on being so critical. Perhaps fifteen or
eighteen thousand would be necessary to poll the number of votes
required either way. At the last hour, before stuffing the boxes, he
would learn how the city was going. If it looked favorable for the
Republicans it would be easy to complete the victory and complain that
his lieutenants had been suborned. If it looked certain for the
Democrats he could throw Gilgan and pocket his funds. In either case
he would be "in" twenty-five to thirty thousand dollars, and he would
still be councilman.

"All very fine," replied Mr. Kerrigan, pretending a dullness which he
did not feel; "but it's damned ticklish business at best. I don't know
that I want anything to do with it even if we could win. It's true the
City Hall crowd have never played into my hands very much; but this is
a Democratic district, and I'm a Democrat. If it ever got out that I
had thrown the party it would be pretty near all day with me.

"I'm a man of my word," declared Mr. Gilgan, emphatically, getting up.
"I never threw a man or a bet in my life. Look at me record in the
eighteenth. Did you ever hear any one say that I had?"

"No, I never did," returned Kerrigan, mildly. "But it's a pretty large
thing you're proposing, Mr. Gilgan. I wouldn't want to say what I
thought about it offhand. This ward is supposed to be Democratic. It
couldn't be swung over into the Republican column without a good bit of
fuss being made about it. You'd better see Mr. Tiernan first and hear
what he has to say. Afterward I might be willing to talk about it
further. Not now, though--not now."

Mr. Gilgan went away quite jauntily and cheerfully. He was not at all
downcast.

Chapter XXXVI

An Election Draws Near

Subsequently Mr. Kerrigan called on Mr. Tiernan casually. Mr. Tiernan
returned the call. A little later Messrs. Tiernan, Kerrigan, and
Gilgan, in a parlor-room in a small hotel in Milwaukee (in order not to
be seen together), conferred. Finally Messrs. Tiernan, Edstrom,
Kerrigan, and Gilgan met and mapped out a programme of division far too
intricate to be indicated here. Needless to say, it involved the
division of chief clerks, pro rata, of police graft, of gambling and
bawdy-house perquisites, of returns from gas, street-railway, and other
organizations. It was sealed with many solemn promises. If it could
be made effective this quadrumvirate was to endure for years. Judges,
small magistrates,