Part 44 (1/2)

Up town in Harvey, the ants also were busy. The company was sending men over Market Street, picking out the few individuals who owned vacant lots, leasing them for the month and preparing to justify the placarding and patrolling that already had been done. One of the ants that went hurrying out of the Sands hill on this errand, was John Kollander, and after he had seen Wright & Perry and the few other merchants who owned South Harvey real estate, he encountered Captain Ezra Morton, who happened to have a vacant lot, given to the Captain in the first flush of the South Harvey boom, in return for some service to Daniel Sands.

John Kollander explained his errand to the Captain, who nodded wisely, and stroked his goatee meditatively.

”I got to think it over,” he bawled, and walked away, leaving John Kollander puzzled and dismayed. But Captain Morton spent no time in academic debate. In half an hour he was in South Harvey, climbing the stairs of the Vanderbilt House, and knocking at Grant Adams's door.

Throwing open the door Grant found Captain Morton, standing to attention with a shotgun in his hands. The Captain marched in, turned a square corner to a chair, but slumped into it with a relieved sigh.

”Well, Grant--I heard your speech this morning to the Merchants'

a.s.sociation. You're crazy as a bed bug--eh? That's what I told 'em all.

And then they said to let you go to it--you couldn't get a hall, and the company could keep you off the lots all over the Valley, and if you tried to speak on the streets they'd run you in--what say?” His old eyes snapped with some virility, and he lifted up his voice and cried:

”But 'y gory--is that the way to do a man, I says? No--why, that ain't free speech! I remember when they done Garrison and Lovejoy and those old boys that way before the war. I fit, bled and died for that, Grant--eh? And I says to the girls this noon: 'Girls--your pa's got a lot in South Harvey, over there next to the Red Dog saloon, that he got way back when they were cheap, and now that the company's got all their buildings up and don't want to buy any lots--why, they're cheaper still--what say?'

”And 'y gory, I says to the girls--'If your ma was living I know what she'd say. She'd say, ”You just go over there and tell that Adams boy that lot's hisn, and if any one tries to molest him, you blow 'em to h.e.l.l”--that's what your ma'd say'--only words to that effect--eh? And so by the jumping John Rogers, Grant--here I am!”

He looked at the shotgun. ”One load's bird shot--real fine and soft, with a small charge of powder.” He put his hand to his mouth sheepishly and added apologetically, ”I suppose I won't need it,--but I just put the blamedest load of buck shot and powder in that right barrel you ever saw--what say?”

Grant said: ”Well, Captain--this isn't your fight. You don't believe in what I'm talking about--you've proved your patriotism in a great war.

Don't get into this, Captain.”

”Grant Adams,” barked the Captain as if he were drilling his company, ”I believe if you're not a Socialist, you're just as bad. But 'y gory, I fought for the right of free speech, and free meetings, and Socialist or no Socialist, that's your right. I'm going to defend you on my own lot.”

He rose again, straightened up in rheumatic pain, marched to the door, saluted, and said:

”I brought my supper along with me. It's in my coat pocket. I'm going over to the lot and sit there till you come. I know this cla.s.s of people down here. They ain't worth h.e.l.l room, Grant,” admonished the Captain earnestly. ”But if I'm not there, the company will crowd their men in on that lot as sure as guns, when they know you are to meet there. And I'm going there to guard it till you come. Good day--sir.”

And with that he thumped limpingly down the narrow stairs, across the little landing, out of the door and into the street.

Grant stood at the top of the stairs and watched him out of sight. Then Grant pulled himself together, and went out to see the gathering members of the Labor Council in the hotel office and the men of Local No. 10 to announce the place of meeting. Later in the afternoon he met Nathan Perry. When he told Nathan of the meeting, the young man cried in his rasping Yankee voice:

”Good--you're no piker. They said they had scared the filling out of you at the meeting this morning, and they've bragged they were going to beat you up this afternoon and kill you to-night. You look pretty husky--but watch out. They really are greatly excited.”

”Well,” replied Grant grimly, ”I'll be there to-night.”

”Nevertheless,” returned Nathan, snapping off his words as though he was cutting them with steel scissors, ”Anne and I agreed to-day, that I must come to Mrs. Williams's and take you to the meeting. They may get ugly after dark.”

Half an hour later on the street, Grant was pa.s.sing his cousin Anne, wheeling Daniel Kyle Perry out to take the air. He checked his hurried step when he caught her smile and said, ”Well, Anne, Nate told me that you wish to send him over to the meeting to-night, as my body guard. I don't need a body guard, and you keep Nate at home.” He smiled down on his cousin and for a moment all of the emotional storm in his face was melted by the gentleness of that smile. ”Anne,” he said--”what a brick you are!”

She laughed and gave him the full voltage of her joyous eyes and answered:

”Grant, I'd rather be the widow of a man who would stand by you and what you are doing, than to be the wife of a man who shrank from it.” She lowered her voice, ”And Grant, here's a curious thing: this second Mrs.

Van Dorn called me up on the phone a little bit ago, and said she knew you and I were cousins and that you and Nate were such friends, but would I tell Nate to keep you away from any meeting to-night? She said she couldn't tell me, but she had just learned some perfectly awful things they were going to do, and she didn't want to see any trouble.

Wasn't that queer?”

Grant shook his head. ”Well, what did you say?” he asked.

”Oh, I said that while they were doing such perfectly awful things to you, your friends wouldn't be making lace doilies! And she rang off.

What do you think of it?” she asked.

”Just throwing a scare into me--under orders,” responded the man and hurried on.