study, sir.”
“All right. I’ll go in.”
“Give my love to that niceMr.Farley,” Fanny called after him.
As Briggs entered the room Farley rose with the boyish embarrassment of manner that years of newspaper work had not changed. He introduced his friends. De Witt, a tall, slim young man, with a sweeping brown mustache and a long,well-cut face, took his host’s hand smilingly. Saunders, shorter, smooth-faced and keen-eyed, glanced at Briggs with a look not altogether free from suspicion. In Saunders Briggs recognized a type of political reformer that always made him nervous.
“De Witt and Saunders are of the Citizens’ Club,” Farley explained. “In fact, we’re all of the Citizens’ Club,” he added, with the air of making a joke.
“I’m very glad to see you, gentlemen. Won’t you sit down? I caught a glimpse of you at the reporters’ table at the caucus the other night, Farley.”
“Hot time, wasn’t it?”
Briggs took from the table a box of cigars, which he offered to his callers. De Witt and Saunders shook their heads and mumbled thanks. Farley took a cigar and smoked with his host.
“Well, Congressman,” said Farley, “we haven’t come merely to take up your time.”
Briggs smiled and nodded.
“We’ve come to ask you some questions,” Farley continued.
“You always were great on questions, Farley,” said Briggs, with a laugh.
“We’ve been having a racket over you down at the Citizens’ Club,” Farley began, and Briggs glanced smilingly at De Witt and Saunders.
“Farley has made the racket,” Saunders interposed.
“I’ve been trying to persuade those fellows that you’re a much misunderstood man,” said Farley, his manner growing more earnest.
“So we’ve come here to try to understand you, Congressman,” De Witt explained, amiably.
Douglas Briggs continued to look amused. “Anything I can do, gentlemen,” he said, with an encouraging gesture.
“I know I needn’t tell you that I’ve always believed in you, Congressman,” Farley remarked.
“You’ve been a good friend, Farley. I’ve always appreciated that.”
Farley leaned back in his chair. “The fellows have been—well, bothered by those stories the papers have been publishing about you. It’s because they don’t know you. They don’t know, as I do, that you’re incapable of any dirty work.”
“Thank you, Farley,” said Briggs, in a low voice.
“Well, matters came to a head last night at the club when we talked over your renomination. Tobe perfectly frank, a good many of our men thought Williams was going to get the nomination, and, if he had got it, we were going to make him our candidate, too.”
Douglas Briggs laughed. “Youarefrank, Farley. So, now that I have the nomination, you’re all at sea. Is that the idea?”
“We can’t stand the opposition candidate!” said De Witt.
Saunders shook his head. “No; Bruce is too much for our stomachs. He’s out of the question altogether.”
“So we’ll have to choose between endorsing you or putting up a candidate of our own,” Farley went on. “In fact, that is what most of the men want to do.”
“You want to help to elect Bruce, you mean?” said Briggs, pleasantly.
“That’s what it would amount to,” De Witt acknowledged.
Briggs hesitated. “Gentlemen, you are placing me in a very delicate position,” he said at last. “What can I do?”
“You can give my friends here some assurances, Congressman,” said Farley.
“What assurances?”
“In the first place, you can give us your word that those stories in the opposition papers are false.”
Briggs rose slowly from his seat. His face grew pale. After a long silence, he said: “Farley, do you remember what I said to you last Spring, when you asked me to deny those stories? I said they were too contemptible to be noticed!”
Farley looked disappointed. “Then you won’t help us? You won’t help me in the fight I’ve been making for you?”
“Gentlemen,” Douglas Briggs went on, speaking slowly and impressively, “I know perfectly well what you are driving at, and I’m going to try to meet you halfway. But I’m a man as well as a politician, and you can’t blame me if I resent being placed on the rack like a criminal. However, I appreciate your motives in coming here, and I’m grateful to Farley for all he’s done for me. Let me say this, once for all: If I am elected I shall go back to Congress with clean hands and with a clear conscience, ready to do my duty wherever I see it. Within the past few months my relations with Franklin West have been the subject of newspaper talk. West has been mypersonal friend. I have trusted him and respected him. Lately I have discovered that he is a scoundrel. He is coming here this morning, and I shall give myself the pleasure of telling him so. Now, gentlemen, if you honor me with an endorsement, I pledge my word that you will find me in perfect sympathy with the work you’re doing.” He stopped, his lips tightening. “I confess that I shouldn’t have the courage to say these things, to humble myself like this, but for this good fellow here. I only wish there were more like him.”
Farley smiled. “Well, Congressman, I knew you’d see through West some day.”
“Now, gentlemen, you have asked me for some assurances,” Briggs continued. “I might as well tell you frankly that I can only give you the assurance of my good faith, of my honesty of intention. I’ve made blunders in my career so far that I shall regret to my dying day. I’ve been the target of the sensational newspapers; but I don’t mind that. Many of the stories printed about me, I can honestly say, have been absolute calumnies. Some of the censure has been deserved. I suppose that the lesson of politics can’t be learned in a day. At any rate, it has taken me severalbitter years to learn it, and I’m not sure that I’ve learned it all yet. But no matter how great my mistakes have been, in my heart I’ve always been in sympathy with clean politics. You know as well as I do that for the past few years I’ve been getting farther and farther away from my party. The other night I secured my nomination in the teeth of pretty strenuous opposition. Just now I have reason to believe that in the coming campaign I shall have to meet as enemies men who have been my strongest friends. As you probably know, a good many of my East Side supporters have gone back on me. This means a big loss. Even with the strength you might give me, my election would be doubtful. So, if you support me, you’ll gain very little for yourselves, I can tell you that. We might as well look the situation in the face, you know.”
“Well, sir, the more enemies you make among the machine men the more willing we are to stand by you, Congressman,” said Farley. “The harder the fight the better we like it.”
“That’s very consoling, Farley. Only you fellows had better go slow before you decide to try to whitewash me. To tell the truth, I don’t feel quite fit for your company. I’m not good enoughfor you. I’ve been a good deal of a machine man myself, you know.”
Farley laughed. “That’s all right. We haven’t any objections to the machine. We only object to the men who are running it just at present.”
“I don’t think it’s necessary to keep you on the rack any longer,” said De Witt, rising.
The others rose too.
“Thank you,” said Briggs, with a smile. “Will any of you gentlemen have a—? I always hesitate in asking any members of the Citizens’ Club.”
“No, thank you,” said Saunders. “Too early in the morning.”
The others shook their heads.
“You’ll probably hear from us before long,” said Farley, at the door.