Every eye in the hall was turned toward them and expressions of sympathy were heard from all sides. These object lessons had a good effect, but there was no time for more and Ralph hurried on with the statistics, confident that no more were needed. The list being completed, then came the question—Why was it that this town of Killsbury contributed the largest quota to the Fourth of July death roll of any town in the state? He sat down amidst cries of “why” and “shame on the town.”
“Yes, shame on the town,” said a man rising promptly in his seat; “and shame on Mr. Schwarmer. I think we all know that he is responsible for the surplus of accidents in this town. That it is directly due to his distribution of free fireworks among the ignorant and irresponsible classes; for I happen to know that he doesn’t always draw the line at the small boy. I saw him on one occasion throw boxes and boxes of firecrackers and cartridges among a crowd that had collected around, just as kings do money, and then stop and laugh to see the scrabbling after them.
“Still I suppose we ought to go slow in the matter of fixing the blame on Mr. Schwarmer—a valuable man and one who is supposed to have done or is expected to do so much for the town though I can’t just tell what he has done—can’t give the statistics, not having lived here always, as friend Pollock who sits by my side has. Perhaps he can tell you.”
“I’ll be plagued if I can think of a plaguy thing he’s done for this town,” said Pollock testily. “The fact is, he was born on the Town and our fathers fed him and clothed him and gave him a good send-off as soon as they saw that he had spunk enough in him to go. After he turned up in the Stock Exchange, he paid them off by tom-fooling their sons and taking every spare dollar from them to gamble with and lose for them and finally win back again into his own pocket. I know that well enough for I knew one of the tomfools. There were lots and lots of others, but they never told how they got sucked in. It leaked out little by little though and more than one spoke out plainly before they died; but it seems as though we were determined to be blind, deaf and dumb in the matter and all because he coddled us boys—giving us—what? Things to kill and disfigure ourselves with. You see this crippled hand, don’t you?” he added, holding up his right hand, which had three stiff fingers. “Well I am indebted to him for that and I’ve cursed him for it many a time in secret, but I’ve never been honest enough to out with it ’til now. That’s all he’s ever done for me. I can’t say as to the carpenters that built his house. I never heard that any of them got rich out of his carpentering though he built a big house for himself, then a big stable for his horses, and then an addition to the stable for more horses. All he’s ever done for the town is to make a big show up on the hill, with his sky-scraper and sky rockets. He has never benefited the people except with the kind of benefit that a cat may get by looking at a king.”
“That’s about it,” said a man in the back end of the hall, addressing his remarks to those immediately about him. “There was a time when the boys could go a fishing in the river and get a nice mess of Bull-heads for Fourth of July dinner. But now he owns the river and all that’s in it. He had Ben Hawley arrested last Fourth for fishing in his river. Humph! It won’t be long before he will own us as well as the river. He thinks he has more right to us now than the Lord Almighty.”
“Keoo!” shouted an overgrown lad. “The river is his and all that’s in it. Let’s dump some more of his traps in the river. I’ll help, by gar, I will!” At that moment Father Ferrill came in and took the noisy boy in charge.
CHAPTER XI.
APPEAL INSTEAD OF PROHIBITION.