ransom shut, and
smoke was coming out of the windows.

Yes, Mr. Bijah Bixby is the canny captain of whom Mr. Balch spoke: he
it is who owns that block of river towns, intact, and the one senator.
Impossible! We have seen him opening the packing cases, we have seen him
working for the Worthington faction for the last two years. Mr.
Bixby was very willing to open boxes, and to make himself useful and
agreeable; but it must be remembered that a good captain of mercenaries
owes a sacred duty to his followers. At first Mr. Flint had thought he
could count on Mr. Bixby; after a while he made several unsuccessful
attempts to talk business with him; a particularly difficult thing to
do, even for Mr. Flint, when Mr. Bixby did not wish to talk business.
Mr. Balch had found it quite as difficult to entice Mr. Bixby away from
the boxes and the Railroad Room. The weeks drifted on, until twelve went
by, and then Mr. Bixby found himself, with his block of river towns and
one senator, in the incomparable position of being the arbiter of the
fate of the Consolidation Bill in the House and Senate. No wonder Mr.
Balch wanted to buy the services of that famous regiment at any price!

But Mr. Bixby, for once in his life, had waited too long.

When Mr. Balch, rejoicing, but not a little indignant at not having
been taken into confidence, ascended to the Throne Room after supper to
question Jethro concerning the meaning of the things he had heard, he
found Senator Peleg Hartington seated mournfully on the bed, talking at
intervals, and Jethro listening.

"Come up and eat out of my hand," said the senator.

"Who?" demanded Mr. Balch.

"Bije," answered the senator.

"Great Scott, do you mean to say you've got Bixby?" exclaimed the
railroad president. He felt as if he would like to shake the senator,
who was so deliberate and mournful in his answers. "What did you pay
him?"

Mr. Hartington appeared shocked by the question.

"Guess Heth Sutton will settle with him," he said.

"Heth Sutton! Why the--why should Heth pay him?"

"Guess Heth'd like to make him a little present, under the
circumstances. I was goin' through the barber shop," Mr. Hartington
continued, speaking to Jethro and ignoring the railroad president,
"and I heard somebody whisperin' my name. Sound came out of that little
shampoo closet; went in there and found Bije. 'Peleg,' says he, right
into my ear, 'tell Jethro it's all right--you understand. We want Heth
to go ba