or
accusing him that he is talking wild, in especially as he now admits
that when he said all the departments of the government had broken down,
y'understand, what he really meant was that the War Department had
broken down. His word should not be questioned, or, in effect, that when
a Senator presents a statement, the terms he is entitled to are
seventy-five per cent. discount for facts."

"Some of 'em needs a hundred per cent.," Morris said, "but that ain't
here nor there, Abe. This war is bigger than Mr. Chamberlain's
reputation, even as big as Mr. Chamberlain thinks it is, and it don't
make no difference to us how many speeches Mr. Roosevelt makes or what
Senator Stone calls him or he calls Senator Stone. Furthermore, Senator
Penrose, Senator McKellar, and this here Hitchcock can also volunteer to
police the game, Abe, but when it comes right _to_ it, y'understand,
every one of them fellers is just a _Kibbitzer_, the same like these
nuisances that sit around a Second Avenue coffee-house and give free
advice to the pinochle-players--all they can see is the cards which has
been played, and as for the cards which is still remaining in Mr.
Wilson's hand, they don't know no more about it than you or I do."

"And the only kick they've got, after all," Abe said, "is that President
Wilson won't expose his hand, which if he did, Mawruss, he might just so
well throw the game to Germany and be done with it."

"So you see, Abe, them fellers, including Mr. Roosevelt, is willing to
let no personal modesty stand in the way of a plain patriotic duty, at
least so far as thirty-three and a third per cent. of his answer was
concerned. But at that, it wouldn't do him no good, Abe, because, owing
to what Mr. Roosevelt maintains is an oversight at the time the
Constitution of the United States was fixed up 'way back in the year
seventeen seventy-six, y'understand, the President of the United States
was appointed the Commander-in-chief to run the United States army and
navy, and also the President was otherwise mentioned several other
times, but you could read the Constitution backward and forward, from
end to end, and the word ex-President ain't so much as hinted at,
y'understand."

"Evidencely they thought that an ex-President would be willing to stay
ex," Abe suggested.

"But Mr. Roosevelt ain't," Morris said. "All that he wanted from Mr.
Wilson was a little encouragement to take some small, insignificant part
in this war, Abe, a