ial subtlety, backed indeed by his financial
genius, but certainly on this account not worse than that being
practiced in peace and quiet and with much applause in many other
quarters--was now seen to be Machiavellian trickery of the most
dangerous type. He had a wife and two children; and without knowing what
his real thoughts had been the fruitfully imaginative public jumped
to the conclusion that he had been on the verge of deserting them,
divorcing Lillian, and marrying Aileen. This was criminal enough
in itself, from the conservative point of view; but when taken in
connection with his financial record, his trial, conviction, and general
bankruptcy situation, the public was inclined to believe that he was all
the politicians said he was. He ought to be convicted. The Supreme
Court ought not to grant his prayer for a new trial. It is thus that
our inmost thoughts and intentions burst at times via no known material
agency into public thoughts. People know, when they cannot
apparently possibly know why they know. There is such a thing as
thought-transference and transcendentalism of ideas.

It reached, for one thing, the ears of the five judges of the State
Supreme Court and of the Governor of the State.

During the four weeks Cowperwood had been free on a certificate of
reasonable doubt both Harper Steger and Dennis Shannon appeared before
the judges of the State Supreme Court, and argued pro and con as to the
reasonableness of granting a new trial. Through his lawyer, Cowperwood
made a learned appeal to the Supreme Court judges, showing how he
had been unfairly indicted in the first place, how there was no real
substantial evidence on which to base a charge of larceny or anything
else. It took Steger two hours and ten minutes to make his argument,
and District-Attorney Shannon longer to make his reply, during which the
five judges on the bench, men of considerable legal experience but no
great financial understanding, listened with rapt attention. Three of
them, Judges Smithson, Rainey, and Beckwith, men most amenable to the
political feeling of the time and the wishes of the bosses, were little
interested in this story of Cowperwood's transaction, particularly since
his relations with Butler's daughter and Butler's consequent opposition
to him had come to them. They fancied that in a way they were
considering the whole matter fairly and impartially; but the manner in
which Cowperwood had treated Butler was never o