It looks as if I have to go to jail or leave the country, and I’ve

“Don’t talk nonsense at this stage, Harper,” replied decided on jail. I can fight this out right here in Philadelphia Cowperwood almost testily. “I know whether I’m satisfied in the long run and win. I can get that decision reversed in the or not, and I’d soon tell you if I wasn’t. I think you might as Supreme Court, or I can get the Governor to pardon me after well go on and see if you can find some definite grounds for a time, I think. I’m not going to run away, and everybody carrying it to the Supreme Court, but meanwhile I’ll begin knows I’m not. These people who think they have me down my sentence. I suppose Payderson will be naming a day to haven’t got one corner of me whipped. I’ll get out of this thing have me brought before him now shortly.” after a while, and when I do I’ll show some of these petty little

“It depends on how you’d like to have it, Frank. I could get politicians what it means to put up a real fight. They’ll never a stay of sentence for a week maybe, or ten days, if it will do 384

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you any good. Shannon won’t make any objection to that, term of imprisonment was being reduced no whit thereby.

I’m sure. There’s only one hitch. Jaspers will be around here All that he could do now in connection with his affairs, un-tomorrow looking for you. It’s his duty to take you into cus-less he could have months of freedom, could be as well ad-tody again, once he’s notified that your appeal has been de-justed from a prison cell as from his Third Street office—not nied. He’ll be wanting to lock you up unless you pay him, quite, but nearly so. Anyhow, why parley? He was facing a but we can fix that. If you do want to wait, and want any prison term, and he might as well accept it without further time off, I suppose he’ll arrange to let you out with a deputy; ado. He might take a day or two finally to look after his but I’m afraid you’ll have to stay there nights. They’re pretty affairs; but beyond that, why bother?

strict about that since that Albertson case of a few years ago.”

“When, in the ordinary course of events, if you did noth-Steger referred to the case of a noted bank cashier who, ing at all, would I come up for sentence?” being let out of the county jail at night in the alleged cus-

“Oh, Friday or Monday, I fancy,” replied Steger. “I don’t tody of a deputy, was permitted to escape. There had been know what move Shannon is planning to make in this mat-emphatic and severe condemnation of the sheriff ’s office at ter. I thought I’d walk around and see him in a little while.” the time, and since then, repute or no repute, money or no

“I think you’d better do that,” replied Cowperwood. “Fri-money, convicted criminals were supposed to stay in the day or Monday will suit me, either way. I’m really not par-county jail at night at least.

ticular. Better make it Monday if you can. You don’t suppose Cowperwood meditated this calmly, looking out of the there is any way you can induce Jaspers to keep his hands off lawyer’s window into Second Street. He did not much fear until then? He knows I’m perfectly responsible.” anything that might happen to him in Jaspers’s charge since

“I don’t know, Frank, I’m sure; I’ll see. I’ll go around and his first taste of that gentleman’s hospitality, although he did talk to him to-night. Perhaps a hundred dollars will make object to spending nights in the county jail when his general him relax the rigor of his rules that much.” 385

The Financier

Cowperwood smiled grimly.

Chapter XLIX

“I fancy a hundred dollars would make Jaspers relax a whole lot of rules,” he replied, and he got up to go.

THE BUSINESS of arranging Cowperwood’s sentence for Mon-Steger arose also. “I’ll see both these people, and then I’ll call day was soon disposed of through Shannon, who had no around at your house. You’ll be in, will you, after dinner?” personal objection to any reasonable delay.

“Yes.”

Steger next visited the county jail, close on to five o’clock, They slipped on their overcoats and went out into the cold when it was already dark. Sheriff Jaspers came lolling out February day, Cowperwood back to his Third Street office, from his private library, where he had been engaged upon Steger to see Shannon and Jaspers.

the work of cleaning his pipe.

“How are you, Mr. Steger?” he observed, smiling blandly.

“How are you? Glad to see you. Won’t you sit down? I suppose you’re round here again on that Cowperwood matter. I just received word from the district attorney that he had lost his case.”

“That’s it, Sheriff,” replied Steger, ingratiatingly. “He asked me to step around and see what you wanted him to do in the matter. Judge Payderson has just fixed the sentence time for Monday morning at ten o’clock. I don’t suppose you’ll be much put out if he doesn’t show up here before Monday at eight o’clock, will you, or Sunday night, anyhow? He’s perfectly reliable, as you know.” Steger was sounding Jaspers 386

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out, politely trying to make the time of Cowperwood’s ar-

“It’s a very ticklish business, this, Mr. Steger,” put in the rival a trivial matter in order to avoid paying the hundred sheriff, yieldingly, and yet with a slight whimper in his voice.

dollars, if possible. But Jaspers was not to be so easily dis-

“If anything were to happen, it would cost me my place all posed of. His fat face lengthened considerably. How could right. I don’t like to do it under any circumstances, and I Steger ask him such a favor and not even suggest the slight-wouldn’t, only I happen to know both Mr. Cowperwood est form of remuneration?

and Mr. Stener, and I like ‘em both. I don’ think they got

“It’s ag’in’ the law, Mr. Steger, as you know,” he began, their rights in this matter, either. I don’t mind making an cautiously and complainingly. “I’d like to accommodate him, exception in this case if Mr. Cowperwood don’t go about too everything else being equal, but since that Albertson case publicly. I wouldn’t want any of the men in the district three years ago we’ve had to run this office much more care-attorney’s office to know this. I don’t suppose he’ll mind if I ful, and—”

keep a deputy somewhere near all the time for looks’ sake. I

“Oh, I know, Sheriff,” interrupted Steger, blandly, “but this have to, you know, really, under the law. He won’t bother isn’t an ordinary case in any way, as you can see for yourself.

him any. Just keep on guard like.” Jaspers looked at Mr. Steger Mr. Cowperwood is a very important man, and he has a great very flatly and wisely—almost placatingly under the circum-many things to attend to. Now if it were only a mere matter of stances—and Steger nodded.

seventy-five or a hundred dollars to satisfy some court clerk

“Quite right, Sheriff, quite right. You’re quite right,” and with, or to pay a fine, it would be easy enough, but—” He he drew out his purse while the sheriff led the way very cau-paused and looked wisely away, and Mr. Jaspers’s face began tiously back into his library.

to relax at once. The law against which it was ordinarily so

“I’d like to show you the line of law-books I’m fixing up hard to offend was not now so important. Steger saw that it for myself in here, Mr. Steger,” he observed, genially, but was needless to introduce any additional arguments.

meanwhile closing his fingers gently on the small roll of ten-387

The Financier

dollar bills Steger was handing him. “We have occasional evening, that he was thinking that this might be his last night use for books of that kind here, as you see. I thought it a here. His air and walk indicated no weakening of spirit. He good sort of thing to have them around.” He waved one arm entered the hall, where an early lamp was aglow, and en-comprehensively at the line of State reports, revised statutes, countered “Wash” Sims, an old negro factotum, who was prison regulations, etc., the while he put the money in his just coming up from the basement, carrying a bucket of coal pocket and Steger pretended to look.

for one of the fireplaces.

“A good idea, I think, Sheriff. Very good, indeed. So you

“Mahty cold out, dis evenin’, Mistah Coppahwood,” said think if Mr. Cowperwood gets around here very early Mon-Wash, to whom anything less than sixty degrees was very day morning, say eight or eight-thirty, that it will be all right?” cold. His one regret was that Philadelphia was not located in

“I think so,” replied the sheriff, curiously nervous, but agree-North Carolina, from whence he came.

able, anxious to please. “I don’t think that anything will come

“’Tis sharp, Wash,” replied Cowperwood, absentmindedly.

up that will make me want him earlier. If it does I’ll let you He was thinking for the moment of the house and how it know, and you can produce him. I don’t think so, though, Mr.

had looked, as he came toward it west along Girard Avenue—

Steger; I think everything will be all right.” They were once what the neighbors were thinking of him, too, observing more in the main hall now. “Glad to have seen you again, Mr.

him from time to time out of their windows. It was clear and Steger—very glad,” he added. “Call again some day.” cold. The lamps in the reception-hall and sitting-room had Waving the sheriff a pleasant farewell, he hurried on his been lit, for he had permitted no air of funereal gloom to way to Cowperwood’s house.

settle down over this place since his troubles had begun. In You would not have thought, seeing Cowperwood mount the far west of the street a last tingling gleam of lavender and the front steps of his handsome residence in his neat gray violet was showing over the cold white snow of the roadway.

suit and well-cut overcoat on his return from his office that The house of gray-green stone, with its lighted windows, 388

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and cream-colored lace curtains, had looked especially at-note from him, and I fancy it’s about that.” tractive. He had thought for the moment of the pride he had He did not care to say squarely that he had lost. He knew taken in putting all this here, decorating and ornamenting that she was sufficiently distressed as it was, and he did not it, and whether, ever, he could secure it for himself again.

care to be too abrupt just now.

“Where is your mistress?” he added to Wash, when he be-

“You don’t say!” replied Lillian, with surprise and fright in thought himself.

her voice, and getting up.

“In the sitting-room, Mr. Coppahwood, ah think.” She had been so used to a world where prisons were scarcely Cowperwood ascended the stairs, thinking curiously that thought of, where things went on smoothly from day to day Wash would soon be out of a job now, unless Mrs.

without any noticeable intrusion of such distressing things as Cowperwood, out of all the wreck of other things, chose to courts, jails, and the like, that these last few months had driven retain him, which was not likely. He entered the sitting-room, her nearly mad. Cowperwood had so definitely insisted on and there sat his wife by the oblong center-table, sewing a her keeping in the background—he had told her so very little hook and eye on one of Lillian, second’s, petticoats. She that she was all at sea anyhow in regard to the whole proce-looked up, at his step, with the peculiarly uncertain smile dure. Nearly all that she had had in the way of intelligence she used these days—indication of her pain, fear, suspicion—

had been from his father and mother and Anna, and from a and inquired, “Well, what is new with you, Frank?” Her smile close and almost secret scrutiny of the newspapers.

was something like a hat or belt or ornament which one puts At the time he had gone to the county jail she did not even on or off at will.

know anything about it until his father had come back from

“Nothing in particular,” he replied, in his offhand way, the court-room and the jail and had broken the news to her.

“except that I understand I have lost that appeal of mine.