ements in the last ten, and notwithstanding this fact, had paid
twenty per cent, and even twenty-five per cent per annum in dividends.
All the details of cost and expenditure were figured out, and then the
mayor with his counsel took the train for the State capitol.

Never was there more excitement in political circles than when this
young representative of no important political organization whatsoever
arrived at the State capitol and walked, at the appointed time, into the
private audience room of the commission. Every gas company, as well as
every newspaper and every other representative of the people, had
curiously enough become interested in the fight he was making, and there
was a band of reporters at the hotel where he was stopping, as well as
in the commission chambers in the State capitol where the hearing was to
be. They wanted to know about him--why he was doing this, whether it
wasn't a "strike" or the work of some rival corporation. The fact that
he might foolishly be sincere was hard to believe.

"Gentlemen," said the mayor, as he took his stand in front of an august
array of legal talent which was waiting to pick his argument to pieces
in the commission chambers at the capitol, "I miscalculated but one
thing in this case which I am about to lay before you, and that is the
extent of public interest. I came here prepared to make a private
argument, but now I want to ask the privilege of making it public. I see
the public itself is interested, or should be. I will ask leave to
postpone my argument until the day after tomorrow."

There was considerable hemming and hawing over this, since from the
point of view of the corporation it was most undesirable, but the
commission was practically powerless to do aught but grant his request.
And meanwhile the interest created by the newspapers added power to his
cause. Hunting up the several representatives and senators from his
district, he compelled them to take cognizance of the cause for which he
was battling, and when the morning of the public hearing arrived a large
audience was assembled in the chamber of representatives.

When the final moment arrived the young mayor came forward, and after
making a very simple statement of the cause which led him to request a
public hearing and the local condition which he considered unfair begged
leave to introduce an expert, a national examiner of gas plants and
lighting facilities, for whom he had sent, and whose twenty y