ssible while getting it; but he had his own work to
do, and to that his power was devoted. To make a telling speech upon the
winning side was one of his plans, and accordingly he made it.

When the bill was reported as it had been drafted by his friends in New
York, it had been arranged that Mr. Newt should catch the speaker's eye.
His figure and face attracted attention, and his career in Washington had
already made him somewhat known. During the time he had been there his
constant employment had been a study of the House and of its individual
members, as well as of the general character and influence of the
speeches. His shrewdness showed him the shallows, the currents, and
the reefs. Day after day he saw a great many promising plans, like
full-sailed ships, ground upon the flats of dullness, strike rocks of
prejudice, or whirl in the currents of crudity, until they broke up and
went down out of sight.

He rose, and his first words arrested attention. He treated the House
with consummate art, as he might have treated a woman whom he wished to
persuade. The House was favorably inclined before. It was resolved when
he sat down. For he had shown so clearly that it was one of the cases in
which patriotism and generosity--the finer feelings and only a moderate
expense--were all one, that the majority, who were determined to pass the
Grant in any case, were charmed to have the action so imposingly stated;
and the minority, who knew that it was useless to oppose it, enjoyed the
rhetoric of the speech, and, as it was brief, and did not encroach upon
dinner-time, smiled approval, and joined in the congratulation to Mr.
Newt upon his very eloquent and admirable oration.

In the midst of the congratulations Abel raised his eyes to Mrs. Delilah
Jones, who sat conspicuous in the gallery.

CHAPTER LXXXIV.

PROSPECTS OF HAPPINESS.

The Honorable Abel Newt was the lion of the hour. Days of dinner
invitations and evening parties suddenly returned. He did not fail to use
the rising tide. It helped to float him more securely to the fulfillment
of his great work. Meanwhile he saw Mrs. Jones every day. She no longer
tried to play a game.

The report of his speech was scattered abroad in the papers. General
Belch rubbed his hands and expectorated with an energy that showed the
warmth of his feeling. Far away in quiet Delafield, when the news
arrived, Mr. Savory Gray lost no time in improving the pregnant text. The
great mor