rough the
auspices of the local city machine. Remember Jimmy Walker?"

Spanding nodded. "Yes, but--"

"Same thing," Cannon cut in. "Bossard was innocent, as far as any
criminal intent was concerned, but he was too easy on his so-called
friends. He--"

"Oh, _crud_, Jim!" the governor interrupted vehemently. "That's the same
whitewash that Matthew Fisher gave him! The evidence would have
convicted Bossard if Fisher hadn't given him time to cover up!"

* * * * *

Senator James Cannon suddenly became angry. He jammed his own cigarette
butt into the ash tray, turned toward Spanding, and snapped: "Harry,
just for the sake of argument, let's suppose that Bossard wasn't
actually guilty. Let's suppose that the Constitution of the United
States is really true--that a man isn't guilty until he's proven guilty.

"Just _suppose_"--his voice and expression became suddenly acid--"that
Bossard was _not_ guilty. Try that, huh? Pretend, somewhere in your own
little mind, that a mere accusation--no matter what the
evidence--doesn't prove anything! Let's just make a little game between
the two of us that the ideal of Equality Under the Law means what it
says. Want to play?"

"Well, yes, but--"

"O.K.," Cannon went on angrily. "O.K. Then let's suppose that Bossard
really _was_ stupid. He could have been framed easily, couldn't he? He
could have been set up as a patsy, couldn't he? _Couldn't he?_"

"Well, sure, but--"

"Sure! Then go on and suppose that the prosecuting attorney had sense
enough to see that Bossard _had_ been framed. Suppose further that the
prosecutor was enough of a human being to know that Bossard either had
to be convicted or completely exonerated. What would he do?"

Governor Spanding carefully put his cigarette into the nearest ash tray.
"If that were the case, I'd _completely_ exonerate him. I wouldn't leave
it hanging. Matt Fisher didn't do anything but make sure that Bossard
couldn't be legally convicted; he didn't prove that Bossard was
innocent."

"And what was the result, as far as Bossard was concerned?" the senator
asked.

Spanding looked around at the senator, staring Cannon straight in the
face. "The result was that Bossard was left hanging, Jim. If I go along
with you and assume that Bossard was innocent, then Fisher fouled up
just as badly as he would have if he'd fluffed the prosecution of a
guilty man. Either a man is guilty, or he's innocent. If, according t