"My boy," he asked, "has the enemy captured you while you've been
resting on your arms? Remember, there are slick and specious ways of
making the wrong seem right in politics! I hope you haven't been
tampered with!"
For a guilty moment Harlan remembered the admonitions of Madeleine
Presson. He was promptly ashamed that they had come to his mind when the
Governor spoke his fears.
"I'm going to tell you just why I'm a bit slow in this matter," he said,
manfully. "It may seem a trivial reason to you, Governor Waymouth. I
stopped to wonder how it would affect my friendship with the Presson
family if I should introduce that bill."
"Oh, I see how the land lies! You can understand now how old I am--old
and cold with all the romance burned out of me! I'd forgotten that
there's anything except politics left in the world. So--" He paused,
beaming kindly on the young man, and pursing his lips ready for the
jocose supposition that Harlan foresaw and anticipated.
"No," he declared, flushing, "it isn't that way. It hasn't gone that
far, Governor.
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